Michael Sommers

“Paranormal Activity can be marketed as a nightmare entertainment for the whole darned family.”

“And that's okay, which is the best word to describe Roundabout's okay show; it's the steak dinner you already know without the sizzle.”

“This adorably dizzy show is anchored by Alex Brightman at his snarky best, whose disbelieving character, Josh, represents every straight man who can’t appreciate musicals but still owns a toy light saber.”

“Director Scott Ellis tends to rush the pace of the comedy, when taking a bit more leisure about it might make Coward’s already clipped dialogue easier to appreciate. His staging takes surprisingly little advantage of the expansive set and its deluxe furnishings. The program notes that Coward revised...”

“As an easygoing satire of the film’s silly Rose-Jack-Cal romantic plot, Titanique succeeds at being even sillier, but at least it offers a happy ending.”

“It appears to me that Cats: The Jellicle Ball may become one of those legendary Broadway shows that someday you will tell others you were lucky enough to see.”

“And when a play has endured for nearly 2,500 years, it can withstand an extreme home makeover.”

“Little Bear Ridge Road is a touching, quietly lovely play about a few lonely people tentatively—and painfully—making emotional connections.”

“As for the more side of this event, its highly enthusiastic company tends to put the broad in Broadway performing.”

“Deadpan humor gets no deader than Durand’s performance.”

“The only significant trouble with this giddy Pirates! is that it’s really too much of a good thing and might be better were it one show-stopper fewer or perhaps ten minutes less.”

“Jeremy Jordan shines in every way amid the darkness of the story and his bleak surroundings as a young spelunker who hopes to find a tourist attraction and instead finds himself stuck in crumbling, wet rubble in the deep underground.”

“Although Smash is not so hot as light entertainment, its script and score are at least professionally executed and the leading actors, capably supported by an attractive ensemble, all but knock themselves out striving to put over this dubious endeavor.”

“Frankly, the event proved more exhausting than exhilarating to my elderly Boomer taste and attention skills.”

“Operation Mincemeat is a must-see show for you.”

“Manhattan Theatre Club and director Shapiro give Eureka Day, in every aspect, the tiptop Broadway production it deserves.”

“Expect no satisfying resolution for these people, who for the most part remain stuck in the deep grooves of their upbringing.”

“Between those points, well, is anyone keen to see a sad, rather tasteless tabloid musical about good Christian people mostly being bad?”

“A musical charmer, Maybe Happy Ending offers a delicate, ultimately touching story distinguished by a graceful score and enhanced by fine performances and a beautifully designed production.”

“Elder viewers reared on the comparatively subtle writing and performance style of Charles Busch are likely to find Escola’s slapdash artistry crude, but there’s no denying he snags laughs.”

“Home an enjoyable place to spend 90 minutes.”

“The relentless misery of the director’s gloomy interpretation of the musical scarcely allows for any contrasting moments of joy or sweetness as Tony and Maria discover each other and fall in love.”

“Thorne’s version of A Christmas Carol remains something of a finger-wagging drag: Giddy old Fezziwig is no longer a merchant but an undertaker here.”

“The Inheritance ultimately proves to be more or less a high-grade soap opera.”

“The production looks so cheap visually that let’s be kind and not name the designers.”

“More a parade of unfortunate circumstances than an effectively curated biography, The Great Society is an earnest consideration of how even a smart and aspirational leader can be undone by his times.”

“The give-and-take ease of their performances is marvelous.”

“Looks and sounds terrific, and yet it lacks something vital...The show is brilliantly staged and designed, and there’s no denying the infernal red-hot charms of the...score...There’s too little heat to the young couple’s relationship, which perhaps is why the musical lacks punch...”

“This Roundabout production is likely to please anyone who craves a vintage musical comedy that is quick on its feet and melodious.”

“If one’s hearing may be jeopardized, this production is well worth seeing.”

“Take it from me: The Cher Show does Cher proud and the show delivers enormous entertainment in doing so.”

“The Prom undeniably is entertaining, but as a lyric in a Forbidden Broadway might describe this frisky though significantly misguided musical: The Prom is a bomb with aplomb.”

“In our currently sad, nasty, troublous times of divisive politics and general distrust, it is really lovely to experience Away, a humane, heartfelt reminder that people are capable of being kind and generous to each other in difficult circumstances.”

“Boomers who may not be quite as mobile as they once were will appreciate this venue as much as they will enjoy Beautiful.”

“There are Broadway shows and Broadway shows—and then there is the incomparable Phantom of the Opera: Awesome in scale.”

“But they do not compensate for the underwritten play, which is neither sufficiently satirical nor revelatory enough to achieve any sense of catharsis.”

“And, as troubled as they may be, these boys offer splendid company on Broadway.”

“While the larger vision and the major performance lack distinction, the pleasures of this revival of The Iceman Cometh are derived from seeing the members of the ensemble bring to life the people with whom O’Neill once shared his drinks and despair.”

“This staging appears terribly flat.”

“It is beautifully sung, exuberantly danced and ardently performed.”

“Originally produced in 2001 but only now making its Broadway debut, Kenneth Lonergan’s play resonates today as highly timely in its penetrating look at sexual misconduct, racial perceptions, and shady police behavior.”

“So it’s a bummer to report that Escape to Margaritaville, a new jukebox musical devised from Buffett’s feel-good song catalog, turns out to be something of a snooze on Broadway.”

“It is a pleasure to witness Lithgow demonstrate his proficiency as an actor while honoring both his father and the power of the spoken word.”

“Whatever, the choppy story and slight score do not coalesce into a satisfying work of musical theater.”

“Riddled throughout with stage-related gags – suggesting ‘Forbidden Broadway’ on psychedelics -- the madcap ‘Something Rotten!’ obviously represents far too much of a good thing, but it undeniably gets mighty hilarious at times.”

“'It Shoulda Been You' is a guilty treat of a musical that I couldn't help liking.”

“The generally dreamy quality with which Wheeldon imbues the production results in a thoroughly enchanting attraction.”

“The magic carpet flies smoothly and so does the rest of ‘Aladdin,’ a buoyant musical comedy fashioned from the 1992. Disney animated feature.”

“With a little more ease, the revival might be a tad more genuinely charming than this nonstop whirl of entertainment that at times seems more distracting than diverting.”

“Director Joe Mantello no doubt has something to do with Midler's emotional shadings and he otherwise provides a posh production.”

“Director Jeff Calhoun stages and choreographs the musical with no-holds-barred bravado that results in a fiendishly entertaining show.”

“It will be interesting to see whether this curiously dark entertainment will appeal to American newbies, since the musical – for all of its excellence and terrific performances – offers not so much a fantasia as a British youngster’s nightmare.”

“Observantly dressed by designer Ilona Somogyi, a well-meshed ensemble of seven excellent actors confidently invests their characters of 1959 and 2009 with distinctive personalities under director Pam MacKinnon’s discerning guidance. Designer Daniel Ostling provides a realistic setting that poignantly suffers the passing years.”

“‘One Man, Two Guvnors’ proves to be an extremely funny entertainment likely to banish (temporarily) whatever problems irk you.”

“This warm and funny passage is characteristic of the entire play, which smoothly melds abundant humor, human details and basketball lore to chronicle an unlikely real-life bromance.”

“It’s trash. Judy swills, Judy sings, Judy vomits, Judy goes on singing. Pulp rubbish by playwright Peter Quilter. [...] In her wilder throes as Garland flailing through a number, Bennett gets awfully Kabuki about it, but you can’t deny her power even if she’s driving a third-rate hearse of a play.”

“Nichols’ excellent company of actors seamlessly handles the classic’s demands, capably navigating the ebb and flow of time and emotion.”

“The show occasionally jolts but it generally fails to electrify viewers or inspire much pity for its hard-luck protagonists. Perhaps a full-blown operatic treatment is the only way to illuminate a story as dark as this one.”

“Rarely does a play of such genuine and palpable eroticism make its way to Broadway and this one may well leave you gasping.”

“It’s all very loud, very fast and remarkably pointless.”

“Daniel Radcliffe succeeds nicely as a musical comedy performer in the okay Broadway revival of ‘How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying’ that opened on Sunday at the Theatre.”

“For all of their at times strenuous emoting, the actors cannot shout down the drama’s heavy creaking.”

“Good People” is a new play by David Lindsay-Abaire, whose works range from screwy comedies like ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ to the heartbreaking Pulitzer-winner “Rabbit Hole.”

“Unfortunately, Bent drags their uneventful doings out for two acts and director Doug Hughes' wishy-washy production generates only intermittent laughs and scant emotional resonance.”

“Complex, chaotic and teeming with detail, the sprawling play and its pell-mell production are sure to bewilder some viewers as much as they certainly will fascinate others.”

“From its Pledge of Allegiance opening to a typically moonstruck ending, 'The Pee-Wee Herman Show' is certain to blast 20-and-30-somethings back to their youth for their very first taste of nostalgia, complete with a 'Penny' cartoon in the middle.”

“A yummy confection of silly romantic comedy, seductive Latin music, alluring visuals and high-powered performances, 'Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown' is a musical comedy certain to amuse anyone craving frivolous, tuneful entertainment on Broadway.”

“Football fans lured by the subject to a Broadway show probably can overlook the gaps in Simonson's solid if mechanical drama.”

“They are, in a word, bewitching.”

“An immensely appealing Sean Hayes is terrific in a nice guy hero role created by Jerry Orbach.”

“Their latest import is ‘La Cage aux Folles,’ which opened Sunday at the Longacre Theatre and showcases a delightful turn by British actor Douglas Hodge as a motherly drag star.”

“Lovers of old school rock ‘n' roll will get a big bang out of ‘Million Dollar Quartet,’ a mighty slick jukebox musical powered by a dynamite song stack and dynamic portrayals of the four legends singing ‘em.”

“Enforced by zestful players, the screwy Addams personalities fortunately prevail for most of the show.”

“The original production was a major hit and a similar success looks likely for this brightly performed and highly enjoyable Broadway revival which opened Sunday at the Theatre.”

“Perhaps this mirror ball-type entertainment will appeal more to you than me.”

“Frankly I could scarcely wait to move myself out of the theater and into a martini.”

“Showcased at his spookiest best as a one-handed weirdo, Walken is hilarious and the sharply-staged comedy-thriller he haunts packs 90 minutes of nasty entertainment.”

“Broadway has never before witnessed a musical quite like ‘Fela!’ — an explosive mix of catchy Afrobeat rhythms, wild, sexy dancing and raw bio-dramatics — and while its unique charms certainly are powerful, one frankly wonders whether this unusual show will catch on with the mainstream public.”

“You may be grabbing tickets for ‘A Steady Rain’ simply to bask in the movie-starry presence of Daniel (‘007’) Craig and Hugh (‘Wolverine’) Jackman on Broadway.”

“Whenever she opens her mouth - whether to demonstrate her supple coloratura or to detonate a verbal grenade or two - 'Wicked' makes endearingly whimsical noises, the sounds of a bona fide crowd-pleaser.”

“A marvel of organization and inventiveness. Lusciously composed, smartly written and beautifully staged, 'Wicked' is one of the rare shows in town that justifies a $100 ticket.”

“A lively time with lots of laughs awaits theatergoers who take a trip to ‘Avenue Q.’”

“A stunning stage event combining a graceful horde of actors, singers and dancers with a stylized world of fantastic puppets and theatrical wonderment.”

“Wright furiously tears around as the flamboyant Jacques.”

“If this ably staged, performed and designed production is not the most memorable show you will ever see, it certainly represents an agreeable time with a couple of excellent players exercising their craft.”

“Long after viewers forget the story, they’ll recall with pleasure the infernally catchy title number as choreographed by Marshall into an exuberantly tap-happy extravaganza that involves nearly the entire 28-member company led by Foster’s saucy Reno Sweeney.”

“Depicting the philosophical tiger with grim humor, a gruff-voiced, soulful Williams submerges his bravura skills into the ensemble work of his fellow actors. Respectively playing the conflicted translator and increasingly cerebral Marine, Moayed and Fleischer unerringly chart their characters' evolutions.”

“Some serious business actually lurks behind the silly showmanship of "BBAJ.”

“The wonderful zest that everybody packs into their performances suggests that they love doing this brilliant show, and who can blame them?”

“Before complimenting the other actors, let’s note how beautifully Hughes has cast and directs Kanin’s work, which remains a great American comedy.”

“‘Brief Encounter’ is a classic film.”

“‘Catch Me If You Can’ expertly provides a darned good story, a perky score, tip-top performances and glossy visuals.”

“Best book your seats soon should you hope to witness these great artists give warm, winning life to the characters of starchy Atlanta matron Daisy Werthan and her devoted driver Hoke Coleburn.”

“Scott's spirits are high, her mildly balmy message is positive and her saga obviously is not the usual stage-struck chatter.”

“Wright furiously tears around as the flamboyant Jacques.”

“Gordy's sketchy script presents a straightforward framework that does not get in the way (usually) of more than 60 much-loved songs that are performed like blazes by a dynamic 30-member company of singers and dancers.”

“A cult Disney movie gets re-crafted as an appealing family musical.”

“‘Priscilla’ skimps on sincerity in its musical storytelling to provide instead a somewhat overwhelming cavalcade of madly ga-ga couture and feverish choreography deployed in wacko production numbers.”

“A genial musical that has no intention but to entertain, which it does expertly and enthusiastically, ‘Sister Act’ is a cinch with the summertime tourist crowd and likely to please many a local customer.”

“Hare’s dialogue is smoothly written, yet his play makes for a rather talky, at times tedious two hours or so as Tom and Kyra alternate between rueful recollections of their relationship and sporadic explosions over their present states of mind.”