Let's Love!

C-

 

For the fourth time, Atlantic Theater Company artistic director Neil Pepe has presented and directed a collection of one-act plays by Ethan Coen. I had seen two of the earlier programs and had been disappointed twice. I would have skipped the latest one, lamely and misleadingly titled Let’s Love!, if not for the casting of the charismatic Aubrey Plaza, whose fan I have been since the second season of “The White Lotus.” Alas, her inclusion is not enough to rescue this trio of uninspired, unrelated short plays. The first is basically a pair of monologues in a bar, in which a white woman of a certain age (Mary McCann) tries to pick up a middle-age black man (Dion Graham). Except for a couple of one-liners, the dialog is weak and McCann’s performance is bland. The middle and longest piece features Plaza as Susan, a foul-mouthed, hard-hearted woman for whom sex is primarily a bargaining chip. Plaza is fine, but the role doesn’t give her much range. Chris Bauer is a hoot as the man she hires to beat up her ex-boyfriend Dan, a thankless, underwritten role played by CJ Wilson. His current girlfriend Faye is overacted by Mary Wiseman using an intentionally annoying high-pitched voice. The final scene of this piece, between Plaza and the ever-reliable Noah Robbins, playing a nerd she meets on J-Date, was the highlight of the afternoon for me. It has very little connection to the other scenes and would be fine as a stand-alone. The final play features Robbins again, this time as a young man on a first date with Dylan Gelula, whose dinner out is ruined by his sudden case of food poisoning, which strangely turns out to be a bonding experience that promises to be the start of a relationship. As if in recognition of the fact that Coen’s plays provide insufficient entertainment, the production adds a prelude and interludes with Nellie McKay, singing, playing the piano, the guitar and a harmonica and dressed in a variety of costumes from top hat and tails to folk singer garb. Her voice is sweet and the songs are pleasant, although they have no bearing whatever on the plays. A musical finale with the entire cast also seems unrelated to anything else, but it is fun to see Plaza play a mean sax. The set by Riccardo Hernandez is functional and the costumes by Peggy Schneider are apt. Honesty compels me to report that the audience seemed to be thoroughly enjoying everything. Nevertheless, I feel that this production was not up to Atlantic’s usually high standards. Dress warmly; the theater was chilly. Running time: 90 minutes, no intermission.

 

 

Ragtime

A

For her first production as Artistic Director of Lincoln Center Theater, Lear deBessonet has basically imported last year’s City Center staging of Ragtime, with some enhancements, to the Vivian Beaumont Theater. In principle, this seems like a lazy way to start her new job, but the results are so satisfying that you won’t hear any complaints from me. The production is superb in every way – cast, musicians, costumes and set. The combination of Stephen Flaherty’s music and Lynn Ahrens’ lyrics is a match made in heaven. Terrence McNally’s book is a marvel at preserving the complexity of E.R. Doctorow’s 1975 novel for the stage. In a top-notch cast, Joshua Henry stands out with his powerful version of Coalhouse Walker Jr. Caissie Levy makes an excellent Mother and Brandon Uranowitz excels as Tateh. Colin Donnell as Father, Nichelle Lewis as Sarah and Ben Levi Ross as Mother’s Younger Brother are all fine. Shaina Taub as Emma Goldman, Anna Grace Barlow as Evelyn Nesbit, John Clay III as Booker T. Washington and Rodd Cyrus as Houdini all make the most of their small but important roles. Nick Barrington as The Little Boy holds his own with the adults. Tabitha Lawing as The Little Girl doesn’t get much chance to shine. The large orchestra, under James Moore’s baton, makes the score sound wonderful. Ellenore Scott’s choreography understatedly adds much to the production. Linda Cho’s period costumes are a visual treat. David Korins’ set design makes good use of the power of suggestion: the house in New Rochelle is captured in a fragment of façade, a doorway and a staircase. Rolling stairways become multipurposed props. Backdrops and projections are used sparingly but effectively. I felt no sense of watching a bare-bones concert version. The bottom line is that this is a wonderful addition to the New York season and bodes well for deBessonet’s tenure. Running time: two hours, 50 minutes with a 15-minute intermission.

Sondheim's Old Friends

A

This stellar revue, a hit in London, has moved into Manhattan Theatre Club’s Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, with Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga heading a largely new cast of 19 superb performers. Unfortunately, Lea Salonga was out for the performance I attended, but her songs were ably performed by other cast members. To winnow the songs down to 40 must have been a challenging task for deviser/producer Cameron Mackintosh. He opted to include songs from West Side Story and Gypsy, shows for which Sondheim wrote just the lyrics, but it’s hard to fault him for that because they are such great numbers. The organizing principle was not one I could grasp; songs from some shows are scattered through the revue while songs from others, such as Sweeney Todd, are presented in a block. There were very few that were new to me.

Other than the amazing Bernadette Peters (Into the Woods, Sunday in the Park with George), who doesn’t seem to age, the only name I recognized was Beth Leavel (The Prom, The Drowsy Chaperone). Joanna Riding is a two-time Olivier winner for best actress in a musical. The other cast members are Jacob Dickey, Kevin Early, Jasmine Forsberg, Kate Jennings Grant, Bonnie Langford, Gavin Lee, Jason Pennycooke, Jeremy Secomb, Kyle Selig, Maria Wirries, Daniel Yearwood, Paige Faure, Alexa Lopez, Greg Mills and Peter Neureuther.

With so many excellent numbers, it’s hard to pick standouts, but I particularly enjoyed Riding’s “Getting Married Today,” Grant and Peters’ “Children Will Listen,” Secomb’s “The Ballad of Sweeney Todd,” Langford’s“ The Worst Pies in London” and “I’m Still Here” and Leavel’s “The Ladies Who Lunch.” I especially liked some of the ensemble numbers in Act II including “Tonight Quintet,” “Broadway Baby” and “Not a Day Goes By.”
The scenic design by Matt Kinley is simple with lights circling arches and edging stairs. There were two side structures that were rolled in for the numbers from “West Side Story” and “Sweeney Todd” that I assume were deliberately ugly to reflect the grimness of their settings. Large projected images of Sondheim surround the proscenium The costumes by Jill Parker featured lots of sequins, mostly in black with a few in color. The excellent orchestra of 17 sounded louder than its size. The choreography by Stephen Mear was smoothly integrated into the songs. Matthew Bourne, credited with direction and musical staging, held everything together to produce a satisfying whole.

My one complaint is an ongoing one about today’s Broadway musicals – overamplification. The loud decibel warning on my Apple watch went off at least once. Sondheim’s lyrics are such an important part of his appeal that one does not want to have them muddied by poor sound design. Fortunately, the problem was intermittent rather than constant and not enough to spoil the experience. 

If you are a Sondheim fan, two and a half hours of pure pleasure awaits you on 47^th Street.
 

Oh, Mary!

B-

When a show receives universal praise and is the hottest ticket on Broadway, there's always a risk that I will have sky-high expectations for it and end up disappointed. That's what happened here. Cole Escola has written a wacky piece of alternate history that portrays Mary Todd Lincoln (Escola) as a former cabaret singer driven to drink by her frustration over having to give up her beloved career. Her husband (Conrad Ricamora) is fighting not only the Civil War, but also his preference for sex with men, especially his naive assistant (Tony Macht.) He has engaged Louise (Bianca Leigh) as Mary's companion to keep her out of trouble, without much success. Finally he hires a handsome acting teacher (James Scully) from a renowned family of actors for her, dangling the vague prospect of her eventual appearance onstage. When Mary accidentally learns Abe's true plans, she does not take it well. Although the play was clearly intended as a showpiece for Escola, he (I refuse to use they as a singular) has been generous to the other actors and gives each a moment to shine. The production values are higher than you would expect in an off-Broadway export. The scenic design by dots is effective, Holly Pierson's costumes are delightful and Leah J. Loukas deserves special mention for Mary's wig with "bratty curls." Sam Pinkleton's precise direction keeps the momentum up. At 80 minutes without intermission, the play still seemed overextended with too many middling stretches between the high points. I knew the humor would be coarse, but I expected it to have more wit and fewer cheap shots. Audience laughter was almost constant, but didn't sound heartfelt. Maybe I just got up on the wrong side of bed. All the critics loved it and it just extended its run again.

Forbidden Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song

B

 

For 40 years, writer/creator/director Gerard Alessandrini has been entertaining New Yorkers with his clever parodies of Broadway musicals. The 23^rd edition of his Forbidden Broadway series, subtitled “Merrily We Stole a Song,” is now in previews at Theater 555. The show opens with a strong number tracing the development of “Cabaret”’s emcee from Joel Grey to Alan Cumming to Eddie Redmayne. As the subtitle suggests, a substantial portion of the parodied shows this time are Sondheim shows and a slender narrative thread tied to “Back to the Future” suggests what would have happened if he had chosen a career in automobile design instead of musical composition. The show’s Bernadette Peters stand-in shares her disappointment over never having created a Sondheim role. Josh Grobin is called out for being so nice he turned “Sweeney Todd” into Sweety Todd. Daniel Radcliffe is credited for using his Harry Potter magic to finally make “Merrily…” a success. Since I did not see “Suffs,” “Outsiders,” “& Juliet” or “Hells Kitchen,” I can’t evaluate the segments on those shows. This edition is not only up to the minute but actually ahead of the curve, because it includes a skit about Audra’s Mama Rose from “Gypsy” before the show even opens later this Fall. Like any collection of skits, the quality varies, but I would have to say that the general level of inspiration doesn’t seem quite as high as I remember. Nevertheless, the cast of four – Chris Collins-Pisano, Danny Hayward, Nicole Vanessa Ortiz and Jenny Lee Stern – are all very talented and worth seeing in action. Fred Barton is topnotch as musical director/pianist. Gerry McIntire’s choreography is apt, and Dustin Cross’s costumes are inspired. If you enjoy musicals, you are likely to have a good time. Running time: 90 minutes, no intermission.

Once Upon a Mattress

B+

The widely acclaimed Encores production of this 1959 Broadway show with music by Mary Rogers, book by Jay Thompson, Marshall Barer and Dean Fuller, and lyrics by Barer has transferred comfortably to the Hudson Theatre. The book, which sometimes seems patched together and a bit padded, is a sly retelling of the fairy tale of The Princess and the Pea. Sutton Foster, with the unenviable task of following in the footsteps of Carol Burnett, who created the role of Princess Winnifred, is a resounding success. Her madcap physical humor raises slapstick to astral heights and her voice is fine too. She is the main reason to see the show. Until she appears well into the first act, things are becoming a bit draggy, but when she is onstage, the audience is fully engaged. One of the main reasons I wanted to see the show was because Michael Urie was playing Prince Dauntless. Unfortunately, he was out for my performance. His understudy, Daniel Beeman, was perfectly respectable, but lacked the extra spark that Urie brings to his roles.  Ana Gasteyer makes a fine strong-willed Queen Aggravain and David Patrick Kelly does well as King Sextimus the Silent. Will Chase and Nikki Renee Daniels are appealing as the young lovers, Sir Harry and Lady Larken. Brooks Ashmanskas is droll as the wizard. Daniel Breaker does what he can with the underwritten role of the jester. The scenic design by David Zinn is typical for a show that originated at Encores, with a few platforms deep enough to hold chairs and other props in front of the orchestra filling the back of the stage. There are lots of banners, some with anachronistic pictures, e.g. a NYC taxi, for which I did not see the point. The costumes by Andrea Hood are bright and colorful. The choreography by Lauren Latarro is lively. The direction by Lear deBessonet keeps thing moving smoothly. The music serves the show well and the lyrics are often clever. If your funny bone could use a good tickle, this is the show for you. Running time: two hours fifteen minutes including intermission.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                 

N/A

 A-

In his new play at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, Mario Correa (Tail! Spin!) presents his take on the relationship between Nancy Pelosi (Holland Taylor, Ann) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (Ana Villafañe, On Your Feet!) during the period between AOC’s surprise upset of the incumbent in the 2018 primary to the days after Pelosi’s decision to step down as House Democratic leader in 2022. How much of their conversations is based on fact and how much on invention is unclear; in the playwright’s words in a program note: “The play is heavily researched and lightly imagined.” Whether fact-based or not, the dialog is lively and often very funny. Between the one-line zingers, each one makes a strong case for her own view of political philosophy and strategy. Correa scrupulously does not put his finger on the scale. Both actors are fine. Villafañe’s resemblance to AOC is uncanny. Myung Hee Cho’s (Breaking the Story) costumes are apt; her minimalist set is supplemented by the sparing but intelligent use of projections by Possible. Diane Paulus (Pippin, Waitress) directs with a sure hand. All in all, it was a very enjoyable afternoon. Running time: 80 minutes.

NOTE: Although this play is at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, it is not a production of Lincoln Center Theater.