Summer Shorts: Series B

B

The second installment of this year’s one-act play festival at 59E59 Theater B begins with a work by Share White (The True, The Other Place), and concludes with one by Neil LaBute (The Shape of Things, Reasons To Be Pretty). In between, we get a comedic piece by Nancy Bleemer (Centennial Casting) which will become part of a trilogy. In White’s piece “Lucky,” set in the late 1940’s, we meet Meredith (Christine Spang; The Drunken City), a war bride whose husband Phil (Blake DeLong; Illyria) has mysteriously not returned home after WWII. She knows only that, although uninjured, he had been in a hospital. When she learns that he has just returned to town, she rushes to his hotel room to confront him. For a long — too long — time, all she gets from the sullen Phil is one-word responses that do not explain why he had not returned or whether he planned to stay. The answer is not worth the wait. One annoying quirk is that Phil performs the entire play with shaving cream on his sideburns. The festival’s artistic director J.J. Kandel (Sparring Partner) directed. In “Providence,” Bleemer introduces us to Michael (Jake Robinson; Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil) and Renee (Blair Lewin), a mostly happily married couple who are spending a sleepless night in the narrow bed of Michael’s childhood bedroom on the night before his sister's wedding. Their 3 a.m. conversation attracts the attention of Pauly (Nathan Wallace), the nervous groom-to-be, who seeks their advice on what married couples can talk about. Apparently his parents were not big on conversation. Pauly’s intrusion exposes a few fault lines in their marriage, but one has no doubt that all will be fine. The characters are likable and their comical situation is fun to watch. Ivey Lowe directed. LaBute’s “Appomatox” shows the playwright in much better form than he displayed in his three one-act plays last winter. We meet buttoned-down Caucasian Joe (Jack Mikesell; The Nap) and seemingly easy-going African-American Frank (Ro Boddie; Socrates) who get together weekly to have lunch and toss the ball. Joe shares his enthusiasm about Georgetown students’ vote to pay $27.20 in extra fees to atone for the university’s sale of 270 slaves. He is puzzled by Frank’s complete lack of enthusiasm and pushes him to explain his reasons. Their conversation gradually escalates into dangerous territory that casts doubt on the possibility of interracial understanding. LaBute builds the tension skillfully and all too convincingly. Duane Boutté's (LOL) direction is assured. It was by far the most substantive offering of this year’s festival. Running time: 90 minutes, no intermission.

The True

B

This new play by Sharr White (The Other Place), now at The New Group, offers a wonderful vehicle for Edie Falco’s return to the New York stage. For many, including me, that is sufficient reason to celebrate. Better yet, she is supported by a terrific cast that includes Michael McKean (The Little Foxes, Hairspray), Peter Scolari (Lucky Guy, Sly Fox), Glen Fitzgerald (Ripcord, Lobby Hero) and John Pankow (Dada Woof, Papa Hot; "Episodes"). The setting is 1977 Albany where potty-mouthed, no-nonsense Polly Noonan (Falco; Frankie and Johnnie in the Claire de Lune, House of Blue Leaves, “The Sopranos”) has been working as assistant to Mayor Erastus Corning II (McKean) for 35 years. Her long-suffering husband Peter (Scolari) has learned to survive by keeping a low profile and trying to ignore rumors that his wife is more than Corning’s assistant. Corning has been not only a boss but a close friend to Polly and Peter. When the death of the local Democratic Party chairman sets off a power struggle, Corning suddenly and mysteriously cuts off relations with the Noonans. Discovering the reason is the rather weak hook on which the plot is hung. Despite the pain of being frozen out, Polly loyally plows ahead to insure Corning’s success in an upcoming primary. During her efforts, she meets secretly with slick Howard Nolan (Fitzgerald), the man running against Corning, and wily Charlie Ryan (Pankow), the politician pulling Nolan’s strings. In a related subplot, Polly invites Bill McCormack (Austin Caldwell; Intimacy), a dim young man she is attempting to recruit to Corning’s team, over for dinner with hilarious results. Sharr has a flair for snappy dialogue, but resorts to shouting matches a bit too often. The view seen here is enough to make one nostalgic for the heyday of urban machine politics where the worst sculduggery was an envelope with a $5 bill in it on election day. The depiction of how little opportunity there was for a strong woman in 1977 politics reveals one aspect of the down side of that era. The main feature of Derek McLane’s (Jerry Springer — The Opera, Sweet Charity) set is floor-to-ceiling bookcases decorated with a variety of table lamps that initially depicts the Noonan’s home and morphs, with varying degrees of success, to several other locations. The period costumes by Clint Ramos (Sweet Charity, Violet) are spot-on. Scott Elliott (Good for Otto, Evening at the Talk House) directs with assurance. It’s not a wonderful play, but it’s quite entertaining. Running time: one hour 45 minutes, no intermission.

Annapurna **

It's beginning to look like the promise that playwright Sharr White demonstrated with "The Other Place" will not be fulfilled. His next play seen in NY, "Snow Geese" at Manhattan Theatre Club, was an ambitious but unfocused family drama that made my 10 Worst List for last year. Now along comes this flawed two-hander at The New Group, starring real-life couple Karen Mullally and Nick Offerman, best-known for their roles in sitcoms -- "Will and Grace" and "Parks and Recreation," respectively. Offerman plays Ulysses, a once-successful poet and professor, now dying of emphysema and lung cancer in a messy trailer in the Colorado Rockies. Mullally is Emma, his ex-wife, who ran off with their five-year-old son Sam in the middle of the night 20 years ago and who suddenly turns up unexpectedly on his doorstep. Apprently her second marriage has also failed. This set-up sounds promising and the play begins with a few lively scenes separated by blackouts. Then, unfortunately, the scenes get longer -- much longer -- and less lively. The answer to the question of why Emma left so suddenly with their son way back when, is very gradually teased out, with much verbal padding along the way. The truth that is more or less revealed seemed to me full of logical holes which I cannot discuss without telling too much. Offerman is superb; he knows how to command a stage. Mullally is strangely restrained and a bit monotonous. The set design by Thomas A. Walsh and costumes by Ann Closs-Farley are first-rate. Bart DeLorenzo's direction was problematic for me: the tone and pace of the first few minutes suddenly turn into something quite different from the tone he has established. Running time: 95 minutes, no intermission.

Snow Geese *

(Please click on the title to see the complete review.)
Somewhere inside the shapeless drama now in previews at MTC's Friedman Theatre, there's a play struggling to get out. There are plenty of plot points that could be interesting -- a family's suddenly diminished fortunes, the effects of parental favoritism on character, sibling rivalry in two generations, the treatment of German-Americans in 1917, the horrors of war, the plight of a war refugee, the difficulty of overcoming grief and a few nods to Chekhov. Why then don't they come together to form a rewarding, involving whole? It's not the acting -- the cast (Mary-Louise Parker, Danny Burstein, Victoria Clark, Evan Jonigkeit, Brian Cross, Christopher Innvar and Jessica Love) is mostly strong. It's certainly not the set -- once again Jon Lee Beatty has outdone himself with an attractive, flexible design. I think those most blame-worthy are playwright Sharr White ("The Other Place") for not locating and emphasizing the play's emotional center, the director (Daniel Sullivan) for overlooking serious problems (including a second act scene and character that should be excised), and Manhattan Theatre Club, for presenting a play before it was ready. Let's hope for a miracle -- maybe they'll whip it into shape before opening night. Running time: 2 hours, 5 minutes including intermission.

The Other Place (revisited) ***

(Please click on the title to see the complete reiview.)
Are worthy new plays so hard to find that Manhattan Theatre Club must resort to offering subscribers a play that had a perfectly good off-Broadway production just last year? This was my review when I saw the play at MCC Theater April 17, 2011:

A gripping performance by Laurie Metcalf overcame qualms I had about some of the plot points in Sharr White's new drama at the Lucille Lortel. Metcalf plays a prickly research scientist who has an "episode" during a lecture to a group of doctors. In a kaleidoscope of brief scenes that move backward and forward in time, we gradually learn that all is not what it seems. When all the pieces fall into place and we understand what really ails her, the effect is devastating. Dennis Boutsikaris is excellent as her husband and Aya Cash succeeds in multiple roles. John Schiappa has very little opportunity to shine. The stark set by Eugene Lee and the lighting by Justin Townsend are very effective. Joe Mantello ably directed this MCC production. The play's 80 minutes flew by. Although sometimes painful to watch, Metcalf's riveting performance made it worthwhile.

I found that this is not a play that improves with a second viewing. The rapid alternation of short scenes was more annoying than intriguing this time. The weakness of some plot points stood out more. Daniel Stern and Zoe Perry have assumed the roles of the husband and The Woman; I preferred their counterparts at MCC. Although it's always worthwhile to see Laurie Metcalf, even her bravura performance seemed less nuanced In the new production. Eugene Lee's abstract set seemed overwhelming and the frequent use of harsh fluorescent lighting by Justin Townsend was unpleasant. I still don't understand how having Metcalf sit in a chair onstage for 15 minutes before the play begins improves anything. Running time: 80 minutes without intermission.