Published: May 5, 2011

With summer approaching and the Tony Award nominations announced, this is the prime moment to see great plays and musicals on Broadway. Therefore, it is my happy duty to pick some shows most deserving of your attention. For the record, there are some shows I have not seen yet (“War Horse” and “Sister Act”) and some I won’t mention since I’ve written about them already (“The Book of Mormon”), but you should find these selections well worth your consideration.

With summer approaching and the Tony Award nominations announced, this is the prime moment to see great plays and musicals on Broadway. Therefore, it is my happy duty to pick some shows most deserving of your attention. For the record, there are some shows I have not seen yet (“War Horse” and “Sister Act”) and some I won’t mention since I’ve written about them already (“The Book of Mormon”), but you should find these selections well worth your consideration.

“The Importance of Being Earnest”
American Airlines Theatre

One of the world’s most beloved Comedies of Manners returns in an utterly delightful production. Some may be attracted by the supposedly gimmicky fact that its director, renowned actor Brian Bedford, plays the imperious Lady Bracknell. Nothing about this performance should be considered a gimmick. Bedford is matchlessly funny as Lady Bracknell herself, not as a man playing Lady Bracknell. He is so terrific that the play lags when he is absent for the second act. Thankfully, we have performers like David Furr and recent addition Jessie Austrian to moderate the relative drop in hilarity. The supporting cast may seem puny compared to Bedford, but this is still a charming staging of a great comedy.

“The Normal Heart”
John Golden Theatre

The Broadway premiere of Larry Kramer’s 1985 play, a fictionalized account of the beginning years of the AIDS epidemic, is a thrilling showcase for powerhouse performances. Kramer’s play can occasionally sound like a soapbox speech, but it gives the cast ample opportunity to demonstrate their talents. It’s a dream to watch Act Two progress from a harrowing monologue by Lee Pace to a confrontational monologue by Ellen Barkin to an explosive and even scary outburst by Joe Mantello. It’s extremely difficult to pick just one favorite performance out of the ensemble. This play is essential viewing for anyone who studies or admires great acting.

“Anything Goes”
Stephen Sondheim Theatre

Not even a million-page thesaurus will hold all of the great things I can say about this show. The classic Cole Porter musical about romantic escapades aboard a luxury cruise liner has been revived by director and choreographer Kathleen Marshall into one of the single most electric and vivacious productions I have ever seen. The flawless and astronomically charming cast, dressed in Martin Pakledinaz’s sparkling costumes and treading Derek McLane’s fabulous sets, displays an infectious ecstasy while singing and dancing songs like “You’re the Top” and “It’s De-Lovely.” I have absolutely no complaints about this show. See it at once!

“Good People”
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre

This play displays one of the simplest and most rewarding of all theatrical spectacles: a small number of actors performing juicy material with an unbeatable rapport between them. Most of the second act of “Good People,” David Lindsay-Abaire’s play about a working-class Bostonian turning to her nouveau riche ex-boyfriend for help, is the delectable trio of Frances McDormand, Tate Donovan and Renee Elise Goldsberry degrading from cautious hospitality to brash accusation with rich humanity. The first act is fine as well (featuring a very funny Estelle Parsons), but the roughly 50-minute stretch between the three conflicting figures is a priceless piece of acting you shouldn’t miss.

“Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo”
Richard Rodgers Theatre

A finalist for last year’s Pulitzer Prize, Rajiv Joseph’s play considers the morality and greed of soldiers and survivors in war-torn Iraq. That description makes this play sound like an updated “Three Kings,” but the narrative perspective, told by the ghost of a dead tiger from the Baghdad zoo (played by the tremendous Robin Williams), gives this show its gripping theatricality. Williams is surrounded by a solid supporting cast, including the impassioned Arian Moayed as an Iraqi gardener looking for redemption. This haunting and bleakly funny play is a deft mix of humor, philosophy and desperation.

“Jerusalem”
Music Box Theatre

There is acting, there is being, and there is Mark Rylance. I don’t know how he does it, but in Jez Butterworth’s ode to rural England, he creates a character from the inside out and back again with nary a dollop of phoniness. Playing an ex-daredevil and an aging ne’er-do-well, Rylance brings a resonant voice and an aching physicality to this deviously captivating and grandly pathetic character. It’s exhausting to watch him march (or limp, as per one of his physical traits) through this play for three hours, but this performance will keep you awestruck long after the final curtain falls.