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Terry Teachout on the arts in New York City

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Archives for February 18, 2016

Hither, yon, and back again

February 18, 2016 by Terry Teachout

satchmoThe Court Theatre’s production of Satchmo at the Waldorf closed on Sunday. Barry Shabaka Henley’s final performance was, by all accounts, a knockout. Meanwhile, the American Conservatory Theatre’s remounting of the off-Broadway production of Satchmo has now transferred to TheatreWorks in Colorado Springs, where it opens tonight.

Would that I could have been in Chicago on Sunday or could be in Colorado tonight, but I was in Florida on Sunday, and on Wednesday morning I flew from there to New York to see two shows, the New York premiere of Lydia R. Diamond’s Smart People and the Broadway transfer of Stephen Karam’s The Humans. Two shows in one day is a bit much for me—especially when I have to get up at five in the morning in order to catch a plane to see them—but I did what I had to do, and today I am, so far as I can tell, none the worse for wear. I still have one more New York show to catch, Forest Whitaker’s Broadway debut in Eugene O’Neill’s Hughie, after which I’ll return to Florida and Mrs. T.

SATCHMO SET (PBD)Needless to say, I haven’t been in Florida for pleasure. Not only have I been reviewing shows there, but on Friday I had my first face-to-face production meeting for Palm Beach Dramaworks’ upcoming production of Satchmo, which I’ll be directing and about which you’ll be hearing much more in due course. Among other things, I got a look at the preliminary model for Michael Amico’s set, which is always, as I have now learned from
experience, a hugely exciting moment. Of course I knew that the production was real—I signed the contract a few weeks ago—but you know it’s real when you see what it’s going to look like.

In addition to all this frenzied activity, I wrote the first draft of a new play over the weekend. I can’t say anything more about it for the moment, but it looks like something may come of it. Watch this space for details.

And now, if you’ll pardon me, I’ve got to write Friday’s Wall Street Journal review of the shows I saw yesterday. Never a dull moment around this shop.

So you want to see a show?

February 18, 2016 by Terry Teachout

Here’s my list of recommended Broadway, off-Broadway, and out-of-town shows, updated weekly. In all cases, I gave these shows favorable reviews (if sometimes qualifiedly so) in The Wall Street Journal when they opened. For more information, click on the title.

BROADWAY:
• An American in Paris (musical, G, too complex for small children, reviewed here)
• The Color Purple (musical, PG-13, most performances sold out last week, reviewed here)
• Fun Home (serious musical, PG-13, most performances sold out last week, reviewed here)
• Hamilton (musical, PG-13, all performances sold out last week, reviewed here)
• The King and I (musical, G, perfect for children with well-developed attention spans, reviewed here)
• Matilda (musical, G, reviewed here)
• Les Misérables (musical, G, too long and complicated for young children, closes Sept. 4, reviewed here)
• On Your Feet! (jukebox musical, G, reviewed here)

OFF BROADWAY:
• The Fantasticks (musical, G, suitable for children capable of enjoying a love story, reviewed here)
tn-500_screenshot2016-01-25at1.44.26pm.png• Prodigal Son (drama, PG-13, extended through March 27, reviewed here)
• Sense & Sensibility (serious romantic comedy, G, remounting of 2014 off-Broadway production, closes April 10, original production reviewed here)

IN SARASOTA, FLA.:
• Ah, Wilderness! (comedy, PG-13, closing April 10, reviewed here)

CLOSING SOON ON BROADWAY:
• Noises Off (farce, PG-13, most performances sold out last week, closes March 6, reviewed here)

CLOSING SATURDAY IN SARASOTA, FLA.:
• Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (drama, PG-13, reviewed here)

CLOSING SUNDAY IN WASHINGTON, D.C.:
• Sweat (drama, PG-13, remounting of Oregon Shakespeare Festival production, original production reviewed here)

Almanac: Proust on collectors

February 18, 2016 by Terry Teachout

INK BOTTLE“Certainly, it is more reasonable to devote one’s life to women than to postage stamps or old snuff-boxes, even to pictures or statues.”

Marcel Proust, The Guermantes Way

Terry Teachout

Terry Teachout, who writes this blog, is the drama critic of The Wall Street Journal and the critic-at-large of Commentary. In addition to his Wall Street Journal drama column and his monthly essays … [Read More...]

About

About “About Last Night”

This is a blog about the arts in New York City and the rest of America, written by Terry Teachout. Terry is a critic, biographer, playwright, director, librettist, recovering musician, and inveterate blogger. In addition to theater, he writes here and elsewhere about all of the other arts--books, … [Read More...]

About My Plays and Opera Libretti

Billy and Me, my second play, received its world premiere on December 8, 2017, at Palm Beach Dramaworks in West Palm Beach, Fla. Satchmo at the Waldorf, my first play, closed off Broadway at the Westside Theatre on June 29, 2014, after 18 previews and 136 performances. That production was directed … [Read More...]

About My Podcast

Peter Marks, Elisabeth Vincentelli, and I are the panelists on “Three on the Aisle,” a bimonthly podcast from New York about theater in America. … [Read More...]

About My Books

My latest book is Duke: A Life of Duke Ellington, published in 2013 by Gotham Books in the U.S. and the Robson Press in England and now available in paperback. I have also written biographies of Louis Armstrong, George Balanchine, and H.L. Mencken, as well as a volume of my collected essays called A … [Read More...]

The Long Goodbye

To read all three installments of "The Long Goodbye," a multi-part posting about the experience of watching a parent die, go here. … [Read More...]

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