SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER A REVIEW

To celebrate Tennesee Williams' 100th birthday the excellent White Horse Theatre Company is presenting one of his darkest and most complex plays "SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER"and [as usual] is doing a first rate job of it, and Cyndy A. Marion [ who's stage direction is way beyond first rate] again proves herself to be a master at sizing up difficult, challanging plays and making them into rich theatregoing experiences.
This self described allegory about how deep human cruelty can go started life as part of a double bill Off Broadway called "Garden District" in 1958 right after the Broadway failure of "Orpheus Descending" and about a year before his Broadway success with "Sweet Bird Of Youth" It deals with a strange, distant lady who is trying to talk a young doctor into lobotomizing her neice to keep her from revealing a deep dark family secret and much of the time Mr. Williams has his characters talk directly to the audience. While this device does not always work out it is sometimes effective and successful at making the plays' sometimes needless symbolism clear, and under Ms. Marion's expert staging the cast is astonishingly good.
As the cruel lady who will do anything to protect a secret Elizabeth Bove is nothing short of titanic in an almost impossible role delivering the long asides with a facility that is almost astonishing, and Lacy J.Dunn is every bit her equal as the neice.
They are backed up by a cast that is from top to bottom superb.
"SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER" is not perfect and it's unrelenting symbolism will limit it's appeal to many people,but it has many fine moments in it and once again Ms. Marion proves herself to be one of New York's finest stage directors.
As it stands, this is a rich rewarding theatre evening and well worth checking out.
THE WHITE HORSE THEATRE COMPANY AT THE HUDSON GUILD THEATRE 441 WEST 26th STREET N.Y.C. thru October 2nd.

HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING A REVIEW

George S. Kaufman [that emenent and much loved all around theatre man] once said that satire is what closes on Saturday night. While there have been successful musical satires over the years,most of them have not had much of an after life." Of Thee I Sing" was the first musical to win the Pulitzer Prize and was the longest running book musical of the1930s, but when it was revived twenty years later it seemed awfully tame and mighty creaky. The fact is that most satires are very much of their time and date rather quickly.
When I reviewed the original production of "HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING" in 1961[I was in my first year of college and was their resident drama critic] I thought that this razor sharp poke at big business was beyond brilliant with it's devistatingly funny book by Abe Burrows [with help from Jack Weinstock and Willie Gilbert] and classic score by Frank Loesser. It won the Pulitzer Prize, ran 1,417 performances and is considered by many to be the classic musical satire. When it was revived in 1995 it still had some spark, but not much sting. Now in this 50th anniversary revival it has no spark and and it's once brilliant satrical edge is woefully dated in this high-tech age.
It's the familiar tale of a go-getter determined to get to the top of the business world at any price,but he has so much charm that you root for him to succeed despite his sinster underbelly. It's a difficult role to play and requires perfect balance between the charming and sinster aspects, and in it Daniel Radcliffe works hard and has charm to spare but does not have the underlying cunning that would make the role beleivable.
However, John Larroquette has fun with the role of the company head and has just the right amount of grumpiness and charm to make him seem likeable.
Newcomer Rose Hemingway is delightful as the go-getters girlfriend and Tammy Blanchard is halarious as the boss's mistress.
Director/choreographer Rob Ashford keeps things moving briskly enough in Derek McLane's colorful but oddly moodless sets,and the great Loesser score is not well served by Doug Besterman's new orchestrations which can't begin to compare with the wonderful Robert Ginzler originals.
The fact is that"HOW TO SUCCEED" is very much tied to it's period and what was a benchmark in musical satire now seems dated and even a little foolish.
AT THE AL HIRSCHFIELD THEATRE 302 WEST 45th STREET N.Y.C.

" FOLLIES" AND "SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM" SOME THOUGHTS

While on a mini-vacation to Washington D.C. last weekend with my wife I attended two theatre events that are worth mentioning.


The first one was the long awaited Kennedy Center production of the great James Goldman/ Stephen Sondheim musical "FOLLIES" and even in this in and out and unevenly cast production it is still [in my opinion anyway] one of the best musicals to emerge in the 1970s with one of the decades best scores, possibly surpassed only by Mr. Sondheim's late 70s masterpiece "Sweeney Todd".


Forget about the fact that I saw [and loved] the original 1971 production and I was at the legendary 1986 concert reading at Lincoln Center. Both were perfectly cast and and staged and were exroadanary theatre evenings so I was willing to judge this production on it's own terms, but the somewhat uneven casting[ of the four leads only Jan Maxwell seemed well suited to her role] and spotty stage direction by Eric Schaeffer cast a pall over the procedings that [for me anyway]never went away. Even the sets by Derek McLane and the costumes by Gregg Barnes were lacking in mood and style.


Is there anything good? Well Jonathan Tunick's orchestrations and John Berkman's dance music arrangements are as fresh and vibriant as ever and they are played by a good pit orchestra conducted by James Moore.


While it is true that " FOLLIES" was never a flawless show [the book has problems of structure and seems to sometimes get out of hand] the music and lyrics are beyond great and even in this underpowered production it is worth seeing.


The second show we saw was a delightful production of the 1975 revue "SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM"produced by the excellent Signature Theatre in Arlington Virginia and performed by an excellent cast of three performers and two musicians. This was a lighthearted look at Sondheim's work thru the1970s[ ending right before"Sweeney Todd"] and was performed by three very talented singers Sherri L. Edelen, Matthew Scott, and especially Nancy Anderson who has a smile and personality that are irresistable.


For those that are interested, "SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM" runs thru June 12th and 'FOLLIES" is on thru June 19th.

















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THE NORMAL HEART A REVIEW

The early years of the AIDS epidemic is the the background for Larry Kramer's heartbreakingly brilliant drama "THE NORMAL HEART". When it was first produced Off Broadway 1n 1985 it caused a sensation and ran almost a year. I considered it a benchmark in American Theatre when I saw that memorable first production and it is as gut -wrenching as ever in this explosive
and classic first Broadway showing.
Mr. Kramer focuses his play on Ned Weeks, a gay man trying to cope with the illness and eventual death of his lover and in this highly emotional and high profile role Joe Mantello[making a most welcome return to acting after becoming an award-winning stage director] is almost unbearably heartbreaking, and John Benjamin Hickey is just as good as his lover.
The other outstanding performance is turned in by Ellen Barkin as a wheel-chair confined nurse trying to cope with everything that is happening around her, but the entire cast is so perfect in their roles that watching them becomes an unmitigated joy.
The stage direction is split between Joel Grey and George C. Wolfe and it is as vibrant and riviting as you could want, and David Rockwell's white box set[with it's stunning projections]catches the plays mood perfectly.
"The Normal Heart" may not be for everyone. It's over the top anger and unflinching emotional pull is sure to upset many people but for those willing to take the ride this is as riviting a theatre evening as even a hard to please aisle-sitter could ask for. Go see it.
AT THE JOHN GOLDEN THEATRE 252 WEST 45th STREET N.Y.C.

SEANCE ON A WET AFTERNOON A THOUGHT

While I am not an expert on opera I found "SEANCE ON A WET AFTERNOON" to be a reasonably accomplished work. Stephen Schwartz has done the libretto and score for this adaptation of a 1961 novel by Mark McShane and the 1964 film by Brian Forbes, and while it is alittle slow getting underway it is an interesting and always engaging work.
It tells the tale of a phychic who plans an elaborate kidnapping scheme to insure a successful recovery and in this role Lauren Flanigan is exceptional, singing well and acting with passion. The rest of the cast is fine and Scott Schwartz[the composers son] directs the opera with spirit and knowhow, and Heidi Ettinger's set is well designed and playable.
I found "SEANCE ON A WET AFTERNOON" to be no classic but it is a worthy effort and was worth doing, and Iwould like to see Mr.Schwartz do another American Opera because he shows definite talent in that area.
AT THE DAVID H. KOCH THEATRE LINCOLN CENTER N.Y.C.

JERUSALEM A REVIEW

The collapse of English society is the theme of Jez Butterworth's spellbindingly brilliant play "JERUSALEM" and in it's central role Mark Rylance moves to the head of the class as one of the worlds great actors.
All you have to do is look at the virtuoso performance he gave earlier this season in "La Bete" and his award winning turn in "Boeing-Boeing" three years ago to figure out that this is an actor of extroadanary gifts and here he is nothing short of titanic as a fun loving man who is unemployed because of an injury and living in a broken down motor home in the English countryside. He is about to be evicted because of an incoming county fair and and real estate interests who want to develope the land his home is on. He is visited by a motley group of friends who want nothing more than a good time and a son who wants his attention.
It's a marathon role that keeps Mr. Rylance on stage 95% of the play's three hour running time and I have not seen an actor blend into a role so completly since Paul Scofield stunned Broadway 50 years ago when he came to town in" A Man For All Seasons"
He is surrounded by an extroadanary company of actors some of whom are [ like Mr.Rylance] reprising the roles they played in England last year, and the play is beautifully staged by Ian Rickson, a fine director repeating his London staging.
The sets and costumes by Ultz and the lighting by Mimi Jordan Sherin catch the mood of the play perfectly and Stephen Warbeck's background music is just right. By the way, the play's title comes from a hymn that is sung at the end of the Labor Party confrences every year as a tribute to the beauty of the land.
Anyway, 'JERUSALEM" is a stunning play and Mr. Rylance gives a performance that will be talked about forever. Don't miss it.
AT THE MUSIC BOX THEATRE 239 WEST45th STREET N.Y.C.

ARCADIA A REVIEW

Time travelling can be a tricky thing to pull off theatrically but British playwright Tom Stoppard manages to do it beautifully in "ARCADIA" ,his elegant and thought-provoking play now being given a beautifully conceived and artfully staged revival by director David Leveaux.
Mr. Stoppard's play moves back and forth between the year 1809 and the present at an estate owned by a promenant British family. The 1809 scenes reveal a household in transition while the present day scenes depict the family dedescendants and two scholars who are researching a possible scandal at the estate in 1809 involving Lord Byron.
As is the custom with all of Mr.Stoppards plays "ARCADIA" requires the utmost attention from the playgoer, but Mr. Stoppard is a master at storytelling and his use of the English language is nothing short of astonishing and his exploration of truth and time across the centuries is nothing short of genius.
Under David Leveaux's often brillant stage direction the cast works together like a well oiled machine and Billy Crudup, Raul Esparza, Margaret Colin nd all the rest give marvelously shaded performances of these most complex characters.
The elegence extends to Hilegard Bechtler's sets, Gregory Gale's costumes, and Donalde Holder's lighting, but everything about this production represents serious theatregoing at it's best.
I did not see the first New York production at Lincoln Center in 1995 so I can't compare it to this one. All I can say is that this production of "ARCADIA" is a flawless realization of a thought provoking and sometimes masterful play and any serious playgoer should put it at the top of their must see list.
AT THE ETHEL BARRYMORE THEATRE 243 WEST 47th STREET N.Y.C.

WONDERLAND A REVIEW

This is not the first time that someone has tried to adapt Lewis Caroll's "Alice in Wonderland" stories to the stage and once again the idea of hanging a big Broadway musical on the not too sturdy story of a young girl discovering her self-awarness does not really work. That is really too bad because this latest attempt, "WONDERLAND"has some very good things in it. It has some very plesant music by Frank Wildhorn, and while it is not particularly memo rable it does remind us that there are still some people who like to write simple, traditional theatre music, and the lyrics by Jack Murphy are workmanlike enough without being first rate. It is the book that is the main problem because it never makes up it's mind weather it wants to be comic or serious so the authors [lyricist Murphy and Gregory Boyd] try to have it both way s which splits the show in half and never lets it develop a style of it's own. Under Mr. Boyd's underwhelming stage direction the cast works hard and are for the most part well suited to their roles. Janet Dacal is a most attractive Alice and young Carly Rose Sonenclar is excellent as her daughter who takes a trip with Mom down the old rabit hole.[ Alice is now a grown school teacher]. The rest of the cast is fine and delightfully enthusiastic. While Marguerite Derrick's choreography is nothing special Neil Patel's sets are attractive, and Susan Hilferty's costumes and Paul Gallo's lighting are first rate. Kim Scharnberg's orchestrations complament the music well and Jason Howland conducts the show most ably. With stronger direction and a better idea of what it is "WONDERLAND" might have worked. Actually the material is no worse than the musical "Pippin", but "Pippin"had a genius named Fosse in charge. Still, there is enough in it to make it possibly worth seeing. AT THE MARQUIS THEATRE 220 WEST 46th STREET N.Y.C.

ANYTHING GOES A REVIEW

Anyone looking for an old fashioned good time should run [not walk] to the Roundabout Theatre Company's wonderfully high spirited production of "ANYTHING GOES", and if anything it re -establishes Kathleen Marshall's reputation as one of Broadway's top director/choreogaphers. In the past few years Ms. Marshall's career has had it's ups[ ThePajama Game revival] and downs[The underpowered "Grease" revival]. With this show it's all ups and this 1934 chestnut looks and sounds as fresh as a daisy. Of course it helps that it contains Cole Porters classic score [augmented with a couple of other classic Porter songs], and further help is provided by a wonderfully talented group of performers who look like they are having a wonderful time and their enthusiasim is totally infectious and the audience I saw it with was beside itself with pleasure. This show also establishes Sutton Foster an a first class Broadway star.Ms. Foster has given many fine performances in the past most notably in "Thoroughly Modern Millie" and "Shrek" Here she is totally incandesent belting out one Porter classic after another and proves that she is perfectly capable of carrying a whole show. She is a knockout. Joel Grey [returning to Broadway after too long an absence] is teriffic as a lovable gangster and seems to be truly enjoying himself. As already mentioned, the rest of the cast is at the top of their game and Kathleen Marshall's staging is lively and inventive and her choreography is a total knockout, most notably in the show-stopping first act finale. The sets by Derek McLane and the costumes by Martin Pakledinaz are colorful and handsome and the orchestrations by Michael Gibson and Bill Elliot are lively and swinging and James Lowe conducts the excellent pit band expertly. I forgot to mention the book. It's too nonsensical to mention anyway, so let us forget about it and be cheered by the fact that this revival of 'ANYTHING GOES" is capitol fun and a total delight. Go and have a blast. AT THE STEPHEN SONDHEIM THEATRE 124 WEST 43rd STREET N.Y.C.

DRIVING MISS DAISY A REVIEW

I was lucky enough to see the original Off Broadway production of " DRIVING MISS DAISY" in 1987. With a cast consisting of Morgan Freeman,Judith Ivy and Ray Gill it was Off Broadway at it's best, ran 1,195 performances and deserved evrey one of them. Two years later it became an excellent movie winning Oscars for it's leading lady[a marvelous Jessica Tandy], best picture, and best adapted screenplay so I was looking forward to the first`Broadway production of this Pulitzer Prize winning play by Alfred Uhry, but as sometimes happens, dissapointment was not long in coming. For one thing this sweetly touching chronicle of a 25 year friendship between a southern elderly Jewish lady and her Black middleaged driver has not aged very well, and also it was a small play with a cast of three people, and it was perfect in a 300 seat theatre. However even in a reletivly small 800 seat Broadway house the play loses alot of the intimicy that was it's charm and director David Esbjornson has added to many realistic touches that spells out for the audience what they should be allowed to discover for themselves. Still, there are good things, most notably in the perfomances of the three actors. Vanessa Redgrave is achingly effective as the southern Belle forced to give up her independence after a minor auto mis-hap, James Earl Jones is magnificently dignified as the driver hired to squire Ms. Redgrave around, and Boyd Gains is fine as the son looking out for Moms best interest. The sets by John Lee Beatty and the projections by Wendall K. Harrington have an overdone look about them, but Peter Kaczorowski's lighting is just right. So while "DRIVING MISS DAISY" seems somewhat dated and the production is overdone any time spent with the magnificent Mister Jones, Mister Gaines, and Ms. Redgrave can hardly be called wasted. AT THE JOHN GOLDEN THEATRE 252 WEST 45th STREET N,Y.C. thru April 9th.

THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ON THE PREVIEWING "SPIDERMAN"

So much attention has been focused on "SPIDER-MAN-TURN OFF THE DARK" since it went into rehersal last August, and the problems it has run into since going into it's never-ending preview period that many of the country's major theatre critics have already weighed in with their reviews. It was supposed to have it's official opening around Christmas. That got pushed back to January,then February, and now [tenetivly] March 15th. I have no idea what shape this large, ambitious, and noisy musical was in when it first previewed back on November 28th, but based on the preview I attended on Thursday evening it might be a good idea if it never opened at all.
I suppose that director Julie Taymor deserves high marks for ambition. After all she was able to take a mediocre show like "The Lion King" and turn it in to a magical theatre experience,but I doubt that she will be able to repeat the miracle with this one.
The main trouble is that the book and score are so inept, the sets so appalingly ugly, and for the most part performances that would not satisfy a second rate stock company. Even the much talked about flying sequences [ done on much too visible wires] seem blandly routine after the first 15 minutes.
I suppose that the only way that this show could ever work would be to take the whole kit and caboodle, toss it into the trash heap and start all over again. As of now there is so much wrong with it that it is probably unfixable.
It would be nice to to say that this is an "almost but not quite" because it is apparent that alot of hard work has gone into it, but as it now stands"SPIDER-MAN TURN OFF THE DARK" is on track to become the biggest mega-bomb of all time, and at 65 million dollars a mighty expensive one.
AT THE FOXWOODS THEATRE 213 WEST 42nd STREET N. Y. C.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST A REVIEW

Anyone who thinks that Oscar Wild's 1895 comedy "THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST" is a musty old relic should not even think of missing the enchanting new production that has come here from Stratford Ontario where it received rave reviews and did landoffice business at last year's annual theatre festival.
This classic comedy of manners has been given a superlative new staging by the great classical actor Brian Bedford that plays the still witty comedy seriously, never camping it up, and in doing so has made an aging play as freshly funny as any new comedy could hope to be.
The play was originally done as a farce but is now a stylish romp and the acting company seems to be having a blast performing it. Mr Bedford [in a gender switch] takes the role of the rich and crusty Lady Bracknell playing it straight [ never campy] and delivering a classic comic performance and the rest of the cast is nothing short of superb.
The settings and costumes by Desmond Heeley are stunningly handsome and Duane Schuler's lighting is just right.
Summing up, this production of"THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST" is a pleasure to see and hear, and offers as enchanting an evening as this theatre-lover has had in too long a time. Go see it.
AT THE AMERICAN AIRLINES THEATRE 227 WEST 42nd STREET N.Y.C. THRU JULY 3rd.

LOST IN THE STARS A THOUGHT

I have always loved "LOST IN THE STARS". I saw the original production when I was very young and have distant but fond memories of it. Also saw the 1958 and 1972 productions and loved both of them. Now the excellent Encores series at City Center is offering a concert version of this problamatic but powerful 1949 musical, and if Maxwell Anderson's book and lyrics have always seemed a bit heavy and ponderous they contain moments of great beauty, and Kurt Weill's music is achingly beautiful. It is one of the most exciting scores ever composed for a musical.
Director Gary Griffin's staging is unexciting, but the choral work wonderful and most of the performances are good if not great. As usual. Rob Berman conducts expertly and the original Kurt Weill orchestrations are masterful.
It was very brave of Encores to do this difficult but wonderful musical, and " LOST IN THE STARS" is still capable of moving an audience deeply. Many thanks.
At THE N.Y. CITY CENTER 131 WEST 55th STREET N.Y.C. Feb. 3rd thru Feb.6th.

THE MILK TRAIN DOESN'T STOP HERE ANYMORE A REVIEW

When Tennessee Williams play "THE MILK TRAIN DOESN'T STOP HERE ANY MORE" was first presented on Broadway exactly 48 years ago I was in college and was reviewing plays for the school paper, and found this to be an overwritten ,relentlessly shrill, and heavy-handed bore. It was a failure closing after only nine weeks, and has not had much of an afterlife since,so I approached this production of it with strong missgivings, and was expecting another dull, endless theatre evening, and were my worse fears well-founded? Of course not.
This is mainly because director Michael Wilson has taken this dull vapid play and turned it into a powerful and sometimes stunning show that is beautifully staged and and is chock`full of wonderful acting.
It concerns a wealthy American widow who has detached herself from society and has retreated to her Italian mountaintop villa in order to write her memoirs when a handsome and mysterious visitor arrives to keep her company during her final days. It is a long and demanding role for any actress to play and in it Olympia Dukakis is positivly electrifying giving this tragic , unplesant woman a human touch that is ultimatly heartbreaking.
She is backed up by a beautifully chosen cast and [as already mentioned] Michael Wilson has staged it masterfully and Jeff Cowie's stage settings catch the mood of this elusive story perfectly.
So summing it all up, as a play " THE MILK TRAIN DOESN'T STOP HERE ANYMORE" is no better than it was in 1963, but thanks mainly to Ms. Dukakis and Mr. Wilson it is a stunning and sometimes memorable theatre evening.
AT THE LAURA PELLS THEATRE 111 WEST 46th STREET N.Y.C.

GRUESOME PLAYGROUND INJURIES A THOUGHT

There is no need to comment much on this turkey. It's called "GRUESOME PLAYGROUND INJURIES" and in it playwright Rajiv Joseph has come up with two of the most obnoxious people to land on a New York stage in years and since they are the only two people on stage this makes for as irritating an evening as I've had in a very long time.
Mr. Joseph's play[to use the term loosly] concerns two childhood friends who keep running into each other over a period of thirty years to compare the scars and physical calamities of their lives, and if you are bored reading about this that's ok because I am bored writing about it.
The usually talented Scott Ellis has provided routine stage direction and the two actors[Jennifer Carpenter and Pablo Schreiber] give the impression of just wanting it to be over.
"GRUESOME PLAYGOUND INJURIES" is flat, tastless and dull. One can only imagine what Mr. Joseph's next play will be will be like. It is called " Bengal Tiger At The Baghdad Zoo" and is due on Broadway in March with Robin Williams starring.
At The Second Stage Theatre 305 West 43rd Street N.Y.C.










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A FREE MAN OF COLOR A REVUE

It seems that I am beginning to sound like a broken record but a good idea for an exciting and worthwhile play has not worked out and even with a colorful background and a vibrant central character John Guare's latest play " A FREE MAN OF COLOR" is [sad to say] a pretentious bore.
Mr. Guare has written some wonderful plays about the human condition ["The House Of Blue Leaves" and "Six Degrees Of Seperation"] and his latest is set in New Orleans right before the Louisiana Purchase happened and law and order took hold. The time is 1801 and the plot revolves around a Don Juan who is a master seducer and the richest man in New Orleans. He is also a free man of color at a time when class division was common.
It's good idea but it is woefully overwritten, overpopulated and overproduced and George C. Wolfe's stage direction seems needlessly busy and and sometimes static, and Hope Clarke has provided some minor dance movement that could have been done away with and not at all missed.
The twenty six member cast works hard but seem ill at ease with the stilted dialog and situations and David Rockwell's sets are colorful but over-elaborate and they are well served by Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer's lighting, but "A FREE MAN OF COLOR " is another case of a colorful and lively story drowning in a sea of excesses, and it ends up being a dull, lifeless and static play.
AT THE VIVIAN BEAUMONT THEATER LINCOLN CENTER N.Y.C.