Yesterday’s Matinee is a multifacted arts review page featuring theater reviews and a classic cinema podcast.

The Stage

Since 2021 I had been running theater reviews on my YouTube channel One Man’s Opinion, but the task of creating video reviews proved to be exhaustively time consuming, so I have returned to running reviews in print form, which cuts my work time in half, which is very important when you’re in grad school and you need that extra time like I do now. The reviews cover professional theater from Broadway and off-Broadway and regional theater in Connecticut.

The Silver Screen

What is classic cinema? We are defining classic cinema as any film or film franchise that is at least 20 years old and has had a significant impact on the film industry, an impact on culture on either a national or global scale, or was acclaimed by either critics or awards organizations.

The discussions are intended to be loose and casual, giving these movies a more every day person perspective and through a contemporary lens.

WHO ARE WE?

TIM

I’m am your host, critic, and moderator, and thank you for visiting our website!

After a lifetime in the performing arts ranging from acting to singing to conducting to backstage work, my life took a huge left turn when I joined the U.S. Navy in 2009, honorably serving four years and using the G.I. Bill to earn a journalism degree from the University of Connecticut in 2016.

Since then, I have been writing arts and leisure stories for the Journal Inquirer in Manchester, Connecticut and have been reviewing professional theater on Broadway, off-Broadway and in Connecticut. In 2021, I launched the first dedicated theater review channel on YouTube, One Man’s Opinion. As of 2025, One Man’s Opinion has moved here to Yesterday’s Matinee rebranded as a print review channel. I am a member of the Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk, American Theatre Critics Association, and the Connecticut Critics Circle. My love for theater started when I stepped onto the stage for the first time at 18 in a production of Maurey Yeston and Arthur Kopit’s Phantom and I’ve never looked back since.

My love of film started when I was about 8 and I saw a riotous crowd erupt upon the death of Apollo Creed at a screening of Rocky IV. That galvanizing moment created a passion for cinema that has never abated.

MIKE

Michael Levy is an avid entertainment fan of many mediums. Equipped with a Bachelor’s of Science in Journalism, he currently is on year 11 of his YouTube game review series “Dude, You Haven’t Played This Game?!” As well as co-host on video game music podcast XVGM Radio. A long time movie fan, he really came into his own appreciation of cinema during his time working at a Hollywood Video during his college days. Favorite genres are comedy, action, sci Fi and horror. Top 5 Favorite films: Robocop, MST3K: The Movie, Clerks, Clockwork Orange, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

ADAM

Adam Lerner is grateful to have been a part of the first generation to fall in love with movies at a time when it was possible to rewatch his favorites in a never-ending VHS loop throughout his childhood. It meant he got to watch Star Wars in the theater when it was rereleased in 1979 and also got to commit each line and frame to memory. He learned about the world of film beyond blockbusters in high school and college — a world that included movies of astounding richness and depth. Filmmakers like Altman, Felini, the Coen Brothers, Scorsese, Greenaway and Lynch inspired him to pursue an MFA in Screenwriting at Columbia University. He interned at Sesame Street and worked for years as a freelance picture and sound editor. Through it all, one thing never changed – he still hopes for magic every time those theater lights come down. Adam lives in NJ, works in user experience design, has written screenplays, songs, stories and plays. He loves music and movies to an unseemly degree.

ERICA

Erica Copper started with her love of the arts at Stanley Bates Dance School in Queens, NY at the age of 5. This was a gift passed on to her by her family, who attended the Bernice Johnson Dance School also in Queens. After leaving Stanley Bates for DeVore Dance School, she began to perform professionaly with them at different venues in New York City. Now living in Atlanta, she still enjoys the arts and attends many plays at The Fox Theater and makes sure that her children grow an appreciation for it as well. Erica also hosts a podcast called In Real Life, with her friend Naomi, where they tackle topics and issues that may be happening -as she says on the podcast- in your real life. Her favorite movie is Dogma and her favorite animated movie is Aladdin.

COURTNEY

Like many a child of the ’80s, Courtney Hebert was best friends with the VCR from an early age. The Wizard of Oz and E.T. were favorites in constant rotation, along with whatever else may be found at the Alfalfa Video in Lafayette, LA. While attending musical theater school in the early 2000s, she worked nights at Champagne Video in Manhattan (in no small part due to the perk of free movie rentals). Courtney enjoys a variety of cinema from obscure to blockbuster, from early silent films to contemporary. While never officially a student of film at any university, she has conducted her own extensive research via many internet rabbit holes.

RYAN

BRIAN

MARISELY

At 56 years fun, some might consider Marisely to be a movie buff. Often confusing the plot to Sandlot and Stand By Me, she is the go-to person for all things film culture. Specializing in romantic comedies with Goodfellas holding her number one spot of all-time greatest love story, she hopes to one day find a Ray Liotta to her Joe Pesci. When she isn’t watching feature flicks, Marisely can be spotted fulfilling her second passion of sitting on park benches feeding pigeons in New York City, trying to ignore little blonde boys claiming to be “lost” during the holidays.

JUSTIN

Justin Schneider is a computer nerd with a love of video games, music, and movies. As co-host of both The Arcane Machine and XVGM Radio, he is used to dissecting what he enjoys and dislikes about entertainment. Growing up, action & comedy movies were regular staples in the Schneider household, and the discovery of MST3K lead to much silliness on the world of movie-watching with friends. While his views on classic movies may not always be mainstream, he holds an appreciation for what has allowed the medium to grow and thrive. Some go-to movies are T2: Judgement Day, Mrs. Doubtfire, The Abyss, and the newer “Knives Out” movies.

TARA

Tara Kennedy is obsessed with theater, forensic science, missing person cases, cold cases, music, cats, and the host of this podcast (who happens to be her husband). She acknowledges film as art form, but prefers to discuss the subjects listed above. By day, she keeps a university library collection from rotting away.

JON

Jon is a man who has loved movies as long as he can remember. Since seeing the original Ninja Turtles movie he has been inspired by all types of movies. He is a family man who hopes his love for the film industry passes on to his children. He has worked in the food industry the majority of his adult life and has enjoyed all the amazing moments he has had in it.