Off-Broadway Review

Billy Eichner: Gay, White, and Terrified!

Don't be fooled by the title of Billy Eichner's new one-man show at Joe's Pub, because this gay comic isn't terrified of anything (certainly not of Hugh Jackman's handlers).

‘Harper Regan’ Tries to Complicate the Uncomplicated

Simon Stephens’ “Harper Regan,” getting its American premiere at Atlantic Theater Company after debuting at London’s National Theatre in 2008, is far too muddled for its own good.

Nonmusical Revue 'How to Be a New Yorker' Is Bland Tourist Fare

“How to Be a New Yorker,” the nonmusical revue of New York facts, sketches, and stereotypes playing at Sofia’s Downstairs Theater, mines obvious material in unimaginative ways.

'North' Is a Strikingly Staged Fantasia on the Lindberghs and Saint-Exupéry

Jennifer Schlueter and Christina Ritter’s “North,” at 59E59 Theaters, is a mesmerizing fictional look at Charles Lindbergh; his wife, Anne; and French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.

'Powder Her Face' Is Witty, Stylish, and Moving

New York City Opera’s “Powder Her Face,” a musically adventuresome, sexually explicit contemporary opera about a notorious British scandal, at BAM, both challenges and entertains.

'Mulan the Musical' Excitingly Blends Eastern and Western Culture

In “Mulan the Musical,” the Red Poppy Ladies, an all-female Chinese percussion troupe, use dazzling drumming to tell the tale of a young woman who disguises herself as a soldier.

'If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet' Is Riveting with Jake Gyllenhaal in American Stage Debut

British playwright Nick Payne’s riveting drama “If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet,” Off-Broadway from Roundabout, features a terrific Jake Gyllenhaal in his American stage debut.

‘Forever Dusty’ Brings Dusty Springfield Back to Life

Kirsten Holly Smith is Dusty Springfield incarnate in this musical bio, which is ramshackle in dramatic terms but makes for a dandy evening of the singer’s greatest hits.

Well-Intentioned 'Bare' Traffics in Stereotypes and Clichés

The 2004 cult musical “Bare” returns to Off-Broadway in search of mainstream success in director Stafford Arima’s ambitious and extensive retooling, but it’s unlikely to find it.

'Flipside: The Patti Page Story' Bifurcates Its Subject

“Flipside: The Patti Page Story,” Greg White’s well-produced portrait of the 1950s singer, with input from Page herself, succeeds musically but falls a bit short as biography.