The Return Of The Prodigal

photo: Richard Termine

The mission of the Mint is to revive "worthy but neglected" plays and they've this time dug up a particularly lively one, by St. John Hankin, never before seen in New York. An Oscar Wilde-ish comedy that wrings its laughs (and its social observations) out of some of the hypocrisies and class-conscious expectations of Edwardian England, the Mint's production retains the text but re-sets the action in modern times. The result often makes for fun stage business - the layabout, ne'er do well prodigal son of the title wastes his privileged-class time sunbathing in board shorts, one of the daughters entertains guests by playing the guitar, and no one speaks with a British accent, which makes the snooty, voice-of-snobbery character named Lady Faringford seem like something out of Dynasty. But the concept too often hits a wall when the modern-dressed characters behave according to social codes unique to England a hundred years ago. The production is entertaining, but in the end less effective than if it had remained in period, with the audience allowed to find the play's modern relevancy. The members of the ensemble range from very good to exceptional, with the sensational lead performance by Roderick Hill at the very top of the spectrum.

In a Dark Dark House

Ever since doing scene work for The Shape of Things, I've had a soft spot for Neil LaBute, who wrote it, and Frederick Weller, who played "my" part in the movie (and was much better than me). In a Dark Dark House reunites the two for a ninety minute tale of brothers at odds over childhood abuses and adult revenges, and also adds the sweet Louisa Krause, and the smarmy Ron Livingston, whose adorable befuddlement channels very well into the asshole legalese he's given here. Director Carolyn Cantor draws a lot out of the actors, but she also encourages LaBute's exclamatory sloppiness: his need to explain (like a mustached villain to his tight-wearing nemesis) every act of meanness. Luckily, Weller's transformed himself into such an upright yet brutish mid-Western realist that the play maintains a level of subtlety (especially in Weller's sudden dead eyes) and even a glimmer of insinuation. Ultimately, the characters are manipulative, not the play, and the final twists are as well-earned as LaBute's reputation as a prolific playwright.

[Read on] [Also blogged by: David] [Patrick]

Old Acquaintance

photo: Joan Marcus

This chestnut, first on Broadway in 1940 and made into a Bette Davis "women's picture" at Warners soon after, has been given a handsome, well-designed revival by the Roundabout. Two actresses I love (Margreat Colin and Harriet Harris) are in high gear as the competing novelists and lifelong friends whose rivalries come to a head when they're not descending staircases, summoning maids, and mxing cocktails in their fabulously roomy Manhattan apartments. Furs, silk gowns, the works. I was licking my chops ready to eat it all up but the play itself, by the author of Bell, Book and Candle, isn't much of a meal. As a catfight it's barely more than a morsel, and beyond that its main message - that valuable lasting friendship requires tolerance - isn't so tasty when only one of the two characters behaves almost intolerably. Colin's character as written is on the bland side, but it's fun to watch her in '40s heroine mode. (Really, when *isn't* it fun to watch her?) Harris gets all the lip-smacking, showy stuff and she goes as far out there as she can short of chomping at the walls. Chomp away, I say.

Horizon

Full disclosure: I, too, am somewhat of an atheist douchebag, but not enough that I can't appreciate the aesthetics of both David Schweizer's panoramic directing and Rinde Eckert's playful, postmodern prose in Horizon. I think the show loses itself in allegory (the main character writes himself into his own Beckett-like play, only to have a Christ-like revelation and resurrection), but saves itself with its performers, who not only have the right questions about faith to ask, but ask them in the right way, too: a capella, vaudeville, or with a energetic dose of accents. It's nice to see David Barlow after he stole the show in the Fringe's Perfect Harmony, but it's even nicer to hear lines like "the nature of truth is to be despised but indispensable" delivered in all seriousness. My only qualm with Horizon is that despite building (and dismantling, and building again) a pulpit, it never really preaches (unless you count the religious sing-song) with enough force to escape all its clever trappings: consequently, I left the theater talking about the images, not the messages.

[Read on] [Also blogged by: David]
Photo/Carol Rosegg

The Fantastiks

****
Snapple Theater Center

There's nothing more charming and inspiring than a small business bravely struggling in the great American marketplace. There's a new fruit and tea flavored beverage out there called "Snapple" (pictured!) and I want everyone to go out and scour the delis and grocery stores and buy it (I'm not sure if it's just in New York or if it's made it to other cities by now)! Reason being is that even though this "Snapple" is still in its infancy as a business, it has managed to set aside what must be an enormous percentage of their profits and opened their own theater! Granted, the space is so wide that there are more seats in the side sections than there are in the center section, and granted the stage is the size of a Volkswagen and granted the ceiling is so low that there is barely any rake to speak of in the audience seating and the lights hover a foot or so over the actor's heads and granted stomping and thumping noises from The Perfect Crime directly upstairs continuously interrupt the performances but kudos to "Snapple" for giving it the old college try!

Horizon

****

NYTW

How many times have you heard the phrase "Well MY God would never..." etc? Religion is such a horribly subjective institution and playwright/performer, Rinde Eckert, has quite a few opinions of his own concerning that high maintenance, tempermental bitch known as Christianity. In a very slick, hyper-theatrical way, Rinde, playing a fired professor of theology, along with the help of a couple of well cast helper actors, walks us through a few of the parables, a few of the belief paradigms, a few of the major buzz words ("ethics" for example) and offers us his own intellectual spin. This is an excellent play of ideas that makes the controversial point that a Christian who doesn't open their mind and question their faith is not a very good Christian at all. Complete with a healthy dose of singing, busy, tight staging, and a fun play within a play concept, we have ourselves here a very lively, thought provoking night at the theater (even for an athiest douchebag like myself!).