EDWARD RUBIN, an iconoclastic theatre critic, arts critic and curator, who wrote for decades about theatre and the visual arts, died after a protracted battle with bladder cancer at Calvary Hospital on June 15, 2025. He was 84. Rubin, who went by the nickname “Fast Eddy” was a long-standing member of the New York Drama…
By AARON KRAUSE, Special to Theatrecriticism.com (SARASOTA, FL.) — Five-time Tony Award recipient Terrence McNally, the world-renowned playwright who also received the Tony Awards’ Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre honor last year, died March 24 in Sarasota. He was 81 . McNally succumbed to complications from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. He was…
By AARON KRAUSE MIAMI –A black mother expresses a chilling, yet valid concern in American Son, Christopher Demos-Brown’s unflinchingly honest and heartbreaking play about race, set in present-day Miami. The woman implies that what happened to Emmett Till in 1955 could happen to her teenage son today, 65 years later. The mother’s worry is not that far-fetched….
By AARON KRAUSE NEW YORK, N.Y. — If you want to hear current members of the famed musical group The Temptations perform live this year, you’re out of luck. According to https://www.songkick.com/artists/499703-temptations, they aren’t touring. Moreover, organizers have not planned concerts for what is left of 2019. But you can travel back in time to the…
By AARON KRAUSE MIAMI — Do yourself a favor: Do not think about Come From Away as just another show “about 9/11.” To be sure, this remarkable true story would not exist had the terrorist attacks on one of the world’s darkest days not occurred. But Come From Away, which is hardly depressing, is about so much more…
By AARON KRAUSE WILTON MANORS, FL. — The senator proclaims his vision for America in a sunny, hopeful voice. However, the audience’s reaction is shades darker. In fact, the groans sound like die-hard fans of a beloved home team reacting with pavlovian jeers as soon as they see the arch-nemesis’ uniforms. Of course, the senator…
By AARON KRAUSE MIAMI — With Hamilton capturing the theater world’s attention like few shows in recent memory, it can be easy to pass without a glance the marquee of another musical phenomenon that has played on Broadway seemingly forever. Of course, the latter show is The Lion King. It will quietly enter its 22nd year on the Great…
By AARON KRAUSE WEST PALM BEACH — As anyone familiar with John Guare’s The House of Blue Leaves knows, Hollywood songwriter wannabe Artie Shaughnessy poses a question in one of his songs. Specifically, he wonders, “Where is the devil in Evelyn?” Well, here’s another question – where is the darkness in Palm Beach Dramaworks’ production…
By AARON KRAUSE FT. LAUDERDALE — Awww, isn’t it cute how the little monkey with sad, puppy-dog eyes is sucking on a pacifier? It’s just precious! Surely, you can’t miss the image on the cover of Thinking Cap Theatre’s program for its current, impressive production of the odd, yet intriguing and relevant play, Precious Little. But…
By AARON KRAUSE He is entering his 50th and final season as TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s Artistic Director and has garnered many awards for his work with the Bay Area company. And to top off Robert Kelley’s five decades at its helm, one of the longest of any professional regional theater, the founding artistic director recently…
By AARON KRAUSE FT. LAUDERDALE — Dramamine is not one of the products for sale in the theater lobbies where the Broadway musical adaptation of Anastasia plays. But if you are prone to motion sickness or equilibrium disturbances, you may want to consider asking your doctor or pharmacist about taking medication before attending. To be sure, nothing…
By AARON KRAUSE MIAMI LAKES — Parts of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tracy Letts’ Superior Donuts are as sweet as a sinful confection in the shop bearing the play’s title. Indeed, these moments will make you grin from ear to ear like the ambitious Franco Wicks, one of the main characters. The scenes, which for the…
