★★★★☆ What is devised as a re-creation of a small-town debate turns out to be invigorating entertainment
The Lehman Trilogy: Theatrical Magnificence from Sam Mendes, at the Armory
★★★★★ This compelling chronicle of the rise and fall of the American finance family is not to be missed
Smart Blonde: The Life and Times of a Beloved Broadway Funny Lady
★★★☆☆ Andréa Burns shines as the not-born-yesterday Judy Holliday
I Married an Angel: A Rodgers and Hart Encore at Encores!
★★★☆☆ The highly praised fantasy musical from 1938 looks earthbound 80 years later
The Mother: Family Affairs Française, Outside Buffalo
★★☆☆☆ Florian Zeller follows up his sterling The Father with a less-intriguing The Mother
The Cake: Marriage, Bigotry, and Pink Lemonade Buttercream
★★★☆☆ Debra Jo Rupp scores as a bigoted baker in Bekah Brunstetter’s new play at Manhattan Theatre Club
The Play That Goes Wrong: Murderous Merriment Moves to Hell(’s Kitchen)
★★★★☆ The long-running British comedy hit retains its lode of laughs as it transfers off-Broadway
Merrily We Roll Along: A Glittering Jewel Revealed
★★★★★ Fiasco Theater rethinks Sondheim and Furth’s backward-through-time musical, with dazzling results
The Day Before Spring: Early Lerner and Loewe, on Their Way
★★★☆☆ The York’s exhumation of an all-but-lost musical exhibits songwriters on the verge of greatness
Call Me Madam: Political Satire 70 Years Later, Without Ethel Merman
★★★★☆ Encores’ latest is a thorough charmer, though not quite the blockbuster it could be