Alex Simmons

A HEAUX-LY COMMUNION Ars Nova kicks off its 2025–2026 season with a salacious and sanctified evening featuring Brandon Kyle Goodman in Heaux Church—a sermon on unabashed self-love (and yes, “Heaux” is pronounced “ho”). You can file this delightful solo show under Off-Broadway, but once you step into the theater… ahem… chapel, it’s clear we’re in…

NOTHING CAN TAKE YOU FROM JEN TULLOCK’S PERFORMANCE We’ve all seen the headline flash on TV:  — New Book Tells All About Author’s Escape from Restrictive Religious Upbringing. It’ss a story that gets covered countless times, no matter what religion or community is involved. People love a tale of empowerment and escape from oppression. Throw…

MIND OVER MATTER: IDEAS TAKE CENTER STAGE IN JOHNATHAN SPECTOR’S INTELLECTUALLY COMPELLING THIS MUCH I KNOW When was the last time you made a choice? What went through your mind? Did you know what you were going to choose before you did it? The psychology professor (Firdous Bamji) who steps onstage at 59E59 Theaters at…

A KNOCKOUT OF CONSCIENCE You always “step in,” says Jacob — that’s what you do when your mates are about to fight. Growing up in The Meadows, Nottingham, that lesson kept him safe (well, safer) than some. But now the loyalty that once protected him has undone him: a single punch, thrown in defense of…

LOU WALL SLAYS, AND THAT’S NO LIE Whether a comedian is obligated to tell the truth in their act comes up in mainstream discourse every once and a while. Plenty of comedians start a comedy bit with “You know, a funny thing happened to me on my way over here,” knowing full well it happened…

THIS SOW BELONGS TO EVERYBODY There’s the actor’s nightmare, there’s nightmare productions, and then there’s Excorcistic: The Rock Musical which is nightmarishly twisted and sick. But don’t worry, it’s a good thing here. The horror musical genre is alive and well, from classics like Sweeney Todd to rock musical adaptations of horror films like Evil…

SINSATIONAL SENSATIONALISM OR, WHAT HAPPENS IN TIMES SQUARE, STAYS IN TIMES SQUARE Escape artistry emerged as a formal performance art in the 1860s, when the Davenport Brothers popularized their rope-escape act—paving the way for Harry Houdini, whose name became nearly synonymous with the craft by the 1890s. Carrying on this proud, magic-adjacent tradition is Lord…

HOLY LAND, HOLY LAUGHS Comedy goes a lot of places, and some say a comedian can and should be able to joke about anything. But what if a comedian wants to go to Israel and the Palestinian territories? What if that comedian wants to tell jokes about it? Jon Schnitzer is not the first comedian…

A BEACON OF NOPE A secluded matriarch, a remote cottage on the Irish coast, and a haunting family secret. The key components of an Irish drama are here. Yet despite strong performances and a haunting ambience, The Beacon leaves its audience searching the horizon after the final bow. First presented at Garry Hynes’ distinguished Druid…

One of the most difficult crises to recover from is assault, let alone the assault from an intimate partner. Do you tell anyone? Do you confront? Do you forgive? To muse over these questions, Tony-nominated playwright Marin Ireland (Ironbound) offers the harrowing process of life after a lover’s assault with Pre-Existing Condition, now playing at…