For my part, I like live theater best when it's taut, concentrated and intimate.

For the critic, the word 'best' is like a grenade without a pin: Toss it around too freely, and you're likely to get your hand blown off.

Life usually tells the best stories - but sometimes it takes an artist to show us what they mean.

Critics at their best are independent voices; people take seriously their responsibility to see as many things as they can see, put them in the widest possible perspective, educate their readers. I really do think of myself as a teacher.