About the Show

Three women learn about how the world sees them, and how that colors their self-worth, over decades.

With a book by Jack Heifner, based on his 1976 play of the same name, and music and lyrics by David Kirshenbaum, Vanities is a sincere and funny chronicle of the lives of Joanne, Kathy, and Mary — following them from their late teenage years through their adulthood. They grow and change, pushing the limits of what they thought they knew about themselves, as well as the limiting views that society has encouraged about women.

Critic Reviews (10)

"The material itself leans too much on cliché, with the entirety of our characters’ personal hurdles wrapped up in the show’s “vanity” metaphor"
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"You'll enjoy Kirshenbaum's pleasant melodies, perhaps identify with the uncomfortable pangs inherent in long-term friendships, and probably be mildly moved by the end. But 'Vanities–The Musical' ends where it does only because it has no place else to go."
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"Watching 'Vanities–The Musical' today, a reviewer can’t be blamed for wondering whether a cultural sea change Heifner wouldn’t have envisioned in 1976 could cause questioning half a century on. "
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"Heifner’s play was never a searing piece of social commentary to begin with, and by continuing to brighten both the presentation and the resolution of this spinoff, he’s giving his nearly 50-year-old baby room to grow."
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'Vanities - The Musical" is rather tame and dated as it doesn’t go past 1990 but extremely well-acted and staged. While it does not offer any new revelations or insights, it is a diverting musical and very entertaining. It will hold your interest even if you can see where it is going long before it gets there. The engaging and appealing cast is delightful company for the evening.
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I’m not convinced that musicalizing Vanities improves it. The 1990 extension notwithstanding, the material remains a time capsule from over half a century ago, its historical allusions (JFK, Vietnam, Hair, pot, flower children, etc.) deeply ingrained in the memories of the older spectators, who’ve seen countless stage, film, and TV reminders of them (what could be more triggering than to be told it’s November 22, 1963?). I suspect younger visitors couldn’t care less.
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"If beautiful singing and performances are all you wish for then this play will satisfy. Concentrate on the production values, the marvelous performers, the direction and choreography, the scenic design, the costumes, and the musicians, and you will leave full with a theatrical experience."
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"This new 'Sweeney' is probably the most perfect production of a Sondheim musical...A terrifyingly terrific cast for a horrifying great 'Sweeney Todd'."
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Trailer

Creative team

The York Theatre Company