★★☆☆☆ A disappointingly preachy revue from HERE and LaMaMa overstates its case for “the people’s plant”
Off-Broadway
Notre Dame de Paris: French Import Is Less Than Monumental
★★☆☆☆ This ‘musical spectacle’ take on the Hunchback’s tale is both over-the-top and underwhelming
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance: Western Stage Adaptation Hits Target
★★★★☆ An outstanding cast shines in this stage adaptation of the short story on which the John Wayne-Jimmy Stewart film was based
Between the Lines: Targeting That “Wicked” Audience
★★★☆☆ A troubled teenage girl finds love with a fairy tale prince come to life in this musical based on the YA novel by Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer.
Richard III: Shakespeare’s Crooked in Several Ways Villain as Court Fashion Plate
★★★☆☆ Director Robert O’Hara has his own thoughts about the tragedy, with Danai Gurira as the last York monarch
Hamlet: The William Shakespeare Classic Declassified, and the Rest Is Silence
★★★☆☆ The Almeida Theatre production, directed by Robert Icke, with Alex Lawther as Hamlet, Jennifer Ehle as Gertrude
Epiphany: You Won’t Have One
★★★☆☆ Joyce meets Godot in Brian Watkins’ play about a dinner party on a snowy wintry evening.
Chains: Brit Playwright Elizabeth Baker, in Mint Condition
★★★★☆ A 113-year-old British drama proves to be an ideal pandemic-era production
Chains: Worries and Wanderlust in Early 20th Century England
★★★★☆ Mint Theater Company mines the enduring relevance of Elizabeth Baker’s problem play
Corsicana: Will Arbery in a Lone Star State of Mind
★★★☆☆ Everything’s bigger in Texas, including this protracted four-character play