I sat in a dark theater last week and watched a movie star perform on stage, just a couple hundred feet away. It wasn’t as thrilling as you might expect? Uma Thurman is making her Broadway debut in “The Parisian Woman”.

The Parisian Woman staring Uma Thurman

I didn’t sit down expecting “Kill Bill the Musical”, I promise.

The play tries to be provoking, current, and tantalizing but it severely lacks dramatic tension. The characters aren’t at all likable, and even worse they’re two dimensional. Set in the political sphere of present day Washington DC, there’s so much more intrigue and drama in the actual reality than the relatively banal fictional world of the play.

The acting was competent. But…that’s the bare minimum for any theatre performed in NYC! When I see a Broadway show with a giant budget, I want to be dazzled!

Oh! The set of “The Parisian Woman” was dazzling! I want a living room just like Derek McLane’s design when I grow up!

This play was just woefully disappointing. It forced us into a Trump’s Washington – exactly the news cycle most of us are trying to escape when we visit the theatre! That it didn’t reward us with any interesting or provoking critique on it’s setting was unforgivable.

If you are Uma Thurman’s Number One Fan, maybe go see this play. Her star quality, that “za za zu”, does manage to shine through the general tedium of the play.

This is one of those plays that makes you think, “This is only on Broadway because it stars a celebrity.”

There’s another play that is only on Broadway because it stars a celebrity. But it is a delightful work of art, written, adapted, and performed by the celebrity it stars John Lithgow.

John Lithgow’s Stories By Heart

Stories By Heart is John Lithgow’s delightful one man show. He does it all: commanding the stage, bringing laughter (of course). and vulnerability as well. The play weaves in Lithgow’s personal stories with the bedtime stories he remembers most vividly from childhood. It is a simple premise, a simple set featuring only one prop, that creates a heartwarming, intimate show. This would be a lovely play to bring a parent to, or to just see after binging on your favorite storytelling podcast. It’s a celebration of storytelling.

Stories by Heart has a very limited run, playing only through March 4. That’s the tourist dull drums in NYC, when it’s very easy to get great Broadway ticket deals! If you’re under 35, you can snag tickets to see John Lithgow live for the same price as an IMAX movie – $25 through Hiptix (click here for more info)! If you’re over 35, you can still find some ticket deals now through Feb 4th as part of “Broadway Week“.

Have you ever seen a celebrity on Broadway? Were you blown away or disappointed? What was the last Broadway show you saw and did you even realize it was possible to find $25 tickets??