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I was surprised to learn that JC Lee (Luce), the author of this new play in previews at MCC Theater, is a man. I erroneously assumed that a play about the battle between two feminists of differing generation and race must have been written by a woman. Perhaps it needed a woman to more clearly articulate what is at stake in their struggle. In any case, it came across to me as a muddled look at important issues. From moment to moment, it is hard to tell whether Theresa (the always wonderful Jayne Houdyshell; A Doll's House Part 2, The Humans), an established author on women’s issues, is really interested in defending truth in academia or just fighting to keep rising star Msemaji (the superb Pascale Armand; Eclipsed) from taking over her spotlight. Although Theresa loathes social media where everyone, no matter how stupid, has equal voice, when she discovers unsubstantiated evidence online that Msemaji may have misrepresented her biographical details, she is tempted to weaponize the information. The arguments about gender and race put forth by Theresa and Msemaji seemed circular and repetitive. There are two supporting characters — Kelly (Molly Camp; The Heiress, Close Up Space), moderator of their debate at an academic conference, and David (Richard Masur; Democracy, Olive and the Bitter Herbs), Theresa’s literary agent. The role of Kelly is satirized too broadly and David’s character seemed mainly there as a plot contrivance. The lack of a sympathetic character was an obstacle for me. The scenic design by Clint Ramos (Once on This Island, The Village Bike), with its revolving set and sliding panels and the projection design by Jeanette Oi-Suk Yew were perfectly executed. The set for the hotel room has an LED cityscape outside the window that was so eye-catching that I became more interested in watching it transform than in paying attention to the actors. The costumes by Jacob A. Climer (Kid Victory) were spot-on. Director Liesl Tommy (Eclipsed) did her best with a shaky script. I wish that the script were up to the high level of the production. To me, this is one more case where a play was rushed into production before it was ready. Running time: one hour 45 minutes; no intermission.

Eclipsed ****

It’s hard to imagine that the same playwright Danai Gurira wrote both “Familiar” and “Eclipsed.” The former play was an enjoyable comedy of manners with African undercurrents. “Eclipsed “ is a devastating drama about the lives of four Liberian women living in a rebel compound as “wives” of the general. Gurira vividly differentiates her characters and captures their blend of cooperation and competition. Wife #1 (Saycon Sengbloh) was captured as a teenager and has come to accept her life. Wife #3 (Pascale Armand), several years younger, is flighty and pregnant. They unsuccessfully attempt to hide The Girl (Lupita Nyong’o), a teenager who has fled to the compound, to prevent her from becoming Wife #4. It turns out that Wife #2 (Zainab Jah) has become a hardened rebel soldier; armed with a rifle, she will be no man’s victim. Wife #1 is too proud and scornful to accept her assistance when she periodically returns to the compound. Rita (Akosua Busia), part of a visiting delegation of city women trying to end the civil war, takes an interest in the wives. She tries to get them to use their given names so they can reconnect with their past and see a future. Wife #2 recruits The Girl as a soldier. An uncertain future awaits at war’s end. The ensemble acting is exceptional with Nyong’o a standout. Except for a few slow moments in the first act, the play is consistently gripping. The set and costumes by Clint Ramos are evocative. Liesl Tommy’s direction is assured. Running time: 2 1/2 hours including intermission.

Belleville ***

(Please click on the title to see the complete review.)
I have extremely mixed feelings concerning Amy Herzog's thriller about the unraveling of a codependent relationship. On the one hand, the production values of this New York Theatre Workshop production are superb -- the acting (by Maria Dizza and Greg Keller as the couple and Pascale Armand and Phillip James Brannon as the landlords of their Parisian flat), direction (by Anne Kauffman), set design (by Julia C. Lee), costumes (by Mark Nagle) and sound design (by Robert Kaplowitz). As in her previous work, Herzog excels at creating vivid characters and capturing the twisted patterns of communications in close relationships. Also admirable is the way she builds a feeling of menace and paranoia. On the other hand, I found the big reveal about what underlies the current situation disconcertingly implausible and the denouement (annoyingly in French) unnecessary. Although Annie Baker seems to be the current darling of the lemming critics, I'll stick with Amy Herzog even at less than her best. Running time: one hour, 40 minutes; no intermission.