Reviewing the Drama: Broadway, Off-Broadway, Ballet, Movies, and TV Reviews

Double features and the silent movie era were a thing of the past long before I started going to movies, but as a student of the arts, I always find it to be such a treat when an anachronistic piece comes my way. And it was a treat, indeed, to watch Susan Stroman’s Double Feature at City Ballet. This double feature consists of The Blue Necklace and Makin’ Whoopee! The former uses a selection of Irving Berlin songs while the latter is set to tunes from Walter Donaldson. (Stroman and Glen Kelly are credited with the libretto for both.) I never would have thought of it, but ballet lends itself to silent film because both mediums are forms of silent storytelling. (This seems so obvious – I don’t know what I never made this connection.) In both pieces, Ms. Stroman ( Forthe Love of Duke , The Scottsboro Boys ) succeeds in melding these two art forms, creating theatrical, engaging and wonderfully danced narrative ballets. First up is The Blue Necklace . Here we follow the st...

The Great Gatsby It's here! The trailer for Baz Luhrmann's adaptation of the classic F. Scott Fitzgerald novel, The Great Gatsby , starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire and Carey Mulligan has been released. This. Looks. Incredible. It comes to a theater near you on December 25, 2012. Anchorman: The Legend Continues Exclusive Anchorman 2 Teaser from Will Ferrell Peter and the Starcatcher Starstuff Another week means another episode of Boy's Life , the Adam Chanler-Berat-hosted behind-the-scenes look at Peter and the Starcatcher . In this week's episode, Chanler-Berat reports on the scene at the Starcatcher lottery. Watch below ! And then head over to Broadway.com to take a look at these photos of the Starcatcher cast greeting notable audience members , like Tony host Neil Patrick Harris! Plus, Playbill gets the scoop on the pineapple motif at Starcatcher . (Hint: Playwright Rick Elice says, "pineapples were the iPa...

The Newsroom : Trailer #3 Want more Aaron Sorkin? Here's video of his commencement address to the 2012 class of his alma mater, Syracuse University. Want even more Aaron Sorkin? Here you go: It is now confirmed that Sorkin will write the screenplay for a Steve Jobs biopic. Sorkin will adapt Walter Isaacson's book Steve Jobs for the screen. The Hollywood Reporter has details . Casting News Dan Stevens, who stars as Matthew Crawley on Downton Abbey , will be bringing his good looks and exceptional talent to Broadway this fall in The Heiress . Stevens joins the previously announced Jessica Chastain ( The Help , Take Shelter ) and David Strathairn ( Good Night and Good Luck ). The Heiress is set to bow on Broadway this October, though specific dates and a theatre have yet to be announced. Visit Playbill for more details . (Also: In January 2013, Downton Abbey will return to PBS for its third season!) Theatre Award Season Update The Tony poster has b...

“A good relationship is worth a good fight,” claims the tagline of the beautifully written Cock , now playing at the Duke on 42nd Street. And so for 90 minutes, we watch lovers fight, and along the way we are asked to explore how our identities are tied to those we love. The title of British playwright Mike Bartlett’s play is provocative and that’s a good thing because so is the carefully crafted content. But let’s talk about the title for a moment, because I know you’re all curious! Yes, it does, in part refer to a penis. Cock centers on a lovers’ triangle so what a certain member of the triangle does with his cock is paramount to the goings on of the play. But the logo for the play uses the image of a rooster, and so it follows that the title also refers to a cockfight. As the tagline promises, in Cock we see some pretty good and heavy hitting cockfights. Pursuant to the playwright’s express intentions, scenic (and costume) designer Miriam Buether sets the action of the ...

Though New York City Ballet has a blessedly rich repertoire, every season brings new works, and on Tuesday night, I got to see the latest from Ballet Master in Chief Peter Martins and former company principal dancer Benjamin Millepied. An old favorite, Fancy Free , capped off the evening. We begin with Martins’s new ballet, Mes Oiseaux , or My Birds. Set to music by Marc-Andre Dalbavie created for piano, violin and cello, this ballet began with very staccato music and movement. It almost seemed unfinished, unpolished - like something was missing. The lifts, for example, stayed so low to the ground, Taylor Stanley, who was lifting his three ladies, Lauren Lovette, Ashly Isaacs and Claire Kretzschmar, looked restricted and like it was hard work. (I’m certain a lift of any kind is hard work, but it usually doesn’t look like it; typically, the ballerina is lifted with what looks like ease and grace.) As I continued to watch, and the dancers dragged their feet in the turns, it bec...

RIP, Maurice Sendak and Adam "MCA" Yauch , the man who wrote about the wild rumpus and the man who rapped about it. You'll be missed. Videos of the Week Raul Esparza Answers Your Questions : Sadly, we learned this week that Leap of Faith will close this Sunday. The joyous new musical is the victim of harsh (and, I might add, unfair and unjust) criticism and a lack of Tony nominations. (It received just one, Best Musical.) When it closes on the 13th , Leap of Faith will have played 24 previews and 20 regular performances. No word yet on whether there'll be a cast recording, though my guess is there won't be. I'll keep you posted on that. Before the announcement was made, though, star Raul Esparza took the time to answer questions submitted by Broadway.com readers. Watch below! Jessie Mueller, Show People : Theatre Award Season New York Times theatre critics Ben Brantley and Charles Isherwood named their predictions and picks for ...