Benjamin Grier

EDITH O’HARA—A PERSONAL REMEMBRANCE

October 21, 2020

There were few women in positions of authority when she started in theater. But as she once told me, “If I wanted to do something, I just went ahead and did it.” She blazed a trail for others to follow. And she was proud of the fact that many notables had worked at The 13th Street Theatre, at one time or another (often when they were just getting started), including Bette Midler, Barry Manilow, Chazz Palminteri, Amy Stiller, Jamie DeRoy, Christopher Meloni, Armelia McQueen, Charles Ludlam, Austin Pendleton, Barnard Hughes, Richard Dreyfuss, and many others. For 17 years, the unique, dark monologist Brother Theodore--a Greenwich Village icon, whose wonderfully theatrical late-night rants enthralled fans--made The 13th Street Repertory Company his base. Her production of Israel Horovitz’s “Line” ran at her theater for some 45 years, becoming the longest-running theatrical production in New York. She liked to have things happening at her theater, day and night. [more]

ON THE TOWN… with CHIP DEFFAA, February 3, 2018

February 6, 2018

If you’re in the mood for a night of laughter, “The Outsider”—a new comedy by Paul Slade Smith, receiving its East Coast premiere in January and February at the Paper Mill Playhouse--is great good fun. Oh, I’m not claiming it’s profound or a show that you’ll never forget, like “A Chorus Line.” If “A Chorus Line” is like a fine roast-beef dinner, “The Outsider” is more like a hot dog with all the trimmings. But sometimes a hot dog with all the trimmings just hits the spot. [more]

ON THE TOWN … with CHIP DEFFAA (Dec. 21, 2015)

December 23, 2015

It did my heart good to see Matanya Solomon dancing all-out after being pretty much sidelined as a "Nutcracker" dancer, due to injury, for the last two years. I greatly admire all good dancers for their dedication and hard work; but to not give up after being hampered for so long is extra admirable. And he was fun as the Grandfather, making the most of the part (and interacting well with others) in the prologue (staged by Victoria Mazzarelli and Tim Melady). [more]

Mad About the Boy

April 23, 2015

Defaa’s direction is imaginative and is aided by the sensational choreography of Rayna Hirt, in creating precise, amazingly arresting production numbers with the large cast on the small stage. Standouts include a rousing military tap dance, Cole Porter’s “Find Me a Primitive Man,” with cast members dressed as cavemen, and a thrilling version of Noel Coward’s “Mad About The Boy,” with cast members wearing all black. [more]