Fire and Air

D

It is sad to think that this amorphous mess came from the pen of four-time Tony winner Terrence McNally. How the mighty have fallen! If there was any point to this Cliff Notes version of the career of ballet impresario Sergei Diaghilev, I failed to grasp it. If you arrive knowing the reasons for his importance to the arts of the early 20th century, you will disappointed by the needy man-child portrayed here (by the miscast Douglas Hodge; La Cage aux Folles). If you don’t know his importance beforehand, you will wonder why you should waste two hours with this unpleasant man. At least his entourage includes some interesting characters played by topnotch actors — his cousin and long-ago lover Dmitry Filosofov (John Glover; Love! Valour! Compassion!), his longtime friend and patron Misia Sert (Marin Mazzie; Bullets Over Broadway, Carrie) and his nurse since childhood Dunya (Marsha Mason; The Goodbye Girl). We also meet his great love, the dancer Vaslav Nijinsky (James Cusati-Moyer; Six Degrees of Separation), whose career he obsessively molded, and who broke his heart. Finally, we are introduced to his next protege Leonide Massine (Jay Armstrong Johnson; On the Town). To hold the interest of at least part of the audience, Cusati-Moyer and Johnson remove their shirts as often as possible. Periodically Diaghilev spouts something pretentious when he is not kvetching about his boils or his fear of water. At intermission, I could not imagine that it could get worse, but I was wrong. The second act is excruciating with embarrassing surrealistic touches. It was a thoroughly dispiriting experience. Costumes were by Ann Hould-Ward (Allegro, Pacific Overtures). CSC artistic director John Doyle (Allegro, Pacific Overtures) designed the set and directed. Running time: two hours including intermission. NOTE: Seats in Row A are armless.