Elizabeth Ahlfors

“While the lead performers sizzle, the play fizzles.”

“The show holds nothing back and all in all, Beetlejuice offers sane advice about living life to the fullest.”

“Under the direction of Rachel Chavkin, this stage brings a bright freshness to a classic tale and Hadestown is definitely a must-see for this season.”

“Violence and smoldering sexual desires are layered under the sunny lyrics of ‘Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’,’ unveiling a darkness this land has known since its earliest days.”

“For splash, sparkle, and the sensational Stephanie J. Block, The Cher Show is a good-time jukebox musical.”

“Crime, loss, and violence are unveiled secrets with this family burdened with memories of the bloody Irish rebellion, guilt, demands for justice, and an explosive redemption ties up with ubiquitous humanity.”

“A touching memory play...It offers no happy ending, a trail of losses, anger, frustration, a picture of decline and dependency, eloquently honest and crushingly sad...Lonergan's dialogue, with characters often talking over each other, is always as natural as eavesdropping on a bus.”

“Be aware though, that all this does not mean that Cursed Child is a guaranteed audience pleaser for every theatergoer.”

“Bartlett Sher gives magical inspiration to his My Fair Lady, directing it to a contemporary audience with his magnificent theatricality and Shaw’s ambiguous ending.”

“However, while the music is catchy, Escape to Margaritaville is actually more silly than fun with a ho-hum romance and a stage full of cardboard characters.”

“In Lobby Hero, the inquiry by Lonergan and his actors come at us with sharp, sad and hilarious humanity before we even realize how relevant these questions are.”

“Even with its occasional sluggish moments and some difficulty understanding the coastal English dialect, The Children has a fearful universality that lingers in the mind.”

“Arden’s intense direction, the secret of falling under the spell of this sung-through musical is to forget reality and succumb to illusion.”

“With Akhtar's fidelity to finding the truth, Junk is another of his must-see plays exploring cultural mores.”

“Even with its faults, 'Prince of Broadway' is an evening of sumptuous entertainment, spectacular performances, and surprising moments of beauty.”

“With Kevin Kline stepping in to lead the company, Present Laughter is a pièce de résistance this theater season.”

“Playing the stolid Torvald, Chris Cooper is splendid in a subtle performance that lands a powerful punch.”

“Visually, War Paint looks like a million bucks, but, while the story is uneven, the show presents what you are really coming to see: Ebersole and LuPone shining as they do with five-star brilliance.”

“A two-hour-and 45-minute musical of repetition, while often entertaining, can turn tiresome. There’s no doubt that 'Groundhog Day' belongs to tenacious Andy Karl...He is always on stage, tireless and committed...Tim Minchin adds a tuneful, if not memorable, score with sprightly lyrics...The downside is the lopsided timing.”

“Her finale, 'Welcome Home,' is the electrifying hub of the show, as she passionately sings of all the returning soldiers and the horrors they now live with.”

“Indecent is a fascinating production of intense sensitivity and the inherent constancy of the human spirit and the enduring power of art.”

“What is fulfilling is J.T. Rogers' captivating and inspired drama, Oslo, now on Theater's Vivian Beaumont stage.”

“Glick who grasps the audience with a sensitive, intuitive portrayal of Jordan.”

“At its heart, Away is an extraordinary production, reminding us of that small Canadian community’s kindness and sensitivity.”

“Sweat is a memorable play for our times, about our times and our people.”

“Even after 25 years, William Finn’s melodic Falsettos continues to explore the many sides of family with its exuberant joy, love and heartbreaking loss.”

“Holiday Inn is old-fashioned fun any time of the year.”

“It may be your cup of tea but is not for everyone, especially at top prices.”

“I still can't say Cats is my favorite musical ever—far from it—but I enjoyed this revival at the Theatre.”

“Skillfully revisited...O'Brien steers a sterling cast through the veneer of post-war complacency and delves into secrets and acrimony to unravel a shattering inevitability...Miller's language, always straightforward with an edge of poeticism and O'Brien's deft handling, heightens the dramatic fall-out with emotion and truth...”

“The cast members are all in firm control of their characters and the specificity of Demos-Brown's book.”

“It is a stirring production that every theater-lover should see.”

“Brilliantly, Janet McTeer exhibits this extravagant personality at this one point in her life.”

“Choir Boy shines brightly with the emotions and humor of human essence, young exuberant talent and glorious musical sequences, as well as the energy and infectious Jeremy Pope as Phalus Young.”

“You may find her captivating but her self-involved chatter is definitely exhausting.”

“With the buoyant charm of a favorite neighbor, the voice of an eloquent professor and an elastic physical prowess that has served him as a poignant leading man, a scintillating wit, a flat-out silly comic, Lithgow is masterful.”

“Watching the gorilla, however, is the wonder of this show and with the technology, Kong is the only star.”

“Huang's rewriting and Taymor's staging deviate from the fine-spun illusion of mystery and culture.”

“Bryan Cranston's dive into a man's soul is galvanizing as it is destroyed by the raging techno-mechanical world today.”

“Shaw's play runs almost three hours of talky tedium and segments of provocative ambiguity, a play that might be best read on a rainy afternoon and then debated in an Irish bar.”

“The Little Foxes is a well-crafted thriller by Lillian Hellman and beautifully delivered at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.”

“Unfortunately, The Nap is not as solid, not as thrilling and is nowhere as hilarious.”

“Despite the fine production values and outstanding performances by Blanchett and Roxburgh, three hours of this muddled, interminable tragicomedy is not much more than a first draft of Chekhov's later well-formed theatrical visions of Russian society.”

“Whether or not you are in his camp, The Terms of My Surrender offers a provocative commentary by one man who predicted the winner of the 2016. Presidential election long before many voters recognized the country's depth of frustration and discrimination.”

“It is theatricality you have to see and savor.”