The (Curious Case of the) Watson Intelligence

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The (Curious Case of the) Watson Intelligence, at Playwrights Horizons, November 16, 2013

Madeleine George's gimmicky new play, a riff on sidekicks named Watson and their roles in history (real and fictionalized), is Playwrights Horizons' latest commission to reach their mainstage.

The concept has merit, four Watsons all played by the same actor (John Ellison Conlee) flanked by three Mr. and Mrs. Merricks (David Costabile and Amanda Quaid), covering Sherlock Holmes' doctor friend, Alexander Graham Bell's assistant Thomas Watson, a computer repairman dweeb Josh Watson, and a fictional computer successor to IBM's 2011 Watson (a contestant on television's Jeopardy!). 

All That Fall

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"All That Fall" at 59E59 Theatre, November 10, 2013

(Photo by Carol Rosegg)

All was gray - the afternoon, the audience, and for the most part, the somewhat starry cast, featuring Eileen Atkins and Michael Gambon, arrives from London (mostly) in this minimally staged radio play by Samuel Beckett, directed by Trevor Nunn. 

The story, being Beckett, is a bit nihilist, about an older woman of questionable health making her way to meet her blind husband at the train station.  We shuffle along with Mrs. Rooney (Ms. Atkins) as she encounters a menu of rural British characters, the dung peddler Christy (Ruairi Conaghan) on his cart, the retired Mr. Tyler (Frank Grimes) on his bike, the Clerk of the Racecourse Mr. Slocum (Trevor Cooper) in his car, each in advancing means of transportation, but none speeding the dreary tale along.  The aptly named Miss Fitt (Catherine Cusack), a protestant zealot gives Mrs Rooney the final bit of assistance upon arrival at the station.

The Patron Saint of Sea Monsters

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"The Patron Saint of Sea Monsters" at Playwrights Horizons, October 26, 2013

PH continues to develop new work for the stage, with this new play running in their Peter Jay Sharp Theater by Marlane Meyer.  Develop is an accurate description in this case because, in addition to being a preview performance during which new changes were being performed for the first time, the play still needs a lot of work.

The premise is interesting: how people are perceived and how relationships can bring change to those involved either because of, or in spite of those perceptions.  (That's my take, at any rate, since it took well into Act 2 for that theme to emerge.)

Cirque du Soleil - "Quidam"

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"Quidam" presented by Cirque du Soleil at Barclay's Center, July 25, 2013

In a tentless production, Cirque returns to NY with the long-running Quidam for a short stint at the Barclay's Center in Brooklyn.

Quidam, which means "anonymous passerby" originally opened in 1996, converting to its current format for arena staging in 2010 (thanks, Wikipedia!).

When I first discovered Cirque years ago, I was a huge fan, anxiously waiting to find out when the next tour would be performing nearby.  After the third or fourth production, however, my enthusiasm waned.  Perhaps the novelty had worn off compared to the ticket price.

The Silver Cord

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"The Silver Cord" presented by  Peccadillo Theater Company at the Theatre at St. Clement's, June 8, 2013

(Photo by Carol Rosegg)

A tradition of restorative productions is a sometimes unwieldy proposition.  Peccadillo Theater Company continues its residence at the Theatre at St. Clement's with a revival of the 1927 The Silver Cord by Sidney Howard (who won a posthumous Oscar for the screenplay of "Gone With The Wind).  The Silver Cord was something of a hit in its original run, telling the story of how a sociopathic moher interferes in the relationships of her two sons. 
There are obvious factors to support its revival: small cast, minimal costume and set changes.  Before staging this full production, Peccadillo conducted a reading of the play with Charles Busch as the mother.

If only they had been able to sign him for this run.

Macbeth

The National Theater of Scotland's production of "Macbeth" at Ethel Barrymore Theatre, May 20, 2013

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Alan Cumming returns to the Great White Way, reprising his one-man production of the Scottish Play following last summer's visit during the Lincoln Center Festival.

Under the direction of Once director John Tiffany and Andrew Goldberg, it's another riff on Marat/Sade with inmates putting on the play.  Mr. Cumming appears to have arrived after an undisclosed traumatic event, bloodied and confused.  His caretakers (Jenny Sterlin and Brendan Titley) tend his wounds, collect his clothes and tissue from a cheek swab and under his fingernails.  It's something of a next step compared to the 2008 Broadway revival with Patrick Stewart perhaps, but I'm equally unconvinced of this concept as well.

WORKING

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"WORKING" presented by Prospect Theater Company at 59E59 Theatre, December 12, 2012

(photo: Richard Termine)

Prospect Theater Company presents a new re-working of the 1978 musical based on Studs Terkel's book, with two new songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda. 

The streamlined cast of six replaces the seventeen from the original Broadway production, slicing and dicing the remains into a tight 65 intermissionless minutes. 

Director Gordon Greenberg has assembled a talented and capable cast to portray the 25 remaining stories, including Marie-France Arcilla, Joe Cassidy, Donna Lynne Champlin, Jay Armstrong Johnson, Nehal Joshi and Kenita R. Miller. 

Some moments stand out more than others: Ms. Champlin's Rose Hoffman, an aging and out of step teacher who sadly reflects on the degradation of respect for her role in the lives of children over her 45 years in the classroom with Nobody Tells Me How.  She gives another clever moment as the waitress Delores Dante in It's an Art responding to the question, "just a waitress?"  Mr. Johnson gets a nice turn as well as pervy UPS delivery man, Conrad Swibel.
The juxtaposition of Ms. Miller's hooker to Ms. Champlin's high society fundraiser points up how the two roles are more similar than different.

My father always said, "if it were fun, they wouldn't call it 'work'," and for the most part he was right.  Still, of the 25 working stories, there are remarkably few that really expressed any joy.  As much time as we spend working, an uplifting evening of work stories and songs would have more appeal.

WORKING runs through December 30.  Tickets here.

A Chanukah Charol

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"Jackie Hoffman's A Chanukah Charol" at New World Stages, December 8, 2012

Jackie Hoffman's kvetching continues with her new show at New World Stages.  "A Chanukah Charol" is her riff on Patrick Stewart's one-man "A Christmas Carol" retelling her trials and tribulations as an actress in New York.

The mood starts with pre-curtain music of a klezmer band playing Christmas carols. She opens by portraying Mr. Stewart as the narrator of her tale, and she gives a pretty good impersonation. 

Then, she moves into a mix of her ongoing existential career crisis that she's not Victoria Clark or Gertrude Lawrence, along with some new reminiscences of holiday gatherings with her family.  Her Jacob Marley is Molly Picon, telling of incipient visits from the requisite three ghosts, past present and future. The cleverest turn of the three is using Shelley Winters as the Ghost of Chanukah Present.

I've seen just about all of her annual appearances at Joe's Pub and have to say that as much as I liked the concept of this show, I missed her songs that have been part of her cabaret series.  At 75 minutes, it's a small commitment for a bit of fun, Hoffman-style.

"A Chanukah Charol" runs through December 29.  Tickets here.

Falling

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"Falling" at Minetta Lane Theatre, October 14, 2012

(photo: Carol Rosegg)

There's an intense situation happening at Minetta Lane Theatre, courtesy of Deanna Jent's new play making its New York premiere.

18 year old Josh (Daniel Everidge) suffers with fairly extreme autism.  Being over 6 feet tall, weighing well over 200 pounds combined with his occasionally aggressive and violent behavior sets the stakes pretty high. Tami (Julia Murney) and Bill (Daniel Pearce) work very hard to keep their son under control by emphasizing a calm and steady daily routine.  Little sister Lisa (Jacey Powers) just wants it all to go away, but what 14 year old wouldn't?  When Grammy Sue (Celia Howard) visits, bible in hand, she gets a frightening lesson in the reality of her son's family dynamics.  One particularly violent episode sets up Tami to imagine how life with her family might have been different (though its set up could have been a little more clear).

The 75 minute production moves well under the hand of director Lori Adams, handling all the ups and downs of a day in Josh's life.  The life is at times shocking, at time mundane, which makes it ever more real.  She draws excellent performances from her cast.

Most notable is Mr. Everidge, the mercurial, autistic giant among his caretakers.  His Josh is an emotional 2 year old in the body of a full grown man, completely unfiltered and uninhibited.  Ms. Murney's Tami verges on exhaustion from the effort it takes to keep herself and her family on track.  She struggles a bit in the moments of vulnerability but overall captures the drive to move forward.

John Stark has created a realistic setting for this stressed family, punctuated with the requisite child-friendly elements that would help manage a child like Josh. Tristan Raine's costumes and Julie Mack's lighting support without drawing attention to themselves.

Falling is on an open-ended run.  Get tickets here.

Heresy

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"Heresy" at The Flea, October 13, 2012

(photo: Hunter Canning)

In a new world premiere, the prolific A. R. Gurney returns to The Flea with an overwrought story set in the near future.  Mary (Annette O'Toole) and Joseph (Steve Mellor) have come to Homeland Security because their protesting  and unseen son, Chris, has been taken into custody during the latest crackdown. It is here that they must put their case before Pontius Pilate (Reg E. Cathey).

Get it?

Ten Chimneys

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"Ten Chimneys" presented by The Peccadillo Theater Company at the Theatre at St. Clement's , September 29, 2012

(photo: Carol Rosegg)

I was excited to see this play billed as a peek into the backstage lives of Alfred Lunt and Lynne Fontanne, who ruled the English and American stages before, during and after WWII.  It seemed great fodder for a clever and glittering evening.

Instead, playwright Jeffery Hatcher brings us a bit of theatre history as Alfred and Lynnie prepare for the 1938 revival of Chekov's The Seagull.  Had he done only that, it still could have been that evening of sophistication for which I had hoped.

Triassic Parq, The Musical

"Triassic Park, The Musical"at Soho Playhouse, June 23, 2012

If you're looking for a bit of cool summer froth, head downtown.

Mixing the metaphors of Gregory Maguire (Wicked), Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis (Urinetown), and Douglas Carter Beane (Lysistrata Jones), creators Marshall Pailet, Bryce Norbitz and Stephen Wargo spin the tale that "...is not Jurassic Park..." from the perspective of the dinosaurs.

Rapture, Blister, Burn

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"Rapture, Blister, Burn" at Playwrights Horizons, May 26, 2012

Pulitzer prize nominee Gina Gionfriddo returns Off-Broadway with a sharp look at feminism, presented in a semi-scholarly love triangle.  Catherine (Amy Brennerman) has returned to take care of her mother (Beth Dixon) after a heart attack, also in the same town where her college ex-boyfriend Don (Lee Tergesen) now serves as a dean at a local liberal arts college and is married to Catherine's college roommate Gwen (Kelley Overbey). 

In college, Catherine chose a life of academia and has published several high profile books on popular culture and the role of women.  Gwen never finished her degree, taking the path of wife and mother, instead.  Don, once with great scholarly potential and a desire to teach, has fallen into the path of inertia, working only as hard as he needs to, to make ends meet.  His position as dean pays better than teaching, yet requires less mental engagement to get the job done. 

Ghost, the Musical

"Ghost, the Musical" at Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, April 20, 2012

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Yes, another Whoopi Goldberg film has made its way onto the stage, landing at the Lunt-Fontanne laden with scads of sparkling, flashy lights and some remarkably clever stagecraft.  Yet, like its predecessors (The Color Purple, and Sister Act), the results are mixed at best.  (Full disclosure, I did not see The Color Purple.) 


Bruce Joel Rubin's cursory book remains true to the film, telling the story of Sam (Richard Fleeshman) and Molly (Caissie Levy), young lovers parted by Sam's murder at the hands of a hired thug.  Unable to move "into the light" Sam eventually connects with Oda Mae (Da'Vine Joy Randolph), a two-bit psychic with heretofore unrealized abilities.

Macbeth

"Macbeth" presented by Aquila Theatre at Gym at Judson, April 21, 2012

I first encountered Aquila when the company was in residence at the University of South Carolina.  Their approach to theatre was one of minimal production values but highly clever direction and staging.  Their production of The Iliad was eye-opening as they created the Argo using only a half dozen 6 foot poles. Aquila moved to New York in 1999 and has produced here regularly along with national tours and international performances. 

Assistance

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"Assistance" at Playwrights Horizons, February 9, 2012

Traveling familiar ground, the latest offering at the very consistent Playwrights Horizons is Leslye Headland's Assistance, about the struggling underclass of capitalist serfs, suffering at the hands of an unseen tyrant.  In this case the invisible antagonist is Daniel Weisinger, a highly volatile agent/representative (Barry Diller-like, perhaps?) in an unnamed industry, who wields fear, loathing and admiration from a series of put-upon administrative assistants.  At the top of the play, Vince, a slick and smarmy Lucas Near-Verbrugghe, celebrates the last day of his sentence before stepping up into a coveted "director" role (also undefined).  Following him up the corporate ladder is Nick, a likable Michael Esper, who takes on the part of chief torturer among the cadre of assistants.  Advancement comes at a high price.  Even Vince has to knuckle under to Daniel vagaries in his last moments as servant.

Psycho Therapy

"Psycho Therapy" at Cherry Lane Theatre, February 6, 2012

In its return to regular programming for the 2011-2012 season, Cherry Lane Theatre brings us Frank Strausser's new comedy.  It's a bit fluffy, and could easily have been adapted into an episode of Frasier.  Actually, that might have been a better idea.

In this intermissionless, 90 minute, four-hander, we meet early-middle-aged Lily (Angelica Page), torn between the good-on-paper Philip (Laurence Lau) and the much younger and significantly richer Dorian (Jeffrey Carlson), all during couples therapy with psychologist Nancy (Jan Leslie Harding). Neuroses abound, from Nancy's chocolate fetish, to Lily's inability to choose, to Philip's fear of commitment to Dorian's fear of being alone.

"Milk Like Sugar" at Playwrights Horizons, October 21, 2011

A few years ago, there were news reports of unhappy high school girls who formed pacts to all get pregnant and drop out of school.  Playwright Kirsten Greenidge has written this concept into the premise of Milk Like Sugar, in which Talisha (Cherise Boothe), Margie (Nikiya Mathis) and Annie (Angela Lewis) are planning their gift list for their shared baby shower including Coach diaper bags and better cellphones.  Margie is already pregnant. Talisha has plans in place.  Only Annie seems to be dragging her feet even though Talisha has picked out a partner for her as well, Malik (J. Mallory-McCree).

As the play opens, the girls have turned up at a tattoo parlor after hours for Annie to get free ink from an uncertified tattooist.  This only one in a continuing series of bad decisions.  Annie's mother Myrna (Tonya Pinkins), cleans offices to support her family.  She fancies herself a writer,  but doesn't seem to understand why she can't use the computers in the offices she cleans.

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.

Unnatural Acts

"Unnatural Acts" at Classic Stage Company, June 18, 2011

This new dramatization by the Plastic Theatre chronicles the events leading up to the "secret court" hearings conducted by Harvard University in 1920, following the apparent suicide of Cyril Wilcox.

Amit Paley, a student journalist for The Harvard Crimson, discovered a reference to the incident in university archives.  Harvard eventually allowed Mr. Paley to review the documents, prompting Tony Speciale of Plastic Theatre to make his own investigation.