By Barbara Anne Kirshner Photos by Steve Ayle/showbizshots.com The curtains part revealing a long screen projecting rails on a train track. There is a loud whistle blow and the audience is immediately immersed in the Orient Express running at Theatre Three through May 4th. English mystery writer, Agatha Christie, wrote Murder on the Orient Express featuring her beloved Belgian sleuth, Hercule Poirot, in 1934. It is important to note there is an underlying plot taken from the headlines of the day, the abduction and ransom of the Charles Lindbergh baby. In this real life crime, Lindberg paid the ..read more

An important work from one of the first black women to have a play professionally produced in America: Alice Childress’ Trouble in Mind opens for its Long Island premiere this weekend at the Babylon Citizens Council on the Arts. Trouble in Mind tells the story of veteran stage actress Wiletta Mayer and her battle with her hotshot white director and his less-than-progressive play. This 1955 play – which finally premiered on Broadway in 2021 – is a funny, moving, and heartbreaking look at racism, identity, and ego in the high-stakes world of New York theatre. “At first, Trouble in Mind is a bitt ..read more

The electrifying sound of Styx exploded at NYCB Theatre at Westbury (also known as Westbury Music Fair) on March 27, 2024, a stop along the way in their current tour. Styx is so much more than a rock and roll band. The seven members presently include Tommy Shaw, James “JY” Young, Lawrence Gowan, Chuck Panozzo, Todd Sucherman, Will Evankovich and joining them at this tour stop was Lawrence’s younger brother, Terry, on bass. Styx continues to reinvent itself and seemingly rejuvenates with each change of band mate. Their brilliant harmonies and outstanding musicianship combined with a catalog of ..read more

Blessed Unrest Presents: La Musica Deuxième Written by Marguerite Duras Directed by Jessica Burr May 2-18, 2024 (11 performances) Thursdays through Sundays at 7:30 p.m., Plus, Monday, May 6 at 7:30 p.m. (no performance on Friday, May 3) Drawing Room: 247 West 30th Street, Unit 9R, New York, NY 10001 General Admission Tickets are $25.00 For tickets, visit blessedunrest.org. Direct ticketing link: https://our.show/lamusica Runtime: 75 Minutes (no intermission) Graphic design of Logo, publicity Photos and Headshots by Edwina White. Blessed Unrest, New York City’s award-winning subversive physical ..read more

Written and Photographed by Barbara Anne Kirshner The brilliant musical theater lyricist and composer, Stephen Schwartz, who created a rich catalogue of musical compositions and shows including Godspell (1971), Pippin (1972), and Wicked (2003), Pocahontas (1995), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), The Prince of Egypt (1998, music and lyrics), and Enchanted (2007), was honored on Saturday evening, March 23, with an induction into the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame.  Stephen Schwartz treating the crowd to a song from his new show The Queen of Versailles Schwartz, who grew ..read more

Written by Mike Cutino If you like Pizza this is one place you don’t want to miss.   The 2024 Pizza Expo in las Vegas had it all from fine coffees, pasta, sauces, drinks, Italian meat, and Pizzas from all over the world.  Choose your favorite pizza and they had it there for you to try out.    Yes Free.      Special vendors booths from all over the world for you to sample their products.  The Pizza Expo had it all from special Pizza workshops to Pizza bake offs for who has the very best pizza.     Famous chefs that you read about in Pizza Today ..read more

Photo: Sean McGee (Bob Gaudio), Joey Lavarco (Frankie Valli), Nick Bernardi (Tommy DeVito), and Stephen Cerf (Nick Massi) by Barbara Anne Kirshner It’s the early 1960’s, the dawn of rock and roll, when four New Jersey street kids created a distinct sound that grasped the entire nation and the Four Seasons was born. The Jersey Boys is a bio-jukebox musical based on the Four Seasons quartet, brilliantly scripted by Marshall Brickman, known for his film collaborations with Woody Allan, and Rick Elice. This musical is packed with the group’s smash hits like Oh, What a Night, Earth Angel, Sherry, B ..read more

By Barbara Anne Kirshner Who was Jonathan Larson? Someone with a dream, with laser focus on the prize, and with determination to never give up despite that reverberating tick of time at his door threatening to extinguish that prize. Does that sound familiar? Was there a time in your life when you reached for the stars only to settle for security or are you still deep in the throes of reaching for that illusive dream? Jonathan Larson was a young musical theatre composer with a dream of seeing his show produced on Broadway, but how do you move beyond all those rejections to get the YES that will ..read more

By Barbara Anne Kirshner Photo Credit: Brianna Acevedo-Franchino Three geese in a flock One flew East One flew West And one flew over the cuckoo’s nest This innocent part of a nursery rhyme becomes a desperate cry to escape in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. In 1959, author, Ken Kesey, armed with all he had witnessed while working as an orderly at a mental health facility in California, authored this groundbreaking novel which was published in 1962, at a time when changes were on the horizon to correct the harsh treatment of patients in mental institutions. Prior to that time, such drastic me ..read more

By Barbara Anne Kirshner Stand-up comedy may arguably be the most challenging of all the art forms since it demands instantaneous response from audiences. If laughter erupts, it’s a dream but if the joke falls flat, it’s a nightmare for the comedian. Stars of Tomorrow Showcase was caught last Friday night, January 26 at McGuire’s Comedy Club in Bohemia. The comedians on this bill were strong and enjoyed waves of laughter from the packed house. McGuire’s is an offshoot of Governor’s in Levittown, an institution in comedy that has been around for over 35 years featuring home grown LI comedians i ..read more