Notices and Reviews

CARMEN (La Jolla Playhouse)

Anytime and anywhere Neal brings his special voice, I know we're going to hammer that show.

Franco Dragone, director of CARMEN and CIRQUE DE SOLEIL, quote for SD Jewish Journal, 06/07

Neal Benari, as Zuniga, delivers a rock opera moment in "Touch the Sun," a spirited performance and tune that evokes "Superstar's" "Damned for All Time."

TheatreTimes, 6/20/07

MAN OF LA MANCHA (Maltz Jupiter Theatre)

Neal Benari stars as Spanish author and playwright Don Miguel de Cervantes...Benari is brilliant...

Bill DeYoung, TCPalm, 02/15/07

THE THOMASHEVSKYS (New World Symphony, conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas)

A ringer for Boris, Neal Benari conveys a balanced portrait of the great actor, charismatic in his braggadocio and self destructive in his pathological womanizing.

Lawrence Johnson, Miami Herald 01/15/07 

FIDDLER ON THE ROOF (New Theatre)

Benari plays Tevye with a relaxed authority....It's a great role but a tricky one. Tevye has to be bigger than life without sacrificing subtlety. Benari walks the line with an impeccable sense of balance.

Robert Trussell, Kansas City Star 07/01/06

Neal Benari is a serenely convincing Tateh...

John Simon, Bloomberg.com 07/01/05

Neal Benari's...Tateh...supplies many of the musical's lighter moments and is played with a loving warmth and charisma.

Michael Dale, Broadway.com 06/05

My Fair Lady (regional tour)

In his windowpane wool suit, Neal Benari's Higgins is handsome, overweening and exasperated by the strength of Eliza. Benari's flawless performance is about as good as it gets--anywhere.

Wendell Brock, Atlanta Journal-Constitution 2/6/04

Finally,in Neal Benari, we have a Higgins (bossy and impossible as ever) whom any Eliza could easily fall in love with. He is easily the most virile of all of the Scientists of Speech… Finally I understand why Eliza comes back at the end. Thank you, Mr. Benari, for clearing that up.

Richard Green, KDHX review 10/16/03

Aida (national tour)

...Neal Benari nails the role of Radames' father, Zoser.

Jim Volz, Orange County Register 10/01

But there are political machinations behind the scenes, too--particularly Radames' father, Zoser (a fine performance by Neal Benari of the original Broadway cast)...

Ivan M. Lincoln, Deseret News 7/13/01

Oklahoma!

And we get an unusually dashing Ali Hakim from Neal Benari, proof that there's life in dialect humor if you go about it wittily.

Michael Phillips, Pioneer Press 12/23/98

Oliver

Neal Benari's Fagin was nothing less than perfect.

Joe Blenkle, Sacramento Stage &Theatre 7/97

Victor/Victoria (Broadway production with Julie Andrews)

But we saw the show on Wednesday night, with Neal Benari...Benari was excellent – very sexy.

Liz Smith, NY Post (nationally syndicated) 6/27/97

Call Me Madam

Among the other performers, the standouts are Jonathan Hadley...Vanessa Dorman...and especially Neal Benari as the suave, Old World nobleman who captures Sally's heart.

Howard Kissel, NY Daily News 5/23/96

...Everything Mr. Benari sings or says has the ring of sincerity and truth.

Larry Ledford, Press-Journal 4/25/96

But the real joy is the performances, particularly from Leslie Uggams and Neal Benari in the lead roles.

Stuart Duncan, Princeton Packet 4/19/96

...When Neal Benari as Cosmo Constantine, the prime minister, and Miss Uggams join forces...the chemistry is palpable.

Liz Keill, Independent Press 4/17/96

The Sound of Music (national tour with Marie Osmond)

This is a first-rate touring production with a superb cast--especially Neal Benari as the stern, aloof Capt. Georg Von Trapp.

Ivan M. Lincoln, Deseret News 2/22/95

...His rendition of "Edelweiss" toward the show's close is guaranteed to send shivers down the spine of even the most resolute listener.

K. Dowd, Kalamazoo Gazette 9/10/94

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Broadway)

There are winning contributions from Marc Kudisch...and from Neal Ben-Ari as a humorously hangdog Simeon.

John Simon, New York Magazine 11/22/93

Sweeney Todd

Neal BenAri, as the play's namesake, offers a stunning portrayal...BenAri's talents grant Todd the Barber a razor's edge balance between madness and lunacy...

Anchorage Daily News 4/7/91