A Part of the Noise

 A Part of the Noise
Theatre for the New City
October 17, 2026 

Photo courtesy of A Part of The Noise

A Part of the Noise captures the beat generation of 1959, as it tells a slice of the life of abstract painter, Franz Kline.  Playwright Carl Kline approaches the story with insight and sensitivity.  Director Joe John Battista unites this cast of skilled actors in their exploration of this revolutionary period.  They vividly portray artists facing the challenges of the time. 

Abstract painter, Franz Kline (played by Ryan Tramont), is getting ready for a solo show at the prestigious Janis Gallery.  He is inspired to add color to his popular black and white paintings.  Gallery owner, Sidney Janis (played by Mike Meth) is against the addition of the colorful pieces to the upcoming show.  Franz meets with Art Critic Artie Mendelbaum (played by Alex Elmaleh) to be interviewed about his latest work.  Franz requests they meet at the Cedar Bar to expose Artie to the heart of the arts community.  As the poetry and drinking commence, Franz is haunted by memories of his wife, Elizabeth (played by Zoë Anastassiou), who has been institutionalized.  This shifts Franz to an introspective mood, but does not hamper his friends from coming up with a plan to sneak the new colorful pieces in his solo show. 

Ryan Tramont & Skye Themeda Goss
Photo courtesy of A Part of the Noise

Ryan Tramont portrays Franz Kline as a giving man with a powerful focus on his growth as an artist.  He creates strong and distinctive relationships with each of the characters in the story, which builds a warm and supportive artistic community.  His relationship with his girlfriend, Annie (played by Skye Themeda Goss) is passionate and tumultuous.  Ms. Goss catches fire when Franz pushes her away or condescends to her.  Mr. Tremont responds with cool tenderness and distant understanding.  These moments give keen insight into the core of their relationship.  

Zoë Anastassiou creates a complex character in Franz’s wife, Elizabeth.  At first, she is a haunting presence.  In Franz’s memory scenes, they are tender and caring, until something sparks her imbalance and sets her on a frenzied paranoid outburst.  As she heals during her institutional stay, the audience sees her gain strength and rediscover her independence.  Ms. Anastassiou does a beautiful job in this role.  Toward the end of the play, she delivers a touching and heart-felt eulogy, which sums up the emotional state of all the characters. 

Photo courtesy of A Part of the Noise

Alex Elmaleh is suave and controlled as Art Critic, Artie Mendelbaum.  He starts off the interview with an objective distance, and is soon won over my Franz’ charm.  Of course, the free flow of alcohol helps to melt his mood, but it is the atmosphere of camaraderie at Cedar Bar that has the most profound effect.  John, the owner and bartender (played by Tony Del Bono), Grace Hartigan (played by Alexandra Laliberte), David Amram (played by Michael John Gross), and Joan Mitchell (played by Zoë Anastassiou) all share their stories.  They each create genuine moments where they expose their souls.  There are also strong performances by Mike Meth, Olivia J. Talian, and Classic Guitarist Claudio Pacioco.

A Part of the Noise is playing at Theater for the New City through October 25.  It is a heartwarming tribute to an artist and the movement he was a part of.  Get a ticket today!  

Domenick Danza

Too Fat for China

 Too Fat for China
The RAT NYC
October 13, 2026 

Photo courtesy of Too Fat for China

Too Fat for China is a solo comedy show about the agony of adoption, written and performed by Phoebe Potts.  After touring around the country and winning United Solo’s “Best Storytelling Show” and BroadwayWorld’s “Best Solo Show” (2025), Ms. Potts is settling in for a limited run at The RAT NYC in Dumbo, Brooklyn.  The show is a funny and candid telling of the journey she and her husband embarked on to adopt a child.  Ms. Potts opens her heart in this sixty-minute show.  The audience responds with admiration for her honesty, self-awareness, and determination. 

Phoebe Potts starts the show telling stories of growing up in Brooklyn in a Jewish family.  Inside her head is a newsroom of reporters, observing and gathering information for her to process.  Her first big question is: Why did she gain so much weight after her mother pushed the importance of being thin?  When she is married, she finds out she is unable to have a baby.  After numerous unsuccessful fertility treatments, she and her husband decide to adopt.  When looking at international adoption opportunities, Ms. Potts reads the small print and finds out that China has a BMI requirement.  Yes, she is “too fat for China.”  That option is out.  This opens her eyes to the fact that adoption is a business that serves an advantaged clientele.   She becomes aware how her white privilege allows her to be a “customer” for this business.  This gives her pause, but she continues to participate, until she finally finds what her heart desires. 

Photo courtesy of Too Fat for China

Every challenge and obstacle Ms. Potts faces along the way makes her self-assess.  With the help of the newsroom of reporters in her head, she reviews the facts, her desires, and her responses.  There is humor and sincerity in these moments, allowing the audience to get to know her.  She continues her search for a baby, while expanding in self-awareness and submerging in vulnerability.  As she gets closer to achieving her goal, she builds stories to tell her little one about their shared backgrounds and how they found one another to become a family. 

Phoebe Potts took one year to write this story before touring it around the country.  She said she was driven by a need for absolution for her participation in the process.  She wanted it to be funny and beautiful so the story would get the attention it deserves.  She strove to make “a direct hit to the bloodstream by telling people” about herself.  Ms. Potts wonderfully succeeds with every one of these objectives.  Every time she pauses to review the elements that seem off about the adoption process, she continues in spite of herself.  The audience asks themselves the same questions she does in these moments.  They viscerally understand and continue on the journey with her. 

Too Fat for China is playing at The RAT NYC (68 Jay St., storefront suite, Brooklyn, NY 11201) on Tuesdays at 6:30 through November 24.  You will truly enjoy embarking on this journey.  Go see it!  

You can also sign up for Ms. Potts’ monthly newsletter, The Complainer, through her website, phoebepotts.com. 

Domenick Danza

Burning Leaves

Burning Leaves
TOSOS Theatre Company
Gural Theatre (A.R.T. New York Theatres)
October 2, 2026 

Photo courtesy of TOSOS

The TOSOS Theatre Company production of Tom Rowan's        Burning Leave is sensitive and stunning.  Mr. Rowan develops multi-layered characters through witty and natural dialogue.  His characters are vulnerable, sympathetic, and full of heart.  Director Graydon Gund maintains a continual flow from scene to scene, allowing the audience to connect to the action as it innately rises.  The cast builds genuine relationships as their characters face monumental challenges, revealing their secrets and truths. 

Sophie Tananbaum, Becky Rusch, Brady Dalton Richards, & Campbell Idol
Photo courtesy of TOSOS

Matt Leland (played by Brady Dalton Richards) nervously faces his first class as the new Drama Teacher in a high school in Pittsville, Illinois.  He recently relocated from New York City, leaving behind a budding career as an actor.  He rents a room in the house of the school guidance counselor, Jane Potter (played by Annemarie Rosano).  The students respond well to Mr. Leland’s enthusiastic approach, especially Jesse Wade (played by Campbell Idol).  Jane is thrilled about Jesse’s interest in Drama.  He started withdrawing after his mother passed away from cancer, triggering him to attempt suicide the previous school year.  After a theatre trip to Chicago, Jesse writes openly about his attraction and feelings for Mr. Leland in his drama journal.  Mr. Leland confronts Jesse about what he read in the journal.  This opens more doors to deeper feelings than either of them intended.

Brady Dalton Richards & Campbell Idol
Photo courtesy of TOSOS

Brady Dalton Richards is charming and vulnerable as Matt Leland.  His quirky nervousness and unease are endearing.  He holds back on the reasons why he left NYC, which leads the audience to suspect there was a traumatic break-up of some kind.  It is riveting when he finally tells the story to Jesse in the second act.  Playwright Tom Rowan exceeds all expectations with this monologue, and Mr. Richards delivers it flawlessly.

The relationships Brady Dalton Richards develops with Campbell Idol (Jesse Wade) and Annmarie Rosano (Jane Potter) are touching and genuine.  This is what keeps the audience fully engaged in the story.  Mr. Idol portrays Jesse as awkward and full of pain.  The character gradually transforms through self-awareness and acceptance.  The audience cares about him and is fully on his side.  Ms. Rosano is warm and giving as Jane Potter.  Even when she takes a hard stance with Matt on his actions, she is ethical and caring. 

Jonathan Stewart, Annemarie Rosano,
& Brady Dalton Richards
Photo courtesy of TOSOS

Sophie Tananbaum plays Halli Potter, Jane’s teenage daughter and a student of Matt Leland.  She is eager and open.  Her character matures through Matt’s mentoring and her mutual confiding with Jesse.  Becky Rusch plays Alicia Hogan, another high school drama student.  She is the product of her small-town influence, and highly self-centered.  This character adds conflict and raises the stake in the main action.  Also enriching the conflict is Jonathan Stewart, who plays Jesse’s father, Carl Wade.  These two characters bring a strong sense of location to the story though their narrow mindedness and opposition. 

Burning Leaves is playing at the Gural Theatre (A.R.T. New York Theatres, 502 W. 53 St.).  It is a simple and impressive production, skillfully written and directed, and beautifully performed. 

Domenick Danza