THEATER TALK Features Joan Rivers, Ben Brantley and Peter Marks This Weekend

So what actress was "like a block of wood"? Who was "overrated" and who was pigeon-toed? As the 2012-13 theater season winds down and Tony Award voters are rushing to all of the nominated shows, THEATER TALK invites drama critics Ben Brantley (The New York Times), Peter Marks (The Washington Post), and fledgling Broadway pundit Joan Rivers (Beverly Hills Courier) to weigh in with their opinions about the late-opening productions. The 2013 Season's End Critics' Panel, co-hosted by Michael Riedel of the New York Post and Susan Haskins, premieres Friday, May 17, 2013 at 1 AM (Saturday morning) on Thirteen/PBS, and repeats in the New York metro area on CUNY TV* Saturday at 8:30 PM, Sunday at 12:30 PM, and Monday at 7:30 AM, 1:30 PM, and 7:30 PM.

This group's reviews are not all negative. Of the shows discussed - Lucky Guy, Pippin, The Nance, Matilda, Kinky Boots, I'll Eat You Last, and Breakfast at Tiffany's - there are words and phrases used such as "brilliant," "fun," "modern," "thrilled," "way better than Billy Elliot," and "we're so lucky this year." And THEATER TALK viewers will learn what Broadway shows our panel first saw that made them fall in love with the theater. Season's end? Why, we're just beginning!

THEATER TALK is the weekly series dedicated to the world of the stage. The series, jointly produced by the not-for- profits Theater Talk Productions and CUNY TV, is taped in the Himan Brown TV and Radio Studios at The City University of New York (CUNY) TV in Manhattan and distributed to 65+ participating public television markets nationwide. THEATER TALK is made possible in part by The New York State Council on the Arts, The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, The TDF/TAP Plus Program, The CUNY TV Foundation and The Friends of THEATER TALK.