A "Burning" Quandry

Posted by Mondschein

I can't call it a review I have to write about today, though it is about a new play I attended over the weekend.

Let's put some things on the table first, stipulations, if you will:

• Getting a new play produced, particularly in New York, particularly by a company of the reputation of The New Group, is an incredible feat of effort.
• Provocative topics and situations are excellent fodder for playwrights looking to get attention to their work (see The Submission).
• "Downtown NYC" is a great place to exercise those skills.

A few more things to stipulate:

• I've seen a lot of lousy theatre in New York and have walked out on the full range, from multi-million dollar Broadway to dusty, uncomfortable black-box off-off-off Bway productions.  
• I've even performed in a couple of the latter types.

As a member of the ITBA, I see frequent invitations to attend and review theatre of all sorts in the city, as mentioned above, Broadway to black-box, off-off-off Broadway productions.  I don't see everything, but I was excited to see the invitation from The New Group for their production of the world premiere of Burning by up-and-coming playwright Thomas Bradshaw.  I've seen a couple of other productions from this company and looked forward to this.  The premise sounded interesting.  The director has made a name for himself.


This play was the first time I've ever walked out despite having been invited to write a review.

Lemon Sky

"Lemon Sky" presented by the Keen Company at the Theatre Row, September 24, 2011

(photo by Richard Termine)

My experience with the Keen Company has usually been very good - solid productions and strong scripts.  This production is a tribute to the late Lanford Wilson in this autobiographical play.  This is the first time they have missed the mark for me.

17 year old Alan (Keith Nobbs) has traveled west to live with Douglas (Kevin Kilner) his estranged father who has remarried and has two sons by his second wife Ronnie (Kellie Overbey).  Douglas is eager to make up for lost time, and Alan is at first receptive, but as time passes,  Doug's old habits resurface.  Complicating the matter are the two foster daughters, Penny (Amie Tedesco) and Carol (Alyssa May Gold), who bring in needed cash to the household budget with their monthly state allocation.

Benefactors

Posted by Mondschein

"Benefactors" presented by Keen Company at Theatre Row, April 2, 2011

Photo: Richard Termine, Theatremania

Once again, Carl Forsman and Keen Company prove that producing off-Broadway with a limited budget doesn't have to look like community theatre.  Their current revival of Michael Frayn's Benefactors is a well-paced and thoughtful presentation of two couples in semi-urban London, struggling to be helpful to each other without getting too involved in each other's business.

It's the late 60s and David (Daniel Jenkins) has been assigned the impossible urban renewal task of tearing down a shabby and dying neighborhood, and building new housing to increase the population density, while improving life for the residents.  His wife Jane (Vivienne Benesch) supports the effort, surveying the displaced and helping push the change through.  Neighbors Colin (Stephen Barker Turner) and Sheila (Deanne Lorrette) spend as much or more time at  Daniel and Jane's than they do at home.  Sheila can't quite seem to get ahead of the tasks of running her household, preparing meals and seeing to their two children.  Most days Jane feeds everyone tea and dinner.

Spoiler Alert

the picture of Dorian Gray

Posted by Mondschein


"The Picture of Dorian Gray" at the Kirk Theatre at Theatre Row, February 1, 2010

The source material is a compelling tale of "be careful what you wish for" a la Oscar Wilde.  It's a cautionary tale, much like attending the evening of theatre it presents.

This anachronistic interpretation of Wilde's only novel, with a beautiful cast and an overly aspirational concept, drones for over 90 minutes with no intermission and no hope of entertainment.  It opens with a pretentious tableau in silhouette.  I have no issue with an opening tableau, but the pose was neither revealing nor indicative of the story, other than to put all actors on stage.  The lights rose to reveal a very attractive assembly of actors.  Alas, beauty is only skin deep after all.


Daniel Mitura's adaptation sets the action in 1890s Britain, then seems to dash directly for his latest edition of Bartleby's to snatch every quip ever attributed to Mr. Wilde.  95% of these are given to the role of Henry Wotton (Vayu O'Donnell).  If only Mr. Mitura had spread the love around a bit. (Also, I'm pretty sure that the concept of hip replacement hadn't occurred at the time as mentioned by Henry in one scene, um...dramaturg?)  I fully expected Dorian's (Wil Petre) final words to be "Either that wallpaper goes, or I do!"