Spring is nearly sprung. Thank goodness.
In a season of blizzards and canceled performances, it’s been a hard time to motivate myself outside to see a show.
Now there are forecasts of 60+ degrees. Now there are no excuses!
There are tons of Off-Broadway gems right now. Here’s what I’ve loved (and am most excited to see) this season—and what you should get tickets to ASAP.
Mother Russia
When I walked into Signature Theatre’s new play “Mother Russia,” I didn’t expect there to be someone playing the titular role. That’s apt for the humor and the absurdity of this show, which follows two 20-somethings after the fall of the Soviet Union and the woman they’ve been paid to spy on. Yes, we see how these larger political forces have shaped these young people’s lives—but we also get a scene of them licking each other’s fingers after eating a Filet-O-Fish for the first time, and a monologue from none other than Mother Russia herself about the “horrible men” she’s met in her life.
When to see it: Now through March 22nd
How to get cheap(er) tickets: $30 tickets through the Sig30 membership (if you’re 30 and under); $40 tickets through the Access membership; $25 student tickets.
The Monsters
In the boxing ring at New York City Center, where “The Monsters” takes stage, there are two kinds of reckonings. There are physical ones, that a prize-winning MMA fighter (Okieriete Onaodowan of the original “Hamilton” cast) tackles, and emotional ones, as he reunites with his younger sister he’s been estranged from for 16 years. This play charts the course of a sibling relationship doomed by a traumatic past as the two try to rebuild connection in the present. While not always packed with the same momentum as the punches they threw, I loved the interplay between the different kinds of fights—the physicality and emotional warfare of sibling wrestling.
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When to see it: Now through March 22nd
How to get cheap(er) tickets: Free student tickets; $35 tickets through the MTC35 membership (if you’re 35 or younger); $48 digital rush tickets on TodayTix.
The Reservoir
Josh is a college student in the throes of addiction, so he’s moved home with his four aging grandparents to get sober. His mental fog and confusion turns out to be not so different from the cognitive decline his aging family is dealing with.
This new play has a cast of standouts—I’m particularly excited to see Broadway legend Chip Zien joined with Noah Galvin (fun fact: one of the four actors to play Evan Hansen in “Dear Evan Hansen” and have a relationship with another Evan Hansen).
When to see it: Now through March 22nd
How to get cheap(er) tickets: On TDF for $40; $38 digital rush on TodayTix.
Marcel on the Train
Before Marcel Marceau was a famous French mime, he guided Jewish children to safety in Nazi-occupied France. This new play is co-written by and stars Ethan Slater, also known as SpongeBob from the musical, the horribly scary tin man in “Wicked: For Good” or Ariana Grande’s boyfriend.
When to see it: Now until March 22nd
How to get cheap(er) tickets: $40 tickets (if you’re 40 or younger) with the code Classic40; $48 digital rush on TodayTix; $40 in-person rush or $30 student rush.
Data
There are some silly stereotypes of working in tech: Taco Tuesdays for team building, ping pong tables in the office, vests with company logos. But there are also the far scarier, deeper ones: working for products you don’t agree with, doing a job that crosses your moral boundaries.
That’s the situation Maneesh, a young engineer at a tech company at Athena, finds himself in. Will he help the company do something he doesn’t agree with? Will he be a whistleblower? Or will he just put his head down and get the job done?
When to see it: Now through March 29th
How to get cheap(er) tickets: On TDF for $40; regular price tickets start at $59.
The Wild Party
New York City Center’s Encores! season continues with “The Wild Party,” a jazzy 1920s musical about love, jealousy, indulgence, and, well, partying. Encores! productions are concert stagings of great American musicals that run for only two weeks. Because of the short timeframe, the productions usually pull big stars. I’m excited to see former miss Boop Jasmine Amy Rogers, Jordan Donica of “Camelot,” and Adrienne Warren (the shining star of the recent production of “The Last Five Years”).
When to see it: March 18-29th
How to get tickets: $28 tickets through NYCC’s Access program (if you’re 40 or younger).
You Got Older
There’s a specific kind of awkwardness that comes when big life moments don’t happen the way you expect them to. That’s what Claire Baron captures in this revival at the Cherry Lane Theater.
We follow Mae (Alia Shawkat of “Arrested Development” fame), a young woman who’s returned home to Wisconsin to take care of her father (a remarkable Peter Friedman), who’s been diagnosed with cancer. Mae struggles to be both adult and daughter at a precarious time in her life—she’s just lost both her job and boyfriend, and she has a weird rash—and copes with conversations about peppers, encounters with an old childhood friend, and fantasies about a cowboy. It’s as delightful and confusing as it is devastating.
When to see it: Now through April 12th.
How to get cheap(er) tickets: $40 rush tickets at the box office 1 hour before curtain.
Titus Andronicus
If Patrick Page has no fans, I’m dead. While I was in awe of his deep vocals as the original Hades in “Hadestown,” I found him absolutely fascinating in a one-man production, “All the Devils,” he did a few years back: less of a play, more of a masterclass about Shakespeare’s villains, where he inhabited each one. Shakespeare is where he thrives, which makes sense that he’s now tackling “Titus Andronicus.”
When to see it: March 17-April 19th
How to get cheap(er) tickets: No rush announced yet; regular-priced tickets start at $49.
Mexodus
“Mexodus” returns off-Broadway to tell the story of the Underground Railroad—but not the one we usually hear of. Instead, the two-person hip-hop musical follows two enslaved Texas escaping south into Mexico. Each night, the show’s score is created live using looping.
I missed this in its original Off-Broadway run last year and heard nothing but raves. This is a special and unique one I’m excited to get a second chance to see.
When to see it: Now through May 17th.
How to get cheap(er) tickets: $39 digital rush on TodayTix.
Burnout Paradise
I’ll admit: when I saw there was a show involving five people actively running on treadmills, I avoided getting tickets. Even though I love theater AND running. Something about it felt...cheesy, not my usual choice.
Yet the buzz of “Burnout Paradise” has convinced me: videos of people filming their friends onstage, confetti of the chaos, and a rare audience agreement. Five performers tell the audience they will complete a series of complicated tasks by the end of the 65-minute show. If they don’t, the audience gets their money back.
When to see it: Now through June 26th.
How to get tickets: On TDF for $40; rush tickets for $34 and student rush for $26.20 in-person 1 hour before curtain. (Plus, maybe free if the actors don’t complete the challenge!)
Cold War Choir Practice
Meek is a 10-year-old Black girl in Syracuse anxious about missiles being aimed at her home. No, this isn’t present day; we’re in the midst of the Cold War, in the days leading up to President Reagan’s meeting with Gorbachev. Meek isn’t paralyzed by fear, but rather determined to convince world leaders to stop the war. In a world of roller disco and espionage, we follow Meek in her choir as she sings of peace and writes to a pen pal in the U.S.S.R.
When to see it: Now through July 1st.
How to get tickets: On TDF for $40; $43 digital rush tickets through the TodayTix app; $35 rush and $25 student rush tickets available 2 hours before curtain at the box office.
See you at the theater (and outside!!),
Zoe