Yellowface

Left At Intermish

The Public

If a script requires you to play Jane Krakowski in a non-spoofy, sincere fashion, think long and hard before you accept the role. Actress Kathleen Layng gave it her best shot, but I doubt even Meryl Streep could pull it off with any believability. A long list of other Broadway notables got their own vague impersonations (B.D. Wong, Cameron Mackintosh, Stuart Ostrow) in this play that seemed less of a play and more of a few angry pages torn from playwright David Henry Hwang's private journal. Elaborating on the touchy issue of Caucasians playing Asian roles the actor playing Hwang stood front and center and narrated in a very "this happened and then this happened" kind of way. The central conflict was promising but the execution was thoroughly un-engaging and charmless and my guest and I fled shortly after the tepid applause at the end of Act One.

Also blogged by: [Patrick]