New York Musical Festival

Off-Broadway Review: “Ben, Virginia and Me” at the New York Musical Festival at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row

There have been several media depicting the life of the famed piano virtuoso Liberace; including, novels, documentaries, film, television, interviews and now, following the attempted effort of the stage musical “All That Glitters,” comes “Ben, Virginia and Me: The Liberace Musical” currently running as part of the NYMF Festival. This endeavor concentrates mainly on the relationship between the celebrated showman,…

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Off-Broadway Review: “MotherFreakingHood! (Maternal Discretion Advised)” at the New York Musical Festival at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater

“MotherFreakingHood! (Maternal Discretion Advised),” currently finishing its run at the New York Musical Festival at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater, celebrates “the mother you never thought you should be.” Apparently a riff on the sacred status of motherhood, the musical joins the ranks of movies that try to extol the virtues of the role by suggesting what it ought not…

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Off-Broadway Review: “Georama: An American Panorama on 3 Miles of Canvas” at the New York Musical Festival at the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre

The Authors’ Note in the program for “Georama: An American Panorama on 3 Miles of Canvas,” currently running at the New York Musical Festival at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater, claims that John Banvard the subject of their musical “[has] been entirely obliterated by history.” Although that premise is not entirely accurate – articles about Banvard exist in numerous scholarly…

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Off-Broadway Review: “I Am, I Will, I Do” at the New York Musical Festival at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater

“I Am, I Will, I Do” is a new musical being presented as part of NYMF by Dan Manjovi Music. It is classified as a Beta musical which means it is further along than a staged reading but not yet ready for a full production. In other words, it is a platform for the creative team to work out the…

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Off-Broadway Review: “A Wall Apart” at the New York Musical Festival at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row

“A Wall Apart” at the New York Musical Festival at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row is a stunning and powerful new rock musical about the three Ostermann brothers living in the German Democratic Republic during the Cold War and their struggles to overcome “the wall” that separates them from those whom they love, their paths to freedom, and their…

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Off-Broadway Review: “Play Like A Winner” at the New York Musical Festival at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater

The new musical “Play Like a Winner” is based on the stage play “It’s All About the Kids” by Caytha Jentis which comically explores the dark side of competitive soccer moms vying for social status in upscale suburbia. The opening musical number “Sacrifice” is sung by the company surrounding the body of the coach lying dead, center stage impaled with…

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Off-Broadway Review: “Peace, Love, and Cupcakes” at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row

“Peace, Love, and Cupcakes: The Musical,” currently running at the New York Musical Festival at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row, is a sweet bubble gum musical that, on the surface, addresses the issue of bullying at school and its deleterious effects. Based on the book by the same name (the first in the Cupcake Club series by Sheryl Berk),…

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Off-Broadway Review: “The Fourth Messenger” at the New York Musical Festival at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row

In Tanya Shaffer’s and Vienna Teng’s “The Fourth Messenger,” currently playing at the New York Musical Festival at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row, the journey of protagonist Sid Arthur (Nancy Anderson) counterpoints the journey of Siddhārtha Gautama the Buddha of the current age. “Mama Sid” – as the world-renowned spiritual leader is addressed by her devotees – is holding forth…

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Off-Broadway Review: “Temple of the Souls” at the New York Musical Festival at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row

Perhaps “Temple of the Souls,” the new musical being presented as part of NYMF, would be more powerful as an operetta, which would validate the melodrama afforded in this current production. It is yet another version of the ever-familiar love-struck youth from to different cultures, torn apart by their family and resulting in a tragic finale. Inspired by some truthful…

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Off-Broadway Review: “Night Tide” at the New York Musical Festival at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater

“And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side/Of my darling—my darling—my life and my bride,/In her sepulchre there by the sea—/In her tomb by the sounding sea.” – “Annabel Lee,” Edgar Allan Poe Based on the 1963 B Movie of the same name, “Night Tide, currently running at the New York Musical Festival at the Peter Jay…

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