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That autumn nip means that Thanksgiving is coming, with New Year's right behind it. So we're looking back at 2011 and ahead to 2012 to think and be thankful for the cool theater that's all over our thrilling city.
“War Horse,” “Venus in Fur,” and “Anything Goes”
Guests in from out-of-town springing for a show? If they aren't up for “Sleep No More” (see photo above), try one of these Broadway entertainments. Children and adults can enjoy “War Horse,” both for its phenomenally lifelike puppets and its moving tale. “Venus in Fur” is for adults only, a kinky psychodrama with a star-is-born performance from newcomer Nina Arianda. Or split the difference with “Anything Goes,” the classic Cole Porter musical that's sexy without being raunchy and has songs that you'll hum for weeks!
“Sleep No More”
The must-see work of the season has mind-altering properties. You walk into the abandoned McKittrick Hotel's red lounge and then follow a guide into the further recesses of the building. From there, you explore several floors of strange environments, like a foggy graveyard, a forested banquet hall, an abandoned version of that same lounge, an insane asylum. Afterwards, you can enjoy drinks at the lounge and compare your experience with your friends. If David Lynch designed a haunted house, you'd go, wouldn't you?
William Shakespeare
This year has been a banquet for lovers of Shakespeare. The RSC visited NYC with five classics at the Park Avenue Armory. BAM hosted other English companies, and will bring Kevin Spacey's Richard Crookback to Brooklyn this spring. The Public offers Will on the cheap—free in Central Park, $15 at their Village home—for the 99%. Even Broadway's profiteers laid out an investment, betting on Al Pacino's Shylock in “The Merchant of Venice.” But a plucky young troupe had 2011's best: a seven-person “Cymbeline” that has packed audiences all autumn.
The Berserker Residents
In 2011, with two slaps of the stick, these anarchic goofballs made fans out of us. First, their apocalyptic SF adventure “The Annihilation Point” tied a “Doctor Who” timeloop around a “Pigs in Space” attitude. Then “The Lapsburgh Layover” (at Ars Nova) built a Frankenstein monster out of Borat, noir, and H.P. Lovecraft. The Berserker Residents practice a total, tongue-in-cheek immersion in their fiction, from the front door to the final curtain. We hope they become permanent residents of New York City.
Mark Rylance
Mark Rylance is the finest stage actor in the English-speaking world. Luckily, he played Times Square twice in 2011. First he turned a cerebral comedy (“La Bete”) into a feast for the funny bone. His second role, as the indomitable Rooster Byron in “Jerusalem”, was equal to his enormous talent—this might be the best show we've ever seen on Broadway. To get a taste of his relaxed yet convincing style, check out his surreal '11 Tony acceptance speech (actually a funky poem).
Under St. Marks
Like so much of Manhattan, our smallest stages are under siege from greedy landlords. This month brought yet another obituary: Manhattan Theatre Source, a tiny stage in the Village. But let's recall the salvation of Under St. Marks. This Off-Off space, a block from Tompkins Square and down a flight of black iron stairs, nearly had its building sold out from under it. But a new five-year lease will keep the 45-seat venue open for any eager 25-year-old with show-biz dreams and a credit card.
The Vampire Cowboys
Tired of all those realistic dramas about marriage or social decay? This rowdy company prefers to draw inspiration from the junk-food aisles in our culturemart: slasher flicks, manga, hip-hop, stage combat, “Buffy”-style feminism and Asian-American nerd pride. The Vampire Cowboys may be the only theater to have a table at NYC ComicCon! Check out a new work by co-founders Robert Ross Parker and Qui Nguyen at the Flea, “She Kills Monsters.” Or join us after New Year's for their revival of “The Inexplicable Redemption of Agent G.” And have a great Thanksgiving!
