Butler **** A

Kudos to 59E59 Theaters for bringing this worthwhile production by the New Jersey Repertory Company, based in Long Branch, to New York. What playwright Richard Strand has written is an unlikely blend of biography, Civil War history, drama and comedy that is both entertaining and informative. Major General Benjamin Butler (Ames Adamson) is an actual historical figure, whose long and varied career includes the incident depicted in the play. As a newly minted Union officer sent to take command of Fort Monroe in recently seceded Virginia, Butler must decide what to do with three runaway slaves who have arrived at the fort seeking sanctuary. The first scene, an extended exchange between Butler and his hapless adjutant Lieutenant Kelly (Benjamin Sterling), may initially appear to go on too long, but it cleverly sets up most of what follows. The leader of the runaway slaves is Shepard Mallory (John G. Williams), a man who has paid dearly for his habit of running off at the mouth. When Mallory pleads his case with Butler, the two develop an unexpected kinship. Butler tries to find a way to get around the Fugitive Slaves Act so he will not have to hand over Mallory and the other two slaves to Major Cary (David Sitler), the prickly Confederate officer who has been sent to claim them. It hardly seems like promising material for comedy, but the play is very funny. The four characters are vividly drawn and well acted by the cast, all holdovers from the original production. Jessica L. Parks’s attractive set for General Butler’s office looks authentic, as do Patricia E. Doherty’s costumes. Joseph Discher’s direction is seamless. It adds up to a surprisingly enjoyable experience. Running time: 2 hours 5 minutes including intermission.

Privacy *** B

The collaboration between London’s Donmar Warehouse and the Public Theater is off to a good start with this ingenious production created by writer James Graham and director Josie Rourke. Substantially revised from the 2014 Donmar version, the play is an informative essay on the uses and abuses of cybersurveillance, wrapped in the tale of an emotionally closed British writer who moves to New York to learn to open up a bit (or is it really just to pursue his ex?). The admirable Daniel Radcliffe, who never repeats himself in his choice of roles for the New York stage, plays the writer. The other actors — De’adre Aziza, Raffi Barsoumian, Michael Countryman, Rachel Dratch and Reg Rogers — skillfully play a multitude of roles including psychiatrist, parents, neighbors, cyberexperts and intelligence agency officials. We even get an appearance on video by Edward Snowden. There’s also an onstage digital researcher (Harry Davies). Audience participation is an important part of the proceedings. People are urged to turn on their cellphones (silent mode, of course), log onto the theater’s wi-fi network, use Google, take selfies and email photos of favorite New York locales. None of this material goes to waste. The first act sets up the basic situation and settles the writer in New York. In the second act, both funnier and scarier, he ventures into the world of online dating. Radcliffe is front and center the whole time except for a lengthy episode in Act Two which begins as a case of identity theft and turns into something darker. There's a demonstration of the mountain of information collected by one's smartphone that is truly alarming. Lucy Osborne’s set is simple but witty; it features the ultimate overstuffed couch for analysis and a New York skyline made of Amazon cartons. Duncan McLean’s projections add a lot, including identifying the many characters. Paul Tazewell’s costumes are unobtrusive. Occasionally the informative and entertainment elements of the play get in each other’s way. At other times the material threatens to become repetitive. Nevertheless, it makes for a most unusual theatrical experience. Too bad the entire run is virtually sold out. Running time: 2 1/2 hours including intermission.

The Golden Bride **** A-

After a successful run last winter, the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene’s (NYTF) production of this Yiddish operetta is back for a summer season at the Museum of Jewish Heritage. A big hit when it was produced on Second Avenue in 1923, it was still being revived 25 years later. With a luscious, eclectic score by Joseph Rumshinsky, lyrics by Louis Gilrod and a deliriously frivolous libretto by Frieda Freiman, it provides a time capsule of the popular Yiddish musical entertainment of its day. NYTF has given us a lavish production with 20 actors, an orchestra of 14, attractive sets (by John Dinning), colorful costumes (by Izzy Fields), evocative choreography (by Merete Muenster) and skillful direction (by Bryna Wasserman and Motl Didner) that does not condescend to the material. The uniformly talented cast is blessed with some outstanding voices including Rachel Policar as Goldele, Cameron Johnson as Misha and Rachel Zatcoff as Khanele. Adam B. Shapiro is a hoot in the comic role of Kalmen. The silly plot revolves around a poor girl in a Russian shtetl whose mother disappeared when she was a toddler, who comes into a large inheritance from her father in America and who offers to marry whichever suitor finds her mother. Forget the plot and just relax and enjoy the great singing, dancing and comedy. There are surtitles not only in English but also in Russian. The audience, which seemed to be composed mainly of Russian speakers, loved it. If you like operetta and are interested in the history of Yiddish theater, you will too. Running time: 2 hours 10 minutes including intermission. 

Average 2015-16 Ratings by Theater Company

Just out of curiosity, I tabulated the average score I gave the plays presented by each theater company during the past season. I was surprised how narrow the range was (only a difference of one star out of a possible five). On my rating scale, 2 is fair and 3 is good. Before you use this as a guide to choose which company deserves your subscription, be forewarned that each season is different. The company that had a series of hits this year could have a string of duds next year and vice versa.

Theater Company Average Rating

CSC 2.0

Playwrights Horizons 2.2

MTC 2.3

NYTW 2.33

MCC 2.5

Signature 2.6

Vineyard   2.67

Roundabout 2.71

Second Stage 2.75

Atlantic           2.75

Public           3.0

LCT 3.0

I do suggest that for companies that offer memberships as well as subscriptions, try the membership. Then you can pick and choose only those shows you want to see.

Oslo ***

Playwright J.T. Rogers is certainly not reluctant to take on complicated geopolitical topics. His 2011 play at Lincoln Center Theater, “Blood and Gifts,” was about American policy in Afghanistan. Now he is back at the Mitzi E. Newhouse with “Oslo,” an ambitious look at the story behind the secret negotiations that led to the signing of the Oslo Peace Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1993. Happily, several people associated with that production have also returned: director Bartlett Sher, set designer Michael Yeargan, costume designer Catherine Zuber and actors Jefferson Mays and Michael Aronov. The story revolves around Terje Red-Larsen (Mays), director of a Norwegian think tank devoted to applied social sciences, and his wife Mona Juul (Jennifer Ehle), an official in the Norwegian Foreign Ministry, who come up with the idea of initiating and facilitating secret “back door” talks between two representatives of the PLO and a pair of economics professors from Haifa who, officially at least, have no ties with the Israeli government. Larsen and Juul have to win over the Norwegian foreign minister (T. Ryder Smith) and his deputy (Daniel Jenkins) to their risky efforts. The initial meetings between the PLO officials (Anthony Aziz and Dariush Kashani) and the Israelis (Daniel Oreskes and, doubling roles, Jenkins) are prickly, but they soon begin to make progress, lending support to Larsen’s theory that private, personal, incremental negotiations might succeed where public, impersonal, comprehensive talks have failed. The Israeli professors are eventually joined by and then supplanted by Uri Savir (Aronov,) Director General of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, and Joel Singer (Joseph Siravo), an attorney. We also meet the Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Yossi Bellin (Adam Dannheiser) and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres (Oreskes, also doubling). There are several other minor characters for a total cast of 14 actors in 21 roles. There are many complications and obstacles along the way. A play with three acts is a rarity today. The first act is intricately structured while the second act is more straightforward. The final act loses some steam in summarizing many of the events that have occurred since 1993. The cast is consistently strong, the simple but attractive set is enhanced by unobtrusive projections (by 59 Productions), the costumes are excellent and the direction is smooth. Be prepared to concentrate on a complex narrative for three hours. I found the end result more admirable than enjoyable. I kept thinking that it would make a fine miniseries. Running time: 3 hours, including intermission.

Out of the Mouths of Babes **

Set design by Neil Patel

Israel Horovitz’s latest play was commissioned by the artistic director of the Cherry Lane Theatre, Angelina Fiordellisi, as a vehicle for two theatrical treasures, Estelle Parsons and Judith Ivey. It’s a wildly uneven comedy about four women who gather in the Parisian apartment of a Sorbonne professor, ex-husband to three of them and former lover to the fourth, who has just died at 100. Evelyn (Parsons), 88, was his second wife who married him after the first wife’s defenestration. Evvie (Ivey), 68, broke up that marriage, but never wed him. Both have been invited to attend the funeral with complimentary plane tickets by his widow. Janice (Fiordellisi), 58, the depressive third wife, read about his death and shows up uninvited; after her many suicide attempts, it was assumed that she was no longer “available.” His widow, the luscious Marie-Belle, 38, from Senegal (Francesca Choy-Kee), claims to still be in communication with him, which we see mainly through the uncontrollable laughter his paranormal tickling attacks provoke. The four women bitch and reminisce, with most of the bon mots going to troupers Parsons and Ivey. There’s a bit of the supernatural at the end. It’s intermittently entertaining in a lazy way. As light summer entertainment, that may be enough for most. The spectacular art-laden Parisian loft designed by Neil Patel will definitely evoke real estate envy. (It turns out that many of the artworks are by celebrities such as Rosie O’Donnell, Joel Grey and Billy Dee Williams. A guide is thoughtfully inserted in the program.) The costumes by Joseph G. Aulisi suit the characters admirably. Barnet Kellman’s direction skillfully maximizes the play’s assets. Running time: 1 hour, 40 minutes including intermission.

Superficially, Israel Horowitz has a lot in common with Alan Ayckbourn. Both were born in 1939, both have written over 70 plays, both developed most of their work for a provincial theater they headed and both have had substantial success. Judging from the limited number of their plays I have seen, I would have to say that Ayckbourn is by far the superior craftsman. Horowitz divides his time between the US and Paris and is much beloved by the French. According to the program, he is the most produced American playwright in French theatrical history. Go figure. 

A request: I wish that all playwrights would declare a moratorium on cunnilingus jokes; they have become a tiresome cliche. 

The Color Purple ****

I wasn't even tempted to see the 2005 production and would have skipped this one as well if not for the almost uniformly enthusiastic reviews. I have mixed feelings about John Doyle’s previous stripped-down versions of musicals, but this production, which originated at London’s Menier Chocolate Factory, gets it right. By concentrating attention on the show’s talented performers and the lively gospel-inflected score, Doyle has come up with a production that packs an emotional wallop. The superb cast act and sing at a very high level. Tony winner Cynthia Erivo is riveting as Celie, from the abused pregnant 14-year-old to the middle-aged businesswoman she becomes. When she sang “I’m Here,” she brought the house to its feet. Just as good is Heather Headley, who replaced Jennifer Hudson as Shug Avery, the sexy songstress that no-one can resist. Her version of “Push da Button” is a knockout. Their duet at end of the first act, “What about Love,” is breathtakingly beautiful. Danielle Brooks is a powerhouse as Sofia; her “Hell No!” is a highlight. Joaquina Kalukango impresses as Celie’s sister Nettie. Isaiah Johnson is a strong Mister and Kyle Scatliffe is amusing as his son Harpo. Marsha Norman’s book has a lot to cover in a short time, but mostly succeeds in capturing the essence of Alice Walker’s novel. Since I had never heard of any of the composer/lyricists — Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray — I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the score. Doyle’s set consists of a wall of rough planks hung with spindle-back chairs that are removed from the wall and used as needed. Except for a few large wicker baskets and some fabric, they are the only props. Ann Hould-Ward’s costumes are appropriately drab in the first act and colorful in the second. Doyle was recently appointed artistic director at Classic Stage Company. After suffering through his version of “Peer Gynt” there recently, I had my doubts about the future of CSC. What he accomplished here gives me new hope. Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes including intermission.