TDF Stages Archive

By ERIC GRODE In Hollywood, the announcement of two very similar projects more or less amounts to an obituary for one of them. But two off-Broadway companies with two very specific demographics have forged a curious alliance, each using its own talent pool and viewpoint to approach Frederick Douglass through a different lens. On the […]

By MARK BLANKENSHIP Lots of productions schedule a talkback or two, but Epic Theatre Ensemble is especially committed to making its latest show a learning experience. Every performance of Mahida’s Extra Key to Heaven , Russell Davis’ play about Iranians and Americans colliding in a small town, is followed by a post-show discussion of the […]

By MARK BLANKENSHIP This fall on Broadway, you can enjoy Doug Hughes’ production of The Royal Anna. No… that’s not right. He’s directing Oleanna’s Family. Wait. That’s wrong, too. Confusion is understandable, because Doug Hughes is the rare director with two Broadway plays opening at the same time. On October 8, Manhattan Theatre Club officially […]

By MARK BLANKENSHIP Quick: When you hear the phrase “Asian-American theatre,” what do you think? If no single image comes to mind, that’s okay. The Asian-American theatre community has become so diverse, especially in New York, that it’s almost impossible to pin it down. That diversity will be on display in the second National Asian-American […]

BY MARK BLANKENSHIP There’s an avalanche of Korean-language musicals hitting Manhattan. Well, relatively speaking. America’s been sending tuners to Korea for years—everything from Altar Boyz to The Lion King —but Korea rarely gets to return the favor. This week, however, New Yorkers can see not one but two musicals featuring Korean artists and songs. Playing […]

By ISAAC BUTLER ( NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: A funny thing happened on the way to writing this story. Shortly after I spoke with Lucy Thurber, I was hired to fill in as the sound designer on her production. Our interview was completed prior to any discussion about my work on the show) Rattlestick Playwrights […]

By Linda Buchwald What makes a good musical? For some, it’s a catchy score. For others, it’s a strong book. For Lily Hung, program director of the New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) , it’s good bones. “There are a lot of factors involved in what makes good bones,” says Hung. “Where are the characters […]

By Isaac Butler Keith Huff proves the old saying that it takes years to become an overnight success. A longtime veteran of Chicago’s Off Loop theatre scene (with the accent to match), he has suddenly found his play A Steady Rain on Broadway. Opening on September 29, the two-man show stars Daniel Craig and Hugh […]

By Melissa F. Moschitto This is not a Big Apple bus tour.  Of that, Melanie Joseph, Co-Artistic Producer of The Foundry Theatre, is emphatically sure. The Provenance of Beauty is a play, on a bus, that departs from East Harlem and rides through the South Bronx.  The set is created by where the audience happens […]