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Dame Maggie Smith, the British actress who starred in Harry Potter films, the wildly popular Downton Abbey series and scores of other movies, TV shows, West End and Broadway productions in a career that brought two Oscars, five BAFTAs, four Emmys and a Tony Award, died today. She was 89.

Smith’s death was confirmed by her sons Toby Stephens and Chris Larkin. In a statement shared with UK media, they said: “She passed away peacefully in hospital early this morning, Friday 27th September. An intensely private person, she was with friends and family at the end. She leaves two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother.”

Smith was one of the finest British screen and stage stars of her generation and will be remembered for her performances in iconic films and TV shows, including Harry Potter and Downton Abbey. Her...

André Bishop will conclude his 33-year leadership tenure at Lincoln Center Theater in June 2025 at the conclusion of the non-profit theater company’s 40th anniversary 2024-25 season.

Bishop, whose celebrated tenure as Lct’s Artistic Director and more recently Producing Artistic Director included the premieres of such acclaimed new works as Tom Stoppard’s The Coast of Utopia and Arcadia, Christopher Durang’s Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Wendy Wasserstein’s The Sisters Rosensweig, and The Light in the Piazza by Craig Lucas and Adam Guettel, to name a very few, announced his intended departure today.

“My years at Lincoln Center Theater have been happy ones,” he said in a statement, “and I will miss working with all my friends and colleagues. But the time has come, as it inevitably does, for the next generation to step in and step up. I look forward to that. Lct has...

[Obviously, major spoilers follow.] Brutal. Bloody. Big-hearted. In an extraordinary week for much-anticipated series finales, three Emmy-winning shows found their own distinctive ways to take a last bow: two from HBO — one an acclaimed drama of dynastic conflict, the other a perverse fable of violent retribution in the shadow of Hollywood — and the third from Apple’s streaming upstart, a charming sports comedy saturated in sweetness. Of the three, the most likely to be remembered in the pantheon of all-time great finales is HBO’s Succession, the brilliant but bleak masterpiece of media mendacity from Jesse Armstrong. Often compared to Shakespeare with its King Lear-like patriarch igniting familial strife, but in the end closer to the lacerating Edward Albee of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf and A Delicate Balance, the final run of Succession was shocking from the moment that multimedia mogul Logan Roy (Brian Cox) died midflight in the third of 10 episodes.

“The Definitive Pinter”

By Raymond Benson

Cinema Retro has featured articles and reviews of several titles in the “American Film Theatre” series.

To recap: Back in 1973, producer Ely Landau and his wife Edie launched a daring and unprecedented cinema series that played in the U.S. for two “seasons,” with a total of fourteen titles (but only thirteen were shown), all renowned works—classic and modern—originally produced on the stage. It was called the American Film Theatre. (A review of a DVD box set of the entire series appeared on Cinema Retro. Click here to read.)

The concept tried something different. The directive was to take a great stage play, not change a word, and in most cases, use the actual play script as the screenplay. The next step was to hire an accomplished film director to interpret the text for the film medium but stay faithful to the play.

Actress Rosemary Harris, playwright Terrence McNally and composer Harold Wheeler – Tony Award winners all – each will received a Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, the Tony administration company announced today.

“We are thrilled to recognize Rosemary, Terrence and Harold with the Special Tony Awards for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre,” said Heather Hitchens, President of the American Theatre Wing and Charlotte St. Martin, President of The Broadway League. “They are pioneers in each of their crafts and their contributions to American Theatre and culture has been immeasurable.”

Harris, who won the Tony for Best Actress for The Lion in Winter (1965), is currently starring as Mrs. Higgins in Lincoln Center Theater’s revival of My Fair Lady. Her other 25 Broadway credits include Tony-nominated performances in The Royal Family (2009), Waiting in the Wings (1999), Edward Albee’s A Delicate Balance (1996), Hay Fever (1985), Pack of Lies (1984), Heartbreak House (1983) and Old Times...

The BAFTA Awards are Feb. 10, with Oscars two weeks later. All the lead actress nominees are terrific, but Glenn Close creates something unique because it’s so subtle. What she does is harder than it looks.

In Sony Classics’ “The Wife,” Close has the least showy role of the contenders, which is usually an awards disadvantage. She doesn’t have any “big scenes,” there’s no hysteria, no scenery-chewing, no calculated “This’ll get ’em!” moments. Instead, she offers a lesson in film acting.

Close told Variety that the challenge and “thrill” were in creating a woman who has so much going on internally; the character, Joan Castleman, has spent her life trying to fade into the background of her writer-husband, but both hit a crisis when he’s awarded a Nobel Prize for literature.

“There were years of her reveling in the work, but slowly seeing her husband become delusional about his creative process,...

When Glenn Close picked up a Golden Globe for her performance in The Wife last week, her acceptance speech reduced some of the biggest players in Hollywood to tears. And for good reason. Close talked about not allowing yourself to be be subjugated by others, and how it’s not too late to acknowledge a long-held dream–relatable stuff for so many, and entirely on topic for her winning role.

As Joan Castleman, Close is the titular wife accompanying her celebrated novelist husband Joe (Jonathan Pryce) to Stockholm to accept his Nobel Prize for Literature–a story based on Meg Wolitzer’s 2003 book of the same name. Joan is by turns nurturing and then simmering with a deep rage at having lived a life that led to her husband collecting a prize she herself deserved.

Speaking via phone from her mountain home far from California, Close looks back on the...

Edward Albee won three Pulitzer Prizes over the course of his distinguished career, with two of those award-winning plays (“A Delicate Balance,” “Seascape”) bowing on Broadway during his lifetime. Surprisingly, “Three Tall Women,” the last of his Pulitzer-winning works, had never been seen on the rialto until now, as the play finally debuted with a starry production that opened at the Golden Theatre on March 29. As its title suggests, the drama boasts three formidable actresses—two-time Oscar winner and four-time Tony nominee Glenda Jackson, who returns to the Broadway stage for the first time since 1988; recent Tony winner and Oscar nominee Laurie Metcalf; and Tony nominee Alison Pill—directed by two-time Tony winner Joe Mantello.

“Three Tall Women,” a semi-autobiographical depiction of Albee’s adoptive mother, centers on a nonagenarian suffering from failing health and memory (Jackson), her caretaker (Metcalf) and a representative for her attorney (Pill). The relationships established...

by Eric Blume

The Broadway revival of Edward Albee’s 1994 play Three Tall Women opens on Thursday. It stars Alison Pill, freshly Oscar nominated Laurie Metcalf, and two-time Oscar winner Glenda Jackson, who hasn’t been on an American stage in 32 years.

Director Joe Mantello builds a stunning production. Albee’s play, which won the Pulitzer Prize when it debuted off-Broadway in 1994, holds up beautifully, as all of his major plays do. Albee writes in a theatrical, controlled, but go-for-broke language that soars in the way only the best theater can. Three Tall Women is a major play, like Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Seascape and The Zoo Story and A Delicate Balance and The Goat, Or Who is Sylvia?. It’s mind-boggling when you think of this man’s contribution to the theater, and the deep and compelling issues and emotions he tackled during his long career.

Since any New York City cinephile has a nearly suffocating wealth of theatrical options, we figured it’d be best to compile some of the more worthwhile repertory showings into one handy list. Displayed below are a few of the city’s most reliable theaters and links to screenings of their weekend offerings — films you’re not likely to see in a theater again anytime soon, and many of which are, also, on 35mm. If you have a chance to attend any of these, we’re of the mind that it’s time extremely well-spent.

Film Forum

A Michael Haneke retrospective begins as does a restoration of The Crime of Monsieur Lange.

The Film Society Lincoln Center

“The Lost Years of German Cinema” features rare cinematic gems from Fritz Lang, Helmut Käutner, Robert Siodmak, and more.

Anthology Film Archives

“Generation Wealth” kicks off with The Bling Ring, Spring Breakers, L’Argent,...

Stars from “Dear Evan Hansen,” “A Bronx Tale,” “Wicked,” and beyond made their way to the Highline Ballroom on Oct. 30 for “Love Letter to Houston,” a benefit concert for victims of Hurricane Harvey, organized by Houston native and “Evan Hansen” actor Kristolyn Lloyd. Proceeds from the event, which also featured a live auction hosted by Will Roland, went entirely to the Houston Food Bank. Additionally, every piece performed throughout the evening was, notably, written by a Houstonian including Beyoncé (Olivia Puckett singing “I’m a Survivor”), Edward Albee (Lora Lee Gayer performing an excerpt from “A Delicate Balance”), and Johnny Nash (Lloyd herself performing “I Can See Clearly”). Additional performances came courtesy of Lloyd’s current costar Laura Dreyfuss, Tony nominee Nick Cordero, and “Newsies” alum Kara Lindsay. You can learn more about or donate to the Houston Food Bank here.

Producer Robert A. Goldston, whose credits ranged from such American Film Theatre productions as The Iceman Cometh and A Delicate Balance in the 1970s to the 1987 HBO film Mandela, died Saturday at his home in New York from complications of Crohn’s disease. He was 88.

A graduate of Harvard Law, Goldston practiced law briefly before entering show business, working first at Screen Gems/Columbia and then joining New York’s WNTA, the forerunner to public television station WNET. There, as president of NTA Productions, he was involved in the Play of the Week series, which ran from 1959-1961, broadcasting 67 Broadway-style...

Darren Aronofsky doesn't make movies to help you feel better about yourself and the world. He's a cinematic virtuoso (Requiem for a Dream, Black Swan) on a mission to probe and provoke. That makes him a rare bird in a multiplex of comic-book escapism and cheap formula. Be warned: mother! radiates a vibe of something dangerous if you get too close.

Javier Bardem, in a portrayal of demonic charm and intensity, stars as a famous poet living in seclusion in a beautiful country house with a young wife (Jennifer Lawrence...

Adam is an ex-police photographer who experienced a nervous breakdown and quit the force. Currently he suffers from hallucinations and spends his time in his apartment, secretly watching his neighbors with his camera, and particularly a woman, Iva. Eventually, detective Man, an ex co-worker asks Adam to help him in an investigation regarding a number of brutal murders. As they discover some photographic negatives made of glass, their research leads them into the world of antique shops and the supernatural. Iva, a deformed man named Belian, and an antique owner named Sani seem to be involved in the mystery. Everything seems to revolve around a true incident that took place a century ago, when Norwegian explorer Carl Lumholtz traveled through central Borneo between 1913 and 1917 and photographed some tribal women.

A delicate balance

Dain Said directs and pens (along June Tan, Nandita Solomon and Redza Minhat) a film that keeps a delicate balance among thriller,...

Reel-Important People is a monthly column that highlights those individuals in or related to the movies that have left us in recent weeks. Below you'll find names big and small and from all areas of the industry, though each was significant to the movies in his or her own way. Edward Albee (1928-2016) - Playwright. He's best known for writing the play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, which was turned into the classic 1966 movie. Other movies adapted from his plays include A Delicate Balance and The Ballad of Sad Cafe. He died on September 16. (Nyt) Alexis Arquette (1969-2016) - Transgender Actress. Her movies include Last Exit to Brooklyn, Pulp Fiction, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, The Wedding Singer (see...

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Playwright Edward Albee, best known for his 1962 Broadway play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, has died. He was 88. Albee's personal assistant, Jakob Holder, confirmed to the New York Times that the three-time Pulitzer Prize winner died Friday at his home in Montauk, New York after a short illness. Albee, who had been a legend in the Lgbt community, had left a note under the condition that it be revealed at the time of his death: "To all of you who have made my being alive so wonderful, so exciting and so full, my thanks and all my love." Among his...

Playwright Edward Albee, best known for his 1962 Broadway play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, has died. He was 88. Albee's personal assistant, Jakob Holder, confirmed to the New York Times that the three-time Pulitzer Prize winner died Friday at his home in Montauk, New York after a short illness. Albee, who had been a legend in the Lgbt community, had left a note under the condition that it be revealed at the time of his death: "To all of you who have made my being alive so wonderful, so exciting and so full, my thanks and all my love." Among his...

Edward Albee, the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright behind “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” has died at the age of 88. According to the Associated Press, Albee died at his home in Montauk, New York. Albee’s groundbreaking play “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” was selected for the Pulitzer Prize in 1963, but was denied by the selection board due to its vulgarity. He later went on to win three Pulitzers throughout his career for “A Delicate Balance” in 1967, “Seascape” in 1975 and “Three Tall Women” in 1994. Also Read: Bill Murray's 'Groundhog Day' to Become Broadway Musical This Spring The...

Will Maggie Smith follow in the footsteps of Katharine Hepburn and win an Oscar decades after her last victories? In her new film "The Lady in the Van," Smith plays the real-life Mary Shepherd, a homeless woman who moved her van into the driveway of writer Alan Bennett (Alex Jennings) and stayed there for 15 years. -Break- Subscribe to Gold Derby Breaking News Alerts & Experts’ Latest Oscar Predictions Hepburn claimed her record fourth Best Actress Oscar for her performance as Ethel Thayer in the heartwarming "On Golden Pond" in 1981. She had won her first in 1933 for "Morning Glory" and then back-to-back in the late 1960s ("Guess Who Coming to Dinner," 1967; "The Lion in Winter," 1968); However, in the 1970s, she had only headlined two films ("A Delicate Balance," 1973) and "Rooster Cogburn" (1975). The latter of those paired her with one screen legend, John Wayne, for the fir...

"A delicate balance is required to combat violence perpetrated in the name of a religion, an ideology or an economic system, while also safeguarding religious freedom, intellectual freedom and individual freedoms. But there is another temptation which we must especially guard against: the simplistic reductionism which sees only good or evil; or, if you will, the righteous and sinners."

Pope Francis born Jorge Mario Bergoglio (17 December 1936), 266th and current Pope of the Catholic Church, a title he holds ex officio as Bishop of Rome, and Sovereign of the Vatican City.

Long considered to be one of British auteur Tony Richardson’s greatest miscalculations is his 1970 film Ned Kelly, certainly the most notable but arguably the definitive version as concerns one of Australia’s most infamous outlaws. Arriving on Blu-ray for the first time, the title remains a curious novelty, one of a handful of on-screen appearances featuring The Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger in a high-profile role. As many of these once-reviled titles go, the history behind the making of the film tends to overshadow the compromised product, and Richardson’s failed period piece is no exception.

In the late 1800s Outback, horse thief and aspiring bank robber Ned Kelly (Jagger) is released after serving a three year prison sentence. Harassed by the law and his angry neighbors, the ornery bushranger is forced into action when his mother (Clarissa Kaye) is unjustly accused of murder and sentenced to prison. His resulting...

Distinguished stage and screen actor best known for her role as the shallow and materialistic mother in the hit 1967 film The Graduate

It is a show business axiom that a small role in a hit Hollywood film is worth much more in the currency of fame than dozens of longer, meatier parts in the theatre. Thus Elizabeth Wilson, who has died aged 94, is primarily acknowledged as having played Dustin Hoffman’s shallow and materialistic mother in The Graduate (1967) rather than for her critically acclaimed stage performances in plays by Anton Chekhov (Uncle Vanya), Oscar Wilde (The Importance of Being Earnest), Eugene O’Neill (Ah Wilderness!), Bertolt Brecht (The Good Woman of Szechuan, The Threepenny Opera) and Edward Albee (A Delicate Balance).

Nevertheless, Wilson was admirable in Mike Nichols’s The Graduate, initially displaying maternal pride at her son’s achievements at college, reading from the yearbook to a houseful of...

Not only did Harvey Weinstein‘s “Finding Neverland” fail to be nominated for best musical, the show’s stars Matthew Morrison and Kelsey Grammer were also ignored by the Tonys. Few pundits expected “Neverland” to be cited, but Morrison being left off the list was a shocker. He joins an illustrious group of TV and movie stars this season who have no chance of bringing a Tony home on June 7. Those snubbed include Michael Cera (“This Is Our Youth”), Glenn Close (“A Delicate Balance”), Tyne Daly (“It Shoulda Been You”), Larry David (“Fish in the Dark”), Vanessa Hudgens (“Gigi”), Hugh Jackman (“The.

While stars Helen Mirren (Peter Morgan's "The Audience"), Bradley Cooper, Alessandro Nivolo and Patricia Clarkson (revival "The Elephant Man"), Bill Nighy and Carey Mulligan (revival "Skylight"), Elisabeth Moss (revival "The Heidi Chronicles"), Ruth Wilson ("Constellation") and Ken Watanabe (musical revival "The King and I") all scored Tony nominations, others were snubbed. Not adored by awards voters were Harvey Weinstein's much-publicized movie-to-play "Finding Neverland" and Movie stars Jake Gyllenhaal (“Constellations"), Mia Farrow ("Love Letters"), Glenn Close and Bob Balaban ("A Delicate Balance") and James Earl Jones ("You Can’t Take It With You"). “Doctor Zhivago" and "Honeymoon in Vegas" starring Tony Danza also came up empty-handed, while "Gigi" got one nod, but not best musical revival. Director Bill...

An unknown could defeat a field of superstars in the competitive Best Actor (Play) category at this year’s Tonys. Who do you think will win this competitive category? Make the best predictions in our Tony nominations contest and you could win a $100 Amazon gift certificate and a place of honor in our famous leaderboards. -Break- Three of the frontrunners in this race are a recent graduate of Juilliard (Alex Sharp in “Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”), an award winner in a transfer from Off-Broadway (Steven Boyer in “Hand to God"), and a British performer dominating a two-evening historical drama (Ben Miles in “Wolf Hall Parts 1 and 2”). Their main competition comes from high-profile film stars like Bradley Cooper (“The Elephant Man”), Bill Nighy (“Skylight”), John Lithgow (“A Delicate Balance”), and Jake Gyllenhaal (“Constellations”). Hugh Jackman (&..."...

Producers Jeffrey Richards, Jerry Frankel, and Steve Traxler just announced that Al PACINOwill return to Broadway in the world premiere of China Doll, a new play by David Mamet. It will begin previews on October 20, 2015, with an official opening on November 19, 2015, at The Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre 236 West 45th Street. The play will also feature Fran Kranz You Can't Take It With You, Death of a Salesman, Dollhouse. Tony Award-winner Pam MacKinnon The Heidi Chronicles, Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance, Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf will direct. The creative team will include scenic design by Tony Award-winner Derek McLane Gigi, Beautiful The Carole King Musical, 33 Variations, lighting design by Russell H. Champa In the Next Room or the vibrator play, and costume design by Tony Award-winner Jess Goldstein Jersey Boys, Proof, The Rivals.Joining Pacino in the play will be Fran Kranz, who most recently starred on Broadway...

[Press Release] Producers Jeffrey Richards, Jerry Frankel, and Steve Traxler are pleased to announce that Al Pacino will return to Broadway in the world premiere of China Doll, a new play by David Mamet. It will begin previews on October 20, 2015, with an official opening on November 19, 2015, at The Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre (236 West 45th Street). The play will also feature Fran Kranz (You Can’t Take It With You, Death of a Salesman, “Dollhouse”). Tony Award-winner Pam MacKinnon (The Heidi Chronicles, Edward Albee’s A Delicate Balance, Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?) will direct. The creative team will include scenic design by Tony Award-winner Derek McLane (Gigi, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, 33 Variations), lighting design by Russell H. Champa (In the Next...

Logan Lerman, Oscar-winner Frances McDormand and Christian Slater have joined the cast of Anonymous Content and Meta Film’s drama “The Wife.”

Also rounding out the cast are Brit Marling and Jonathan Pryce.

Glenn Close, who was already previously signed on for the project, will star as Joan Castleman, a wife who decides to leave her husband Joe (Pryce) on the eve of him receiving the Nobel Prize for literature.

Also read: ‘A Delicate Balance’ Theater Review: Glenn Close Revisits More Than One Diva

Slater will play a determined biographer who becomes the catalyst prompting Joan’s decision to leave...

The Heidi Chronicles will begin performances on Monday, February 23, 2015, with an official opening on Thursday, March 19, 2015, at the Music Box Theatre 239 West 45th Street. Tony Award-winnerPam MacKinnon Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance, Edward Albee'sWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Clybourne Park will direct. The production will star Golden Globe-winner and six-time Emmy Award-nominee Elisabeth Moss 'Mad Men,' 'Top of the Lake,' Speed-the-Plow, Emmy Award-nomineeJason Biggs 'Orange Is The New Black,' American Pie, Tony Award-nominee Bryce Pinkham A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, and Tracee Chimo Lips Together, Teeth Apart, 'Orange Is The New Black,' Bad Jews, with Ali Ahn, Leighton Bryan, Elise Kibler, and Andy Truschinski. Check out photos of the marquee below...

Some actors struggle their entire career to land that one iconic or important role—the role that ultimately defines their career and marks their legacy. For John Lithgow, his 42-year career has been filled a number of notable parts, including prominent TV characters on 3rd Rock from the Sun and Dexter and two Oscar-nominated supporting roles in Terms of Endearment and The World According to Garp. But it’s Love Is Strange that the 69-year-old says is his best film role he’s ever had.

In what Lithgow describes as a modest indie film, Love Is Strange tells the story of Ben and George, an older, recently married gay couple forced to live apart after losing their New York apartment. The Ira Sachs-directed film, while not a box office hit, became a favorite among critics and even earned Lithgow his first Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Male Lead. The film also...

The drama can be described as “Whiplash” meets “The Heiress,” as the writer goes straight for the jugular through the heart

jugularAside from the fact that Halley Feiffer could be writing about herself and her famous father, Jules Feiffer, the new play “I’m Gonna Pray for You So Hard,” is funny, scary, and completely over the top in its own right.

“I’m Gonna Pray,” which opened Tuesday at Atlantic Stage 2 in New York, doesn’t need the Feiffer backstory to be enjoyed, although it is a pleasure in the play’s first few minutes to eavesdrop on what...

The Heidi Chronicles will begin performances on Monday, February 23, 2015, with an official opening on Thursday, March 19, 2015, at the Music Box Theatre 239 West 45th Street. Tony Award-winnerPam MacKinnon Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance, Edward Albee'sWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Clybourne Park will direct. The production will star Golden Globe-winner and six-time Emmy Award-nominee Elisabeth Moss 'Mad Men,' 'Top of the Lake,' Speed-the-Plow, Emmy Award-nomineeJason Biggs 'Orange Is The New Black,' American Pie, Tony Award-nominee Bryce Pinkham A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, and Tracee Chimo Lips Together, Teeth Apart, 'Orange Is The New Black,' Bad Jews, with Ali Ahn, Leighton Bryan, Elise Kibler, and Andy Truschinski.The company just met the press and BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge was on hand to chat with the full gang. Check out what they had to say below...

The Heidi Chronicles will begin performances on Monday, February 23, 2015, with an official opening on Thursday, March 19, 2015, at the Music Box Theatre 239 West 45th Street. Tony Award-winner Pam MacKinnon Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance, Edward Albee'sWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Clybourne Park will direct. The production will star Golden Globe-winner and six-time Emmy Award-nominee Elisabeth Moss 'Mad Men,' 'Top of the Lake,' Speed-the-Plow, Emmy Award-nominee Jason Biggs 'Orange Is The New Black,' American Pie, Tony Award-nominee Bryce Pinkham A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, and Tracee Chimo Lips Together, Teeth Apart, 'Orange Is The New Black,' Bad Jews, with Ali Ahn, Leighton Bryan, Elise Kibler, and Andy Truschinski.The company just met the press and you can check out a photo preview below. Check back later for full coverage...

There’s an old Hollywood truism that good movies are made from second-rate books, not the classics. On Broadway, the new musical “Honeymoon in Vegas,” which opened Thursday at the Nederlander Theatre in New York, uses a second-rate movie from 1992 for its source material. Have its makers been able to turn it into a good musical? Or is this one effort that should have stayed in Vegas?

Here and there, “Honeymoon in Vegas,” the musical, is better than good, with most of the good being Jason Robert Brown’s very plentiful score, which shows him in a much lighter, less...

Celebrating this year’s honorees at the trendy Meat Packing District restaurant Tao, the New York Film Critics Circle offered starry salutes to Richard Linklater’s Boyhood, double-winner Marion Cotillard (for The Immigrant and Two Days, One Night), and a broad range of other films and stars. The presenters also seemed determined to make sure no one forgot the alleged villain of last year’s festivities. Critic Armond White was ousted from the group in the wake of the 2014 ceremony following accusations that he insulted 12 Years A Slave director Steve McQueen. White, who writes for National Review, denied having made the remarks both at the time and in an essay published yesterday, in which he also slagged the group as “just one among dozens of celebrity-worshipping awards-givers.”

Circle Chairman Stephen Whitty quoted those words Monday night during his opening remarks at the group’s 80th awards ceremony. Sometime later, film polymath Paul Schrader cryptically wondered,...

Don't cry just yet, Kate the Great fans. While it's true that there is only one wrap-up episode left Tomorrow in Anne Marie's mammoth undertaking "A Year with Kate"* in which she reviewed every performance in Katharine Hepburn's fascinating career, we have exciting news. We're making it into a book! Details are not yet concrete but if you would like to be included in updates about pre-order and other 'Don't Miss It' news, please fill out this form at our Facebook page!

Anne Marie's last episodes airs tomorrow Wednesday December 31st. But until then... take a peak at any you missed. Some chapters will be substantially rewritten for the book.

1930s: A Bill of Divorcement, Christopher Strong, Morning Glory, Little Women, Spitfire, The Little Minister, Break of Hearts, Alice Adams, Sylvia Scarlett, Mary of Scotland, A Woman Rebels, Quality Street, Stage Door, Bringing Up Baby, Holiday,

1940s: Philadelphia Story,...

It has been an epic year for Broadway, with a whopping twenty-four plays having opened in 2014. Before we get wrapped up in the theatre season ahead, BroadwayWorld wants to stop and salute the shows that made this year great. Check out our 2014 wrap up belowThe plays of 2014 included Machinal, Outside Mullingar, Bronx Bombers, All the Way, Mothers and Sons, A Raisin in the Sun, The Realistic Joneses, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar amp Grill, Of Mice and Men, Act One, The Cripple of Inishmaan, The Velocity of Autumn, Casa Valentina, This Is Our Youth, Love Letters, You Can't Take It With You, The Country House, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, It's Only a Play, Disgraced, The Real Thing, The River, A Delicate Balance, and The Elephant Man.

Year in Review. Two yummy lists each day. Here's Matthew Eng on "Entertainers of the Year"

Let’s face it: Jimmy Fallon is an okay if utterly predictable choice for Entertainment Weekly’s annual “Entertainer of the Year” title, which can occasionally become more of an honor for being widely-known and well-liked than, you know, being consistently entertaining. (Have they made a truly interesting choice since that three-year, Oscar-certified run of Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman, and Denzel Washington from 2000-02?)

Rather than continue to pat the backs of those like Ben Affleck, Taylor Swift, Robert Downey, Jr., and J.K. Rowling – i.e. prominent pop culture presences and former “Entertainers of the Year” whose dominance over their respective industries is already deep and durable – let’s take a moment to honor some of our favorite hard-working actors and actresses who zig-zagged across mediums this year, making crucial contributions to the entertainment landscape,...

Glenn Close, John Lithgow, and Lindsay Duncan, currently starring in the critically acclaimed Broadway production of Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance will appear in a 'TimesTalks' with New York Times Theater reporter Patrick Healy, tonight, December 8th at 630pm. Close, Lithgow, and Duncan will discuss their work in A Delicate Balance, their creative collaboration, and careers in television and film.

Glenn Close, John Lithgow, and Lindsay Duncan, currently starring in the critically acclaimed Broadway production of Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance will appear in a 'TimesTalks' with New York Times Theater reporter Patrick Healy, Monday, December 8th at 630pm. Close, Lithgow, and Duncan will discuss their work in A Delicate Balance, their creative collaboration, and careers in television and film. The talk will run from 630Pm - 8 Pm at the TimesCenter, 242 W 41st St. Tickets, priced at 40, can be purchased at TimesTalks.com.

Martha Plimpton has gone from playing a trashy blue-collar grandmother on Raising Hope for four seasons to now playing a spoiled Wasp daughter on Broadway in Edward Albee’s A Delicate Balance. “There's very little similarity between Virginia Chance and Julia in this play,” says Plimpton, speaking by phone on her way to the Golden Theatre, where the all-star revival opened last week. “There's just no comparison between the two! One is a fun, long-hours, raucous, ridiculous comedy, and the other is an Edward Albee Pulitzer-Prize-winning play in front of an audience.” Saying this,

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Whether you've been living under a rock for the past week or you're just in the mood for a recap, BroadwayWorld's 'This Week in Pictures' is here to satisfy your end-of-the-week fix Take a look below to catch up on the latest happenings from the Great White Way to The West End and everywhere in between with coverage of press events, rehearsals, opening nights and more. Highlights this week include Christine Andreas's return to 54 Below, opening nights of Side Show, A Delicate Balance, and The River, Aaron Tveit in Assassins, and more...

Last night marked the opening of the star-studded review of Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance with Glenn Close, John Lithgow, Lindsay Duncan, Bob Balaban, Clare Higgins, and Martha Plimpton. During the emotional opening night curtain call, the cast took the time to pay tribute to legendary director Mike Nichols, who passed away yesterday. The limited engagement of A Delicate Balance, directed by Pam MacKinnon runs through Sunday, February 22, 2015 at the Golden Theatre 252 West 45th Street.

To begin with, A Delicate Balance is a masterpiece. I’m not sure that anything in Edward Albee’s daunting catalogue — some 30 plays — surpasses it. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is sadder; Tiny Alice, more mysterious; Three Tall Women, more ruthless. I love all of those, and many others. But in A Delicate Balance, as befits its title, Albee manages to keep the sadness, the mystery, and the ruthlessness in dynamic equilibrium, tipping this way and that but never crashing. It’s also, somehow, his funniest play, daring to take an almost sitcom premise and mainline it with tragedy. After all, does this not sound like the pitch for an episode of something cable-worthy? Agnes and Tobias, a married couple, bicker and joke about each other’s foibles. Agnes’s permadrunk sister, Claire, arrives, trailing barbs. Later, their daughter, Julia, shows up, having recently parachuted out of her fourth marriage.

Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance stars Glenn Close returning to Broadway for the first time in twenty years, John Lithgow, Lindsay Duncan, Bob Balaban, Clare Higgins, and Martha Plimpton. The limited engagement of A Delicate Balance, directed by Pam MacKinnon, officially opens tonight, November 20, and runs through Sunday, February 22, 2015 at the Golden Theatre 252 West 45th Street. Let's see what the critics had to say...

The plentiful alcohol is served neat but there’s no shortage of ice on the stage in Pam MacKinnon’s blistering production of A Delicate Balance. Edward Albee’s 1966 play, his first of three Pulitzer winners, has aged magnificently. In this deluxe revival, an exemplary cast headed by Glenn Close, John Lithgow and Lindsay Duncan takes its cue from the title, revealing the drama’s psychological complexity with exacting measures of wit, cruelty and contagious fear. For longtime New York theatergoers, the production has to stand against formidable predecessors. The Broadway premiere starred Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn as upper-crust Wasp country-

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Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance opens tonight, November 20, on Broadway. The production stars Glenn Close returning to Broadway for the first time in twenty years, John Lithgow, Lindsay Duncan, Bob Balaban, Clare Higgins, and Martha Plimpton. The limited engagement of A Delicate Balance, directed by Pam MacKinnon, will run through Sunday, February 22, 2015 at the Golden Theatre 252 West 45th Street. Scroll down to learn more about the cast...

Opening night is tonight, November 20th at 630 pm for Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance. The production stars Glenn Close returning to Broadway for the first time in twenty years, John Lithgow, Lindsay Duncan, Bob Balaban, Clare Higgins, and Martha Plimpton. The limited engagement of A Delicate Balance, directed by Pam MacKinnon, will run through Sunday, February 22, 2015 at the Golden Theatre 252 West 45th Street.

Opening night is this Thursday, November 20th at 630 pm for Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance . The production stars Glenn Close returning to Broadway for the first time in twenty years, John Lithgow, Lindsay Duncan, Bob Balaban, Clare Higgins, and Martha Plimpton. The limited engagement of A Delicate Balance, directed by Pam MacKinnon, will run through Sunday, February 22, 2015 at the Golden Theatre 252 West 45th Street. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below...

In his 1996 “non-reconsideration” of A Delicate Balance, Edward Albee writes that his play “concerns, as it always has … the rigidity and ­ultimate paralysis which afflicts those who settle in too easily, ­waking up one day to discover that all the choices they have avoided no longer give them any freedom of choice, and that what choices they do have left are beside the point.” That’s trademark Albee—straightforward, un­sentimental—but things aren’t quite as clear-cut for the actors tasked with inhabiting the world of the play, which opens November 20. Agnes, played by Glenn Close, and Tobias, played by John Lithgow, find their upper-middle-class Wasp ­equilibrium upended by three guests: their daughter, Julia, and their friends Edna and Harry, the last two driven from their own home by an unspecified “terror.” “Albee teases both the audience and the actors with withheld information,” says Lithgow. There’s also Albee’s language,...