What Mickey-Jo will and won't see on Broadway... | the shows Mickey-Jo is watching on his next New York Theatre trip

Summary

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Podcast Summary: "What Mickey-Jo will and won't see on Broadway"

Podcast: MickeyJoTheatre
Host: Mickey Jo
Date: November 22, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Mickey Jo gives listeners an insider look at his highly anticipated upcoming New York theatre trip. He outlines the shows he definitely will see, shows he might see, and—perhaps most intriguingly—the ones he is consciously skipping. Listeners get a candid, witty, and thoughtful breakdown of Broadway and Off-Broadway's hottest tickets, revivals, transfers, and buzzworthy new productions, as well as frank explanations behind his “hard passes.” The episode is a must-listen for anyone planning a theatre trip or tracking the New York theatre scene.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Stage: Why This Trip and How He Chooses

• Mickey Jo describes the agony and thrill of narrowing down his show choices for a packed two-week visit to New York.
  • “I found myself actually saying the words, what if two weeks just isn’t enough time? ...because of the wealth of exciting new productions opening Off Broadway.” (02:00)
• Emphasizes the challenge of picking what to see as a frequent transatlantic theatre-goer aiming to cover and review as much as possible.

2. Must-See Shows: The ‘Definitely’ List

(Mickey Jo’s most anticipated and guaranteed stops, with enthusiastic commentary on each.)

a) Two Strangers Carry a Cake Across New York [Broadway Opening]

• The trip is timed to this opening—calls it “the reason for the season.”
  • “This is why we are going to New York when we are. This is why the trip is timed as such.” (04:29)
• Excited for a New York-set musical experienced by an actual New York audience.

b) Chess (Revival at Imperial Theatre)

• High expectations for the “fantastic company” and reworked book.
  • “It has been decades since Chess was last seen on Broadway. I couldn’t miss it.” (05:26)
• Will post a full review.

c) Ragtime (Lincoln Center)

• Already familiar with this production but calls it “one of my favourite musicals of all time.”
  • “I think it’s one of the greatest book musicals ever written. I think the score is phenomenal. The book is phenomenal. And it’s an extraordinary company.” (06:20)

d) Masquerade: Off-Broadway Immersive Phantom of the Opera

• Very excited, bought a new suit for the special dress code.
  • “There was no way that I was missing out... I have heard the most exhilarating things.” (08:09)

e) Bat Boy (NY City Center Gala)

• Filling a “musical theatre black hole”; friends highly recommend.
  • “I am a fan of the writers. It’s one of my sort of musical theater black holes that needs to be rectified.” (09:12)

f) Bo (Off-Broadway)

• Praises its “lovely, queer, atmospheric gig theatre” format.
  • “It is a lovely, queer, atmospheric gig theater one act musical starring the brilliant Matt Rhoden...and the music is great and it’s really moving.” (10:21)
• Recommends it for flexible showtimes.

g) Liberation (Broadway Transfer)

• “I have heard such great things about this from everyone I knew who saw it off Broadway. I am very excited to see the Broadway arrival.” (11:05)

h) Oedipus (West End Transfer, Studio 54)

• Sees it as a “hot ticket” due to strong direction and lead cast.
  • “It’s another one where it’s going to be really satisfying to witness an audience discovering that piece of theatre for the first time.” (11:41)

i) This World of Tomorrow (The Shed, Off Broadway)

• Stars Tom Hanks & Kelli O’Hara, going in “fresh.”
  • “I know they were initially very expensive. They have subsequently lowered the prices of some of them. So go and take a look if you hadn’t recently.” (12:17)

j) Caroline (MCC Theatre)

• Eager to see new trans narratives on stage.
  • “This one is about a young trans character and trans themes...we need more trans representation on stage, especially through the voice of trans writers.” (13:01)

k) Initiative (The Public Theater, 5-hour play)

• Play features “epic of youth” and D&D themes.
  • “My inclination is that for the public theater...to platform and produce this five hour long piece...means I think it’s going to be pretty exciting and perhaps more than a little bit epic.” (13:38)

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3. Maybe/Strongly Considering: The ‘Possibles’

a) The Queen of Versailles

• Unimpressed by word of mouth; scheduling complicated by principal cast covers.
  • “Any reluctance that I have around going to see this show...I’m not hearing the most thrilling word of mouth...” (15:56)

b) Hadestown

• Has seen it “dozens of times,” but wants to see Jack Wolfe as Orpheus and the refreshed cast.
  • “I will be damned if I am going to miss it.” (16:51)

c) 25th (or 20th) Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

• Never seen a professional production; excited to see the Off Broadway cast.
  • “The Off Broadway cast is also fantastic. And I think some people still get to go on stage and be guest spellers. I’d love to be a guest speller.” (17:46)

d) Rob Lake Magic with the Muppets

• Conflict between fairy-tale love for the Muppets and extreme fear of magicians.
  • “I have this fear of magicians and mentalists since childhood and I deliberately avoid those kinds of shows…I don’t know that I have it in me to pass up the opportunity to see the Muppets live on stage.” (18:59)

e) Beetlejuice (Broadway Return)

• Debates whether to catch it on Broadway or wait for the London West End premiere.
  • “I want that London production to be my first experience...rather than what is essentially a North American tour stop.” (20:11)

f) Art (James Corden, Neil Patrick Harris, Bobby Cannavale)

• Strong cast, wants to see “for a really long time.”
  • “I will almost definitely try and catch that one.” (21:23)

g) Waiting for Godot

• Reviews seem lukewarm but left him “more intrigued than anything else.”
  • “My enjoyment of it…still going to be measured.” (21:37)

h) Reunions (Off Broadway Musical)

• Stellar cast; show seems “a little bit slight, but also charming.”
  • “Sometimes that’s a great companion with…an otherwise very heavy and impactful week of theatre.” (22:06)

i) Prince F (Off Broadway)

• Almost sold out, but considering if possible Broadway future makes waiting more strategic.
  • “A lot of people are telling me that it’s unmissable, that I really have to see it.” (22:30)

j) Oratorio for Living Things (Signature Theatre, Heather Christian)

• Unsure if “for him,” despite strong recommendations.
  • “Occasionally from people whose taste I know is very different to my own…” (23:01)

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4. Shows He’s Not Seeing — and Why

a) Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

• Refuses due to J.K. Rowling’s “hateful crusade against the LGBTQ community.”
  • “Even though film star Tom Felton is going into the show reprising his screen performance as Draco Malfoy in what can only be described as something of a loser move...Wingardium Levio-no.” (25:13)

b) Little Bear Ridge Road

• Boycotting because produced by ousted, abusive Broadway producer Scott Rudin.
  • “I just don’t think it’s responsible from anyone involved, even on principle...don’t like what this says about bullies in the industry and their ability to return after a timeout.” (26:25)

c) Slam Frank

• Finds it “passingly offensive,” dislikes its broad satirical attacks and fanbase.
  • “Everything I have seen about this show...does sort of passingly offend me. The way that they engage with social media does.” (27:15)

d) Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion: The Musical

• Lacks nostalgia for the source film, not hearing rave reviews for performances or music.
  • “I find myself enjoying less and less the musical adaptations of films that I hadn’t seen in the first place.” (28:11)

e) The Seat of Our Pants (Skin of Our Teeth adaptation)

• “Just don’t have enough enthusiasm” given unfamiliarity with the source and tepid early responses.
  • “I just don’t know that I have enough enthusiasm about it to need to go and see it.” (28:58)

f) Kyoto (Off Broadway)

• Adored in London, but will skip the NYC version due to time and hopes for its future life (possibly Broadway transfer).
  • “I loved Kyoto so much, much in London. I am desperate to get the chance to see it again. But I don’t think that is going to be during this particular trip.” (29:31)

g) The Baker’s Wife (Off Broadway)

• Saw the same production in London; loves the material but must prioritize new works.
  • “It’s a lovely production...but it’s not really vital enough material to get me there.” (30:22)
• Calls for Ariana DeBose to be cast in a “star vehicle that allows her to dance up a storm.”

h) O Mary (with Jane Krakowski)

• Deeply pained to skip, has already seen multiple productions, wants to “wean [himself] off” before the London transfer.
  • “If I were to go and see Jane a few weeks before I see Mason [Alexander Park], then it might be a little bit of a discernment service to my reaction to the West End arrival, if that makes sense.” (31:48)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the overwhelming NYC calendar:
  “What if two weeks just isn’t enough time? And I said that not because of all the shows I wanted to see on Broadway, but because of the wealth of exciting new productions opening Off Broadway.” (02:00)
• His reason for timing this trip:
  “This is why we are going to New York when we are. This is why the trip is timed as such.” (04:29)
• On Ragtime:
  “I was briefly considering keeping the flights and just going to see Ragtime 20 times in two weeks. Don’t put it past me. I’d do it.” (07:27)
• On immersive theatre:
  “In the last few hours, I did go and buy myself a brand new suit exclusively for Masquerade. That’s how much I’m looking forward to it.” (08:47)
• On his boycott of certain shows:
  “Wingardium Levio-no, absolutely not.” (25:23) “I just don’t think it’s responsible from anyone involved, even on principle...don’t like what this says about bullies in the industry and their ability to return after a timeout.” (26:25)
• On missing O Mary:
  “It’s like the whole Pokémon gotta catch ‘em all thing where you inherently were never going to be able to catch them all... I need a little bit of emotional support for that. But I’ll be fine.” (32:41)

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Timestamps of Key Segments

| Time | Segment Headline | |-----------|-----------------------------------------------------| | 02:00 | Mickey Jo introduces the episode and his trip plans | | 04:29 | Definitely Will See: Two Strangers Carry a Cake... | | 05:26 | Chess revival excitement | | 06:20 | Ragtime at Lincoln Center | | 08:09 | Masquerade (Phantom) Off Broadway | | 09:12 | Bat Boy at NY City Center Gala | | 10:21 | Bo (Off Broadway praise & logistics) | | 11:05 | Liberation and Oedipus: Anticipated Broadway plays | | 12:17 | This World of Tomorrow (The Shed, Tom Hanks/K. O’Hara)| | 13:01 | Caroline at MCC; trans representation | | 13:38 | Initiative (5-hour D&D-inspired epic at The Public) | | 15:56–15:56| Maybes: Queen of Versailles, Hadestown, Spelling Bee| | 18:59 | Rob Lake Magic with the Muppets conflict | | 20:11 | Broadway Beetlejuice dilemma | | 21:23 | Comedy play Art with Corden, Harris, Cannavale | | 22:06 | Reunions (Off Broadway), Prince F, Oratorio for Living Things | | 25:13 | Shows Mickey Jo is NOT seeing: Harry Potter (boycott)| | 26:25 | Little Bear Ridge Road (boycott) | | 27:15–29:31| Other not-sees: Slam Frank, Romy & Michelle, The Seat of Our Pants, Kyoto | | 30:22 | The Baker’s Wife and Agnes Ariana DeBose tangent | | 31:48 | O Mary angst and skipped Thursday performances | | 32:41 | Pokémon reference, closing comments |

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Tone & Delivery

Mickey Jo’s delivery is energetic, wry, and always attentive to both audience enjoyment and the ethical side of theatre-going. He flexes his encyclopedic theatre knowledge while remaining relatable and humorous, unafraid of self-deprecating asides and “stagey” enthusiasm. The podcast feels like an informal, lively chat with a seasoned friend in the industry.

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Conclusion

Mickey Jo’s detailed breakdown of his Broadway and Off-Broadway itinerary is part travelogue, part manifesto, and part theatre gossip session. Whether defending his must-sees, bemoaning impossible scheduling choices, or holding the line on supporting ethical theatre, he offers a compelling look behind the curtain—while inviting debate, recommendations, and, always, more theatre-going camaraderie.

Mickey Jo closes with:
“Stay tuned for plenty of Broadway content. And in the meantime, as always, I hope that everyone is staying safe and that you have a stagey day.” (34:55)

Transcript

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[Mickey Jo]

So here's the thing. When it came to finally planning which shows I was going to see on my upcoming New York trip, I found myself actually saying the words, what if two weeks just isn't enough time? And I said that not because of all the shows I wanted to see on Broadway, but because of the wealth of exciting new productions opening Off Broadway. Oh my God. Hey, welcome back to my theatre themed YouTube channel. Or hello to those of you listening on podcast platforms. My name is Mickey Jo and I am obsessed with all things theater theatre. I am, as many of you will already know at this point, a professional theatre critic and a content creator and an enthusiast based here in the uk, but who travels frequently to New York to go and see as many Broadway and Off Broadway shows as possible. I try and see pretty much everything worth seeing. But ultimately, and try as I might, the Atlantic Ocean does remain something of an obstacle to me. And so when I get to travel to New York three or four times a year, I have to choose which shows I'm going to go and see. Not only that, but which shows I'm going to go and cover and review for everybody following on social media, which is a great reminder for you to make sure you're following me with notifications turned on so you don't miss my upcoming New York content and reviews. Some very exciting shows on the roster, let me tell you. In fact, literally, let me tell you, because that's, that's what I'm doing right now. And I dare say those of you who don't live in New York and who are used to visiting or visiting London for theatre, perhaps are used to the sensation of trying to figure out what you can see in a finite amount of time. So today, with so many new productions opening, many of which I have not yet seen, I'm going to give you a sense of my perspective on the full season by way of the shows that I have chosen to see for myself, which is a combination of the things which I think are the most buzzy, the most exciting, and the things which I think will actually be the best theatre. As always, we are going to do this under three different headings. I will tell you the shows that I am definitely seeing, have already booked the shows that I am hoping to see or will maybe see, which is already a longer list than slots I have left to see shows, so they're not all going to make the cut and perhaps the even more intriguing shows that I am not planning to see specifically. As always, I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section down below. Let me know of the shows on my roster you're most excited to hear my thoughts about. Let me know any shows that I might have missed that you would like to bring to my attention. Or just let us know the shows that you are most excited to see in New York over the next couple of months. In the meantime, start spreading the news. I am leaving today. Well, I'm leaving in 48 hours at the time of filming, but let me tell you all about the shows that I will be seeing or not on my upcoming trip to Broadway. Okie dokie, let's see. Start with the positives and let me tell you what I am definitely going to be seeing, starting with the reason for the season. Although the season is actually its old title. I am talking about the Broadway Opening of Two Strangers Carry a Cake Across New York I am so excited to get to see this in New York. Not because I haven't already seen the show both off West End in the West End and regionally in the US when it was produced a couple of months ago at the American Repertory Theatre in Massachusetts, but because New York audiences en masse haven't yet had the opportunity to see this show. It has not yet been produced in Manhattan. It's set there. It is in many ways a love letter to the city. I'm so excited to see this with an audience full of New Yorkers. I think that is deliciously exciting. Unless of course it's an audience full of other people like myself who are all hoping to be surrounded by New Yorkers and none of us are. Hopefully that's not the case. But I am very excited for this new British musical that has made its way to Manhattan in the slipstream of shows like Operation Mincemeat, which conjures many of the same feel good, romantic, intimate, small vibes of the successful Tony Award winning musical. Maybe happy ending. And I call it the reason for the season because this is why we are going to New York when we are. This is why the trip is timed as such. It also happens to overlap with a couple of other openings, including the one which I think all of you are going to be the most excited for me to cover. Of all the reviews I will be sharing after my trip, I think this is going to get the most views and that is the revival of of Chess. And I may be on nobody's side, but I will be in the auditorium for one of the upcoming performances of Chess at the Imperial Theatre. I am so excited to hear this score sung by this fantastic company. I am very intrigued to experience the new book, the reworked version. It has been decades since Chess was last seen on Broadway. I couldn't miss it. I had to be there for this one and I am very excited to be going there in an official critical capacity. So this is one of those shows that you are going to see a full YouTube review from me about which is very exciting and revival revivals seem to be very much the thing on Broadway right now because another reason that my stagey fiance Erin James are going at the time that we are is to go and see Ragtime at Lincoln Center. Now we've technically seen the majority of this company and essentially the earlier iteration of this production when it was staged at New York City center, but I'm never going to pass up the opportunity to go and see Ragtime. It is one of my favorite musicals of all time. I think it's one of the greatest book musicals ever written. I think the score is phenomenal. The book is phenomenal. And it's an extraordinary company that they have assembled. So even though I have essentially seen this version of the show, I know that it's a different staging. There's some changes. I know it's not a full set. And it might not be the open brackets wheels of a closed brackets dream production of Ragtime that we had been hoping for. With full lush staging. It's still going to be a real treat to hear this score sung by these wonderful performers. So there was no way that I was going to be in New York at the same time as Ragtime and not attempt to go and see it. At one point there were fears that the magicians union. Not the magicians, not the magicians. Musicians union. Excuse me, the musicians union at one point seemed poised to go on strike. So did Actors Equity. And in the eventuality that the actors didn't and the musicians did, Ragtime would have been one of a very small number of shows still running through that strike period. So I was briefly considering keeping the flights and just going to see Ragtime 20 times in two weeks. Don't put it past me. I do it. Carrying on here is another of the shows that I have been desperate to get to New York for Because there has been so much buzz and enthusiasm around it. It is not a revival in traditional sense, but it is a remounting of an iconic musical from the past. This is Masquerade, the Off Broadway immersive production of Phantom of the Opera. I am so excited. I have booked my tickets. They were not inexpensive, but it's also incredibly well sold. So was Ragtime, for that matter. Kudos to them. And there was no way that I was missing out. I'm not going to be in New York and not get to go and do Masquerade. I have heard the most exhilarating things. I still, at this point, have heard very few spoilers. And I would love to get to make a video about it and talk to you all about it on here. There's also a dress code. And in the last few hours, I did go and buy myself a brand new suit exclusively for Masquerade. That's how. That's how much I'm looking forward to it. Now, I mentioned New York City center already. I am heading back there to see another one of their shows. Their annual gala presentation performance of Batboy. Not a show that I'm familiar with, but friends of mine are hugely enthusiastic about the material. I am a fan of the writers. It's one of my sort of musical theater black holes that needs to be rectified. And it sounds like this is a great cast and a great production with which to do that. There have also been some updates, some alterations, I think, to the material. So I'm really excited to go and see Batboy finally. We've sort of been staying in the realm of musicals. I'm also going to be returning to an Off Broadway show that I just loved earlier in the year. It has transferred to a different Off Broadway house. I am talking about bo. And if you have any New York trips coming up, I urge you to consider going to cbo. It is a lovely, queer, atmospheric gig theater one act musical starring the brilliant Matt Rhoden, absolute rock star of a human being in a production giving you the vibes from Once, because the whole playing space is transformed into this sort of atmospheric, immersive bar. It's a story being told through a gig, like I said. And the reason I urge you to go and see it is not just because it's fantastic and Matt is really great in it and the music is great and it's really moving, but also because they have some unusual show times. We love unusual showtimes. And they have some 5pm shows, they have some 9:30pm shows. You can absolutely go and see a one act Broadway play at 7pm and then go and make it to Bow, which is right down in midtown Manhattan in the middle of the theatre district, a stone's throw from most of those Broadway theaters. Or you can see their 5pm show and then go see a 7pm or an 8pm afterwards. In other words, you have no excuse not to go and see bo and I charge you to do so. I haven't yet had the chance to really review it because I saw a preview performance last time, but I will do this time around. Now let's talk about the plays and one of my most anticipated is the Broadway transfer of Liberation. I have heard such great things about this from everyone I knew who saw it off Broadway. I am very excited to see the Broadway arrival. This is being talked about right now as one of the shining lights in a perhaps slightly dim start to the Broadway season, controversially. But I dare say there is another on its way because the West End hit production of Oedipus, starring Mark Strong and Leslie Manville, directed and adapted by the visionary Robert Icke, is about to open at Studio 54. It's already in previews and it has its official opening night during my trip and I am very excited to be making a return trip to that play. I saw one of its final performances in London, which is much of the reason why I didn't ever review it on here, even though I had hoped to. Aaron is going to get the chance to see it for the first time as well, which is super exciting. I'm going to be very intrigued to watch him watching the play. And it's another one where it's going to be really satisfying to witness an audience discovering that piece of theatre for the first time. I hope this becomes a real hot ticket in New York. I think it absolutely deserves to and it's nice to be able to support a couple of, to some extent, homegrown British productions thriving over in Manhattan. Then we have some Off Broadway plays that I'm very much looking forward to. We're going to see this World of Tomorrow which I believe is at the Shed starring Tom Hanks, little known actor and Kelly o'. Hara. I believe she does musicals. I'm joking of course. They're both very significant. I know astoundingly little about this play. I gather there may be some kind of time travel involved and I'm sort of keeping myself as unaware of it as possible so that I can go in and have this very fresh experience. For anyone curious about getting tickets to this play, I know they were initially very expensive. They have subsequently lowered the prices of some of them. So go and take a look if you hadn't recently and I say lowered the prices. It's still New York theatre so your eyes may water just a little bit, but sometimes less crazily expensive is the best that we can hope for. Another play that I'm seeing is at the MCC Theatre. It's called Caroline. I've heard great things about this as well. Terrific word of mouth. I'm seeing it in its final week of performances, but I'm still going to let you know what I think of it. I have been really eager to go and see a Preston Max Allen play because I've heard great things about his writing. And this one is about a young trans character and trans themes. And that's a piece of theatre that I definitely want to go and support and experience and talk about because I think it's really important in the current social and political climate. We need more trans representation on stage, especially through the voice of trans writers. That's maybe the most important thing. Finally, I am heading to the Public Theatre for only the second time in my life. The first was earlier this year to go and see Initiative. I was so delighted to be invited to this play that I knew absolutely nothing about and the first thing that I noticed was it has a runtime of five hours with multiple intermissions. The synopsis talks about multiple friends coming of age and this sort of epic of youth. The title is Initiative and there is a D20 in the artwork design. So I'm getting big DND vibes from this Dungeons and Dragons for those of you not in the know, which I am more than a little bit partial to. And my inclination is that for the public theater in all of its prestige, to platform and produce this five hour long piece of theatre and sort of give it enough of a stamp of approval to be like, yes, this merits a five hour runtime. That means I think it's going to be pretty exciting and perhaps more than a little bit epic. And I like a theatrical marathon now and then. It's been a while since I've seen a five hour show.

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[Mickey Jo]

That'S gone to flames.

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New secrets and lies are coming out.

[Mickey Jo]

This is gonna be catastrophic. We're fighting for our marriages and the girls are just putting out through hell. They make everything about themselves.

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I can't.

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Hopefully this doesn't end in a blood bath.

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[Mickey Jo]

So now we arrive at the maybes, beginning with one that I think is almost definitely going to become a yes, but it's just not yet 100% confirmed and that is the Queen of Versailles. Now, any reluctance that I have around going to see this show is not just because the press team seem to really specifically not want me to, but, you know, more on that at another time or possibly never. It's also because I'm not hearing the most thrilling word of mouth and because Sherry Renee Scott is standing by for Kristin Chenoweth. I would love to see Kristen Chenoweth in a full Broadway show, but I'm also a huge, huge fan of Sherry Renee Scott. And if we headed back in January and caught one of her scheduled performances, that would mean I would have seen the show twice. And if it's what I'm not that enthusiastic about in the first place, am I going to want to see it twice? These sometimes are the difficult decisions that you have to make. It's like Sophie's Choice but for gay men. Then we have one that again, I'm almost definitely going to go and see. I just haven't booked tickets or really picked out a date yet. And that is Hadestown at the Walter Kerr Theatre. Don't me. I know I have seen Hadestown dozens of times at this point, maybe even a dozen times. But Jack Wolf, the supreme talent of the West End, is currently starring as Orpheus in the Broadway production and I will be damned if I am going to miss it. I've already told him that I was going to and come and see it in November. So I. I can't. Not now. I also hear, for what it's worth, that the entire principal cast of Hadestown right now is really strong and it's a great time to go back and see the show. Here's one that we are almost definitely going to go and see because this is one of Aaron's most anticipated shows and that is I'm gonna get the number wrong. Is it the 25th annual Putnam County Spelling Bee? 25 sounds right. 20th. 20th annual. It's spelling Bee. We're gonna go and see Spelling Bee Off Broadway, which, believe it or not, I have never seen and I've never really had the chance to see a professional production of Spelling Bee because it is not done very frequently at all Here in the uk there is occasionally a youth or amateur production happening at the Edinburgh Fringe, but I think the last time it was produced professionally was the UK premiere in the very early 2010s at the Donmar Warehouse, directed, if you can believe it, by Jamie Lloyd. No, it did not have black underwear and blood and cameras. It was a quite significant step away from his current aesthetic. The Off Broadway cast is also fantastic. And I think some people still get to go on stage and be guest spellers. I'd love to be a guest speller. I happen to consider myself quite good at spelling, which does sort of sound now I say it out loud, like famous last words. Watch me be absolutely horrible. Watch me misspell like Broadway or theatre. Actually, you know, we disagree, America and I, about how to spell theatre. So that may indeed be my undoing. Then we have. And this is the one I'm really tearing my hair out about. Rob Lake magic with the Muppets. And as I have said before, as you may know, I love the Muppets. I have such extraordinary love for the Muppets and I am irrationally fearful of magicians. I am. I have this fear of magicians and mentalists since childhood and I deliberately avoid those kinds of shows. For what it's worth, I don't think that Rob Lake is the kind of a magician who is going to scare me as much as like the Derren Browns of this world, who is a very nice man who I have met but still scares the bejesus out of me. And I don't know that I have it in me to pass up the opportunity to see the Muppets live on stage. But I have also heard that their involvement in the show is incredibly limited, which we knew beforehand, which isn't coming as much of a surprise. But realistically, I know a lot of people, I mean, everyone I know who is interested in going to see this show just wants to see the Muppets. On the one hand, this could be a really great and chill final night show to see in New York after a busy couple of weeks. On the other hand, I don't want that to be an anti climax. We have on a couple of occasions before finished with the most disappointing show of the entire trip. And it's not a great way to end the journey. Now there's also the Broadway return of Beetlejuice. And I have wanted to see Beetlejuice for years, as I know many other UK theater goers have. And it was incredibly welcome news when it was recently announced that Beetlejuice would finally be heading to the UK with a West End home. Officially announced the Prince Edward Theatre in May 2026. And that's a little part of why I'm not sure whether I need to see it in New York. You know, it is finally London bound and I want that London production to be my first experience of the show rather than what is essentially a North American tour stop. At the same time. Will I do a better job of reviewing the London production? If I've already to some extent familiarized myself with the material by seeing it at the Palace Theatre on Broadway, I'd love to go back to the Palace. It's a great theater to get to experience. The renovation that they've done is really stunning. I am also going to coincide with Trisha Paytas Ltd. Run in the show. Is that something that I need to talk about on social media? Will the people of YouTube be so entranced, intrigued? Would that be a good idea for me professionally? I don't know. A Broadway show that I do want to catch is Art with James Corden, Neil Patrick Harris and Bobby Cannavale. I am hearing great things. I will almost definitely try and catch that one. It's a play that I've wanted to see for a really long time. Waiting for Godot I shared a couple of weeks ago that I was trying to make up my mind about by reading all of the Broadway reviews, and I'm still not entirely sure because I think my enjoyment of it, it is still going to be measured. But I'm not necessarily as apprehensive about the notion of going to see it as I was before I read the reviews. Even if many of them were a little bit lukewarm about the production. I think they left me more intrigued than anything else. I've just recently become aware of an Off Broadway musical called Reunions with a really stellar cast, including Chip Zine. I need to learn a little bit more about the show. It seems a little bit slight, but also charming. And sometimes that's a great companion with, you know, an otherwise very heavy and impactful week of theatre. Not everything needs to punch you in the gut, otherwise you're going to end up sort of culturally bruised. Speaking of which, Prince F. Forgive me for not using the full title. This has been an acclaimed off Broadway hit. It was running when we were last in the city. Why we didn't see it then I do not know, but it has since transferred to Studio Seaview, where it is all but sold out. If I get the chance to get tickets, a lot of people are telling me that it's unmissable, that I really have to see it. Another part of my brain wonders if it's selling this this well is it going to have some kind of a future life? Is a Broadway transfer in its future, maybe even this season? Well, I regret desperately trying to see it off Broadway if I'm going to have more opportunities to in the future like I did with O Mary. And then finally we get a show called Oratorio for Living Things at the Signature Theatre written by Heather Christian, whose work I have enjoyed previously. I think this is a sort of a non narrative piece is what my expectation of this is. It's described here as a music theatre piece, a classical oratorio with a captivating blend of blues, gospel, gems, jazz and soul. Both otherworldly and achingly intimate, this immersive event delves into the intricacies of human memory alongside the powerful forces that shape the universe. I have heard such strong recommendations for this show, but occasionally from people whose taste I know is very different to my own. And in spite of the fact that I'm utterly convinced that this is a really great piece of theatre, I just don't know if it's going to be for me. So I'm sort of sitting with that one and making up my mind about it. And again, I think it's selling quite well. So I don't actually have that much time. And like I said at the start, I don't even have the space for all of these shows. I'm going to have to make some difficult decisions. Finally then, and this may be a point of intrigue for you, here are the shows that for one reason or another, I am not going to see.

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[Mickey Jo]

Now, only Some of these are shows that I am explicitly avoiding on principle. Others are difficult decisions that I have already made. So not every show included in this particular section is there as a slight although some of them are. We'll start with an obvious one. I will not be going to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child on Broadway, even though film star Tom Felton is going into the show reprising his screen performance as Draco Malfoy in what can only be described as something of a loser move. And I have made it, I hope, abundantly clear in the past why I don't want to support Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. It's to do with the royalties from the show going to its original creator, J.K. rowling, and helping to finance her perpetual, needless, hateful crusade against the LGBTQ community. Initially it seemed simply to be aimed towards the trans community, but she also had random and totally unnecessary necessary beef with asexual people not too long ago as well. So in spite of the star casting, which I can only hope spells the beginning of the end for this production on Broadway, I will not be going to see it. Wingardium Levio. No, absolutely not. Similarly, the other one that I'm sort of boycotting and I said not too long ago there were two shows that I refused to see on Broadway. This is the other one is the new arrival, Little Bear Ridge Road. I'm pretty sure I got all the words in the right order this time in the title. I've been calling it Little Bear on the Prairie. All sorts of things. Also, every time I put it in my notes app in any kind of a list, it thinks it's an address. And truthfully, I would rather go to wherever that is than support a production being produced on Broadway by Scott Rudin. Not that I don't think people can change, and I've talked about this at length in a far more nuanced way. If you want to hear my full thoughts on this production coming to Broadway and the Broadway return of ousted bully producer Scott Rudin, who by all accounts ought to have faced criminal charges for the accusations made against him rather than some quiet time in his very experience. Expensive property. I also didn't love Clarkston, by the same playwright, Samuel D. Hunter, in the West End. I have seen Laurie Metcalfe on stage before. I would like to again, but I am quite disappointed that everyone involved in the production is, you know, choosing to do so in creative collaboration with producer Scott Rudin. A lot about this situation disappoints me and I just don't think it's responsible from anyone involved, even on principle. I just don't like what this says about bullies in the industry and their ability to return after a timeout. Now, the rest of the shows in this list I have no personal grudge against necessarily. Maybe this next one just a little bit. I know fairly little about this show. What I do know and what I am hearing, I'm not loving. This is the polarizing off Broadway musical with a sizable cult social media following. It is called Slam Frank and it takes aim, I think, simultaneously at fascism and left wing identity politics. Everything I have seen about this show and I haven't really done a deep dive, so this is not my full discovered analysis, but it does sort of passingly offend me. The way that they engage with social media does. Also. I find the fan base of the show to be at best a little off putting, at worst maybe even a little bit toxic. And I just don't think it's for me. I also don't know that it feels particularly politically responsible in the current moment. And I don't want to suggest artistic censorship or to stifle anyone's freedom of expression, but I think a show like this that seems to be punching in every which direction is on some of those occasions going to find itself punching down, which is not something that we ever like to see. Then we have why was I going to call this Romeo and Michelle's Big Fat Greek Wedding? Wrong film. Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion, the musical starring Laura Bell Bundy and Cara Lindsay, who are two of the reasons why I would want to go and see this show. But I find myself enjoying less and less the musical adaptations of films that I hadn't seen in the first place. I don't know that I would necessarily enjoy this all that much more than I enjoyed Clueless in the West End, which was not very much much, I think. I dare say that it would be elevated by the performances of its talented cast members. I'm not hearing anything about performances so far. That's making me Particularly eager to go and see the show. What I've heard of the music isn't necessarily thrilling me. And I just think without any sense of nostalgia for the movie, it's really not going to mean a lot to me. Next up is one that was on my list and then I sort of reconsidered, which is the seat of our pants. And. And this is based on a Thornton Wilder play called the Skin of Our Teeth and it's being produced at the Public Theatre. Lee Silverman is directing. It's got a really fantastic cast. I'm hearing sort of tepid things, but I would caution you against taking what I am hearing from a small handful of people as my final word on the show. I just don't know that I have enough enthusiasm about it to need to go and see it. I'm also not familiar with the source material and so that would feel like I was doing kind of like a half a job as a critic anyhow. Which brings us to three productions that I'm not seeing, largely because I have seen them before. One of them is Kyoto, Off Broadway. And when this was first announced, I think I shrieked aloud at a event and slightly startled the people around me. This is being produced off Broadway at Lincoln Center's Off Broadway space. I loved Kyoto so much, much in London. I am desperate to get the chance to see it again. But I don't think that is going to be during this particular trip. So I hope it has a future life, maybe a Broadway transfer. If nothing else. I need to go back and make sure I actually get a lanyard this time because foolishly I managed not to when I went to go and see a press night performance. But I thought it was a really extraordinary and vital play, one that I really need to get the opportunity to go and see again, but that I probably don't. You don't need to go and see in New York. That's sort of how I feel as well about the Baker's Wife. And it does have an entirely new cast with some huge names in there. Ariana DeBose playing the baker's wife herself, Genevieve. Also Judy Kuhn, who I have seen on stage before in Fiddler on the Roof, but who is always a treat. And it's a lovely production. I know that it's a lovely production because I saw the same production at the many a chocolate factory in London and I thought it was as delightful, as warm form, as charming a staging of the Baker's Wife as you will ever get. What is still inherently sort of sepia and slightly dusty material. I would gladly go back to the show if it weren't such a busy time off Broadway with so many other exciting new things that I haven't seen before, and I think it's not really vital enough material to get me there. I'm also really impatient now for Ariana DeBose to be cast in some sort of a star vehicle that allows her to dance up a storm. I think she's a fantastic singer and actress, but she is also a remarkable dancer. And there's so many shows from yesteryear that don't often get produced or revived because we don't have a lot of star name triple threats that could sell them, like the Cheetah Riveras and the Gwen Verdans of decades past. Now we do in Ariana DeBose. Where is the Kiss of the Spider Woman revival? Where is the Sweet Charity revival? And all the rest finally, and this one hurts, and I reserve the rest right to change my mind. But at this time, I don't think I am going to get to go and see Jane Krakowski in Omar. I know, I know. When I was first compiling the list, this along with Ragtime and Two Strangers was one of the first shows that I was like, perfect. We'll be in town at the same time as that's happening. And I've seen oh Mary Now a few times. I've seen it twice on Broadway, once off Broadway. I've seen Corala Scola and Titus Burgess as Mary Todd Lincoln. I am looking forward to the London Transfer, which is opening next month with my good friend Mason Alexander park starring as Mary Todd, who I think is going to be sensational. Can't wait for that. Can't wait to experience it with a West End audience so intrigued about how that goes down. But it's for that very reason that I think I need to wean myself off of O Mary just a little bit so that I'm not entirely desensitized to its wacky charm. I think if I were to go and see Jane a few weeks before I see Mason, then it might be a little bit of a discernment service to my reaction to the West End arrival, if that makes sense. It's also a little bit easier to make that decision because Omari no Longer does a Thursday 5pm performance for the weeks that I'm going to be in town for whatever reason. And I refuse to try and rush it on a Sunday because that would mean getting there super early and then having to wait until the box office opens. At midday, which is horrible. And the pain of this decision is mitigated somewhat by the fact that I've seen Jane Krakowski on stage already this year. I have seen Omar before, I will say see it soon again. And I haven't thus far seen every single Mary Todd replacement. It's like the whole Pokemon gotta catch em all thing where you inherently were never going to be able to catch them all because you had to choose one of three starter Pokemon and the rest didn't appear throughout the duration of the game. I've gone down something of a tangent, but I'm not going to see Jane Krakowski in Omar, and I need a little bit of emotional support for that. But I'll be fine. Which brings us to the end of my plans for my upcoming return to Broadway. At the time that you're seeing this, perhaps I'm already on a plane. Perhaps I'm already in Manhattan. Perhaps I've already seen some theater. Stay tuned for vlog coverage, hopefully for interviews, for opening night carpet coverage, maybe. And of course for many reviews of the shows that I will be seeing while I'm there. Some of which will be here on YouTube or on podcast platforms, others of which will be short form content shared as YouTube shorts, but also on Instagram and TikTok. Follow me at all of those places so you don't miss my thoughts about everything that I see in New York. And before you do, make sure to comment down below on this video letting me know which shows over the next couple months you are the most excited to see or hear about. Finally, and this is entirely up to you. If you would like to use the super thanks button somewhere below this video ahead of all of my Broadway coverage to help contribute to the Schmackery's Cookie Fund. That would be entirely welcome. But regardless of whether or not you do, I will still be eating lots of schmackeries. That much we know. Plays and musicals I may have to choose between, but delicious sweet treats are a must. In the meantime, thank you so much for listening to this. Stay tuned for plenty of Broadway content. And in the meantime, as always, I hope that everyone is staying safe and that you have a stagey day. For 10 more seconds, I'm Minky Jo Theatre. Oh my God. Hey, thanks for watching. Have a stagey day. Subscribe.

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