New York

PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST AS FIVE GAYS Paul Kubicki’s wildly inventive cycle of short plays finds humor, heartbreak, and humanity in unexpected places If Tennessee Williams and Cole Escola had an artistic progeny, the result might look something like Paul Kubicki’s Portraits of Gays in Despair: A Cycle of 5 Plays. Beginning with a vignette…

NOT WAITING FOR GODOT… WAITING FOR THE DINOSAUR This delightfully confounding absurdist comedy won’t convert skeptics, but devotees of the genre may find much to admire Halfway through What a World! What a World!, a pink dinosaur toy interrupts the action and powers onstage. The actors stop and stare. The toy stops and turns upstage…

SAD BOYS, WILD PLAYS Where Peter Thiel, Judy Garland, and anal warts somehow make perfect sense Theatrical experiences often move us with realism. Other times we end up with a musical number featuring an actor in drag portraying Judy Garland seeking treatment for anal warts. That’s the kind of outlandish novelty inside Portraits of Gays…

A TOAST TO TOXIC JUSTICE A visually ravishing musical transforms vengeance into exhilarating theater Thanks to director Mary Zimmerman, scenic designer Daniel Ostling, and lighting designer T.J. Gerckens, there is remarkable artistry on display at PAC NYC, where the thrilling new musical Giulia: The Poison Queen of Palermo opened tonight. Topping off this impressive creative…

THE SIN HUNTER An unsettling and darkly funny portrait of moral obsession Enda Walsh’s Misterman is probably theatre’s longest continuous nervous breakdown, and Origin Theatre Company‘s revival at Theater Row, presented as part of the 2026 Origin Irish Theatre Festival, is a fascinating production directed by Labhaoise Magee, starring Daniel Marconi as Thomas Magill. Walsh’s…

REACHING FOR MORE An engaging journey, once it finds its rhythm. Based on the 1999 film of the same name, the new musical A Walk on the Moon makes its New York premiere at the Laura Pels Theatre with book and additional lyrics by original screenwriter Pamela Gray, music and lyrics by AnnMarie Milazzo, and…

WAR OF THE ROSES, BLOOMING AGAIN Five hours fly by in this gripping, emotionally rich adaptation. William Shakespeare is generally considered one of the greatest playwrights the world has ever known. His plays demonstrate a depth of insight into human psychology, political maneuvering, affairs of the heart, ruthless violence, and the humanity of various social…

INTENTS LOVE Victoria Lynne Barclay’s impressive debut traces a friendship—and a missed connection—across twenty-five years The world premiere of Camping by Victoria Lynne Barclay offers a genuine surprise: this is her professional debut as a playwright. You’d never guess it after witnessing this two-hander unfold across eight scenes spanning twenty-five years of friendship. The play…

SOMEWHERE, STILL Paper Mill Playhouse proves that a classic doesn’t need fixing The powerful and poignant West Side Story has been retooled, tweaked, and tinkered with in the years since the original 1957 production boldly burst forth on Broadway. Not every change was for the better. For a change, those presenting the version at Paper…

BORDERING ON TRAGEDY Saheem Ali’s politically charged staging complicates Shakespeare’s timeless tale— but the young lovers still shine through This year’s Shakespeare in the Park presents the Bard’s most enduring love story, Romeo & Juliet, where bright youthful innocence collides with dark adult cynicism, and love finds itself trapped in a feud so ancient that…

FAITH, HOPE, AND QUEERITY: AMEN TO THAT Flux Theatre Ensemble finds grace where religion and identity collide One of the great joys of theatergoing in New York City is discovering the countless small companies producing work that rivals established organizations. Add Flux Theatre Ensemble to that list. Its current production, Fear & Wonder, is ambitious,…