Spring roundup: Head of Passes, Bright Star, The Color Purple, Kvelertak

 

It's been a hellishly busy couple of weeks, but I've managed to see a few shows nonetheless. In the interest of time, I'll spare you my typically long-winded reviews in favor of terser ones. Here goes:

Head of Passes, by Tarell Alvin McCraney, is a modern retelling of the Job story. Set in Head of Passes, Mississippi, the action takes place in the formerly grand home of Shelah, who has a birthday approaching, a recently diagnosed illness she's dreading telling her friends and three children about, and property so badly in need of repair that it's raining as hard in her living room as it is out in the yard. The play itself, which has apparently been reworked since it ran at Steppenwolf in 2013, still occasionally misses the mark: some of the characters are not as developed as they might be, and a few of the plot points introduced early on don't gain much steam. But even if the show were perfect, there's really no way to prepare for the absolutely thrilling ass-whooping Phylicia Rashad gives the audience late in the second act.

Joan Marcus

I know it sounds like a cliche--as does the old "I had to remind myself to breathe"--but hell if Rashad doesn't tear the roof off in this tour de force performance. Being that this is a Job story, I don't think it gives much away to tell you that Shelah shoulders a whole lot of bad news in the second act. Driving the surviving characters away in a heartbroken rage, she stands in the rubble of her ruined house (yet another cliche: the set, by GW Mercier, is worth the price of admission), and the final stretch of the show has her alone, railing for a good half hour at a God she is at once furious with and wholly devoted to. While I've always appreciated Rashad, I admit I never knew she had the depth and range that she exhibits here. She makes mincemeat of a monologue that has her crying, cackling, thundering, raging and rejoicing on a dime. Hers is one of the finest--and possibly most exhausting--performances taking place nightly on a New York stage right now. Head of Passes has been extended, for good reason--see it before it closes, if you can swing it.

The Tricky Limits of Color-Blind and Gender-Blind Casting

From Art Times:

Once upon a time, boys played the women’s roles in Shakespeare’s plays. Once upon a different time, Al Jolson and Eddie Cantor performed in blackface to great acclaim, and some brilliant black performers had to hide behind blackface to be accepted by white audiences. (African-American comedian-mime-singer Bert Williams, 1874-1922, once said, "A black face, run-down shoes and elbow-out make-up give me a place to hide. The real Bert Williams is crouched deep down inside the coon who sings the songs and tells the stories.") As recently as 1990, white actors played Othello with darkened skin.

African-American singer-comedian 
Bert Williams in blackface

 Keep reading.

Light in the Piazza 10th Anniversary Reunion Concert

Perhaps the single most salient fact about theater is that it is ephemeral, evanescent. Even if you get to see a production 10 times, it eventually closes, and it's gone. Poof. But in some incredibly wonderful cases, a show reappears, even if only for an evening, as with the magical 10th Anniversary Reunion Concert of A Light in the Piazza last night, with virtually the entire original cast.

Did the show and the performers live up to my golden memories of the eight times I saw it?

They were even better.

Bows at Light in the Piazza 10th Anniversary Reunion Concert

Lortel Award Nominations

2016 LUCILLE LORTEL AWARDS NOMINATIONS

Outstanding Play
The Christians
Produced by Playwrights Horizons and Center Theatre Group
Written by Lucas Hnath

Eclipsed
Produced by The Public Theater
Written by Danai Gurira

Gloria
Produced by Vineyard Theatre
Written by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins

Guards at the Taj
Produced by Atlantic Theater Company
Written by Rajiv Joseph

John
Produced by Signature Theatre
Written by Annie Baker

Outstanding Musical
FUTURITY
Produced by Soho Rep. and Ars Nova in association with Carole Shorenstein Hays
Music by César Alvarez with The Lisps, Lyrics and Book by César Alvarez

Iowa
Produced by Playwrights Horizons
Written by Jenny Schwartz, Music by Todd Almond, Lyrics by Todd Almond and Jenny Schwartz

Southern Comfort
Produced by The Public Theater
Book and Lyrics by Dan Collins, Music by Julianne Wick Davis, Based on the Film by Kate Davis, Conceived for the Stage by Robert DuSold and Thomas Caruso

Tappin' Thru Life
Produced by Leonard Soloway, Bud Martin, Riki Kane Larimer, Jeff Wolk, Phyllis and Buddy Aerenson, Darren P. DeVerna/Jeremiah J. Harris and the Shubert Organization Written by Maurice Hines

The Wildness: Sky-Pony's Rock Fairy Tale
Produced by Ars Nova in collaboration with The Play Company
Text by Kyle Jarrow & Lauren Worsham, Songs by Kyle Jarrow

Outstanding Revival
'Tis Pity She's a Whore Produced by Red Bull Theater
Written by John Ford

Cloud Nine
Produced by Atlantic Theater Company
Written by Caryl Churchill

Mother Courage And Her Children
Produced by Classic Stage Company
Written by Bertolt Brecht, translated by John Willett

The Robber Bridegroom
Produced by Roundabout Theatre Company in association with Daryl Roth
Book and Lyrics by Alfred Uhry, Music by Robert Waldman

Women Without Men
Produced by Mint Theater
Company Written by Hazel Ellis

Outstanding Solo Show
The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey
Produced by Darren Bagert, Daryl Roth, Co-Produced by Jane Dubin, Curtis Forsythe, Michael Mayer, Diane Procter, Seaview Productions and Minerva Productions/Joshua Goodman
Written and Performed by James Lecesne

Forever
Produced by New York Theatre Workshop
Created and Performed by Dael Orlandersmith

Grounded
Produced by The Public Theater
Written by George Brant
Performed by Anne Hathaway

Mike Birbiglia: Thank God For Jokes
Produced by Mike Berkowitz, Joseph Birbiglia, Ron Delsener and Mike Lavoie
Written and Performed by Mike Birbiglia

Outstanding Director
Rachel Chavkin, The Royale
Anne Kauffman, Marjorie Prime
Amy Morton, Guards at the Taj
Liesl Tommy, Eclipsed
Eric Tucker, Bedlam's SENSE & SENSIBILITY

Outstanding Choreographer
Alexandra Beller, Bedlam's SENSE & SENSIBILITY
Martha Clarke, Angel Reapers
Maurice Hines, Tappin' Thru Life
Paul McGill, The Legend of Georgia McBride
David Neumann, FUTURITY

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Play
Denis Arndt, Heisenberg
Reed Birney, The Humans
Timothée Chalamet, Prodigal Son
Andrew Garman, The Christians
Ed Harris, Buried Child

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play
Ito Aghayere, Familiar
Georgia Engel, John
Jayne Houdyshell, The Humans
Chinasa Ogbuagu, Sojourners
Phylicia Rashad, Head of Passes

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Musical
Gabriel Ebert, Preludes
Michael C. Hall, Lazarus
Maurice Hines, Tappin' Thru Life
Michael Luwoye, Invisible Thread
Steven Pasquale, The Robber Bridegroom

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Musical
Sophia Anne Caruso, Lazarus
Alison Fraser, First Daughter Suite
Annette O'Toole, Southern Comfort
Mary Testa, First Daughter Suite
Sammy Tunis, FUTURITY

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play
Sanjit De Silva, Dry Powder
Jonathan Hogan, Hold On To Me Darling
Matt McGrath, The Legend of Georgia McBride
Paul Sparks, Buried Child
C.J. Wilson, Hold On To Me Darling

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
Alana Arenas, Head of Passes
Lauren Klein, The Humans 
Jeanine Serralles, Gloria
Lois Smith, John
Myra Lucretia Taylor, Familiar

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
Greg Hildreth, The Robber Bridegroom 
Jeffrey Kuhn, Southern Comfort
Or Matias, Preludes
Chris Sarandon, Preludes
Kevin Zak, Clinton the Musical

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Eisa Davis, Preludes
Karen Kandel, FUTURITY 
Leslie Kritzer, Gigantic
Leslie Kritzer, The Robber Bridegroom
Annie McNamara, Iowa

Outstanding Scenic Design
Mimi Lien, John
Timothy R. Mackabee, Guards at the Taj
G.W. Mercier, Head of Passes
Emily Orling and Matt Saunders, FUTURITY 
David Zinn, The Humans

Outstanding Costume Design 
Martha Hally, Women Without Men
Toni-Leslie James, First Daughter Suite
Clint Ramos, Eclipsed
Anita Yavich, The Legend of Georgia McBride
Donna Zakowska, Angel Reapers

Outstanding Lighting Design
Christopher Akerlind, Grounded
Mark Barton, John 
Ben Stanton, The Legend of Georgia McBride 
Justin Townsend, The Humans
David Weiner, Guards at the Taj

Outstanding Sound Design
Matt Hubbs, The Royale
Rob Milburn and Michael Bodeen, Guards at the Taj
Fitz Patton, The Humans 
Will Pickens, Grounded 
Bray Poor, Buzzer

SPECIAL AWARDS 
Outstanding Alternative Theatrical Experience
Angel Reapers
By Martha Clarke and Alfred Uhry
Produced by Signature Theatre

Peter Nigrini, Projection Design, Grounded

HONORARY AWARDS 
Lifetime Achievement Award
James Houghton

Playwrights’ Sidewalk Inductee
Suzan-Lori Parks

Stupid Fucking Bird

The Pearl Theater's production of Stupid Fucking Bird, Aaron Posner's 21st-century riff/recreation of The Seagull, is well-directed, well-acted, well-designed, and a great deal of fun. Its meta approach, with actors speaking directly to the audience, silly songs, and a fresh point of view, brings energy to the familiar story. However, it does not add up to much, nor does it teach us something new about Chekhov's original play.

[spoilers below]
While Stupid Fucking Bird sticks loosely to Chekhov's plot, its cheerfulness does much to undercut the emotions of the story. Yes, Con's mother, the great actress Emma, will never give him the attention and support he needs, but Con is cut from very different cloth than the Konstantin of the original. Konstantin is a whiny loser. His play in the first act is the artistic equivalent of his yelling at his mother, "I hate you," and throwing a tantrum. (Not that he wouldn't be justified. That Arkadina is one lousy mother, as is Emma in Posner's play.) Con's play in the first act is similar, but Con himself is loquacious and outgoing. His constant interaction with the audience is the charming heart of the play. Similarly, the eventual happiness of Mash/Masha and Dev/Medvedenko undoes Chekhov's presentation of the traps we set for ourselves when we can't get what we want. Add to that Con's being alive at the end of the play, and Stupid Fucking Bird becomes considerably less tragic than its forebear.[end of spoilers]

So, what does Stupid Fucking Bird offer us? Well, it's a lot more fun than The Seagull, and as someone who has seen the original perhaps one time too often, it's a relief. There's something frustrating about Chekhov's characters and their stubborn unwillingness to grow, change, or simply get a clue. But beside entertainment--which is, of course, nothing to sneeze at--Stupid Fucking Bird offers little. There are no new insights, no great emotion, nothing in the way of catharsis. It's a light and amiable romp, which is also nothing the sneeze at. It just seems to want to be more.


Stupid Fucking Bird is directed by Davis McCallum. The cast  features Bianca Amato (Emma), Dan Daily (Sorn), Erik Lochtefeld (Trig), Marianna McClellan (Nina), Joey Parsons (Mash), Joe Paulik (Dev), and Christopher Sears (Con).

The creative team is Sandra Goldmark (set), Amy Clark (costumes), Mike Inwood (lights), Mikhail Fiksel (sound), and Katie Young (production stage manager).

Wendy Caster
(6th row center; press ticket)

Dry Powder

Here's what I liked about Dry Power, Sarah Burgess's predictable, unimaginative, and lame incitement of high finance, currently playing at the Public Theater: the women in the crew wore black cocktail dresses when they moved the (unimpressive, ugly) scenery.

Azaria, Danes, Krasinski
Photo: Joan Marcus

To call Dry Powder one-dimensional would be to compliment it. Jenny (Claire Danes) and Seth (John Krasinski) each want their boss Rick (Hank Azaria) to choose their ideas; they compete, nastily, on both a professional and personal level. They are all three bottom-line people, except that Seth has a conscience and wants to do something good. It's not clear if Seth always had a conscience (in which case how did he get where he is?) or just grew one (in which case it would be nice to know how and why). But ultimately it doesn't matter; little he says sounds like a real person speaking. Jenny has no conscience, no heart, no morals; she is a human made of numbers and dollar signs. Nothing she says sounds like a real person speaking.