Posted: 8/16/17 at 11:27pm
I'm mixed on this. Riedel was annoying but interesting. I liked the dynamics between him and Green, Pancheco, and Musto on their yearly Tony predictions episodes and other reviews/previews. I just don't see that same dynamic without Riedel even with his obnoxiousness
Posted: 8/17/17 at 10:23am
Riedel's chatty nature gave sort of a buoyancy to the show, so even when they were talking about Noel Coward or interviewing a historian or producer (or someone who didn't have the personality of Fierstein or Stritch), the show felt interesting and accessible (to your typical 2am PBS viewer of YouTuber).
Posted: 8/17/17 at 11:31am
Could it be possible his scathing reporting on Great Comet forced his ouster?
Posted: 8/17/17 at 11:39am
JayElle said: "Could it be possible his scathing reporting on Great Comet forced his ouster?"
If scathing reporting were an issue, it wouldn't have taken this long... also, did he say anything incorrect about Comet?
Posted: 8/17/17 at 2:08pm
Personally I love Theatre Talk and Riedel is the main reason. His interviews are always interesting and entertaining. Contrast his interviews with the disgusting sycophant who does the interviews for this site.
Posted: 8/17/17 at 2:28pm
JayElle said: "Could it be possible his scathing reporting on Great Comet forced his ouster?
"
No. He's said a lot worse about a lot bigger fish and most of them end up on the show later on having a blast. I think message boards hate him a lot more than Broadway in general.
Posted: 8/17/17 at 3:55pm
Don't know haterobics but he generates diverse opinions I just wondered
Posted: 8/17/17 at 4:37pm
I lost all respect for him when he forged ahead with his smear campaign against Bernadette Peters during GYPSY previews. There was absolutely no need for his malicious reporting other than his attempt to get his name out there. And let's not forget this incident linked below that he had with David Leveaux. The guy's opinionated which is fine but there's something unsavory in the way he conducts business. I also didn't care for the way he interrupted his guests on THEATER TALK.
http://nymag.com/nymetro/arts/features/9224/
Posted: 8/17/17 at 8:16pm
This is such a shock! I've been watching Theatre Talk since the 90s. Back then, the internet was not as ubiquitous as it is today. As a theatre nerd in CT, there wasn't a lot of theatre info around. I'd scour the internet, which was pretty limited at the time, get the Sunday Times, and watch Theatre Talk. I've never cared for Reidel, but he was one of my few links to theatre and I still watch. I don't know how I feel about this. Just hope this doesn't mean it's the beginning of the end.
Posted: 8/17/17 at 11:50pm
A good friend of mine who has done a lot of interviews over the years says Haskins and Riedel are the best hosts of all, because they knew how to throw the show to the subject and keep the whole thing lively. If you're appearing to plug your musical or your book or whatever, you want a show that not only informs but entertains.
Some interviewers want the show to be about them, which just frustrates the viewer and keeps the subject from loosening up and hitting a homer. Haskins concentrates on the material, asking pertinent questions, while Riedel keeps it playful. They make a great team, which is why they lasted for so long, and why everyone on Broadway wants to get on that show.
(Actually, there is one holdout, my friend tells me, who refuses to appear, for personal reasons. But that's just one. Everyone else, from Hugh Jackman to Elaine Stritch, has graced the Theater Talk set. The Stritch segments are especially flavorful.)
Posted: 8/22/17 at 11:14am
The new rotating cohosts are Jesse Green, Donna Hanover, Michael Musto, Adam Feldman, Jason Zinoman, and more
Scroll down to last item.
https://www.out.com/michael-musto/2017/8/21/confessions-has-been-dont-hate-me-being-fame-challenged
Posted: 8/12/18 at 4:02pm
I agree with you. I will also miss Michael Riedel, the longtime theater critic of "The New York Post," as the co-host of "Theater Talk." The Wikipedia profile of Riedel makes no mention whatsoever of "Theater Talk." And, indeed, I could find no mention of Riedel's absence from the program on even the Theater Talk website.
Talk about so-called "fake news," it is as if Riedel had never had an association with CUNY's and PBS' long-running program devoted to theater, a creepy rewriting of media history which recalls Leon Trotsky's purging by Josef Stalin.
Let us hope the Theater Talk website will not remove all video that includes Riedel (as happened with Charlie Rose at PBS after his #Me Too status was revealed), because, even even if Riedel irritated some viewers and persons in the theatrical business, even if he had a falling out with the "powers that be" (namely, producer Susan Haskins) at Theater Talk, Riedel was still an intelligent guy who was well-read and well-spoken about theater, and made an indisputable contribution to the long-running and preeminent television show, the only one of its kind devoted to theater and broadcast nationally.
Personally, I enjoyed Mr. Riedel and thought him a good balance to Haskins' more emotional and politically correct demeanor. I had come to view them as a team in theatrical critiquing in broadcasting, similar to what Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert had done for film criticism on television. And I always really enjoyed those programs with the late actress (and Broadway legend) Elaine Stritch and the rapport "Stritchy" shared with Riedel. Plus, it could also be a hoot to watch those theater critics roundtables with Riedel, wherein he would, often as not, stick it to his peers in the tight-snit (yes, I meant that phrase) dramatic community.
Posted: 8/12/18 at 6:08pm
Diamond, what is your connection to Riedel? Surely must be some kind of connection for you to bring back this year old thread.
