With Ben Brantley’s picks for the Best Theatre of 2011 out and about…here are mine!…(in no particular order)

The oh so humble Best of Theatre 2011 list :)

King Lear (played at BAM with the excellent Derek Jacobi in the title role and is by far the best production of this tragedy I have seen thus far)

Room 17B (played at 59E59 Theatres,…clowning at its best)

Angels in America, Pt. 1 & 2 (played at PlayMakers Repertory Company…a thrilling production of Tony Kushner’s epic play)

Master Class (played at the Friedman Theatre on Broadway and starring the incomparable Tyne Daly as Maria Callas)

Angels in America, Pt. 1 (played off-broadway at the Signature Theatre…had the pleasure of seeing both parts with two different casts,…Part 1 with Michael Urie, however, made for the stronger production)

The Normal Heart (played at the Golden Theatre on Broadway…there are no words to describe the sheer power of this play and this production that marked Joe Mantello’s triumphant return to the stage)

Jerusalem (played at the Music Box Theatre on Broadway…Mark Rylance was riveting in an epic Falstaffian role)

The Book of Mormon (currently playing at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre on Broadway…the best musical to come along in a while, crafted in the classic musical theatre language of the Golden Age, but with content filled with the most gloriously offensive lyrics and songs from the creators of South Park & Avenue Q…and it all still manages to be heart warming and touching…)

Love Song (played at 59E59 Theatres,..a new quirky play that exploited the imagination of a man in love)

War Horse (currently playing at Lincoln Center on Broadway…a familiar tale told with the breath taking staging and puppetry)

compare with last year’s!

Christmas in my apartment always begins with lighting up West Side Story :)…I’m a nerd I know…

Christmas in my apartment always begins with lighting up West Side Story :)…I’m a nerd I know…

[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

mykicks:

Original Broadway Cast - “I Feel Pretty”

…saw The Book of Mormon, playing at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre on Broadway…i have nothing to say except GO GO GO…playing until…FOREVER…

…saw The Book of Mormon, playing at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre on Broadway…i have nothing to say except GO GO GO…playing until…FOREVER…

…saw Priscilla: Queen of the Desert @ the Palace Theatre on Broadway…in the mood for disco tunes belted out and a full blown production that’s unapologetically bombastic (with the most ridiculous and amazing costumes)…check it out…

…saw Priscilla: Queen of the Desert @ the Palace Theatre on Broadway…in the mood for disco tunes belted out and a full blown production that’s unapologetically bombastic (with the most ridiculous and amazing costumes)…check it out…

[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

oldhollywood:

Ella Fitzgerald - Too Darn Hot (via Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook)

…saw The Best Is Yet to Come: The Music of Cy Coleman @ 59e59 Theatres…in the mood for the classic music of Cy Coleman sung by a talented cast that includes the incomparable Lillias White…check it out…playing until July 3…

…saw The Best Is Yet to Come: The Music of Cy Coleman @ 59e59 Theatres…in the mood for the classic music of Cy Coleman sung by a talented cast that includes the incomparable Lillias White…check it out…playing until July 3…

oldhollywood:

Assorted Jets rehearse on the set of West Side Story (1961, dir. Robert Wise & Jerome Robbins) (photo by Gjon Mili for LIFE, 1960)

oldhollywood:

Assorted Jets rehearse on the set of West Side Story (1961, dir. Robert Wise & Jerome Robbins) (photo by Gjon Mili for LIFE, 1960)

"…if I were a bell I’d go ding dong ding dong ding."

Frank Loesser, Guys and Dolls

…saw friend Peter Carrier in the Engeman Theatre’s production of Guys & Dolls…in the mood for a classic of the American musical canon…check it out…closes this Sunday!…

…saw friend Peter Carrier in the Engeman Theatre’s production of Guys & Dolls…in the mood for a classic of the American musical canon…check it out…closes this Sunday!…