A few words from the critics...
(Dates in brackets next to the show title indicate the opening night date.)
(Dates in brackets next to the show title indicate the opening night date.)
A Matter of Time (April 1975, Off-Broadway)
"... Then there's David-James Carroll as Next, looking like the archetypal Billy Budd and sounding, almost, like an archangel. Two great performers."
- Glenne Currie (Fort Pierce News Tribune, 01/05/1975)
- Glenne Currie (Fort Pierce News Tribune, 01/05/1975)
Oklahoma! (July 1976, Pittsburgh CLO)
"David-James Carroll was nicely cast as Curly. Besides being young, handsome and having curly hair, his singing and acting were consistently first-rate.
... He is very musical and has a genuine feeling for the music. He carried off both singing and acting with an agreeable naturalness."
- Carl Apone (The Pittsburgh Press, 07/10/1976)
... He is very musical and has a genuine feeling for the music. He carried off both singing and acting with an agreeable naturalness."
- Carl Apone (The Pittsburgh Press, 07/10/1976)
Oh, Brother! (November 1981, Broadway)
"Among the other likable cast members are Joe Morton, Mary Mastrantonio, Larry Marshall and David-James Carroll."
- Frank Rich (The New York Times, 11/11/1981)
- Frank Rich (The New York Times, 11/11/1981)
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (July 1982, Broadway)
"As the crass but well-meaning hero with retrogressive views of women's place in the homestead ... David-James Carroll sings well and exudes manly charm. He goes well with Miss Boone."
- Clive Barnes (New York Post, 07/09/1982)
"... David-James Carroll plays the bearded leading man with sufficient swagger and vocal thrust."
- Douglas Watt (New York Daily News, 07/09/1982)
"Her leading man, David-James Carroll, is pleasantly virile and sings with a fine, poised voice."
- John Simon (New York Magazine, 07/19/1982)
- Clive Barnes (New York Post, 07/09/1982)
"... David-James Carroll plays the bearded leading man with sufficient swagger and vocal thrust."
- Douglas Watt (New York Daily News, 07/09/1982)
"Her leading man, David-James Carroll, is pleasantly virile and sings with a fine, poised voice."
- John Simon (New York Magazine, 07/19/1982)
Roberta (April 15, 1984, New Amsterdam Theater Company concert)
"... David Carroll [does] a remarkable job of making the football player a klutz with convincing charm."
- John S. Wilson (The New York Times, 04/18/1984)
- John S. Wilson (The New York Times, 04/18/1984)
La Bohème (November 1984, Off-Broadway)
"Mr. Carroll's Rodolfo, who partnered Miss Ronstadt at the critics' performances, and Mr. McGillin's Marcel not only convince us that they are sensitive young romantics but also deliver the score forcefully in pop terms."
- Frank Rich (The New York Times, 11/30/1984)
"Mr. Carroll's was the best-acted Rodolfo this critic has yet to encounter in any theater or opera house."
- Thor Eckert Jr. (The Christian Science Monitor, 12/06/1984)
"Opposite her, David Carroll, as Rodolfo, is a fine singer and a born star if ever there was one."
- Edith Oliver (The New Yorker, 12/10/1984)
- Frank Rich (The New York Times, 11/30/1984)
"Mr. Carroll's was the best-acted Rodolfo this critic has yet to encounter in any theater or opera house."
- Thor Eckert Jr. (The Christian Science Monitor, 12/06/1984)
"Opposite her, David Carroll, as Rodolfo, is a fine singer and a born star if ever there was one."
- Edith Oliver (The New Yorker, 12/10/1984)
South Pacific (Summer 1986, North American tour)
"David Carroll and Jade Go seem just about perfect for Lt. Joe Cable and the Polynesian girlfriend he is loath to make an honest woman of."
- Nels Nelson (Philadelphia Daily News, 07/09/1986)
- Nels Nelson (Philadelphia Daily News, 07/09/1986)
Sweet Charity (July 1987, Pittsburgh CLO)
"And the major acting support is in the capable hands of David Carroll (the neurotic Oscar) ..."
- Christopher Rawson (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 07/15/1987)
- Christopher Rawson (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 07/15/1987)
Company (October 1987, Off-Broadway)
"There was one time when I saw the show where ["Being Alive"] worked, and I can’t tell you why, but it was an off-Broadway production at the York Theatre some years ago. Susan Schulman directed it, and the leading part was sung by a guy, now dead, named David James Carroll, and somehow, when he turned front and sang that song, it was as if the whole evening had led to it. I don’t know how he did it, but it was completely fulfilling. I thought, My God, we don’t need a transition if the right actor’s playing it."
- Stephen Sondheim (from "Stephen Sondheim: A Life" by Meryle Secrest)
- Stephen Sondheim (from "Stephen Sondheim: A Life" by Meryle Secrest)
Chess (April 1988, Broadway)
"The leads, all powerful singers ... The most impressive acting comes from Mr. Carroll's Anatoly, who brings real fire to a generic patriotic anthem that ends Act I and who also evinces a sweetness reminiscent of the Russian created by Robin Williams in Moscow on the Hudson."
- Frank Rich (The New York Times, 04/29/1988)
"Casnoff, bitter and rancid as the Yankee brat, and Carroll, truculent and skeptical as the hero of the Soviet Union, are both remarkably fine ..."
- Clive Barnes (New York Post, 04/29/1988)
"David Carroll's Anatoly is extremely sympathetic and more three dimensional than the other characters, and he exhibits a splendidly robust voice."
- Frederick M. Winship (United Press International, 04/29/1988)
"David Carroll, as the good-guy Russian torn between love of the American and love of his country, sings stirringly and acts the part with the right notes of dignity and self-doubt. It's a big leap forward for this musical leading man."
- Humm (Variety, 04/29/1988)
"Carroll, who looks like a fair Tom Hanks and sings like a star, is endearing as Anatoly ... "
- Linda Winer (Newsday, 04/29/1988)
"The leads are all splendid singers, Judy Kuhn, David Carroll as the Russian, and Philip Casnoff as the Bobby Fischer-type American."
- Stewart Klein (Fox 5 The Ten O'Clock News, 04/28/1988)
"David Carroll is stalwart, full-voiced and impressive as the Russian who may defect."
- Pia Lindstrom (WNBC-TV, 04/28/1988)
"David Carroll is a thoroughly believable and likable Anatoly, both histrionically and vocally."
- John Simon (New York Magazine, 05/09/1988)
"David Carroll gives Anatoly's defections and undefections a full-voiced sincerity."
- Jack Kroll (Newsweek, 05/09/1988)
- Frank Rich (The New York Times, 04/29/1988)
"Casnoff, bitter and rancid as the Yankee brat, and Carroll, truculent and skeptical as the hero of the Soviet Union, are both remarkably fine ..."
- Clive Barnes (New York Post, 04/29/1988)
"David Carroll's Anatoly is extremely sympathetic and more three dimensional than the other characters, and he exhibits a splendidly robust voice."
- Frederick M. Winship (United Press International, 04/29/1988)
"David Carroll, as the good-guy Russian torn between love of the American and love of his country, sings stirringly and acts the part with the right notes of dignity and self-doubt. It's a big leap forward for this musical leading man."
- Humm (Variety, 04/29/1988)
"Carroll, who looks like a fair Tom Hanks and sings like a star, is endearing as Anatoly ... "
- Linda Winer (Newsday, 04/29/1988)
"The leads are all splendid singers, Judy Kuhn, David Carroll as the Russian, and Philip Casnoff as the Bobby Fischer-type American."
- Stewart Klein (Fox 5 The Ten O'Clock News, 04/28/1988)
"David Carroll is stalwart, full-voiced and impressive as the Russian who may defect."
- Pia Lindstrom (WNBC-TV, 04/28/1988)
"David Carroll is a thoroughly believable and likable Anatoly, both histrionically and vocally."
- John Simon (New York Magazine, 05/09/1988)
"David Carroll gives Anatoly's defections and undefections a full-voiced sincerity."
- Jack Kroll (Newsweek, 05/09/1988)
Grand Hotel (November 1989, Broadway)
"... David Carroll, as a count reduced to cat burglary, has a beautiful voice ..."
- Frank Rich (The New York Times, 11/13/1989)
"... the evening is full of carefully modulated performances, including a raffish David Carroll splendid (not least in his singing) in the old John Barrymore role of the gentle-conscienced jewel thief ..."
- Clive Barnes (New York Post, 11/13/1989)
"Whenever David Carroll, as the softhearted baron, sings, the sound is thrilling ..."
- Howard Kissel (New York Daily News, 11/13/1989)
"When it is time for the Baron, David Carroll, to climb the face of the hotel to reach a room he wishes to rob, Mr. Tune isolates him in space, a silhouette dangling high over the city; bold visual effects are everywhere. And when the same Mr. Carroll, whose talents are formidable, declares the intensity of his love by releasing then sustaining a long silvered top note, people in high-rises across the Hudson must hear it. Mr. Carroll's is a considerable talent."
- Walter Kerr (The New York Times, 12/17/1989)
- Frank Rich (The New York Times, 11/13/1989)
"... the evening is full of carefully modulated performances, including a raffish David Carroll splendid (not least in his singing) in the old John Barrymore role of the gentle-conscienced jewel thief ..."
- Clive Barnes (New York Post, 11/13/1989)
"Whenever David Carroll, as the softhearted baron, sings, the sound is thrilling ..."
- Howard Kissel (New York Daily News, 11/13/1989)
"When it is time for the Baron, David Carroll, to climb the face of the hotel to reach a room he wishes to rob, Mr. Tune isolates him in space, a silhouette dangling high over the city; bold visual effects are everywhere. And when the same Mr. Carroll, whose talents are formidable, declares the intensity of his love by releasing then sustaining a long silvered top note, people in high-rises across the Hudson must hear it. Mr. Carroll's is a considerable talent."
- Walter Kerr (The New York Times, 12/17/1989)