Review: In ‘Paradise Square,’ Racial Harmony Turns to Discord
But in hammering these large-scale events into individual stories, and in manipulating them so performers have reason to sing at top volume and dance nearly nonstop, the uplifting, star-making, overwrought new musical, which opened on Sunday at the Ethel Barrymore Theater, turns history on its head.
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‘Paradise Square’ Packs Valuable Lessons in Old-Fashioned, Familiar Wrapping
Ensembles of Black and immigrant communities sing about the difficulties of living in a changing America. A group of people stand in a triangle formation and protest. Black and white people compete against each other in a racially and politically charged dance contest. No this isn’t Ragtime, Les Mis, or Hairspray. It’s Paradise Square, a […]
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An Evening Spent at Home Beats a Night at this “Plaza Suite”
What does it say about our society that Plaza Suite, the first Neil Simon play to return to Broadway in over 11 years, and the first since his death in 2018, is a middling affair buried in milquetoast acting with inept direction? During his heyday, Simon defined what Broadway comedy meant. Nicknamed “Doc,” for his […]
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