Liars and Saints

  Raul Esparza is returning to Broadway. I don't have trust in Esparza's ability to select good material, but I do think his co-star, Joy Woods, has often made wise choices ("Little Shop," "Six," "Gypsy"). Could this be the year that Joy Woods wins a Tony Award? I'm ready. The Katherine Parr (Joy Woods) character in "Six" is the clearest link to the musical "Hamilton." With its goosebump-inducing conclusion, "Hamilton" reveals that Eliza has a massive Second Act, packed with political advocacy, editorial work, and business management. Something similar happens with Katherine Parr. After the death of Henry VIII, Parr writes books, fights for the education of women, and recruits a female painter for a high-profile job. I see Katherine Parr as a comment on Sara Bareilles. When told to write a love song for financial reasons, Bareilles felt repelled--and turned her repulsion into a hit ("I'm Not Gonna Write Yo...

  An indictment of Reagan-era greed, "Little Shop of Horrors" is as close as any work gets to "perfect musical" status. I have really only two complaints. One: the staging of the climactic battle, at least in the current version, is not very convincing. Two: Howard Ashman is sometimes a bit lazy in his mockery of Audrey (particularly in Audrey's awed reference to a "twelve-inch screen," in her "I Want" number). What is especially chilling is the tension between the two main storylines. Seymour tells us that he wants "a way out of here." Audrey, meanwhile, wants domestic tranquility. These two wishes do not have to clash; Seymour could cash a check early in Act Two and leave the flower shop. But Seymour is rapacious. It's Audrey who gets top billing--and, certainly, the current Audrey (Joy Woods) deserves top billing. Audrey's journey is perverse and fascinating. She can't even articulate her wish until the homestretch of...