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

This gritty drama, only writer/director Tom Ford 's second film, features both style and substance, with striking aesthetics and intense drama. Amy Adams plays Susan, an LA art dealer, who was once briefly married to writer Edward Sheffield (Jake Gyllenhaal). We will learn, through flashbacks, how Susan and Edward came together and fell apart (watch for a brief but indelible appearance by Laura Linney as Susan's mother), and that their time together still haunts them both. Susan's feelings are awakened when, after years of no communication, Edward sends her a novel he's written, Nocturnal Animals , and Susan recognizes themes of their past in the novel. As Susan reads, Ford ( A Single Man ) takes us into the story within the story, with Gyllenhaal playing the novel's protagonist, Tony. He and his wife, Laura ( Isla Fisher ( The Great Gatsby ), a ringer for Adams), and daughter, India ( Ellie Bamber ), are making their way through West Texas, driving on a de...

For Eugene O'Neill's Long Day's Journey Into Night I give you a short review. The long journey is a day in the life of O'Neill's stand-in family, the Tyrones: patriarch James ( Gabriel Byrne ); matriarch Mary (Jessica Lange); older son James Jr, or Jamie ( Michael Shannon ), and younger son, Edmund ( John Gallagher, Jr .), who is, most agree, O'Neill himself. (The Tyrone family maid, Cathleen ( Colby Minifie ), is also around here and there.) In this personal work, O'Neill revisits his family to work through, understand, or maybe exorcise something from his past. Maybe's it's his tumultuous relationship with his father or brother, or maybe (probably) it's his elusive mother, who, in Long Day's Journey Into Night , is a dope fiend who slips in and out of reality. Plenty of people will tell you that plays are meant to be heard and seen, not read. Arguably, that rings true for Shakespeare, Albee, Pinter, Beckett, and others. Reading anoth...

Lupita Nyong'o to Star in Eclipsed Off-Broadway Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong'o ( 12 Years a Slave ) will star in the New York premiere of Eclipsed , written by Zimbabwean-American playwright and actress, Danai Guirra . The production was just added to the Public's season, and is set to run September 29 through November 8. Directed by Liesl Tommy , Eclipsed takes place during the Liberian Civil War, and focuses on the wives of rebel officers and the community they form. This will mark Nyong'o's New York stage debut. Spotlight on Spotlight Check out the trail for the new movie, Spotlight . The film follows Boston Globe reporters as they break the story of the Catholic church child abuse/sex scandal. The trailer makes it look like the film is paced like a thriller (reminiscent of Aaron Sorkin's approach to The Social Network , but without his trademark snappy dialogue), and boasts an impressive cast: Michael Keaton ( Birdman ); Mark Ruffalo ( Th...

Tony News Tony nominations were announced on Tuesday, and I brought you the full list of nominees . As the week went on, there were additional reactions, announcements and Tony-related events: Broadwayworld.com has photos of the nominations announcement (nominees were announced by Jonathan Groff and Lucy Liu ) Tony nominees react to the honor, via (a cheeky) Broadway.com ; via Playbill ; via Broadwayworld.com ; and via Theater Mania Broadway.com rounded up past years' nominees , who gave this year's slate some advice Of course, there were snubs , and I named my picks ( on Culturalist ), and Playbill , Broadwayworld.com and Theater Mania did, too. Meanwhile, Broadway.com is accepting nominations for their Audience Choice Awards , so if you favorite didn't make the Tony cut, or you want to show more support to a Tony nominee, head to Broadway.com to vote! ( BroadwayWorld.com is also accepting nominees—choose your favorites !) By the Numbers : Broadway.com deliv...

Michael Shannon Reads a Sorority Girl's Email This is as inspired and hilarious as it sounds: Michael Shannon Reads the Insane Delta Gamma Sorority Letter from Michael Shannon Murder Ballad Cast Recording The original cast recording for Murder Ballad will be released on Tuesday, May 28. The new original musical had a celebrated premiere run at Manhattan Theatre Club's Studio at Stage II and featured Will Swenson , Rebecca Naomi Jones , John Ellison Conlee and Karen Olivo , all of whom appear on the cast recording. The show is returning to the stage this summer at the Union Square Theatre beginning May 7 (and running through July 7), and will feature Hair alumna Caissie Levy in place of Olivo. Tickets for the Union Square engagement are now on sale , and you can pre-order the cast recording through Yellow Sound Label . Visit murderballad.com for more information. Shakespeare in the Park This week we celebrated William Shakespeare's birthd...