The Balusters (Manhattan Theatre Company) (2026)

I enjoyed The Balusters very much. It's hilarious. I haven't laughed this hard since Oh Mary. It's about a toxic HOA, a nine-person board with feuds about stop signs and balusters. And the Vernon Point Neighborhood Association gave me PTSD thinking about my co-op board. It hits on a lot of relatable petty squabbles. From the sound of it, a bit about dog poop really resonated with one person sitting in the orchestra. The plot is sort of predictable but it's really well executed. I's about all of our modern identity sensitivities; no one is safe. Kenny Leon very deftly balances the themes about race with Anika Noni Rose leading the cast and hosting the HOA meeting as the newbie. Richard Thomas plays the president of the HOA, deservedly nominated for a Tony, coming off as genuine and sincere but a conniving bastard. Loved this show. 

Hamlet (The Public Theater) (2023)

In 2019, Kenny Leon staged a brilliant production of Much Ado About Nothing in the park. This year, he returns to the Delacorte (for one final season before it closes for 18 months of renovations) with Hamlet. Though the plays have nothing to do with each other, he stages it in the same affluent black suburb of alternate Atlanta, one in which Stacey Abrams ran for president in 2020. But this time, the Abrams banner is broken, the palatial estate is crooked, the American flag is at an angle, the car in a puddle, and at center stage a casket draped in an American flag. The set and costumes are fabulous. The Queen Gertrude is dressed in African regalia.  Like in "Much Ado", the cast is predominantly black and they infuse the play with hip-hop and gospel music. 

Ato Blankson-Wood is very good as the eponymous Hamlet. His "To Be or Not To Be" was breathtaking. I don't feel like he really got across though that he was faking insanity. The production definitely suggests that he's actually gone mad following the murder of his father. The father's ghost appears as an ominous voice who possesses Hamlet, and there are some spooky lights. In this way, Hamlet is portrayed as more of an anti-hero. But I remembered Hamlet being more justified in his anger. 

Shakespeare's longest play, Hamlet usually runs more than 4 hours but this production is an abbreviated 2 hours 45 minutes. There are subplots removed which has the effect of accelerating the main plot. It makes the pacing kind of weird. And by the time everyone dies at the end, it feels sort of unearned. In conclusion, not as good as Much Ado About Nothing, but maybe I also am just not a big fan of the tragedies.

Much Ado About Nothing (The Public Theater) (2019)

This is the best and most modern Shakespeare I have ever seen. Kenny Leon's take on Much Ado About Nothing is fresh and lively. It is subliminally political; the first thing you see is a prominent "Stacey Abrams 2020" banner. It's not quite as on the nose as the Donald Trump Julius Caesar from a couple summers ago. But the undertones are there. We hear a beautiful rendition of What's Going On sung by Danielle Brooks. This community is in the contemporary resistance. Taking place in the near future with an all black cast, it is about community and black love.The music and choreography are simultaneously unexpected and perfect for this modern, unabashedly black show.

American Son (2018) (Broadway)

I had a really incredible experience at the Booth Theater last week. A big thanks to American Express for making it possible by bringing together a selection of employees and students at a really special performance. In the audience was Eric Garner's mother and coincidentally Shaun King's daughter was one of the students. This groups of students, mostly studying theater and performing arts, were inspiring. They gave me hope for humanity by showing us their love and support for each other in the face of adversity. The post-show discussion was full of displays of emotion. Your heart breaks for them. I don't know why Steven Pasquale skipped the Q&A but he missed out on an event as powerful as the show itself. Kerry Washington was there sitting cross-legged and barefoot. She is extremely intelligent, a great speaker and a real down to Earth leading lady.

The play is brilliant. It's a must-see for our time, getting at the heart of a system that is stacked against African Americans. It illuminates the unique challenges faced by black people in America. It takes place in a Florida police station in the middle of the night. The rain pours down backstage outside the windows. Kerry Washington's son is missing. And the policeman on-duty is not providing her information about her son's whereabouts. The one thing we know is that his car was involved in an "incident". That incident could be anything, as we are frequently reminded, but we have our suspicions. Knowing our society, our mind goes to the darkest place without hesitation because it is all too common that young men of color are stopped by the police. The writing is excellent. The plot points reveal themselves with precision, every word is chosen carefully and delivered perfectly. Go see American Son.

The Wiz Live! (2015)

NBC stepped up its game, finally putting some real production into its live musical event this year.  There area few things that really made this production stand out.  The first is a set of fantastic performances from a star studded cast plus a newcomer who fully proved herself.  Stepping into Diana Ross's role of Dorothy was Shanice Williams, who belted out 'Home' with such power, nailing the big number.    David Alan Grier is just brilliant as the Cowardly Lion. His purr sounded so cat-like it was a little freaky.  Common has a very small part as an Emerald City gatekeeper, but he is hilarious. Queen Latifah plays the eponymous Wiz, and she plays it up with attitude.  Amber Riley graduated from Glee and put her singing chops to use as the Good Witch of the North.  Elijah Kelley stepped into Michael Jackson's shoes to play the Scarecrow. But I think this production was really defined by the Tin Man Ne-Yo, as much a dancer as he is a singer.  And this production shined thanks to excellent, energetic choreography by Fatima Robinson.  Unlike the previous NBC productions, there was some genuinely complex and entertaining dancing, which is what will really push it over the top when it makes the transition to the Broadway stage.

Finally, the set design and costumes had some really effort put into them.  The Wiz looked like a green Cruella de Vil.  The munchkins all had a distinctive look, as did the denizens of the Emerald City--they looked like something out of the Capital from The Hunger Games.  The Emerald City "club" had some great choreography too. The infamous maelstrom of a tornado that whisks Dorothy away was so incredibly well done that it seemed real with Dorothy flying through the air.  And I appreciated that the production came full circle, featuring the original Broadway Dorothy Stephanie Mills as Auntie Em.  Here's to hoping that NBC keeps up this high quality of live musical events.