Theater reviewer should forgo drama, stick to comedy

After reading what was supposed to have been a play review in a recent TICKET (“At Pewter Plough, ‘All My Sons’ delves into family drama,” Oct. 11), but which sounded more like a word-by-word transcription of proceedings by a court reporter (with a few snide comments about the attorneys added at the end), I would like to provide your erstwhile reviewer with a list of other “downer” plays she should avoid attending:

1. “MacBeth”: a play about a very self-centered politician who has absolutely no concept whatsoever of public service.

2. “Hamlet”: about a rich spoiled brat who nevertheless suffers from clinical depression.

3. “Othello”: about a celebrated warrior who has the chutzpah to break through the racial barrier, but whose self-confidence in affairs of the heart needs drastic reinforcement.

4. “Romeo and Juliet”: about two disobedient youngsters who have the temerity to jump into bed but not to elope.

5. As for “King Lear,” well, let’s not even go there. It would be getting too personal, since the reviewer was obviously not the Cordelia of her own family.

Anyway, I would like advise the “reviewer” to stick with musicals and light comedies from now on.

This story was originally published October 22, 2016 at 9:17 PM with the headline "Theater reviewer should forgo drama, stick to comedy."