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01/26/2023 08:26 AMInnovation: Hartford Stage is presenting the New England premiere of Espejos: Clean, a bilingual play (English and Spanish) that will feature supertitles continuously in both languages. It tells the story of two women: Adriana, who is the manager of housekeeping at a Cancun resort, and Sarah, a Canadian attending her sister’s destination wedding. The show runs through Sunday, Feb. 5. For tickets, visit HartfordStage.org.
Clarity? Long Wharf Theatre is offering some clarity about its plans, having left its long-term theater, production facilities, and offices on Long Wharf Drive. In December, the theater announced a “new partnership” with Southern Connecticut State University. As was outlined, this will include using SCSU’s Lyman Auditorium for some performances, storing some sets/costumes, etc., on the campus, and providing opportunities to students. The announcement stressed that this was not a “residency” and emphasized that the Long Wharf would “bring theatre, without barriers, to new spaces and stages.” Let’s see what it all really means.
GoodWorks: The pandemic derailed Goodspeed’s annual Festival of New Musicals, a highlight each January of new musicals that were given staged productions as the writing teams worked with professionals and students. Now the theater has announced a formal program to commission new works that “celebrate inspiring and transformational stories.” The first two commissions are The Snow Goose, inspired by the Paul Gallico novella of the same name, and Little Miss Perfect, inspired by the song by Joriah Kwamé.
Outraged: Playhouse on Park in West Hartford starts 2023 with the Paula Vogel play Indecent. This fascinating work — I saw it both at Yale Rep and on Broadway — tells the story of the controversial 1923 Broadway debut of God of Vengeance by Jewish playwright Sholem Asch. The production led to the cast being arrested and tried for indecency. It runs until Sunday, Feb. 26. For tickets, visit PlayhouseOnPark.org
Miss Julie Adaptation: TheaterWorks is starting the new year with the New England premiere of Queen of Basel. The Strindberg play tells the story of an aristocratic strong-willed young woman who has an affair with her father’s valet at midsummer celebrations. The adaptation is set at Miami’s Art Basel and involves three Latinx characters: a real estate heiress; John, an Uber driver; and Christine, a waitress who is John’s fiancé. The show runs from Friday, Feb. 3, through Sunday, Feb. 26. For tickets, visit TWHartford.org.
A Celebrity Ghost: MTC in Norwalk opens 2023 with a comedy, I Hate Hamlet, from Friday, Feb. 3 to Sunday, Feb. 19. The play is set in an NYC apartment, once the home of actor John Barrymore, who won critical acclaim in Hamlet. He haunts the apartment now rented by an actor about to play the famous role. For tickets, visit MusicTheatreOfCT.com.
In Memorium: We should remember those theater people we lost in 2022. The most well-known are Sidney Poitier, Angela Lansbury, Robert Morse, William Hurt, and legendary director Peter Brooks. But while they might not be household names, others made significant contributions to theater in NYC and Connecticut: actors Paul Sorvino, Pat Carroll, and Robert Clary. Emilio Delgado, best known for his work on Sesame Street, appeared recently at Hartford Stage. Mary Alice stunned us with her performance in Fences at its world premiere at Yale Rep.
We also lost Robert LuPone, the original Zach in A Chorus Line and a fine director, and Rita Gardiner, the original Girl in The Fantasticks. Two insightful critics are no longer with us: Terry Teachout, who wrote mainly for The Wall Street Journal, and Michael Finegold, who wrote for The Village Voice. Plus, we lost famed scenic and costume designer Tony Walton, Lucy Simon, who wrote The Secret Garden, and James Rado, one of the creators of Hair.
Broadway closings: January is often the time when shows that have been struggling close. This year is no exception. Among the shows that either closed in December or will close in January are 1776, Ain’t No Mo’, Almost Famous, KPOP, and Beetlejuice. In addition, a number of shows had always planned limited runs which end in January: Topdog/Underdog, Death of a Salesman, The Piano Lesson, The Ohio State Murders, The Collaboration, and Take Me Out. A Strange Loop, Into the Woods, and The Music Man will also end their runs. What may give producers some pause is that many of these shows (and some of the notable shows that had brief runs in the spring) are those featuring more diverse casts and subject matter.
Some Like It Hot: The new musical of the classic film has terrific performances and other pluses. The downside is that it is more serious and less farcical than the Billy Wilder classic comedy. Yet despite the changes–it is more about identity than slapstick comedy–it is an enjoyable show that I hope will find the audience it deserves.
Broadway Bright Spots: The terrific Tom Stoppard play Leopoldstadt has extended its run through June. Also, the new musical + Juliette, A Beautiful Nose–the Neil Diamond Musical are among the shows doing good business. On the whole, the best box office results are from longer-running shows: Aladdin, Funny Girl, Hadestown, Hamilton, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, MJ, Moulin Rouge, Six, Wicked, and more.
Karen Isaacs is an East Haven resident. To check out her reviews for New York and Connecticut shows, visit 2ontheaisle.wordpress.com. She’s a member of the Connecticut Critics Circle, New York’s Outer Critics Circle, the League of Professional Theater Women, and the American Theatre Critics Association.