Diep Tran Is Excited to Lead Playbill—Well, Excited and Scared
American Theatre’s former senior editor talks about her new editor-in-chief gig, and how she thinks the theatre discourse has changed for the better.
Stories by Rob Weinert-Kendt
Rob Weinert-Kendt is editor-in-chief of American Theatre. He was the founding editor-in-chief of Back Stage West and writes about theatre for the New York Times, Time Out NY, and the Los Angeles Times. He studied film at USC and is a composer member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop.
David Hare Wants to Know Why We Suffer
His new play ‘Straight Line Crazy’ may treat an American subject, but the English playwright is still addressing some of his chief political and social preoccupations.
Tim Robbins Never Blames the Audience
With a 40th anniversary staging of ‘Ubu The King,’ the Actors’ Gang co-founder is revisiting his company’s roots, though he never strayed very far from them in the first place.
Suzan-Lori Parks: Make Space for the Difficult Things
With 3 world premieres and a Broadway revival of her hit play ‘Topdog/Underdog,’ the prolific writer keeps singing her song in a variety of keys.
Race, Mystery, RBG, Opera: I’ve Got a Little List
From a Conan Doyle-inspired inquiry to an Emmett Till trilogy, from a Baroque opera to an Alaskan Tlingit journey, here are some shows I’d put on my hypothetical theatre calendar.
‘All of Me’: A Rom-Com That Represents, and Not Just Onstage
A new play at Barrington Stage Company, about a class-riven romance among 2 wheelchair and text-to-speech users, also has plenty of disabled talent backstage.
‘Clyde’s’ Is Most-Produced Play, and Lynn Nottage Most-Produced Playwright, of 2022-23 Season
A mix of familiar and new titles, of challenge and comfort, characterizes this year’s lists, the first this magazine has done since 2019.
Real Talk: Can Broadway Broaden Its Access and Impact?
Broadway producers Ron Simons and Hunter Arnold talk about the changes they’ve seen (and been a part of) in their field, and point to the changes that are still needed.
An America of Color and Complication in ‘The Great Jheri Curl Debate’ and ‘Mushroom’
New plays at East West Players and People’s Light illuminate the collisions, and occasional solidarity, among people of color in a white-dominated culture.
Gimme Some Truth, or Make ’Em Laugh?
From goofy musicals to meaty and instructive dramas, 4 shows stand in for the disparate ambitions and uses of theatre.
