By Staff

The American Dream / The Sandbox
Edward Albee directs his two early one-acts, the first about a dysfunctional family waiting for someone to “give us satisfaction.” The absurdist play is completed by the second, which continues the story of the perverse Mommy and Daddy and Grandma. The 80-year-old Albee seems more interested in the hot young men who play the bit roles on the fringes of the play—one a clean-cut “type” who personifies the “American Dream,” the other an oiled-up Adonis who functions as Grandma’s Angel of Death. (Jerry Portwood)
Opens March 25, runs through April 19, Cherry Lane Theatre 38 Commerce St. (betw. Barrow & Bedford Sts.), 212-239-6200; $10-$60.

Betrayed: The Iraqis Who Loved America Too Much
Pippin Parker stages George Packer’s play like a chess game in which any pawn may be beheaded at any moment—this approach delivering an astonishing emotional intensity. More than a morality play about well-educated, democracy-enamored Iraqis and the politicians and diplomats living bubble-like existences in the Green Zone: It’s also about our government’s betrayal of sense. (Leonard Jacobs)
Through April 13. Culture Project, 55 Mercer St. (betw. Broome & Grand Sts.), 212-352-3101; $25-$60.

Boom
In Peter Sinn Nachtrieb’s black comedy, a comet is headed for Earth, and it’s unclear if anyone will survive. But then again, that’s not really what the play’s about at all: We discover it’s an artful way of presenting the creation vs. evolution debate for a witty, artsy audience who would be bored by anything mustier. (JP)
Through April 13. Ars Nova, 511 W. 54th St. (betw. 10th & 11th Aves.), 212-868-4444; Thu.-Sat. 8; Sun. 7, $25.

The Break-Up and The Happy Sad
Two short plays, by Tommy Smith and Ken Urban respectively, on a double-bill that explores the botched dreams and impotent aspirations of a series of characters in Brooklyn. The fact that Urban has his characters speak in cryptic prose and inexplicably break into song only adds to the confusion and numbness of the urban limbo. (JP)
Through April 7. The Flea Theater, 41 White St. (betw. Church St. & Broadway), 212-352-3101; Sun. & Mon. 7; Fri. & Sat. 9, $20.

Come Back, Little Sheba
Director Michael Pressman’s production, the play’s first appearance on Broadway since the 1950 original, doesn’t liberate William Inge’s play from the ranks of period pieces. But its heart-stirring images deliver a suffocating intensity, and actress S. Epatha Merkerson’s performance as Lola is a beautifully textured creation. (LJ)
Open run. Biltmore Theatre, 247 W. 47th St. (betw. Broadway & 8th Ave.), 212-239-6200; $46.50-91.50.

The Four of Us
A narrative about envy between two seemingly tight friends—novelist Benjamin and playwright David—the play is loosely based on a friendship between the playwright Itamar Moses and Jonathan Safran Foer. The dynamic is illuminating at times but doesn’t go far enough in its analysis of the arch-nemesis status between the two. 
Through May 11. New York City Center Stage II, 131 W. 55th St. (betw. 6th & 7th Aves.), 212-581-1212; Tues.-Sat. 7:30; Wed., Sat. & Sun. 2:30, $50.

In the Heights
Set in Washington Heights, the play focuses on local bodega owner Usnavi (Miranda), who loves saucy Vanessa (played by the fetching Karen Olivo) even as his young, streetwise cousin Sonny (a crackling Robin de Jesús) woos her with lame teenage moves. Running perpendicular to this comic tale is the story Usnavi’s beloved abuela Claudia (Olga Merediz, better than ever), the show’s emotional anchor. Her big number, “Paciencia y Fe” (“Patience and Faith”) is Miranda’s best work, a resonant anthem of longing and hope for all new American arrivals, Latino or not.
Open run. Richard Rodgers Theatre (betw. 8th & Broadway), 212-307-4100; $20-$110.

Lower Ninth
Beau Willimon’s play never mentions Hurricane Katrina, but it leaves two men stranded on the roof of a flooded house—with a dead body. The all-star TV actor cast does an excellent job, but Willimon doesn’t challenge himself to get at meaty social issues: He’s too busy skimming the surface. Friday Night Lights’ Gaius Charles, NYPD Blue’s James McDaniel and The Wire’s Gbenga Akkinagbe are the stars. (JP)
Through April 5. The Flea Theater, 41 White St. (betw. Church St. & Broadway), 212-352-3101; $40-$45.

Passing Strange
A rock ’n’ roll/cabaret/theater hybrid, this play is one of the most experimental pieces to come to Broadway in some time. Stew narrates a story of a black teenager who leaves his family in L.A. to travel to Amsterdam and Berlin for sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll. The sort of music you’d expect in a bar, not on the stage, drives the narrative until the ultimate, poignant conclusion. (JP)
Open run. Belasco Theatre, 111 44th St. (betw. 6th & 7th Aves.), 212-239-6200; $26.50-$111.50.

The Seagull
Despite a language barrier between the Russian-speaking director and his American actors, Viacheslav Dolgachev has nevertheless elicited some of the most intricately textured acting of The Seagull that I’ve ever seen. Dianne Wiest is riveting, empathetic, adorable, infuriating, divine—and also terrifying. (LJ)
Through April 13. Classic Stage Company, 136 E. 13th St. (betw. 3rd & 4th Aves.), 212-352-3101; $70-$75.

Sunday in the Park with George
The current production of Sondheim’s play about George Seurat is just as rousing as the original; the music, lyrics and book are still impressive. The most obvious difference is director Sam Buntrock’s imaginative use of animation. Instead of cutouts and fly-ins, as in the original production, the stage is now a blank, white canvas on which digital projections of drawings and the famous A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of the Grande Jatte appear. It transforms a second act that I never much cared for into something relevant and real—at last. (JP)
Through June 15. Studio 54, 254 W 54th St, (betw. 7th and 8th Aves.), 212-719-1300; $36.25-$121.25.