Sarah Snook is an acting phenomenon – unique in the Broadway theater – delivering a sensational performance, playing all 26 characters in “The Picture of Dorian Gray.”

Based on Oscar Wilde’s gothic horror novel, published in 1891, the satirical story revolves around a vain, selfish, outrageously handsome young man whose exquisite portrait is painted by infatuated artist Basil Hallward.

Through bumbling Basil, Dorian meets aristocratic, amoral Lord Henry Wotton and becomes determined to explore every sensual, hedonistic indulgence. 

Realizing his beauty will fade with time, callow Dorian sells his soul in a Faustian bargain, agreeing that his image in the portrait, rather than himself, will become decayed, disfigured and distorted with age: “The tragedy of old age is not that one is old, but one is young.”

The majority of the adapted plot then delves into Dorian’s libertine lifestyle, yet barely acknowledging the obvious fact that he, Basil and Henry are avowed homosexuals in the Victorian era when that masculine ‘perversion’ was forbidden.

(Many scholars assert that Oscar Wilde chose the protagonist’s name Dorian in reference to the Dorians of ancient Greece, noted for their male same-sex initiation rituals chronicled in Greek cultural history.)

Renowned for her Emmy-winning role as power-hungry Shiv Roy on HBO’s “Succession,” Australian actress Sarah Snook dazzles in Kip Williams’ Sydney Theatre Company’s exhilarating, tech-propelled production, appearing on five huge, high-definition video screens both in simulcast and pre-recorded segments.

Dutifully photographed by black-clad camera-operators, accompanied by dressers and crew, Snook demonstrates astonishing versatility and timing, donning and ripping off different costumes and elaborate wigs/whiskers/moustaches while juggling myriad props. No wonder she won London’s prestigious Olivier Award. She’s gorgeously grotesque! 

And a playful puppet-show scene, in which she plays a bizarrely miscast Juliet – while lip-syncing to “Gorgeous” from “The Apple Tree,” is hilarious.

Admirable tech credits include scenic/costumer Marg Horwell, lighting designer Nick Schlieper, composer/sound designer Clemence Williams, and videographer David Bergman.

FYI: The 1945 MGM Studios film stars Hurd Hatfield as Dorian Gray with George Sanders as Lord Henry with Angela Lansbury, Donna Reed and Peter Lawford in supporting roles; it’s still available on Max, Apple, and YouTube.

Running a full two hours without an intermission, “The Picture of Dorian Gray” is at Broadway’s Music Box Theatre, currently booking through June 15.

Having been married to a neurologist for 27 years, I have always had a healthy skepticism about the ‘miraculous’ claims of alternative medicine – and watching Netflix’s limited crime drama series “Apple Cider Vinegar” confirmed them.

WARNING: There is a major ‘spoiler’ concluding this review because the showrunner, Australian writer/producer Samantha Strauss, deftly deflects any kind of satisfactory conclusion with an irritating: “Look it up on Google.”

Belle Gibson (Kaitlyn Dever) is an audacious single mother/influencer who launched a wellness empire in Australia by convincing people that she’d had brain cancer and successfully cured herself with a holistic approach and all-natural lifestyle, chronicled in her 2014 book “The Whole Pantry.”

Her meandering “true-ish story based on a lie” is related via a confusingly jumbled timeline, incorporating her frenetic long-term relationship with Clive Rothwell (Ashley Zuckerman) and the young son they’ve raised together.

Belle leveraged the success of her social media app to build the Whole Pantry brand, encompassing cookbooks in Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. She earned half a million dollars in less than two years, spurred by (unsubstantiated) claims that her brain cancer had spread to her blood, spleen, uterus and liver.

Intertwined, there are case histories of two ‘real’ cancer patients: blogger Milla (Alyssa Debnam-Carey) and ‘believer’ Lucy (Tilda Cobham-Hervey) – both reject treatment in favor of pseudoscience, claiming: “Western medicine is run by pharma giants and male doctors who are immune to our concerns and only want to make money and boss us around.”

Inspired by the non-fiction book “The Woman Who Fooled the World” by investigative journalists Beau Donelly & Nick Toscano, it’s scripted by Samantha Strauss, Anya Beyersdorf & Angela Betzien – who fail to provide a satisfactory answer to what happened to the disgraced fraudster. Instead, the final scenes focus on survivors.

SPOILER: In April, 2017, the Federal Court of Australia ruled that Belle was “misleading” and “deceptive,” fining her more than $1 million. That was later reduced to $410,000, which she still has not paid although her Melbourne home has been raided twice in an attempt to recoup the money she owes.

Segments of Belle Gibson’s interview with “60 Minutes” Australia can be viewed on YouTube.

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Apple Cider Vinegar” is an exasperating, scamming 7 – with all six episodes streaming on Netflix.

Looking for more?

Catch up with Susan Granger’s latest reviews here:

• March 27: “The Residence” and “The Room Next Door”
• March 20: “Paradise” and “With Love, Meghan”
• March 13: “Running Point” and “Presence”
• March 6: “Bridget Jones Mad About the Boy” and “Zero Day”
• 2024 Oscars Special
• February 20: “The Gorge” and “The Wild Robot”
• February 13: “Anora and You’re Cordially Invited”
• February 6: “Emelia Perez” and “Nickel Boys”

Westport resident Susan Granger grew up in Hollywood, studied journalism with Pierre Salinger at Mills College and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with highest honors in Journalism. In addition to writing for newspapers and magazines, she has appeared on radio and television as an anchorwoman and movie critic for many years. Read all her reviews at susangranger.com.