The Very Best of NYC Theater

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, The Tribute Artist, FRIGID New York Festival and much more

Don’t miss Beautiful: The Carole King Musical playing in an open run at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre. Beautiful tells the inspiring true story of King’s remarkable rise to stardom, from being part of a hit songwriting team with her husband Gerry Goffin, to her relationship with fellow writers and best friends Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann, to becoming one of the most successful solo acts in popular music history. Along the way, she made more than beautiful music, she also wrote the soundtrack to a generation.

Primary Stages is presenting the world premiere of Tony nominee Charles Busch’s new comedy The Tribute Artist, playing now through Mar 16. Busch leads the company as an out-of-work female impersonator who takes on the identity of his suddenly deceased landlady in order to remain in her Greenwich Village townhouse. This “perfect” scheme goes awry and leads to a wild path of twists and reversals plotted by an eccentric rogues’ gallery of outrageous schemers. Expect Busch’s signature blend of quick-witted banter and gender-bending hijinks in this new play written specifically for Primary Stages from the master of Off-Broadway farce.

The 8th Annual FRIGID New York Festival returns to NYC Feb 19-Mar 9 to chill out the New York independent theatre scene’s ideas of what a theatre festival can be. Held at the Kraine Theater and UNDER St. Mark’s, this uncensored theatre festival gives artists an opportunity to let their ingenuity thrive in a venue that values freedom of expression and artistic determination. In true support of theatre on the fringe of the mainstream, 100% of box office proceeds will go directly to the artists. This year’s offerings include Rebecca Perry’s award-winning, one-woman “show-sical” Confessions of a Redheaded Coffee Shop Girl, and Tina and Amy: Last Night in Paradise, a comedy based on dynamic duo Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.

Hattie Morahan gives a superb performance as a beleaguered housewife in the Young Vic’s production of Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House at BAM, with previews beginning Feb 21. After a secret debt from her past comes back to haunt her, Nora finds her idyllic domestic life becoming a tense battleground between the stifling societal norms of her time and her intense desire for self-determination. Director Carrie Cracknell reimagines Ibsen’s masterpiece of marital conflict, which arrives at BAM on a wave of enthusiastic reviews after two sold-out runs and a West End transfer in the UK.

Idina Menzel stars in If/Then, officially opening at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on Mar 30. On the verge of turning 40, Elizabeth moves back to New York City—the ultimate city of possibility, intent on a fresh start—new home, new friends and hopes for a resurgent career. But even in her carefully planned new life, the smallest decision or most random occurrence will impact her world in ways she never dreamed possible. Set against the ever-shifting landscape of modern-day Manhattan, If/Then is a romantic and original new musical about how choice and chance collide, and how we learn to love the fallout.


What Do You Think?