Brief Encounter (The SOB Review) - McGuire Proscenium, Guthrie, Minneapolis, Minnesota**** (out of ****)The all too
Brief Encounter is one of the most magnificent entertainment productions you're likely to see anywhere this year.
But what exactly is it?
Well, catching its final U.S. stop (after it made its way from London to San Francisco and then New York), I can tell you that
Brief Encounter practically defies description. It's a bit like that candy bar -- think "you got your film in my stage play" vs. "you got your stage play in my film."
As its conceit, director
Emma Rice ingeniously builds on the precepts from the Oscar-nominated
1945 motion picture written by
Noël Coward about two married individuals who enjoy a chance meeting in a train station only to find themselves swept away in a mad love affair. Silver screen images are shown on the stage, but it's seemlessly brought to life with a captivating fusion with live theatre. Topping off this delectable treat is a perfect blend of music from the era that breaks the fourth wall.
To say much more beyond this doesn't seem fair because this excellent production has to be seen to be believed and fully appreciated. But I'll add one more thing. It took
Brief Encounter's spellbinding trip back in time to catch a glimpse of the future in entertainment and the integral role projection designs -- like those offered here by
Gemma Carrington and
Jon Driscoll to mesmerizing, dramatic effect -- can have in stage productions.
I enjoyed every moment of this thrilling, if brief, ride.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Labels: Brief Encounter, Emma Rice, Film, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Noel Coward, Play, The SOB Review
All About Me (The SOB Review) - Henry Miller's Theatre, New York City, New York** (out of ****)In the annals of Broadway history, there have been many truly unforgettable and dynamic duos.
Alfred Lunt and
Lynn Fontanne.
Hume Cronyn and
Jessica Tandy.
Liam Neesan and
Natasha Richardson.
Nathan Lane and
Matthew Broderick.
But
Michael Feinstein and Dame Edna (
Barry Humphries)?
Alas, in
All About Me, they don't even come close.
Instead of like pleasurably putting your peanut butter in my chocolate, they're like throwing water on boiling oil to watch it combust. The two redoubtable entertainers are a thrill to watch individually, but this mash-up is too clever and funny by half.
Particularly annoying is that just as you start getting into the groove of one of them, they're interrupted by the other. The show is a massive collision of talent with seemingly spare direction from
Casey Nicholaw.
There are enjoyable moments to be sure. I've always enjoyed Dame Edna's purposeful banter with the audience. Her rendition of "All The Single Ladies" with
Gregory Butler and
Jon-Paul Mateo is the funniest number in the entire show. Feinstein's tinkling of the ivories in the Great American Songbook fares well, as does the humorous vamp that opens the show.
But if you're anything like me, you'll rather see these two exceptional entertainers perform the way they should be: by themselves.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.Labels: All About Me, Barry Humphries, Dame Edna, Michael Feinstein, Musical, Revue
A Behanding In Spokane (The SOB Review) – Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, New York City, New York
** (out of ****)What was
Martin McDonagh thinking?
No.
Seriously.
What could have possessed this acclaimed playwright/screenwriter I admire so much for such masterful works as
The Pillowman,
The Cripple Of Inishmaan and "
In Bruges" to write a play as vile and dull-edged as
A Behanding In Spokane?
It's one thing to construct an offbeat comedy about a bigot in search of his hand that's been missing for decades, especially if you're fortunate enough to have the eternally creepy
Christopher Walken portraying him. Sure it's Walken playing a racist version of all the other eerie roles we've seen him do, but at least he's reliable.
However, it's quite another for an Irish playwright to have his characters incessantly and gratuitously spewing the n-word. I couldn't help but think, “Spokane, we have a problem.” Are there some unresolved racial issues McDonagh must resolve? He may very well wish to enroll in joint therapy with
David Mamet so they may resolve them together.
Aside from Walken, there are few other saving graces.
Scott Pask's set design of a rundown hotel is appropriately evocative and
Brian MacDevitt's lighting design lends to the play's macabre vibe. And
Sam Rockwell adds his own slightly off-kiltered performance as Mervyn, the hotel's twisted front desk receptionist.
But with few real laughs and little else to enjoy, I was left sitting on my hands. Fortunately, they're still fully intact.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Labels: A Behanding In Spokane, Brian MacDevitt, Broadway, Christopher Walken, Martin McDonagh, Play, Sam Rockwell, Scott Pask, The SOB Review
The Miracle Worker (The SOB Review) - Circle In The Square Theatre, New York City, New York*1/2 (out of ****)It's been just over 50 years since
William Gibson's
The Miracle Worker made its debut on Broadway and became a major hit.
The
1959 work famously teamed
Anne Bancroft as teacher Annie Sullivan with a very young
Patty Duke as
Helen Keller, the inspirational figure who lost her vision and hearing as an infant. The dramatization, which ran one and a half years, earned four Tony Awards, including for Best Play and Bancroft's performance.
Now, after helming the miraculously stunning
Ruined, Kate Whoriskey is making her Great White Way directorial debut with the first Broadway revival of
The Miracle Worker. You'd think Whoriskey could at least be capable of working miracles with a time-honored play such as this.
Sadly, instead of further demonstrating she knows her way around a stage, it's almost as if she's feeling her way through. Whoriskey and the cast -- headlined by the amazing
Alison Pill as Annie and Academy Award-nominated child actress
Abigail Breslin in a solid performance as Helen -- are simply ill-served by the
Circle in the Square's theatre-in-the-round staging. As a result, the audience suffers.
As purposely spare as
Derek McLane's scenic design is, no doubt to leave the actors largely unobscured, there are just one too many instances in which the blocking of the actors themselves conceal pivotal moments in the play, often at the edge of the stage. In what seems to be a cruel joke on the audience, we've been forced into Keller's sightless shoes by having to fill in the blanks for what we're missing.
However impactful the play might be is nearly negated from the fact we cannot see. How ironic. It's not only frustrating, but maddening.
Miracles may happen. Just not at the Circle in the Square.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.Labels: Abigail Breslin, Alison Pill, Broadway, Elizabeth Franz, Kate Whoriskey, Matthew Modine, Patty Duke, Play, Revival, The Miracle Worker, William Gibson
The Brother / Sister Plays (The SOB Review) - Upstairs Theatre, Steppenwolf, Chicago, Illinois
**** (out of ****)
Imagine my utter disappointment when I realized at the January 31 opening night celebration for
Steppenwolf's production of
The Brother / Sister Plays --
Tarrell Alvin McCraney's excellent and deeply poetic trilogy -- that I would only see two of the three parts.
Somehow, I had neglected to read the notice that if I had wanted to see
In The Red And Brown Water that same day, I needed to get there in the early afternoon. But after being completely enthralled by the lyrical power of
The Brothers Size / Marcus; Or The Secret Of Sweet, there was just no way I was not going to return to see what is essentially the first act.
Standing as a towering achievement, not only for the incredibly young yet wise-beyond-his-years playwright, but also for its outstanding ensemble,
The Brother / Sister Plays may ultimately prove to be the most important new work of this new decade. It's honest depiction of life as McCraney knew it in New Orleans coupled with a fanciful air provides a tremendously satisfying depth.
While director
Tina Landau only helmed portions of this sweeping work prior to its Steppenwolf engagement, her singular focus here ensures that McCraney's gift for language dances just as soulfully as the beautifully choreographed
In The Red And Brown Water. Each play is anchored by the impeccable
K. Todd Freeman as Ogun Size, arguably the heart pulsating throughout this ambitious work; Freeman imbues Ogun with a rare level of humanity that makes him simply breathtaking to watch.
Few shows have moved me over the past year like
The Brother / Sister Plays. While each segment could stand on its own, its the confluence of all three together that make this a must-see work. It's truly marvelous in every sense of the word.
This is
Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.Labels: Chicago, K. Todd Freeman, Play, Steppenwolf, Tarrell Alvin McCraney, The Brother/Sister Plays, The SOB Review, Tina Landau
