A well-timed tax refund gave me an excuse to indulge my inner child and spend a king’s ransom on a ticket for this award-winning two-part extravaganza from London. As an avid fan of the seven Potter novels and eight films, I was curious to see how well J.K. Rowling’s creations would translate to the stage. Clearly the producers expected a very long run or they would not have invested $60+ million on a stunning renovation of the Lyric Theatre. Because of all the hype, I was afraid that the play by Jack Thorne, based on a story by Rowling, Thorne and John Tiffany, could not live up to my high expectations. My fears were, to some extent, justified. The play, set 22 years after the end of the last novel, has a timeless theme — the fraught relationship between parent and child — particularly father/son. The plot device of time travel opens up the opportunity for several clever touches. There is a wonderful cast of 40, mostly imported from London, a striking set design by Christine Jones evocatively lit by Neil Austin, terrific movement direction by Steven Hoggett, excellent costumes by Katrina Lindsay and seamless direction by John Tiffany. The illusions and magic by Jamie Harrison are often breathtaking. We meet Albus Potter (Sam Clemmett), awkward younger son of Harry (Jamie Parker) and Ginny Potter (Poppy Miller), as he is about to begin his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Ron Weasley (the droll Paul Thornley) and his wife Hermione Granger (the terrific Noma Dumezweni) are also seeing their daughter off to Hogwarts. On the train, Albus befriends the nerdy Scorpius Malfoy (the wonderful Anthony Boyle), son of Harry’s archrival at Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy (Alex Price). The relationship of the two outcast boys reaches bromance proportions. The problem for me was that I found the plot both convoluted and repetitious. It did not succeed in holding my interest for over five hours. Even though I consider myself fairly well-versed in the Potter canon, I occasionally became confused. At times, the British accents were surprisingly difficult to understand. Unless you are familiar with either the novels or the movies, you will be totally lost trying to figure out what is going on or why the audience is wildly applauding the appearance of a new character. While I am not sorry I saw the show, I would have enjoyed it more if there had been less of it. I suspect it is critic-proof and will run for several years. Running time: about 2 hours 40 minutes for each of the two parts, including an intermission.
Showing posts with label John Tiffany. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Tiffany. Show all posts
Thursday, April 26, 2018
Sunday, September 29, 2013
The Glass Menagerie ***
(Please click on the title to see the complete review.)
Whenever the critics seem to be competing to see who can lavish the most praise on a play, I begin to worry that I am being set up for disappointment. To some extent, that is the case here. While I will grant that the current Broadway version of Tennessee Williams' iconic early masterpiece, under the direction of John Tiffany, has an intelligent unified vision, I do not think that it is a definitive version for the ages. Bob Crowley's symbolic set emphasizing the isolation from reality of the Wingfields' apartment is an interesting choice. Nico Muhly's incidental music is quietly evocative. Steven Hoggett's stylized movement design seemed more often a distraction than an asset. Crowley's costumes for the women seemed off -- Amanda's gown in the last act seemed better suited to Miss Havisham. To my surprise, the main disappointment for me was Cherry Jones as Amanda. I found her monotonously strident and lacking any trace of vulnerability in the early scenes. Zachary Quinto made a fine Tom. The scene between Laura (Celia Keenan-Bolger) and the gentleman caller (Brian J. Smith) was beautifully rendered. I feel like Scrooge, but I can't honestly say that I was swept away by this production. I liked it, but I didn't love it. Running time: 2 hours, 45 minutes including intermission.
Whenever the critics seem to be competing to see who can lavish the most praise on a play, I begin to worry that I am being set up for disappointment. To some extent, that is the case here. While I will grant that the current Broadway version of Tennessee Williams' iconic early masterpiece, under the direction of John Tiffany, has an intelligent unified vision, I do not think that it is a definitive version for the ages. Bob Crowley's symbolic set emphasizing the isolation from reality of the Wingfields' apartment is an interesting choice. Nico Muhly's incidental music is quietly evocative. Steven Hoggett's stylized movement design seemed more often a distraction than an asset. Crowley's costumes for the women seemed off -- Amanda's gown in the last act seemed better suited to Miss Havisham. To my surprise, the main disappointment for me was Cherry Jones as Amanda. I found her monotonously strident and lacking any trace of vulnerability in the early scenes. Zachary Quinto made a fine Tom. The scene between Laura (Celia Keenan-Bolger) and the gentleman caller (Brian J. Smith) was beautifully rendered. I feel like Scrooge, but I can't honestly say that I was swept away by this production. I liked it, but I didn't love it. Running time: 2 hours, 45 minutes including intermission.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Once **
(Please click on the title to see the complete review).
Clearly the producers of this musical based on the popular 2006 Irish movie knew what they were doing when they moved it uptown from the New York Theatre Workshop. As I looked around, I guessed that the audience probably had a median age in the low 30's. Not only were they young -- they were enthusiastic, greeting every song with raucous applause and every line of dialogue with peals of laughter. A festive mood is established by the musicians playing lively Irish music onstage before the play. The onstage bar service, which was repeated at intermission, didn't hurt either. The cast of musician-actors, led by Steve Kazee as Guy and Cristin Milioti as Girl, is extremely talented. The cozy bar setting by Bob Crowley is most inviting. It seems almost ungracious of me to admit that I didn't much care for the show. The dividing line between charming and trite was crossed too often for my taste. But so what? I applaud the producers for attracting a young, involved audience to Broadway. Unless you are a major fan of the film or of Irish music, you may want to skip it. Send your grandchildren instead. Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova wrote the songs, Enda Walsh wrote the book and John Tiffany directed. Running time: 2 hours, 25 minutes including intermission.
Clearly the producers of this musical based on the popular 2006 Irish movie knew what they were doing when they moved it uptown from the New York Theatre Workshop. As I looked around, I guessed that the audience probably had a median age in the low 30's. Not only were they young -- they were enthusiastic, greeting every song with raucous applause and every line of dialogue with peals of laughter. A festive mood is established by the musicians playing lively Irish music onstage before the play. The onstage bar service, which was repeated at intermission, didn't hurt either. The cast of musician-actors, led by Steve Kazee as Guy and Cristin Milioti as Girl, is extremely talented. The cozy bar setting by Bob Crowley is most inviting. It seems almost ungracious of me to admit that I didn't much care for the show. The dividing line between charming and trite was crossed too often for my taste. But so what? I applaud the producers for attracting a young, involved audience to Broadway. Unless you are a major fan of the film or of Irish music, you may want to skip it. Send your grandchildren instead. Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova wrote the songs, Enda Walsh wrote the book and John Tiffany directed. Running time: 2 hours, 25 minutes including intermission.
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