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

Mark Rylance Heading Back to the New York Stage The three-time Tony Award winner Mark Rylance ( Jerusalem , Twelfth Night ) will bring Nice Fish to Brooklyn's St. Ann's Warehouse as part of the company's 2015-2016 season. Rylance co-wrote the play with poet Louis Jenkins , upon whose poems the work is based. (Rylance famously recited Jenkins's poems for two of his Tony acceptance speeches.) Nice Fish will be directed by Rylance's wife, Claire van Kampen , a composer who contributed to the Rylance-led Twelfth Night and Richard III productions. It will run February 14-March 13, 2016. St. Ann's season also includes the Young Vic's production of A Streetcar Named Desire (the Tennessee Williams classic was last seen in New York on Broadway in 2012 ), starring Gillian Anderson and Ben Foster ( Orphans ). Theater Mania has more. Dames at Sea Coming to Broadway The first Broadway production of the off-Broadway hit Dames at Sea will bow in the 201...

The Newsroom : Inside the Episode The series finale of The Newsroom will air this Sunday, 12.14, and if you're anything like me, you're probably still gutted from the way the penultimate episode ended. Aaron Sorkin has a habit of creating dramatic and tragic season enders (consider just The West Wing : season one - the shooting at Rosslyn; season two - Mrs. Landingham; season three - Posse Comitatus; season four - Zoe is taken), so I suppose we should have seen this coming. The series finale is titled, as many of his season finales are, "What Kind of Day Has it Been," and it promises to be riveting, so tune in! For more about episode five, let Sorkin take you inside the episode: (and head to HBO Connect for an interview with Sam Waterston and to Alternative Nation for an interview with John Gallagher, Jr. ) Kennedy Center Honors The 2014 "class" of Kennedy Center honorees have been feted in a gala reception and tribute ceremony. This year's...

This week, just a quick round up of happenings: Rolling Stone  told us 10 things they learned from over 10 hours of interviews with Dave Grohl , his Foo Fighters  bandmates, his friends and his mother, Virginia. Grohl is the cover boy on the latest issue of the magazine. (Scroll down for the latest track off Sonic Highways .) We have a new entry into the 2014-2015 season: David Farr 's play, The Heart of Robin Hood . The play will arrive on Broadway on March 10, 2015, with opening night set for March 29. The limited engagement, which will run at the Marquis Theatre, will conclude on August 23. Playbill has more. After much speculation, it is official: Sting  will step into the role of Jackie White in his fantastic new musical, The Last Ship . The composer will appear December 9-January 10, 2015. Jimmy Nail, who originated the role, will resume performances after Sting's departure. The New York Times  has details. The rocket joined the cast on the Macy...

(Scroll down to hear the latest tune off of Sonic Highways .) Cast Album Alerts Two musicals opened on Broadway in October, and this week, each show's cast recorded their respective cast albums. The incredible company of The Last Ship , led by Michael Esper , took to the recording studio, creating the original Broadway cast recording. Broadway.com was on hand to capture the record session , and, later in the week, reported that the album will be released on December 16. (It is now available for pre-order from Amazon . Scroll down for even more The Last Ship goodies.) The recording will feature a bonus track of Sting "covering" the beautiful ballad, "What Say You, Meg?' In another recording studio, the company of the On the Town revival recorded their cast album, which will likely be released in January 2015. Broadway.com has more about the On the Town recording. Thanksgiving Day Parade Performances For me, Thanksgiving just isn't the same...

Neil Patrick Harris to Host Variety Show He's hosted the Tonys , the Emmys and magic shows, and he's set to host the Oscars in February. Now, it's been announced, the versatile Tony and Emmy Award winner Neil Patrick Harris ( Hedwig and the Angry Inch ) will host a weekly variety show for NBC. Based on the British sensation, Saturday Night Takeaway , the variety show will likely feature comedy sketches, musical numbers and magic segments, playing into Harris's talents. In a statement, Harris said, "Nothing like this has been done before, and its unique structure fits into my random skill set. I can't wait to roll up my sleeves and have some fun!" [Variety shows have been tried in recent years; in May, in fact, the insanely talented Maya Rudolph hosted a one-night-only variety show...on NBC.] The peacock network has ordered ten episodes of the untitled series. Broadway.com has more. The Last Ship Opens After about a month of previews, the te...

What've we got? It's not now't, that's for sure. The new, original musical, The Last Ship , has set sail on Broadway and I love it. Conceived by Sting , the personal musical features a score by the rocker and a book by Brian Yorkey  ( If/Then , Next to Normal ) and John Logan  ( Red ). It tells the story of Gideon Fletcher (Michael Esper), who is returning to his working-class hometown of Wallsend (in the northeast of England) after turning his back 15 years ago. Wallsend is a blue-collar company town where the men build ships and everyone is family. Times are tough and the shipyard has closed; not knowing what to do with themselves, the men decide to build one last ship. While the town is struggling to find its identity, Gideon is struggling to find his home. He rejected the notion of following in the footsteps of his father and his father's father and so on; he did not want to be a ship builder, and so he fled Wallsend, leaving behind his love, Meg Dawson (R...