From the horses mouth

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January 21, 2010, 12:30 pm

Theater Talkback: Charles Isherwood Answers Readers’ Questions

By THE NEW YORK TIMES

 

Q.

With all the shows that are in the New York City area, including Off and Off Off Broadway, and regional and school productions, how is it determined which ones are reviewed in the Times? Are you ever sent to review something and decide that it isn’t something that should be in the paper and then don’t write about it? — donlincoln2

A.

The Times reviews all Broadway productions and all the Off Broadway productions from established not-for-profit companies. When it comes to Off Off Broadway things are trickier, since it’s a universe unto itself that is sometimes hard to navigate.

The theater editor, currently Stephanie Goodman, in consultation with the critics, determines which shows to cover using various criteria, generally related to the prominence of the artists involved and the reputations of the companies. And sometimes downtown buzz lets us know which new companies and unknown (to us) artists to cover. But it’s not an exact science; occasionally a worthy show goes uncovered.

And yes, on a couple of occasions I’ve decided a show I planned to cover is better left unremarked upon. But I’ll name no names here.