Now Playing: Plays
June 29 - July 5
WHAT'S HERE: This page lists plays currently being presented in New York. Click on show titles to find out more about that show, including performance dates & times, ticket prices & ordering information, and cast & other credits. Starred shows are considered to be noteworthy or of special interest by NYTE's editor. Want your show listed on nytheatre.com? Visit the Theatre Company Resource Center to learn how.
LAST CHANCE!
These shows are closing this week
Bird Machine: A multimedia, multi-disciplinary allegory about technology, from Concrete Temple Theatre. Closes July 5, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MONTSERRAT MENDEZ
CRACKED (Upon A Time): A new absurdist comedy by Josiah Houston that explores the meaning of life through the relationship of two longtime friends. Presented by The Royal Pyngwyn Collective. Closes June 30, 2009.
Making Money and 19 Other Short Plays: A program of short plays by William Saroyan, John Gruen, and other authors. Closes June 29, 2009.
Pure Confidence: A new play by Carlyle Brown, described as the extraordinary tale of one of the most successful athletes of his day--Simon Cato, a slave. Closes July 3, 2009.
REVIEWED BY DAVID IAN LEE
Reed in the Wind: A play by Joe McDonald, described as an unusual Irish love story. Closes June 30, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MATT ROBERSON
Songs and Statues: A new play by Peter Nickowitz about an assimilated Jewish family in 1958, suburban Connecticut whose lives are turned upside down when the father is passed over for a promotion because of their Judaism. Presented by The Harold Clurman Laboratory Theater Company. Closes June 29, 2009.
This Isn't Paradise: The world premiere of a play by Richard Hymes-Esposito about a Manhattan real estate mogul coping with economic hard times. Closes June 29, 2009.
Unmitigated Truth: Life, a Lavatory, Loves, and Ladies: A new theatre piece written and performed by Melvin Van Peebles that looks back on a full and well-observed life. Closes July 1, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
Waking Up With Strangers: A play by Paul David Young about an American scholar who is obsessed with 19th century German dramatist Heinrich von Kleist. Closes July 2, 2009.
A Bicycle Country: The New York premiere of a play by Nilo Cruz about three Cuban refugees on a raft. Presented by east 3rd productions. In previews; opens on July 8, 2009.
Accomplice: New York: An interactive theatre experience combining a scavenger hunt and a walking tour of Manhattan. Closes October 31, 2009.
Accomplice: The Village: A new theatrical interactive outdoor adventure from the team behind Accomplice: New York, this time set in Greenwich Village.
REVIEWED BY ROBIN REED
AL - A One Me Show: A solo show by Al Lubel, who is a standup comedian; in the show he talks about the source of his humor and his pain. Closes July 31, 2009.
Archbishop Supreme Tartuffe: An original play with music, written by Alfred Preisser and Randy Weiner, inspired by Moliere's famous comedy. Presented by Classical Theatre of Harlem. Closes July 19, 2009.
Behind the Bullseye: A new theatre piece by Sponsored by Nobody that fuses elements of theatre, film, journalism, and installation art to examine the shopping habits of Brooklyn residents. Closes July 11, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
Blithe Spirit: A revival of Noel Coward's comedy about a man whose marriage is threatened by the ghost of his ex-wife. Angela Lansbury, Christine Ebersole, and Rupert Everett head the cast. Closes July 19, 2009.
REVIEWED BY STAN RICHARDSON
Brief Shorts: Xoregos Performing Company presents a quintet of danced plays at various parks and libraries throughout the city; performances are free. Closes July 20, 2009.
REVIEWED BY NICOLE HIGGINS
Caucasian Chalk Circle: Performance Lab 115 presents a 21th century interpretation of the play by Bertolt Brecht. Closes July 11, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MITCHELL CONWAY
Dance of the Seven Headed Mouse: A new play by Carole Gaunt about a New York family coping with the death of their daughter. Closes July 25, 2009.
D'Arranged Marriage: A play by Rajeev Varma and Tarun Mohanbhai about an aspiring New Zealand Indian stand-up comic who spends his life working at his father's corner shop and avoiding the issue of an arranged marriage. Closes July 31, 2009.
Daydream: An adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream specifically for young children. Performances are free and outdoors. Closes July 26, 2009.
Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead: A revival of Bert V. Royal's play, which is an unauthorized look at what happens to the Peanuts characters when they grow up. Closes July 12, 2009.
Evie's Waltz: A play by Carter Lewis about a boy and his girlfriend who are suspended from school. Closes July 26, 2009.
Flamingo Court: A new production of Luigi Creatore's program of three short comedies set at a Florida apartment complex. Closes September 6, 2009.
God of Carnage: A new play by Yasmina Reza, described as "a comedy of manners without the manners."
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
Hospital 2009: A four-part episodic multimedia play that examines the interior life of a man in a terminal coma. This year's edition centers on an astronaut. Closes July 25, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
King Lear: New York Classical Theater presents a free outdoor production of Shakespeare's famous play in Battery Park. Closes July 7, 2009.
Krapp, 39: A return of the FringeNYC hit written and performed by Michael Laurence about an actor looking back on his failures on his 39th birthday. Closes August 2, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
Line: Israel Horovitz's one-act dark comedy about a group of people who are waiting on line, though they don't know for what. Now in its 32nd year.
Mary Stuart: A new version of Schiller's play about Mary, Queen of Scots, written by Peter Oswald. This production comes to Broadway from London's Donmar Warehouse. Closes August 16, 2009.
REVIEWED BY LOREN NOVECK
My First Time: A new play written and directed by Ken Davenport featuring true accounts of first sexual experiences.
Next Fall: A new play by Geoffrey Nauffts, in which "a Christian gives an Atheist the Heimlich, and dislodges more than they bargained for." Closes July 11, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
NY/XY: A new play by William LoCasto about two gay young men and a lot of questions about sex in New York City. Closes August 6, 2009.
Our Town: A revival of the famous play by Thornton Wilder, directed by David Cromer.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
Perfect Crime: Convoluted murder mystery involving a dangerous psychiatrist, her patient, a detective, and a man who may or may not be her husband. Implausible, but entertaining; this is the longest-running straight play in New York history.
Ruby's Story: A revival of Ron Osborne's play about a German American family during World War II. Closes July 19, 2009.
Ruined: A new play by Lynn Nottage about a businesswoman living in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Closes September 6, 2009.
Stunning: A new play by David Adjmi set in the insular Syrian-Jewish community in Midwood, Brooklyn. Presented by Lincoln Center Theater's LCT3 Series. Closes July 11, 2009.
Summer Solos Series: A series of one-night-only performances of some of the most acclaimed solo shows of recent years. Artists include Nilaja Sun, Aasif Mandvi, Steven Payne, Martin Moran, and many more. Closes August 4, 2009.
Suspicious Package: Rx: A unique interactive show in which audience members play all the roles in a suspense thriller that takes them to the streets of Williamsburg, guided by an iPod. Closes July 25, 2009.
Sweet Storm: A new play by Scott Hudson about a couple who honeymoon in a treehouse in the sky. Presented by The Alchemy Theatre, in association with LAByrinth Theater. Closes July 26, 2009.
REVIEWED BY JUDITH JAROSZ
Tamur Lenk: A new play written and directed by Eugenia Macer-Story in which a group of wealthy occultists attempts much too casually to channel the spirit of the great Turkish warrior Tamburlaine. Closes July 12, 2009.
Thank You, But Our Princess Is In Another Castle: Utilizing World of Warcraft, Halo 3, and Grand Theft Auto 4, Machinima theater auteur Eddie Kim presents four classical theater texts, as performed by online video game characters manipulated by gamers live on stage. Closes July 17, 2009.
The 39 Steps: A comic parody of the famous Hitchcock thriller, with four actors playing all the roles.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
The Amish Project: A new production of Jessica Dickey's solo play that tells the story of a schoolhouse shooting in an Amish community. This show premiered last summer in FringeNYC. Closes July 12, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
The Boychick Affair--The Bar Mitzvah of Harry Boychick: A new interactive comedy by the creator of Grandma Sylvia's Funeral. At Times Square Arts Center.
The Comedy of Errors: A free outdoor revival of Shakespeare's farce of mistaken identity; presented by Boomerang Theatre Company. Closes July 19, 2009.
The Europeans: The U.S. premiere of a play by Howard Barker which takes place in war-ravaged Vienna after the Turkish invasion of the late 1600s, during which Christianity and Islam brutally collided. Presented by Potomac Theatre Project In previews; opens on July 7, 2009.
The First 2nd Annual U.S-ification of America Conference: A collection of short plays with one Agenda: poking fun of America's past and present... "issues." Performances are this week only.
The House of the Spirits: A new play by Caridad Svich based on the novel by Isabel Allende. Performed in Spanish with live simultaneous English translation. Closes August 23, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MEGIN JIMENEZ
The Norman Conquests: A revival of Alan Ayckbourn's clever trilogy in which the events of a family weekend unfold in separate plays set in different areas of the house. Closes July 25, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
The Quantum Eye - Magic Deceptions: An exploration of mentalism, magic, perception and deception starring Sam Eaton.
The Rivalry: A revival of Norman Corwin's play about the Lincoln-Douglas debates. Closes July 19, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
The Temperamentals: A new play by Jon Marans about Harry Hay and Rudi Gernreich, who co-founded the first gay rights organization in America, the Mattachine Society. Closes August 23, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
Therese Raquin: A revival of Neal Bell's dramatization of the famous novel by Emile Zola; presented by Potomac Theatre Project. In previews; opens on July 6, 2009.
Tony 'n Tina's Wedding: The long-running interactive comedy, featuring a wedding and dinner/reception. At Sofia's Restaurant on 46th Street.
Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind: A program of 30 plays in 60 minutes, presented by the Neo-Futurists.
Twelfth Night: The Public Theater presents a revival of Shakespeare's famous play, with Anne Hathaway as Viola. This is part of the free Shakespeare in the Park series. Closes July 12, 2009.
REVIEWED BY DAVID GORDON
Waiting for Godot: Bill Irwin and Nathan Lane star in a revival of the classic Beckett play, directed by Anthony Page. Presented by Roundabout Theatre Company. Closes July 12, 2009.
REVIEWED BY MARTIN DENTON
