‘LIBERATION’: Audrey Corsa, Kristolyn Lloyd, Irene Sofia Lucio & Adina Verson. Photo: Little Fang.

LIBERATION
By Bess Wohl
Directed by Whitney White
Through February 1, 2026
James Earl Jones Theatre
138 West 48^th Street
https://liberationbway.com/

By Scott Harrah

Stories about feminism and the women’s movement more than 50 years ago might seem anachronistic to some. However, Bess Wohl’s Liberation, set in Ohio in 1970, is quite relevant and topical today. It’s disturbing to think that the same rights and freedoms feminists fought for back then are all issues women still face in 2025 America. Women must still fight for the right to choose and equal pay. They battle sexism and grapple with double standards in a male-dominated society. This production (which premiered off-Broadway this past winter at Roundabout’s Laura Pels Theatre) features one of the best ensemble casts on the New York stage in years.

‘Consciousness raising’ in an Ohio town

Lizzie (Susannah Flood) is a journalist in a small Ohio town and decides to start a “consciousness-raising” group. They meet weekly in a rec center’s basketball court to talk about women’s issues and ongoing struggles with men. She acts as narrator for the tale.

The story of young Lizzie is interspersed with that of her daughter in the 2020s. Ms. Flood also portrays Lizzie’s daughter in the present day, interviewing original group members years after her mother’s death. Her daughter wants to discover why her mother went from being a feminist activist to a more traditional woman later in life. Lizzie’s daughter wants to find out what happened to the group’s idealism over the years.

…And ladies of the club

One of the unique aspects of Liberation is the way it shows a microcosm of women from diverse backgrounds, races and socioeconomic levels, all facing similar oppression simply because of their gender. The only other women’s group that meets at the venue is a knitting circle.

Members of the sisterhood

The sisterhood of Lizzie’s group includes Margie (Betsy Aidem), the oldest member who has been married for decades to the same man. Joanne (Kayla Davion) is the group’s first Black member. She’s an author and feels slightly out of place because, as an African American, her level of oppression is far worse as a female woman of color.

Dora (Audrey Corsa) stumbles into the group unexpectedly, thinking it was a knitting club, but she’s frustrated as a beautiful woman working for a wine company, forced to grapple with sexism and objectification by the men at her job.

In addition, Isidora (Irene Sofia Lucio) is from Italy and the only immigrant. She has a unique perspective on women’s issues that differs from the American women. Susan (Adina Verson) is a radical feminist, while Celeste (Kristolyn Lloyd) is a Black woman who joins the group later in the story. Bill (Charlie Thurston) plays a key role in young Lizzie’s past.

A memory play from a woman’s perspective

Lizzie tells the audience at the beginning of the show that Liberation is a memory play. The show’s full title is Liberation: A Memory Play About Things I Don’t Remember. Memory plays often feature a main character recalling past events. Prime examples include The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams and Betrayal by Harold Pinter.  Lizzie uses this method as present-day narrator to examine her mother’s past.

Women’s struggles remain consistent over decades

Playwright Bess Wohl captures the essence of intergenerational conflicts and the thorny issues related to activism. Ms. Wohl also shows how feminism and the ongoing fight for women’s equality are both different for every woman based on her circumstances and identity. However, the need for women to be heard, taken seriously by men, be paid a fair wage and also appreciated is something that has not changed much since the dawn of the women’s movement. Women today still are expected to have and raise children, work, manage a household and also live up to overwhelming expectations created by men and society in general.

Razor-sharp direction of an excellent ensemble

Director Whitney White does an outstanding job of directing this excellent ensemble. There are so many fine performances here that it’s difficult to single out any as standouts because each actress is so great in her own right. Susannah Flood does a remarkable job as narrator, young Lizzie and her daughter. Betsy Aidem is sensational as Margie, the eldest group member who has struggled living the only life she knows as wife to man who can do little for himself. Audrey Corsa is often poignant as the beautiful, naïve yet powerful career woman Dora. Kayla Davion as the intellectual Joanne is always entertaining with her nonstop wit, and Kristolyn Lloyd as Celeste, Irene Sofia Lucio as Isidora and Adina Verson as the militant feminist Susan are equally superb.

Liberation is a brutally realistic, consistently funny “herstory” lesson that speaks volumes about the inequitable state of women in past and present America. The play shows why there should not be anything “radical” about treating women as equal to men and giving women the respect they deserve. Without question, Liberation is one of the best dramas of the year.

Published November 1, 2025
Reviewed at press performance on October 29, 2025

‘LIBERATION’: Kristolyn Lloyd, Irene Sofia Lucio, Betsy Aidem & Audrey Corsa. Photo: White Fang.

‘LIBERATION’: Susannah Flood & Betsy Aidem. Photo: Little Fang.

‘LIBERATION’: The cast. Photo: White Fang.

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‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Grey Henson & cast. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

ELF: THE MUSICAL
Book by Thomas Meehan & Bob Martin
Music by Matthew Sklar
Lyrics by Chad Beguelin
Choreographed by Liam Steel
Directed by Philip Wm. McKinley
Through January 4, 2025
Marquis Theatre
210 W. 46^th Street
https://elfonbroadway.com/

By Scott Harrah

Breaking holiday news: Elf: The Musical has finally been revived after 14 years, and this production is glossier and more gleeful than ever. It has been slightly updated for a 2024 audience with jokes about TikTok and other things that are topical in the 2020s. Based on the hit 2003 film starring Will Ferrell, the musical stage adaptation of Elf was originally produced on Broadway in 2010, directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw.

Those who have seen the movie Elf might remember the plot. Buddy (Grey Henson) is an overgrown 30-year-old innocent from the North Pole who travels to New York City to find his father, Walter Hobbs (Michael Hayden). Upon finding his father at the office, a hard-nosed workaholic, with no time for his family, Buddy discovers he has a stepmother, Emily (Ashley Brown) and a half-brother, Michael (Kai Edgar). While working at Macy’s, he also finds a girlfriend, Jovie (Kayla Davion). Complications arise as Buddy tries to adjust to his new life in New York, and that’s what makes it so much fun. Buddy discovers that New Yorkers have lost their belief in Santa and have little Christmas cheer, and it is his obligation to bring it all back.

Great book & score

Elf: The Musical has a great book by Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin. What’s more, the score by Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin (both wrote the musical adaptation of The Wedding Singer) is joyful and bubbly. Two songs are standouts. “The Story of Buddy the Elf” is an old-fashioned showstopper, and “A Christmas Song” (featured in both act one and act two) should be a holiday classic by now.

A gifted cast

First, Grey Henson (Shucked) is consistently charming as Buddy. He has great comic timing and genuinely seems to be having fun throughout the show. In addition, Kayla Davion (Tina: The Tina Turner Musical) shines as his girlfriend Jovie. She is the woman he meets while working at Macy’s. Ms. Davion is sassy and has great chemistry with Mr. Henson, and her powerful voice is a total crowd-pleaser when she belts out her solo song “Never Fall in Love (With an Elf).”

Furthermore, Sean Astin (known for Lord of the Rings and Netflix’s “Stranger Things) is sublime in dual roles as both Santa Claus and publishing executive Mr. Greenway. Newcomer Kalen Allen is spunky and quick-witted as a store manager at Macy’s and also as a hot dog street vendor.

Fine supporting performances are also given by Ashley Brown (Mary Poppins) as Emily Hobbs, Buddy’s stepmother; Kai Edgar as Buddy’s little half-brother, Michael Hobbs; and Tony Award nominee Michael Hayden (Judgment at Nuremberg) as Walter Hobbs, Buddy’s biological father.

More festive

On the whole, this revival of Elf: The Musical is actually much more festive the original 2010 production, thanks to razor-sharp direction by Philip Wm. McKinley, Liam Steel’s energetic choreography and clever scenic and costume design by Tim Goodchild, lighting design by Patrick Woodroffe, video design by Ian William Galloway and Mesmer Studios, and others responsible for the Yuletide visual effects. The show is full of holiday cheer and is winning family holiday fare. Spoiler alert: Watch out for Santa’s sleigh hovering above the audience and lots of snow during the grand finale.

Published November 17, 2024
Reviewed at press preview on November 16, 2024

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Grey Henson & cast. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Sean Astin. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Kayla Davion & Grey Henson. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Kai Edgar & Grey Henson. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Michael Hayden (center) & cast. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: The cast. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Michael Hayden, Ashley Brown, Kai Edgar, Grey Henson & Kayla Davion. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Kalen Allen. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

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