On Your Feet ** C+

If exuberance were all it took to make a Broadway musical a winner, this jukebox bio-musical about Gloria and Emilio Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine would make the grade. The infectious music of this Cuban-American couple is played by a terrific orchestra that is onstage for the big numbers. The two leads, Ana Villafañe and Ektor Rivera, are both excellent and are supported by a fine cast that includes Andrea Burns, Alma Cuervo and a young tap-dancing terror named Eduardo Hernandez. The dance numbers, choreographed by Sergio Trujillo, are relentlessly energetic. David Rockwell’s hyperactive set features two tall panels made of shutters that move around a lot. The costumes by Esosa are a treat. Jerry Mitchell’s direction is slick. Unfortunately, all the show’s strengths are largely undone by a lame book by Alexander Dinelaris. Its weaknesses are less apparent during the lively first act, but become increasingly problematic during the weak second act. The abrupt and rather flat finale morphs into an unusually lively extended curtain call. Go for the music and the dancing and try to ignore the book. It has been running for over a year, so clearly it has found an audience. Running time: 2 hours 25 minutes including intermission.

Invisible Thread ***

After a successful run last year at American Repertory Theater in Cambridge where it was titled “Witness Uganda,” this energetic, ambitious, inspirational musical is now raising the roof at Second Stage Theatre, where it is in previews. Co-authors Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews are founders of the Uganda Project, a charity that pays the educational expenses of ten Ugandan students each year. When Griffin (Jeremy Pope from “Choir Boy” filling in for Matthews at my performance), an unemployed black New York actor, is kicked out of his church choir for being gay, he decides to do something meaningful with his life and signs up as a volunteer to build a school in a Ugandan village. Why a gay man would pick one of the world’s most virulently homophobic countries as a place to volunteer is never explained. His Jewish lover Ryan (Corey Mach), a songwriter, unexpectedly joins him there. The compound Griffin lives in belongs to the unseen Pastor Jim. It is run by the stern Joy (Adeola Role) assisted by her younger brother Jacob (Michael Luwoye, a wonderful actor but, in my opinion, too massive and mature for this role). Jacob befriends Griffin, who, he hopes, will take him back to New York. When Griffin learns that the school-building project is a scam that will only benefit Pastor Jim, he quits and decides to teach a small group of teenage AIDS orphans that he meets. When their improvised school mysteriously burns down, Griffin takes them to a safe village far from Pastor Jim and pays to enroll them in school. When he and Ryan return to New York, they struggle to raise money to support the students. They get the bright idea of doing a benefit concert to raise money. The present musical gradually emerged from their efforts. They learn some hard lessons about the difficulty of matching the help offered with the help needed. The songs run the gamut from generic ballads to rousing African-infused numbers. The show’s title is the title of one of the less interesting songs (“There is a long invisible thread that wraps around my heart and wraps around your head…”). An orchestra of nine supply the music. The appealing cast is very good. Nicolette Robinson (“Brooklynite”) is a standout. The lively choreography is by Sergio Trujillo assisted by Darrell Grand Moultrie. Tom Pye’s simple uncluttered set is enhanced by Peter Nigrini’s projections. ESosa's costumes are colorful. Director Diane Paulus pulls it all together with panache. I hope that they adjust the amplification so that the big numbers are not ear-splitting. The audience was appreciative. Running time: 2 hours 5 minutes including intermission.

The Invisible Hand ****

When your first play to reach New York wins a Pulitzer, can things only go downhill from there? After seeing Ayad Akhtar’s gripping new thriller, now in previews at New York Theatre Workshop, I can report that, in his case, the answer is an emphatic “No.” Nick Bright (Justin Kirk) is a mid-level American banker who has been erroneously kidnapped by a militant group in Pakistan. They were after his boss, but he was filling in for him that day. The huge ransom they are demanding is far more than the bank thinks he is worth, so he is stuck in captivity. His captor is the volatile Bashir (Usman Ally), British born and raised, who left England to fight in Pakistan where he has become a follower of the charismatic Imam Saleem (Dariush Kashani). Nick has befriended his guard Dar (Jameal Ali) and even taught him some rudimentary economics that yield a bit of extra income. When it becomes clear that the bank will never pay his ransom, Nick suggests raising the amount himself by some tricky trading using an offshore account of his. Bashar initially objects, but the imam agrees. Since they will not allow him near a computer, Nick has to teach Bashir how to make the trades. Bashir proves to be an able student. The twists and turns that follow kept me on the edge of my seat. Who knew that high finance could be so dramatic? The play is not only exciting but so topical it could be ripped from today’s headlines. Akhtar provides insight into what turns a British Muslim into a militant, how militant groups are becoming more sophisticated about fundraising and how American influence can be both beneficent and corrupting. While the entire cast is strong, Ally’s Bashir is absolutely mesmerizing; I defy you to take your eyes off of him. Director Ken Rus Schmoll has paced the action skillfully. Riccardo Hernandez’s scenic design, featuring lots of corrugated metal and fluorescent lighting that extends over the audience, is effective, as are ESOSA’s costumes. This was a highlight of my theatergoing for 2014. Running time: 2 hours including intermission.

Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3) ***

On the basis of this first installment of Suzan-Lori Parks’s nine-part epic about the African-American experience from the mid-19th century to the present, now at the Public Theater, it is easy to understand why this highly original playwright won both a Pulitzer and a MacArthur grant. In “A Measure of a Man” Hero (Sterling K. Brown), a slave on a Texas plantation, must decide whether to follow his master to war in exchange for a promise of freedom. His wife Penny (Jenny Jules), his father figure The Oldest Old Man (Peter Jay Fernandez) and his oft-time rival Homer (Jeremie Harris) weigh in with their opinions and The Chorus of Less Than Desirable Slaves make bets on his decision. Parks’s mashup of Greek drama, poetic language, anachronisms, music and humor somehow works. In “A Battle in the Wilderness,” the most naturalistic of the evening’s plays, we meet Hero’s master (Ken Marks), now a Confederate colonel, and the Union soldier he has captured (Louis Cancelmi). The two of them spar over the nature of slavery. The colonel is allowed to display a soft side and the captured soldier reveals a couple of surprises. Hero and the soldier find a common bond. In “The Union of My Confederate Parts” we return to the plantation many months later. Only Penny and Homer are left of the original slaves. Three runaway slaves who are hiding at the plantation try to persuade Homer to run off with them, but he is unwilling to leave Penny, who is tormented by nightmares about Hero. Word reaches the plantation that both the master and Hero are dead. However, Odyssey (Jacob Ming-Trent), Hero’s long lost dog, arrives and tells of Hero’s imminent return. When Hero, who has renamed himself Ulysses, arrives, he reveals previously unseen aspects of his character that are far from heroic. The question of what freedom costs remains open. Parks's incidental music and songs are beautifully performed by Steven Bargonetti. Jo Bonney’s direction is exemplary. The simple set by Neil Patel is effective and Esosa’s deliberately anachronistic costumes are a hoot. Parks proves that dealing with serious subjects can still leave lots of room to be entertaining. I hope the remaining six parts maintain the high level of these three. Running time: 3 hours, including one intermission.

Lips Together, Teeth Apart **

I wish I had been able to keep thoughts of the original production of Terrence McNally’s 1991 play out of my head while I watched this revival, now in previews at Second Stage. However, the memory of Christine Baranski, Swoosie Kurtz, Nathan Lane and Anthony Heald performing parts that (with the exception of Kurtz) were written for them was too strong to suppress. Their superb performances went a long way to minimize the play’s faults. Furthermore, at a time when AIDS was front and center in the nation’s consciousness, the play had a much greater resonance than it has today. It is not so much an AIDS play as a play about how straight people related to gays, at least in 1991. In a time of Ebola panic and gay marriage, its concerns seem almost quaint now. Sally and Sam Truman (America Ferrera and Michael Chernus) have invited Sam’s sister Chloe (Tracee Chimo) and her husband John (Austin Lysy) to join them for 4th of July weekend at the Fire Island Pines home that Sally has just inherited from her brother, recently deceased from AIDS. Although Sally loved her brother, she could not really deal with his homosexuality. The two couples are perfectly happy to enjoy the fruits of his labors as long as they stay out of the pool, which they fear might give them AIDS, and don’t get too friendly with the gay neighbors. At some point in the play each character addresses the audience to reveal his or her personal demons, including serious illness, low self-image, guilt over adultery, fear of miscarriage and fear of parenthood. The personalities of the two couples are so mismatched that it is difficult to imagine why they married. The play marks time for much of the first two acts, wasting moments on lame running jokes such as Sally’s inability to remember movie titles correctly and Chloe’s changing clothes constantly. At the end of the second intermission, there were more than a few empty seats in the theater. McNally finally raises the stakes in the final act, but then allows the tension to dissipate once more. Since “Bad Jews,” Chimo has become the go-to actress to play overbearing. Chernus lends a lot of humanity to his character and Lysy hits the right notes in a difficult role. Surprisingly, it is Ferrera, whom I have much admired in the past, who is the weak link here. Alexander Dodge’s set and Esosa’s costumes are attractive. Peter DuBois’s direction seemed a bit unfocused. Running time: 2 hours 40 minutes, including two intermissions.

While I Yet Live *

I hope that writing this family memoir was therapeutic for Billy Porter. That would at least provide some compensation for the ordeal of sitting through it. There are more family secrets under the roof of this home in Pittsburgh than one play can possibly handle. The fact that the only son of this religious black family is gay is far from the worst of its troubles. If only heartfelt emotions and good intentions were enough to make a play, this might have succeeded. Alas, the exposition is very clumsy. There are moments when it is difficult to tell not only when a scene is taking place but which characters are alive and which are dead. It does provide a fine opportunity for S. Epatha Merkerson, as the mother, to emote. I was looking forward to seeing Lillias White, but her underwritten role does not offer much chance to shine. The other cast members — Elain Graham, Sheria Irving, Kevyn Morrow, Larry Powell and Sharon Washington — do their best with the material. The second act meanders to a resolution that smacks of the wisdom of Oprah. I will give Porter credit for not sugarcoating the shortcomings of the character representing him.  James Noone’s set is attractive and Esosa’s costumes are appropriate to their characters. I enjoyed the player piano. I’m not sure what director Sheryl Kaller could have done to improve things for this Primary Stages production at the Duke. Running time: 2 hours 15 minutes including intermission.

Sex with Strangers ***

When strong sexual attraction clashes with literary incompatibility, which will win out? How does a young person deal with the acute anxiety of being temporarily without access to the internet? How can we ever really know someone? These are some of the questions posed by Laura Eason’s entertaining two-character play at Second Stage. Olivia is a near-40 novelist turned teacher who was so traumatized by her first book’s lukewarm reception many years ago that she refuses to show anyone the manuscript of her second novel. Ethan is a 28-year-old hunk who has chronicled his sexual exploits in the blog after which the play is named and turned them into two e-books that spent 5 years on the Times best-seller list. They meet on a stormy winter night at a remote Michigan b&b where they both have come to work, Olivia on her novel and Ethan on the screenplay for his first book. This set-up has more than a touch of sitcom about it, but a sitcom with good dialog and literary ambitions. Fortunately for us, Olivia and Ethan are played by Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad) and Billy Magnussen (Vanya and Sonya and Masha and Spike), two very appealing actors who have palpable chemistry. They have sex on the table, on the couch, in the bed — and that’s just in Act One. They are less compatible out of the sack. Ethan has read and admired Olivia’s first novel and pushes her to resume her writing career with his help. He longs to get past the image of his previous books and write something serious. Olivia cannot help wondering whether the bad boy persona in Ethan’s books is just a character or the actual person. Complications arise in the second act, many of them arising from the perils of the publishing world in the digital age. We have to take it on faith that both are talented writers. Andromache Chalfant’s sets are fine, particularly her set for Olivia’s apartment. Esosa’s costumes befit their characters. David Schwimmer’s direction is assured, although I did feel the sex scenes were longer than necessary. I found the characters to be more like constructs than real people, but the committed acting allayed my qualms. As summer entertainment, the play hits the mark as long as you don’t examine it too closely. Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes including intermission.

Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill ****

One could argue whether Lanie Robertson's 1986 work is a bioplay with music or a concert with monologues. Whichever it is, let's just be grateful that it has been revived as a vehicle for the multi-Tonied Audra McDonald in a limited-run production at Circle in the Square. Adding another superb performance to her long list, McDonald both vocally and dramatically inhabits the role of troubled jazz singer Billie Holiday near the end of her tragically short life.  McDonald's ability to disappear into Lady Day's persona is uncanny. In between songs, she relates many -- perhaps too many -- stories of her difficult life and career. Also onstage are a talented jazz trio (Sheldon Becton, piano; Clayton Craddock, drums; George Farmer, bass). Becton plays her music director and babysitter Jimmy Powers. Her pet chihuahua Pepi (Roxie) makes a memorable appearance too. James Noone's set designs fills most of the playing space with nightclub tables with a bandstand at one end and a bar at the other. Holiday's costume by Esosa is perfection. Lonny Price's direction is effective. The half-hearted use of projections is not. Ultimately, who cares as long as we have 90 glorious minutes of Lady Day as channeled by McDonald.