Such a whiplash of a week. This is true in many ways, not least the heat, which is returning full-force tomorrow.
The festivals are heating up, here and elsewhere — elsewhere in my mind primarily Edinburgh; its fringe festival doesn’t begin for a month, but I’ve already reviewed seven of the shows that will be there (they’re running at the East to Edinburgh festival in New York.) It’s also hard to ignore the news that there are now FOUR parodies of “Heated Rivalry,” three of which are headed to Edinburgh (including the one Off-Broadway: my review).
According to the Guardian:
Heated Rivalry: The Unauthorized Musical Parody is at Udderbelly at Underbelly, George Square, Edinburgh, 5-30 August,
then Underbelly Boulevard, London, 7 October until 1 November.
Puck Bunnies: A Heated Rivalry Drag Musical Parody is at Other Yin at Gilded Balloon Patter House, Edinburgh, 5-31 August.
Heated Rivalry: The Musical Parody! is at Other Yin at Gilded Balloon Patter House, Edinburgh, 5-30 August.
Deep-Heat Rivalry is at the Other Palace, London, 11 September until 11 October.
The Week in New York (Edinburgh) Theater Review
Are You Now or Have You Ever Been
When Eric Bentley’s play about the Hollywood blacklist was first mounted in 1972, the now-infamous House Un-American Activities Committee was still around, and so were most of the entertainment professionals whose careers were destroyed or friendships ruined after they were forced before the committee to answer the question: “Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist party?” and to “name names” of those they knew to be communists….the docudrama plays out differently in 2026, in complicated ways.
I’ve reviewed seven of the 15 plays at the East to Edinburgh festival:
First five: A Play on Words, Kitty Daddy, An American (Not) in Paris, The Misfortunes of a Spy and Her Mystic, Extra Dry
Hadid and This is Not Hansel & Gretel
The Week in New York Theater News
“Dolly: A True Original Musical” will open at the St. James Theater on January 19, 2027 — Dolly Parton’s 81st birthday. The show tells the life story of the “Queen of Country,” an American singer, songwriter, actress, businesswoman, and philanthropist who has had a 60-year career.
This now brings to sixteen the number of shows with specified dates and venues in the Broadway 2026-2027 season (one of which has already closed). Details.
10 Summer Theater Festivals in NYC 2026
Two more:
International Puppet Fringe Festival NYC 2026 at the newly renovated Clemente Center.
Newly announced: Matchbook Fest at Greenwich House Theater, July 22 to August 24
Director Kenny Leon has been elected Chair of the American Theatre Wing’s Board of Trustees.
14 Finalists for the Outstanding Book Award from the Association for Theatre in Higher Education
The war on culture: Kennedy Center news
Trump’s Name Must Remain Off Kennedy Center Amid Appeal, Court Rules
Whistle-Blowers Accuse Kennedy Center of Contracting Flaws Under Trump
In Memoriam
Josh Grisetti, 44, Broadway veteran (It Shoulda Been You, Something Rotten), series regular on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, author and educator. (Watch two video below of him performing.)
Rob McClure (Grisetti’s co-star in Something Rotten) on Instagram:
“It is with a shattered heart that I share that the brilliant Josh Grisetti took his own life on Friday. I’m not ready to even attempt to understand. My heart is with his wife and family as they try to deal with the reality of this. Some of my all-time favorite memories were by this man’s side, playing his brother onstage for years, watching him inspire students while transforming the Musical Theatre program at Cal State Fullerton …and having the honor of being the Best Man at his wedding. Maggie and I are beyond heartbroken. Communities around the world will never be the same without him.”
Louise Lasser, 87, star of TV’s “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman”; Woody Allen’s second wife, leading lady and muse; and four-time Broadway veteran, who made her Broadway debut as an understudy in 1962 for a rising star “the 20-year-old Barbra Streisand, in the Broadway musical “I Can Get It for You Wholesale,” and briefly took over the role when Ms. Streisand left.”
Peter Van Norden, 75, stage and screen actor, five-time Broadway veteran
Ebony Blake, 43, an actress who was a regular in various productions of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” including on Broadway
The Week’s Theater Video
Josh Grisetti sings “I Love The Way” with Catherine Brunell ” from Something Rotten, at Broadway in Bryant Park in 2016
Cast members Rob McClure and Josh Grisetti Sing “I Hate Shakespeare” from Something Rotten at Broadway in Bryant Park
Broadway Barks 2026: Watch Actors Melt, Dogs Fidget. 11 videos, including (the oddest)
Newly released audio from The Lost Boys
