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
Les Liaisons Dangereuses (The SOB Review) – American Airlines Theatre, Roundabout Theatre Company, New York, NY
**1/2 (out of ****)As if to underscore the obvious fact that
double entendre is at its deepest etymological roots a very French term, director
Rufus Norris’ dazzling-
looking revival of
Christopher Hampton’s
Les Liaisons Dangereuses rarely goes for the merely
sensuales when downright
risqué can do. How else to explain the flatulence episode?
Mind you, it’s easy to be completely swept away by
Scott Pask’s sumptuous set design, which -- complemented by
Katrina Lindsay’s exquisite 18th Century costumes,
Donald Holder’s sparkling lighting and
Paul Arditti’s haunting sound design -- is mesmerizingly evocative of Parisian prestige worthy of
Marie Antoinette herself. This is one gorgeous feast for the eyes.
So it’s too bad that the chief players in this double-crossing, double-dealing double entendre-packed play somehow get double-parked, somehow forgetting that sophisticated sensuality at its essence is what ultimately begets sexuality. After all, didn't the French practically invent romance?
As much as I adore the versatility (no pun intended) of
Laura Linney’s body of work -- and her frigid take as La Marquise de Merteuil is ice solid to be sure -- in order for her characterization here to be truly believable, she needs to exhibit more of a temptress seeking release, or at least one completely capable of luring would-be suitors into the dangerous web she's weaving.
Sparring with
Ben Daniels’ silly Le Vicomte de Valmont, her once and potentially future lover, strains credulity. Rather than presenting himself as a lethal lothario extraordinaire, Daniels instead comes across as a personification of
Lippy the Lion. I was half expecting this unexpectedly tri-sexual character (who might try anything) to announce at various junctures, "Exit, stage left.”
While the heavy lifting is left to
Les Liaisons Dangereuses' supporting players, they quite fortunately are up to the task.
Celebrated Welsh actress
Siân Phillips commands the stage as Valmont's aunt Madame de Rosemonde.
Jessica Collins provides a heartbreaking turn as La Présidente de Tourvel as she's caught in the crossfire between La Marquises and Valmont.
Kristine Nielsen offers a clear-eyed innocence as Madame de Volanges. And best of all is the invigorating
Mamie Gummer in her memorable comedic Broadway debut; Gummer steals the show in every scene as the young virgin Cécile Volanges, who turns from initial repulsion toward sexual activity to an eager beaver in every sense of the word.
Nevertheless, the preeminent star of this revival is not a performer, but the magnificent, beautiful design elements. In fact, the actors in the final scene where La Marquises' treachery has been discovered are literally overshadowed by Pask’s brilliant use of the production's knotted curtain chords turned into a web that ultimately hangs entangled over her head.
It's one less than debauched double entendre that points to how potentially dangerous and captivating this revival could have been.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Click here for tickets.Related Stories:How Safe Did Critics Feel Dangereuses Revival Played It? (May 2, 2008)
Les Liaisons Dangereuses' Latest Broadway Affair Opens (May 1, 2008)
The 1,400 Steps(March 17, 2008)
Labels: Ben Daniels, Broadway, Christopher Hampton, Jessica Collins, Laura Linney, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Mamie Gummer, Play, Revival, Rufus Norris, Scott Pask, Sian Phillips, The SOB Review
