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

As we close out 2016, please enjoy this Year in Review. Diversity —When Hamilton flipped conventional casting wisdom on its head, it sent shock waves through the artistic community. We haven't fully turned the corner (though The Great Comet , for example, features Denee Benton, an African-American woman, as a 19th century Russian, you might have noticed many of the all-white casting announcements for upcoming shows), but when four black actors won Tony Awards this year, the moment's power could not be denied. (See the illustration, at right, by artist Tim Long .) Things are looking better in film, too. After two years of #OscarsSoWhite, this year's slate of nominees (for Golden Globe and SAG Awards) feature multiple actors of color, including from films like Moonlight and Fences . (See also this recent item about BAFTA making diversity an eligibility requirement.) Everything is Beautiful at the Ballet, Even When It's Not —New York City Ballet soloist and resi...

As we close out 2015, please enjoy this Year in Review. An American in Paris —This gorgeous, lush production was everything I wanted it to be. Leading up to its Broadway bow, I kept saying, "It's Gershwin. It's Christopher Wheeldon. It's Robbie Fairchild." I was so excited, and I couldn't wait to see it (to wit: I was at the first preview). And it was fantastic. The Gershwin score , which includes well-known tunes, like the titular theme and "I've Got Rhythm," as well as lesser-known ditties, like "Liza," is enhanced by Christopher Austin , Don Sebesky , and Bill Elliot 's Tony-winning orchestrations. The peerless Christopher Wheeldon 's Tony-winning choreography thrilled, beautifully welcoming ballet back to Broadway. And Robert Fairchild 's Tony-nominated performance established him as a true triple-threat. He dazzles as he shows Broadway audiences his signature Robbie Fairchild flair. But beyond what I was alrea...

Behind the Scenes at Shuffle Along... CBS Sunday Morning takes you behind the scenes during rehearsals for the upcoming Shuffle Along, or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and all that Followed . Billed as a revival, the show is an adaptation, of sorts, of the 1921 musical, Shuffle Along . As director and book writer George C. Wolfe explains in the segment, they are telling the story of Shuffle Along as well as the story of what was happening backstage and culturally when Shuffle Along hit Broadway. Choreographed by Savion Glover , Shuffle Along... boasts a cast that includes Audra McDonald ( Porgy and Bess ), Billy Porter ( Kinky Boots ), Joshua Henry ( Violet ), Brian Stokes Mitchell ( Women on the Verge... ), and Brandon Victor Dixon ( The Wild Party ).  Previews at the historic Music Box Theatre begin March 15, 2016, with opening night set for April 28. Watch the Sunday Morning piece below, and then head to shufflealongbroadway.com to learn more and to...

Josh Groban Set for Broadway Debut The Grammy-nominated crooner , theatre lover, and funny guy will make his Broadway debut in a Broadway mounting of Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 . Written by Dave Malloy and directed by Rachel Chavkin (who collaborated on Preludes ), Natasha... had a celebrated run off-Broadway in 2012, and featured site-specific staging. The musical is now at American Repertory Theatre, this time with a more traditional proscenium staging. Natasha ... is inspired by a passage in War and Peace , and the original off-Broadway cast included Hamilton 's Phillipa Soo. At this time, Groban is the only confirmed cast member (and he is said to have made a sizable time commitment to the show); a theatre and specific dates have yet to be announced, though performances are expected to begin in September 2016. Broadway.com has more. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2016 The inductees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Class of 2016, have been an...

Grammy Nominations Grammy Award nominations were announced this week. You can view the full list of nominees on the Grammy website . Herein, some nominees of interest: Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album — Josh Groban , Stages ; Seth MacFarlane , No One Ever Tells You ; Tony Bennett and Bill Charlap , The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern ; Bob Dylan , Shadows in the Night ; and Barry Manilow , My Dream Duets Best Musical Theater Album — An American in Paris , Fun Home , Hamilton , The King and I , and Something Rotten Foo Fighters —Best Rock Performance, " Something from Nothing "; and Best Music Film, Sonic Highways Best Spoken Word Album —nominees include Dick Cavett , Brief Encounters: Conversations, Magic Moments, and Assorted Hijinks ; Jimmy Carter , A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety ; and Amy Poehler , Yes Pelase Best Comedy Album —nominees include Wyatt Cenac , Brooklyn and Louis C.K. , Live at Madison Square Garden Best Score Soundtrack for Visu...

The New Year is almost here so in lieu of a Week in Review, please enjoy this Year in Review. The Bridges of Madison County Score —Music is better than words, which is what made this show work and why I feel I can't fully express, with mere words, how good the score is. Head to Sh-K-Boom to purchase a copy. You'll thank me. I feel like crying when Kelli O'Hara starts singing "To Build a Home," the opening number. I ache when Whitney Bashor goes full Joni Mitchell in "Another Life." I absolutely swoon anytime Steven Pasquale sings, especially a love song, like "Falling into You." And if you don't completely melt from the one-two punch of the final two numbers, "It All Fades Away" and "Always Better," then you have no feeling. It's a magnificent, unabashedly emotional score from Tony winner Jason Robert Brown ( The Last Five Years ), a treasure of modern musical theatre. Freestyle Love Supreme —The frees...