I was in London before Christmas, promoting my new book, Broadway Babies Say Goodnight. Don’t worry, this isn’t a plug— the book’s not out on this side of the Atlantic. But, as the title suggests, one of its themes is the decline of the New York theater, a diagnosis my savvier TV and radio interviewers were eager to dispute. Good heavens, they cried, almost to a man; Broadway babies aren’t saying goodnight, they’re back with a vengeance! Why, this is the best New York season in years! There are bona fide hits like Titanic and The Lion King. There’s Triumph of Love and The Life. Look at the reviews for Side Show. Dig the buzz on Ragtime. Don’t forget Paul Simon’s Capeman—the first in an invigorating infusion of work by big-time baby-boom rockers, such as Simon, Randy Newman, Billy Joel, Jimmy Buffett, all part of the golden generation that has enrich ...

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