460 stories by "Jacob Malizio"
It doesn't take long before the evening begins to feel like an interminable evening with an elderly relative who insists on making you look through their photo albums. Ross can be a very fun…
For all of its appeal, the 90-minute attraction somehow seems a smidge overlong; perhaps Ross' dog stories might be curtailed. Fans familiar with Ross' skill at insult humor likely will pref…
Here and throughout, Mr. Ross is, for the most part, careful to balance his gushing with the gleefully impolite humor that is his bread and butter.
The post An Insult Comic Making His Broadw…
But he threads, or at least punctuates, each of these downer stories with one-liners, some of them funny, some of them just in bad taste. (About his baldness, he says: "I know I look like Br…
Thus, it is pleasantly surprising that Ross's new solo show Jeff Ross: Take a Banana for the Ride is very silly, disarmingly sweet, and engagingly straightforward. To have built a reputation…
Despite being slightly downscaled for the road " most notably in a set that feels a little flimsy " this is a fine iteration of "Mamma Mia!" It certainly is sprightlier than it was the last …
The story-telling magic of ABBA's timeless songs propels this enchanting tale of love, laughter and friendship, creating an unforgettable show. A large cast, non-stop laughs and explosive da…
This is not a dark Brechtian take on a well-known musical, nor a queer reclamation of mainstream pop culture"but I'm not sure anyone needs that from Mamma Mia!, a show that knows what it is …
Yet "Mamma Mia!" remains what it always was: a feast for your pleasure centers. It's a show that almost invites us to roll our eyes at it " until that moment or two later when we're inevitab…
Unlike most of the jukebox musicals that have tried to replicate its formula, Mamma Mia! keeps its balance: It draws you just enough in while maintaining an amused sense of itself. It never …
The current "Mamma Mia!" remains under the control of its original director, Phyllida Lloyd; production designer, Mark Thompson; and other creatives. Frankly, the show looks so tacky that it…
The title still carries that big old exclamation point, but the fantasy is more than a little long in the tooth. Maybe it should be styled with a question mark, or just an ellipsis. Mamma mi…
It's been over 25 years since Mamma! Mia first took to the stage, and it's abundantly clear that the fervor surrounding it isn't going anywhere anytime soon. And it's easy to see why: The sh…
But the fact that it's become such a beloved property anyway, spawning two (possibly three) movies and endless themed karaoke parties, feels like hope that art that's imperfect yet earnest "…
Okay, you millions (billions?) of ABBA"Mamma Mia! devotees, your fave-rave musical gift is back on Broadway in a first local revival at, appropriately, the Winter Garden. It would be a pleas…
Six-time Emmy® Award winner and Tony Award® nominee Jean Smart is back on Broadway for a limited time only, in a tour-de-force portrayal of a writer whose words are her greatest gift, …
Returning to Broadway after 25 years in "Call Me Izzy," which opened Thursday at Studio 54, Jean Smart crushes it in the good way.
The post Jean Smart, Gritty and Poetic in 'Call Me Izzy' ap…
The first production of the new Broadway season, Call Me Izzy blesses 2025-2026 with a terrific beginning. One only hopes Tony voters have very, very long memories.
The post Jean Smart Welco…
These swerves of impulses could easily go off the tracks but the combination of the steady direction of Sarna Lapine ("Sunday in the Park With George") and Smart's riveting performance make …
Jean Smart, heading back to Broadway after a career revival on television, has plenty of talent. The trouble is she's stuck in a production that has little idea what to do with it, other tha…
So, it all comes down to her, and Smart delivers the kind of once-in-a-lifetime performance that lingers long after the play ends. So raw, so shattering, the distance is vast between Izzy an…
The play is dull and unchallenging. Outside of a surprise run-in with a professor " the show's one hearty laugh that then gets overused " the story unfurls in the most obvious, stay-on-the-r…
After a mawkish beginning, the play somewhat redeems itself through earned emotions and an ambiguous ending that begs discussion. It's never wise to bet against Smart, who ultimately deserve…
Fresh off the success of the fourth season of Hacks, Jean Smart is vibrant, tough, and matter-of-factly, darkly funny as Izzy in a way that has the audience alternating laughs and gasps of h…
Smart, returning to Broadway after some 25 years, brings astonishing clarity and depth to the part. Spinning an enticing yarn from shopworn material " the action is set in 1989, when it may …
