Al Pacino could have caused a riot when he materialized from a theater side door after his riveting performance in Brecht’s Rise of Arturo Ui. Signing autographs for students at Pace University—where the short-run performance was staged—the acting legend was still in full makeup from the play’s last scene when he portrayed Hitler! Good thing Al was quickly whisked away in an SUV. The stellar audience—including Diane Sawyer with hubby Mike Nichols, Aidan Quinn (who scarfed down a turkey sandwich in his seat before the play), and Emma Thompson —was matched by the superstar cast onstage: Chazz Palminteri, Billy Crudup, Tony Randall, John Goodman, Charles Durning, Steve Buscemi, and Dominic Chianese, among others. Buried in the play’s message: parallels between dictators Hitler, Saddam Hussein, and maybe others right in our own backyard...