Thoughts on The Happiest Song Plays Last

Last year around this time, I saw Quiara Alegria Hudes' Water by the Spoonful, which won the Pulitzer Prize.  I loved it.  That play was the second in a trilogy - last night, I saw the third play of the trilogy, The Happiest Song Plays Last, at Second Stage.  And, again, I loved it.  Since it hasn't opened yet, I'll only offer a few thoughts.

I just love how personal and how profound the characters and dialogue are in Quiara's plays.  It's as if we're eavesdropping on a personal conversation, that's how real and spot-on the dialogue is.  Every actor seems to play their character with a light touch, and yet you can see the pain and agony underneath, which makes their actions even more poignant.  And realistic, in my opinion.

The Happiest Song Plays Last takes place simultaneously in Jordan, where a movie is being filmed, and Philadelphia, where a block party is being planned.  These two events are small yet large in scope.  How the inciting incidents open up and become about more than just the personal is really well-written and constructed.  Elliot, the Iraqi war veteran whose story has played out across all three plays in the trilogy, is in Jordan filming a movie about the Iraqi war.  You can see that his time in the war still marks him and he is trying to live his life and get through to the other side.  The scenes he has with Ali, the 'Iraqi consultant' on the film, are just heartbreaking.  They're joking and kidding around and suddenly there is profound pain and sadness.  I alternated between laughing and crying often throughout the play.

The other story centers on Yaz, Elliot's cousin, who is living in Philadelphia and has taken on a nurturing role amongst the poor and homeless in her neighborhood.  We first see her after she has bailed a neighbor (and longtime friend) out of jail.  As the scene plays out, you can see all of the history of her life in that neighborhood, what she has given up and what she is reaching for, all in one conversation with Agustin, the drunken n'er do well/musician she has rescued from jail.  All of a sudden, the conversation takes an unexpected turn and as Agustin starts to seduce Yaz, he is also seducing the audience.  Well, he was seducing me at least.  I found Tony Plana, as Agustin, to be ever so wonderful in this piece.  I think his story moved me most, not that I wasn't completely taken with every actor and character, I just felt his most deeply.

These stories intersect by Skype conversations between the cousins - in these conversations, you can see who they are, but in their interactions with other characters, you can see who they want to be.  Whether or not they get there is part of the delight in watching this story play out.  Quiara is a wonderful storyteller and I was completely engrossed throughout the play and could seriously have listened to those actors, playing those characters, talk to me and tell me stories all night.  Their need for forgiveness, and their desire to move away from the failures of their past, was tremendously cathartic to me.  And, as a fantastic bonus, there was live music composed by Nelson Gonzalez and played by Gonzalez and two other musicians.  I thought the music beautifully expressed the world of the play and of the characters, plus it was used ingeniously for other sound effects throughout the play.

Clearly, I loved this piece and relate enormously with Quiara's world view and writing style.  In the interest of full disclosure, there were quite a few in the theater last night who did not share my happiness.  There was a group of eight women in front of me who left at intermission, and several people behind me left as well.  There was also a woman who kept zipping and unzipping her purse in boredom.  But oh well for them.  I hope hope hope that all three plays get done in repertory together someday soon, so I can see all three of them, one after the other.  I think that would be a powerful experience that I would cherish.  But in the meantime, get yourself to Second Stage to check out The Happiest Song Plays Last.

Thoughts on Rocky and The Correspondent

I have been writing so much for work and for other people that my brain just couldn't get into blog mode.  Sorry about that.  I'm seeing a couple of shows later this week so I thought I'd clear the backlog in my brain.  For some reason, I've also been reluctant to write about these pieces, but I don't know why...

A couple of weeks ago, I saw the first preview of the new Broadway musical Rocky.  I was looking forward to it, both as a fan of the film and as a HUGE fan of the composing team.  I ordinarily don't seek out first previews, but because they had to postpone their original first preview due to technical issues, that's what I got.

It was so exciting to be in such an enthusiastic crowd!  Everyone seemed to be there to support and cheer on the cast and creative team - it was a wonderful atmosphere.  I think the show has heart, some wonderful performances and some dazzling direction/technology.  I also think the show will be an enormous success, mainly due to the fact that the audience is sent out on an extreme high after the fantastic final scenes.  I won't mention any spoilers here, but the stage craft is first rate and was occasionally quite thrilling.  I think the word of mouth from satisfied customers will sell tickets from here to eternity.

Did I love the show?  Not as much as I wanted to.  I totally take into account that I saw the first preview, which is often tentative.  And I think I went in with the wrong expectations - I expected an Ahrens and Flaherty musical which just happened to be Rocky.  Instead, I got a Rocky musical, swashbuckingly directed with lots of bells and whistles, with Ahrens and Flaherty music.  So the wrong expectation thing is totally my fault and I need to go back to see the show, now that I know what to expect, and experience it the right way.  I'm looking forward to going back and trying again.  Oh, and the photo at right?  There was a special surprise guest at the end!  The original Rocky Balboa himself came out and the crowd went wild!  I admit, I got a little excited myself!  I did not take this picture (no cameras or photography in the theater, hello, I follow the rules), but I did borrow one from the official Rocky Twitter account.  I will remove the photo if someone asks.  :) 

Last week, I saw the new play at the Rattlestick, The Correspondent, by Ken Urban.  I know Ken a bit - our paths have crossed in the past.  I was happy to see his play get such a fine production at Rattlestick.  The acting was mainly very solid (well, I didn't love one of the actors, oh well) and I was engaged throughout.  If I found the play as a whole unsatisfying, well, I can't quite put my finger on why. 

I thought the play was well set-up and the opening scene was very intriguing - a man who has recently lost his wife has secured the services of a dying woman to deliver a message to heaven (apparently, this is a real service - who knew?!).  As he tries to gather his thoughts and pass along the message, you see this man is in extreme pain from grief and guilt over his wife's death.  How far to the extreme in this grief and guilt he goes is the rest of the play.

In each scene, I thought a very interesting world or idea was set up and it made sense.  But then, as each scene progressd, the rules of that world were broken.  And if that was the point?  That the world changes with every scene?  I don't see the ultimate point of that.  I wanted to, but I didn't.  I was on board for all the twists and turns, and I like mysticism, or magic, or surrealism, but the twists and turns ultimated confused me, as did the occasionally stilted and stylized dialogue.  Being confused isn't a bad thing, I guess, but it was unsatisfying for me.  Well-done, but unsatisfying.  It was good to spend time with a handsome chum, though, even if only for a short evening.

One last mention:  I've been swamped with work on an event we produce annually.  It's a labor of love and a labor of angst for me every year.  I so want the evening to be perfect for everyone and I pretty much drive myself (and all my co-workers) crazy through the planning process.  We finally had the event last Monday and I think it did go well.  It's always inspiring to me to hear people talk about their heroes and then the heroes talk about their lives and their gratitude.  It was a lovely evening and I'm finally able to exhale.  I only mention this so I can include this lovely photo of me and one of MY heroes, John Guare, who gave the most extraordinary acceptance speech.  I always knew he would, and like always, he didn't let me down...

Review - The Tribute Artist

I don't think it's any secret that I ADORE Charles Busch.  His writing, his acting, everything.  I want him to win every award ever invented, and possibly we should invent some new ones so he can win those as well.  So of course when Primary Stages announced they were doing Charles' new play, I pounced.  My Impossibly Handsome Ballet Buddy (also known as IHBB in his guest blog post) is also my Impossibly Handsome Charles Busch Play Buddy, so I guess we could change the acronym to IHCBPB.  Or not.  Anyway, he and I went to 59E59 last night to partake of the latest Charles Busch hilarity.

The Tribute Artist takes place in a stunning Greenwich Village townhouse (the set and costumes are magnificent for this production) - at the top of the show, we meet Adriana, the owner of the townhouse, who is giving away her glorious fashions to Jimmy, a 'tribute artist' (not a drag queen, thank you very much) who happens to occasionally rent a room in the townhouse.  We also meet Jimmy's best friend, Rita, a failed real estate agent and former improv partner.  Jimmy and Rita are OF COURSE played by Charles and Julie Halston.  And of course their long-term friendship and working collaboration completely informs everything they do.  Their rapport and comic timing is just genius.  Cynthia Harris plays Adriana and she is also terrific in her brief time on stage.  Her complete antipathy to Halston's character is hysterical and Harris' line readings are impeccable throughout. 

It's not a spoiler to say that Adriana does not survive the first scene (by natural causes, though!), and that Jimmy and Rita concoct a scheme where Jimmy will impersonate Adriana long enough for Rita to sell this valuable real estate property for scads of money, which they will then split.  What can go wrong?  Ha!

Everything!  Of course wacky hijinks ensue, with a ton of fun, laughter and movie quotes.  The Tribute Artist is incredibly realistic, yet also entirely zany, and the two aspects of the play co-exist beautifully.  I seriously cracked up throughout, not just at the funny situations and funny dialogue, but I also laughed in understanding of these flawed characters who just want to make their lives better. 

photo credit: James Leynse

All of the actors are spot on - besides Charles, Julie and Cynthia, we also meet Mary Bacon, who plays Adriana's late husband's despised niece; Keira Keeley as the niece's transgender son, born as Rachel but now named Oliver; and Jonathan Walker as Adriana's old boyfriend and now the object of Charles' affections.  They're quite a merry band and they each have their moments to shine.  Charles has written everyone wonderful speeches that allow them to take their comic moments, but also their humanizing moments as well.

First among equals, of course, is Charles.  He is always so charming onstage, it should be illegal, but I really enjoyed the quiet vulnerability he displayed as Jimmy.  A lot of the characters Charles portrays are the take-charge type, but Jimmy is much softer and he begins to revel in his portrayal of Adriana and begins to take seriously the idea of being the aunt/great aunt and mentor to these other crazy characters.  And he is also very touching in his quest for love from Jonathan Walker's character, Rodney.  The scene where Jimmy is trying to break through Rodney's defenses is very sweet.  I should also mention that Julie Halston has an amazingly hysterical monologue in the second act and she nearly caused a guy in the front row to collapse of a laughing fit.  We all were beginning to laugh at his complete loss of control.  More joy all around.  

photo credit: James Leynse

As always, I just loved loved loved my time in the theater, laughing and relating to a Charles Busch play.  And after the play was over, there was a talkback where I could revel in his personal charm and quite enlightening talk about his process as a writer and a collaborator.  The Tribute Artist, from start to finish and even after, was a delight.  Their run was just extended, so do yourself a favor and get over there.  See if you notice the Now Voyager reference more quickly than my IHCBPB and I did (which I hardly think is possible - we were gaffawing way before everyone else, lol).  In this freezing weather, a warm wonderful comedy is just the thing.  : )

Return to Madison County

I know I just saw The Bridges of Madison County last week, but I was extremely fortunate to luck into some comps for the performance last night.  Even with my qualms about the staging, I was totally into hearing that music and seeing those lead performances again.  And, boy, they did not disappoint.  Again.  I am so grateful to have been able to see the show again.  I even noticed a scene that I'm pretty certain wasn't there last week...

Kelli O'Hara is just a wonder, finding so many layers and dimensions to this woman.  And she sings so gloriously, it's just not right.  Jason Robert Brown has written some stunning music here, none more stunning to my ear than "Almost Real," which Kelli sings in the second act.  I could've listened to a dozen more verses of that song.  It was just spectacular.  Steven Pasquale was again in fine voice and totally charmed the entire audience.  Well, almost everyone.  I'll get to that later.

When I saw the show last week, I was in the last row of the mezzanine.  Last night, I was in the twelfth row of the orchestra, on the far side.  From that vantage point, the constantly moving set pieces didn't bother me as much, though I'm still not getting the storefront flats moving in and out during our BIG emotional moment at the end.  I still didn't enjoy the ensemble wandering around, though.  Again, it makes sense, but for me, it was too much.  It was also a little too much for my extremely handsome theater companion, who compared the poor actors to extras from an M. Night Shyamalan film.  Not the performers' fault at all.  I throw it down to the director.  I'm just not on board with his concept, but that's me.  I'm not a director, so what do I know?  I could be looking for a show that just isn't there...

Anyway, I had a great time again, listening to that gorgeous music and hearing those fantastic voices.  Thumbs way up for the show itself.  The audience, on the other hand, was possessed by the devil.  I sat next to Satan himself, who in turn sat next to Mr and Mrs Peanut.  Mr and Mrs Peanut sat next to Ma and Pa Peanut.  They were a group of five who nearly killed me.  Or I nearly killed them.  One or the other.

Mr and Mrs Peanut brought with them many little bags of roasted nuts that you can buy at carts on the street corner.  And what do those little bags of roasted nuts come in?  Crinkly plastic bags.  SO, during most of the first act, Mr and Mrs Peanut ate those roasted nuts.  Crinkle crinkle crinkle.  It was driving me insane. They kept eating.  They kept crinkling.  Finally, Mrs Peanut finished her bag.  Then she CRUMPLED UP THE EMPTY BAG AND THREW IT DOWN.  I kid you not.

Satan, on the other hand, was bored out of his mind.  You know the type - he kept sighing LOUDLY.  Repeatedly.  As if to say, omg, hurry up and finish!  He was awful.  And anytime anything romantic happened, he would snicker.  I was thisclose to saying, what are you, ten years old?!?!  I was hoping he was so bored he would leave at intermission, but no.  He came back.  And the crinkling started again at the top of act two.  I was beginning to think that Kelli O'Hara's voice was somehow possessing these people to crinkle the d*mn nut bag (much like Mary Hart's voice used to cause distress in a certain television viewer I once read about).

Now Ma and Pa Peanut decided they needed to eat their bags of roasted nuts as well.  So there were THREE crinkly bags being crinkled during most of the second act.  Only, now, Satan was getting annoyed by them, too.  So, instead of sighing loudly in boredom, he would give an annoyed gasp every time a bag crinkled.  Then he started saying "f*ck."  Every time a bag crinkled.  I can't understand why he didn't tell the Peanut Family to stop it - he was with them!  It was insane.  They were all just awful.  And don't get me started on the guy in front of us who, every time he stood up, his sweater would ride up and his pants would ride down.  I exclaimed a couple of time "Oh, I can never unsee that!!!"  My extremely handsome theater companion tried to shield me from the awfulness, but it was too late.  Blech.  Butt crack at the theater is not my favorite. 

I blame this guy

The fact that I got any enjoyment at all out of the show is a testament to how good it is.  But, someday, I think I just may crack.  Not butt crack, mind you, but I may perhaps explode at these horrible people who don't comprehend they're not in their living room and there are other people around them.  Ugh.  Some friends think I should write a 'worst of seat neighbors' blog post.  Maybe someday...

Review - Outside Mullingar

I'm a huge fan of John Patrick Shanley and his plays (oh, and that little screenplay called Moonstruck - that's a good one, too), so when his new play was announced, I got happily excited!  But I kept putting off and putting off getting tickets.  When a gal pal marched into my office and said we needed to get tickets BEFORE it opened and got stellar reviews, I knew she was right.  Last night was the happy night.  Unfortunately, my gal pal couldn't join me at the last minute, so I instead took an extremely handsome gent as my date.  He and I had dinner with another extremely handsome gent beforehand and I'm sure everyone in the Edison Cafe looked at me with envy.

Outside Mullingar did indeed get lovely reviews when it opened a few weeks ago, but I purposefully didn't read them, wanting to see the show without preconceived notions.  Well, except for the preconceived notion that I would probably like the play since I've loved other work by Shanley.  I will have a few spoiler-y things to share below, but I'll keep the big stuff to myself.

I also found Outside Mullingar to be lovely - sweet, tender and slightly unexpected.  Of course, there was the expected conclusion to the romance, we didn't really think these two people wouldn't end up together, did we?  But HOW they got together was just lovely.  It's not often I'm surprised by a plot development, but whoosh, there it was!  And it worked, surprisingly!  Even the slightest hesitation would've unraveled the entire play, but thankfully, that didn't happen.  Throughout the play, the dialogue was touching and real, even when it wasn't easy to listen to. 

The show is beautifully acted by four terrific actors, though, as always, I have my own personal issues with Debra Messing.  To me, she's always working just a little.too.hard, but I acknowledge that's my own personal preference.  Everyone else, including the critics, adored her in this.  But, for me, when she finally let go and just let this interesting character and gorgeous dialogue take over, that's when she was quite affecting.  So there you have it.  Brian F O'Byrne was his usually wonderful self - he's always just so real to me.  His touching awkwardness and absolute agony of revelation was wonderful.  And his scene with his father, played wonderfully by Peter Maloney, was heartbreakingly beautiful.  I told my date that scene is one of the best scenes in American theater I can remember for quite awhile.  So much truth and dignity - oh.  Sublime.



photo credit: Joan Marcus

The physical production was fantastic, as well.  An all-around thumbs up from me - I thoroughly enjoyed myself at Outside Mullingar.  Although basically a sort of rom-com, it was still a story, filled with people, I hadn't seen before.  I had a little cry, I smiled, I understood, I dreamed.  It was great.  I did NOT, however, enjoy my seat neighbors.  The couple to my right ate something from a plastic bag throughout the entire performance.  One piece of something after another.  And not only was the bag noisy, but whatever they were eating was noisy, too.  Ugh.  I know snacking is a time-honored tradition, but please.  For 90 minutes straight?!?!?!  OK, thinking of something else now...

...And, you know, after the play, all last night and into today, I feel a bit misty, a bit more hopeful than I did yesterday.  I didn't really notice it immediately after the play, but it's been building in me.  Hope isn't something I see a lot of nowadays on stage, and sometimes I feel like there's not a lot to be hopeful about right now, anywhere, but hey.  I'll take it.  I'll walk with a little lighter step today and thank John Patrick Shanley for that...

Review - Row After Row

 

When I was coming back from D.C. on the train last week, I was reading the NY Times online.  I read a review of a play and thought, hey, I'd like to see that, too bad I'm broke!  And then, lo and behold, free tickets crossed my desk!  Seek and ye shall find!  (Now I need to seek and find a free trip abroad...)  And so it came to pass that I went to see Jessica Dickey's Row After Row last night.

I quickly took advantage of the free ticket offer, and happily, a few hours later, a handsome chum asked if I were planning to see the show!  So we went together, meeting first at a pub for a quick drink, then over to City Center to see the show, which is a Women's Project production.  It looked very busy outside the theater, and then I remembered that not only did Encores! start their new season last night, but it was also the last week of Commons of Pensacola, starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Blythe Danner.  You may wonder why I even mention that.  You'll see why I mentioned it later...

Row After Row deals with Civil War re-enactors, who yearly meet up to participate in the recreation of the Battle of Gettysburg.  After two men, longtime friends, finish their latest re-enactment, they head to their neighborhood bar for their usual beer, only to find a woman has encroached on their usual table.  And from there we get another conflict (to contrast with the conflict of the war between the states).  The contemporary scenes are interspersed with scenes that take place during the Civil War, showing the similarities between the past and present for these characters.

photo credit: Carol Rosegg

I found the plot very engaging - I certainly have never seen this particular story before, the dialogue was interesting (though a tad heavy-handed in places) and the acting was fine throughout (though they got heavy-handed when the text did).  I enjoyed myself at Row After Row and did find myself thinking about how things are as they ever were throughout history, especially the struggles between men and women.  I did find the attempts to interject more 'meaning' into the play a little obvious (there's a whole section about the use of the word 'retarded' that seems to be for another play, and the whole feminism monologue got to be a little much).  But on the whole, I thought Row After Row was well put-together and I would be interested in seeing more work from Jessica Dickey.

After the play was over, my handsome chum and I waited in the lobby for a few minutes for more of his chums.  One of his chums asked our opinion of the play, and I jumped in with my five block rule!  Sorry, handsome chum, for throwing my five block rule at you and your chums.  Next time, discuss away.  :)   Anyway, we stood in the lobby for a bit, chatting about other things, then we left the theater.  As we walked outside, there were people with cameras, facing us, taking tons of photos.  I thought, why in the world are people taking my picture?!  It was weird.  Then I turned around and saw Sarah Jessica Parker.  She was standing on one side of me and Blythe Danner was on the other.  I feel sorry for the people who have their pictures of them with me in the center...

Thoughts on Bridges of Madison County

I admit it - I've been looking forward to seeing the musical version of Bridges of Madison County.  One: yes, I read the book.  Two: yes, I loved the movie.  Three:  I'm a HUGE fan of the entire creative team.  And four:  hello, I'm a single woman of a certain age who just loves a goopy romance.  I got my ticket via TDF quite a while ago and was so happy last night was finally the night.

The show doesn't open for another two weeks, so I'll only offer a few thoughts (I'm sure they're still working on things).  I probably shouldn't say anything, but here goes... I had a very nice time at Bridges, I did enjoy myself but I didn't have the big goopy romantic time I was hoping for.  Somehow, some way, the romance kept getting blocked by...something else.  Thwarted almost.  I'm not sure just quite by what.

The performances were exquisite - although I had some reservations about how young Kelli O'Hara and Steven Pasquale are (in relation to the story as I already knew it), I thought they both achieved beautiful moments of passion and pathos, ecstasy and misery.  They both sang superbly and acted convincingly.  I was quite taken by them, mostly during their songs, when they could just be still and express all the emotion.  The supporting cast was also very good, but sometimes, for me, they got in the way.  I put the 'getting in the way' issue at the director's feet. 

To me, it's as if the director didn't want to go all the way into the heavy-duty-romance of the piece.  But seriously, this isn't Waiting for Godot, it's Bridges of Madison County.  Why try to make it cerebral?  Why try to overthink it at all?  Although, intellectually (ha), I understood why the cast members themselves moved the scenery around - it's a small town, everyone is in everyone else's business.  OK.  Makes sense to me.  But in the scene where Francesca and Robert are struggling with their attraction for one another and are ready to succumb, why is a supporting character singing a comic song on the other side of the stage?  It's a great song and she sang it beautifully, but I wanted to watch our leads!  I wanted to see the romance!  I didn't want to be taken out of their story.  Again, intellectually, juxtaposing the neighbors as a happy American couple (and sort of comic relief) with the somewhat oppressive marriage of Francesca and her husband, and the high passion of Francesca and Robert, seemed right.  But the execution just held me at arms length the entire evening. 

I guess I wanted something I wasn't going to get.  I wanted MORE.  When Francesca makes her decision towards the end, the stagecraft really got in my way.  I needed just a couple more measures of music, a moment more to register the decision and the pain, but instead I got more set pieces rolling around, which I guess wasn't the 'more' I was talking about.  And although I found the last two songs to be achingly beautiful, the staging around them just didn't work for me.  Ugh.  I hate to say things like that, especially during previews.  You all know I'm just aching for everything I see to succeed.  Oof, so frustrating!  The score is glorious!  And the book takes some deliciously unexpected turns in a story I know pretty well.  They're just surrounded by a concept that didn't work for me.

It worked like gangbusters for others in the audience, though.  There were gals who were practically hyperventilating with sobs.  I wanted that to be me!  It should've been me!  I was so jealous.  Even the gent sitting next to me was close to needing oxygen.  I envied them.  For some reason, although the foundation was there, the way the story was told just didn't reach me.  And I'm sad about it.  I'm sure I'll go back, though, just to hear  those songs again.  And to hear some of that dialogue leading into those songs.  Some of that stuff made me cry, but on the whole...darn.