Still More Theater Saturday - Dear Michelle Kwan

 We received a complimentary ticket to Dear Michelle Kwan for review purposes. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own. 

What: Dear Michelle Kwan 

Where: 59E59 Theaters

             59 E. 59 St.

             New York, NY

When: This event took place July 21, July 25, and July 26, 2026

Dear Michelle Kwan is the story of four young figure skaters who worship and pray to the famous five-time World Champion as they struggle to cope with the dual pressures of competitive skating and just generally growing up. The show takes the world of youth sports culture to the extreme as the girls deal with an extremely demanding coach who is not above pitting one girl against another. It is heartbreakingly sad but also darkly funny, highlighted by terrific performances and delightfully amusing choreography.

And that's our view. Dear Michelle Kwan was part of 59E59's East to Edinburgh Festival and will soon be heading to the festival. For more information or to purchase tickets to see it there, visit www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/dear-michelle-kwan

Tune in tomorrow for this week's Sunday Scoop.

Theater Thursday - Brooklyn's Bridge

We received complimentary tickets to Brooklyn's Bridge for review purposes. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own.

What: Brooklyn's Bridge

Where: The Space at Irondale

              85 South Oxford St.

              Brooklyn, NY

Who: Recommended for Ages 11 and Up

When: Through August 23, 2026

Brooklyn's Bridge is the story of the building of the iconic landmark and the woman largely responsible for it, Emily Roebling. Ms. Roebling, an engineer in her own right, surreptiously took over the project after a severe injury to her husband, the project's chief engineer. In the musical, Emily is passionately played by the lovely-voiced Sarah Joyce.

In fact, there are several particularly strong singers in the show, including Evan Blackwell, who plays EF Farrington. There are also quite a few nice songs in the score, although one in particular is repeated ad nauseum until it becomes kind of annoying. Unfortunately, the venue's cooling system is quite loud, which makes it difficult to hear at times, which is more of an issue with the quieter ballads and spoken dialogue than with rousing chorus numbers. 

A secondary plot of the show revolves around the notorious Boss Tweed and his interference with the project. Although this may be historically accurate, centering his character so much takes too much focus away from Emily, who becomes almost a side character in her own story. Using the character of Thomas Nast as a framing device and particularly playing up his feud with Boss Tweed does the same. Thus, although the musical does a good job of bringing to light the quite inspirational story of Emily Roebling, it should be centered even more so on her.

And that's our view. For more about Brooklyn's Bridge or to purchase tickets, visit www.irondale.org/on-stage/brooklyns-bridge-musical

Tune in Saturday for Still More Theater Saturday.

Photo credits:

All Brooklyn's Bridge production photos by David Fernandez

Images used in this post were sent by publicists, artists, and/or  PR firms and are used by permission.  Any Concerns regarding image usage can be addressed here.

Where-To-Go Wednesday - Morgan Library & Museum

We received complimentary tickets to the Morgan Library & Museum. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own. 

What: Morgan Library  & Museum

Where: 225 Madison Ave.

             New York, NY

Who: All ages

The Morgan Library & Museum was founded by J. Pierpont Morgan. It was originally his own private library where he collected rare materials and was located on a portion of his property. Eventually, it grew to incorporate the entire estate and was opened to the public by his son in 1924. Among other things, the building houses the following collections:

Printed Books &  Bindings - These include vast collections of fifteenth-century printed books, children's literature, fine bindings, and illustrated books.

Literary and Historical Manuscripts & Archives - These include complete manuscripts, drafts, letters, journals, and more. Among these are Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol manuscript, Henry David Thoreau's journals, Jane Austen's letters plus the personal papers of the Morgan family. 

Music Manuscripts & Printed Music -These include musicians' letters as well as first editions of librettos and scores. They have the largest collection of Mahler manuscripts and a vast amount of selections from Mozart, Chopin, and more. They also have the most extensive collection of Gilbert and Sullivan materials.

Drawings & Prints - The collection includes thousands of drawings from the 14th through the 19th century. Among them are studies, sketches, and finished works of art. Artists from Italy are particularly strongly represented including Delcroix, Degas, and Rembrandt. In fact, the museum houses the largest collection of Rembrandt etchings.  Some British and American artists are also represented.

Modern & Contemporary Drawings - These cover the entire 20th century through today. They include European postmodern drawings, American post-World War II drawings, and more. Artists represented include Matisse, Pollock, and Sendak. There is also a large collection of Roy Lichtenstein's sketchbooks.

Photography - These focus on areas like artists' portraits and the relationship between pictures and writing.  The collection includes numerous Peter Hujar prints along with his contact sheets.

For more about the Morgan Museum or to purchase tickets to visit, go to www.themorgan.org.

Tune in tomorrow for Theater Thursday.

All pictures used in this post are our own.  Any concerns regarding image usage can be addressed here.