Critics Undivided In Praise Of EstateLast night,
Horton Foote's Off-Broadway hit
Dividing The Estate opened at Broadway's
Booth Theatre. Directed by
Michael Wilson, the
Lincoln Center Theatre presentation stars
Elizabeth Ashley, ,
Arthur French,
Penny Fuller and
Gerald McRaney. Critics were fairly united in their positive reviews.
Calling the show "tart and delicious,"
The New York Times'
Ben Brantley praises, singling out the playwright's own daughter for special attention: "As played with true comic genius by Hallie Foote, the covetous, calculating Mary Jo has absolutely no sense of humor. But it’s hard to think of anyone on a Broadway stage right now ... who’s funnier.... [E]ven without the gloss of relevance it has acquired since its New York premiere Off Broadway in September 2007,
Dividing the Estate would still be a must for discriminating theatergoers. This production -- which arrives with most of its original cast, directed with hair-trigger timing by Michael Wilson -- has ripened into an ideally balanced ensemble piece, with acting that matches and magnifies Mr. Foote’s slyly and acutely observant writing."
Noting that the "deeply humanistic and funny play is old-fashioned in the best sense,"
New York Post's
Frank Scheck awards three-and-a-half stars out of four: "Director Michael Wilson's assured production features a wonderful ensemble cast whose seamless work feels even more lived-in than it did earlier. It's easy to believe that this loving but endlessly bickering clan would drive themselves crazy if they failed to live up to the task of the play's title.... While all of the performances are first-rate, special praise must be reserved for Hallie Foote, the playwright's daughter."
Labeling the show a "sweetly satirical comedy,"
Variety's
David Rooney is charmed: "The well-worn scenario is familiar from more than one chestnut of Southern drama. But the playwright's work, as always, is distinguished by the delicate brushstrokes of his characterizations, making seasoned stereotypes human and giving even the most venal of them some hint of redeeming vulnerability. Perhaps even more essential to the old-fashioned play's appeal is Foote's deep understanding of the personalities within a precisely defined subculture.... Under Michael Wilson's decorous direction, the cast has deepened its ties while maintaining the light touch, the relaxed flow and the melodiousness of the talk that are essential to Foote's plays."
Relieved that the play is "blessedly unchanged" from its earlier incarnation, Bloomberg's
John Simon offers laurels: "A very late play such as “Dividing the Estate” is easily as good as, if not better than, his best earlier work....
Dividing the Estate will draw you into its drawing room and the shadows beyond with the theatrical equivalent of a page- turner, capturing your undivided attention as you hang on its teasing turmoil in guiltlessly glad complicity.
Concluding that "It's not as profound or ambitious as Broadway's other multigenerational melee,
August: Osage County, but Foote's fine play does go down easy,"
Joe Dziemianowicz of New York's
Daily News provides three-and-a-half stars out of five: "Under the deft direction of Michael Wilson, the actors are keener and the handsome production feels tighter. The drastic economic turndown, meanwhile, has given the situation tearing at the needy, greedy Gordon clan an even tangier bite.... Stage vet Ashley is highly amusing, even if she is about two decades too young to play an 85-year-old."
Looks like the show is clearly a winner. Look for it to receive multiple Tony nominations next spring.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Labels: Broadway, Critics' Capsule, Dividing The Estate, Elizabeth Ashley, Gerald McRaney, Hallie Foote, Horton Foote, Lincoln Center, Michael Wilson, Penny Fuller, Play, Transfer
Opening Broadway's Estate SaleThis evening, the show that is arguably the most anticipated play to transfer to Broadway this season --
Horton Foote's acclaimed Off-Broadway hit from last fall
Dividing The Estate -- opens this evening at the
Booth Theatre.
Presented by
Lincoln Center Theatre (a "little" revival of a
rarely seen musical continues to grace
its stages), the
Michael Wilson-helmed production includes much of the original cast, including such marquee names as
Elizabeth Ashley, ,
Arthur French,
Penny Fuller and
Gerald McRaney. The cast also includes
Devon Abner,
Pat Bowie,
James DeMarse,
Virginia Kull,
Maggie Lacey,
Nicole Lowrance,
Jenny Dare Paulin and
Keiana Richard.
Will
Dividing The Estate unite critics in praising the show once again? Find out tomorrow as I provide my critics' capsule.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Labels: Broadway, Dividing The Estate, Elizabeth Ashley, Gerald McRaney, Hallie Foote, Horton Foote, Lincoln Center, Michael Wilson, Opening Night, Penny Fuller, Play, Transfer
Broadway Preview: Dividing the EstateAs
noted here on March 17,
Horton Foote's acclaimed Off-Broadway hit from last fall
Dividing The Estate will transfer this fall to the Great White Way. Foote earned an
Obie Award for his play centering on what happens to the wealthy Gordon Family of Harrison, Texas after there's been a significant death in the family.
First produced at
Primary Stages, the Rialto mounting will play the
Booth Theatre, long the commercial home of prestige shows. The transfer will once again be directed by
Michael Wilson and include much of the original cast, including such marquee names as
Elizabeth Ashley, ,
Arthur French,
Penny Fuller and
Gerald McRaney. Rounding out the cast are
Devon Abner,
Pat Bowie,
James DeMarse,
Virginia Kull,
Maggie Lacey,
Nicole Lowrance,
Jenny Dare Paulin and
Keiana Richard .
Currently, the show is set to begin previews on October 23, with opening night slated for November 20. With an open-ended run scheduled, could this look at an American family become this year's
August: Osage County? Given
Broadway & Me's glowing review, which stated in part:
...without a doubt, the best of these battling broods are the Gordons in Horton Foote's thoroughly entertaining Dividing The Estate.
it may very well prove that the renewed life on Broadway among American playwrights is no fluke. And wouldn't it be dandy if that wonderfully talented and still prolific nonagenarian named Horton Foote brought home that point?
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
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Labels: Broadway, Broadway and Me, Dividing The Estate, Elizabeth Ashley, Gerald McRaney, Hallie Foote, Horton Foote, Michael Wilson, Penny Fuller, Play, Transfer
The Trip To Bountiful (The SOB Review)
The Trip To Bountiful (The SOB Review) - The Albert, Goodman Theatre, Chicago IL***1/2 (out of ****)Finally, some truth in advertising.
That's right, a theatrical experience that plainly states exactly what it is, right up front, in its title.
Horton Foote's
The Trip To Bountiful is just that and so much more in the current revival now playing at Chicago's Goodman Theatre. The playwright's brilliance is more than proficiently realized by director
Harris Yulin through the incandescence of its performances.
Ironically, the play cleverly ensues with
John McKernon's dimly lit stage, the only hint coming from a lonely window where an aging Texan is quietly rocking in her chair. The light glows around Carrie Watts, aptly named thanks to the astonishing luminescence of
Lois Smith, and burns brighter as her yearning to return home to a place called Bountiful, one last time, becomes a transformative power.
Never mind that she's tried to get back there before. For 20 years, she's been cooped up in the same Houston flat with her passive dullard of a son Ludie (
Devon Abner) and his control freak wife Jessie Mae (
Hallie Foote, the playwright's daughter), who feigns being inconvenienced by anything that takes the spotlight off her. From time to time, Carrie tries her best to sneak off, but fails to get very far.
But that little light that's shining brightly within her very soul can't easily be extinguished. And when it burns hot enough, with each multiple henpeck and scolding from Jessie Mae, Carrie is set into motion yet again. This time, however, she gains just enough traction with an assist from the kindness of a stranger named Thelma (
Meghan Andrews), a fellow bus passenger who shares the ride with Carrie to a town near Bountiful.
That she gets so close is only half the story, but that she must also endure life alongside Ludie and Jessie Mae is most certainly the other in a classic example of children treating a parent as the child.
Abner's Ludie is so submissive, so fearful in his relationship with his wife that you just want to shake him, admonishing him to be a man. Jessie Mae, on the other hand, is so vainly narcissistic that she disparages Carrie, taking all her marital hostility out on the poor beleaguered mother-in-law. The acting was so convincing that just as I wanted to tell Ludie to snap out of it, I wanted to reach out and wring Jessie Mae's neck.
Allow me to pause here to salute Foote's magnificently haughty portrayal, serving as the perfect foil to Smith's impeccably drawn Carrie. Both actresses are nothing short of excellent.
After missing the
Signature Theatre Company's celebrated revival of Foote's gentle, yet powerful work about the indignities of aging, I couldn't stop kicking myself. Not only did the play receive
accolade after
accolade when it played Off-Broadway, but it also reaped
award after
award.
How absolutely fortunate for all of us who missed Signature's run that Chicago's
Goodman Theatre chose to honor the works of the great nonagenarian with a
festival. And that great fortune extends to transferring Harris Yulin and most of the exceptional Signature cast, as well as design team (including
E. David Cosier's marvelous sets), to Chicago.
This is one show that's definitely worth making the trip. I'm glad I finally did.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Click here for tickets.Labels: Chicago, Devon Abner, Goodman Theatre, Hallie Foote, Harris Yulin, Lois Smith, Off-Broadway, The Trip To Bountiful, Transfer
