Indian Ink @ The Laura Pels Theatre

Indian Ink, playing at the Laura Pels Theatre paints a fragrant view of a 1930’s love affair in India where the stakes were high and the temperatures more so. Playwright Tom Stoppard (The Real Inspector Hound) provides a beautiful structure for the characters to laugh and have joy amidst the tragedies that envelop their lives, not because of them, but in spite of them. The set design and lighting transcend us from the basement of the playhouse to an exotic land where the taste of forbidden fruit is to be both worshipped as well as cause for disgrace.

Rather than describe the reasons why you should go see this gorgeous and erotic production, let me elucidate the reasons why the reviewers who “didn’t get it” didn’t get it. They are emotionally stagnant; they’re accustomed to in-your-face, pornographic, over-the-top, let us tell you what you need to think and feel storylines…oh but they are excited about Rosemary Harris because their first year drama teacher told them to be; and most importantly, they’ve not experienced the juxtaposition of circumstances that life offers us if we are at all daring. Screw them. See the play. It’s smoldering as restraint confines desire and longing.

The costuming and props were simple and honest which was in stark contrast to the reality of the tellers of the tale who told more with what they didn’t say than what they did. I loved it! And obviously the audience of seasoned theater-goers did as well as they applauded at intermission- something I’ve not experienced but once or twice in many years of seeing shows.

Directed by Carey Perloff are Rosemary Harris (The Road to Mecca) as Eleanor Swan who is the beloved of her departed sister, Flora Crewe played by Romola Garai (I Capture the Castle). Though separated by two different worlds, they share verve and an acceptance of their life’s limitations whilst living more, within those limitations, than the entire rest do without. The best thing that the men in the performance do is provide a structure for these ladies just as a canvas gives a platform for a painting- without it, there can be no real art. Bravo men for having the fancy footwork directed by dance captain, Claire Brownell, be mirrored in the way you beautifully provide a frame to allow these women to dance and twirl.

Put up by the Roundabout Theatre Company, the show runs through November 30 and should be seen by lovers and romantics alike.

Review By: Michele Seven
Photos By: Joan Marcus

Dinner With Friends @ Laura Pels Theatre

“It’s About You, Your Friends and How You Change”

Food is a basic element of life.  We need it to survive.  We celebrate with it, comfort with it and entertain with it.  Being such a close companion of human connection, it is always refreshing to see food given proper stage time.  Immediately we are drawn into a familiar world.  They eat – I eat. She chops garlic – my father chops garlic.  She devours dessert while sobbing–my best friend knocks back a pint of Ben and Jerry’s every time she’s fired.  Playwright Donald Margulies understands this.  He knows just how much food to serve the audience to entice them while dishing some delicious life questions along the way in “Dinner with Friends”.

Ever since Karen and Gabe played matchmaker with their friends Beth and Tom, the two couples have been inseparable – going to the Vineyard every summer, raising their kids and enjoying countless dinners together.  But when one marriage unexpectedly crumbles, the couples' lives begin to veer in opposite directions.  Can these four friends move on to the next chapter without moving apart… or have they changed beyond recognition?

Marguiles writing is a wonderful canvas on which the actors, under the direction of Pam Mackinnon, can paint.  The cast has perfect chemistry and each gives a steady performance.  Marin Hinkle colors Karen with such a wonderful, natural presence.  From the way Karen embraces Gabe to the way she rests her hand on the opposite shoulder while thinking, Hinkle breathes palpable life into this character.  Karen’s lines could very easily be delivered bone dry or sopping with sarcasm, but Hinkle finds a delicate balance and delivers them effortlessly.  Heather Burns brushes the character of Beth with subtle yet defining energy.  She easily blends the crazy artist with the discontented wife.  Darren Pettie does a beautiful job of blurring the lines.  Tom is a character the audience could easily turn against but Pettie instills such charm and charisma that we feel like he is our own best friend.  Jeremy Shamos as Gabe is a standout. He gave Gabe a true resonating reliability, sadness, and comfort.

The scenic design by Allen Moyer at the top of Act II was particularly striking.  Set in a kitchen in Martha’s Vineyard with a view of the sunset – a backdrop which seemed to be a large watercolor painting – the audience was stunned with vibrant colors and textures, giving quite a contrast to the rest of the play.  Since this scene took place twelve and a half years prior to Act I, it was a beautiful and creative transition for the flashback.

Dinner with Friends is as simple and as complex as real life. There is no immediate mystery to solve, no prince rescuing a maiden in distress and no eleven o’clock number; but it will fill your plate with familiar characters, topics and emotions. And it will leave you hungry for answers.

Dinner with Friends opened February 13.

Review by Staci Morin

Photos by: Richard Perry

Machinal @ The American Airlines Theatre

     Have you ever wondered how far past the breaking point you could be pushed? How long you could function in the machine of life before short-circuiting? The Machinal by American playwright Sophia Treadwell explores just that as the inspired story of the real life case of convicted and executed murderer, Ruth Snyder. 

     Starring Golden Globe nominee Rebecca Hall as Ruth Snyder and directed by Lyndsey Turner, The Machinal is a gripping drama that presents itself as a contemporary piece well beyond the period it was written in. 

Under the pressure of society’s beliefs and her overbearing mother’s eye, Ruth(Hall) agrees to marry a man that physically repels her. After meeting a handsome stranger, played by Morgan Spector though, Ruth discovers the joys of love and realizes she can no longer keep pretending freedom. In an act of desperation, she bludgeons her husband to death which leads to her arrest, conviction, and eventual execution.

    Rebecca Hall’s performance was stellar. Not only did she tackle monologues that would make any actor cringe to do live, but she did it with such a mixture of vulnerability and strength that one could not help but move forward to the edge of one’s seat. During the course of the one hour and 30 minute process that it took to go from the start of her loveless marriage to her heartbreaking execution, Hall managed to engage the audience’s sympathy, while at the same time repelling them with her mannerisms and quirks. From the moment the curtain goes up, she draws the audience into what we realize is her point of view. At once the audience is bombarded with a script that moves quicker than a train. 

    While this show is very much about Ruth, an ensemble rich in personalities and talent must be mentioned. Each person in the ensemble is at once unique and yet an integral part of the machine. Michael Cumpsty was perfect as Ruth’s Husband. Full of pompous cliches, he was so repulsive I wanted to murder him myself. 

    Sam Pinkleton’s choreography was a joy to watch. Matt Tierney’s sound design was haunting and complimented each scene perfectly. But by far the most interesting tech was provided by Olivier-award winning set designer, Es Devlin. Her revolving stage provided a world that was awe-inspiring. Between her set and Jane Cox’s lighting designs, I cannot imagine the play would have been as intense. 

   The Machinal opened at The American Airlines Theatre on 227 West 42nd Street and plays through March 2. Get your tickets now. 

Photos By:Joan Marcus
Review By: Aziza Seven

The Road to Mecca @ The American Airlines Theatre

What is art? Everyone has their own definition, view, or idea of art. But who decides what kind of art is okay: the public or the artist? Does weird artwork make people weird or crazy? This is one of the main issues in The Road to Mecca on Broadway, now at the American Airlines Theatre.

             The Road to Mecca is set in Karoo, South Africa, and it tells the story of an elderly woman who has spent the years since her husband’s death transforming her home into an intricate and dazzling work of art. The reclusive Miss Helen (Rosemary Harris) has become depressed and appears increasingly unable to care for herself. Pastor Marius Byleveld, who embodies the village’s conservative values, is determined to get Miss Helen into an old-age home. Her friend Elsa (Carla Gugino), a young teacher from Cape Town who is deeply suspicious of the patriarchal traditions Byleveld represents, is just as determined that Miss Helen remain free.

             The Road to Mecca is brought to life by a truly stunning cast all around. Rosemary Harris (The Royal Family, Lost in Yonkers) portrays Miss Helen, an old lady who has lost everything but her house and her artwork. Broadway is happy to see Harris back on Broadway, and she did not disappoint. She glowed as bright as all of the candles on stage even through all of her characters depression. Carla Gugino (Desire Under the Elms, After the Fall) is Elsa Barlow, an old friend of Miss Helen’s who just wants to see her happy and left alone. Gugino may have been the youngest and least experienced in this cast but that did not stop her from rising to the level of Dale and Harris. Gugino commanded the stage and kept the audience’s attention, even through those long growling monologues. Jim Dale (Threepenny Opera, Candide) plays Marius Byleveld, the town minister who is trying to get Miss Helen to move out of her house and move to an elderly home. Dale brings a comedic element to his character which helps speed up the dialogue and moves the plot along. This cast is the must see this season; but it’s up to public whether they want to endure the dragging script.

The Road to Mecca was off- Broadway about 24 years ago and maybe it ended its run because the script was just as bad then as it was today. If it weren’t for this incredible cast, Athol Fugard’s (Blood Knot, The Island) play would have fell flat on its face. The plot wasn’t revealed until forty five minutes into the first act, so the audience was left to endure set up and filler, which had most of them falling asleep in their seats. The set design was done by Michael H. Yeargan (That Championship Season, South Pacific). Yeargan truly made this set the work of art of Miss Helen’s dreams; it truly delivered the biggest wow factor of the season. Peter Kaczorowski (Venus in Fur, Anything Goes) designed the lights. He was left with a difficult challenge because Miss Helen’s house has no practical lights, only natural light and candle light. Kaczorowski took this bull by the horns and created a beautiful atmosphere. But do to the interesting writing; Kaczorowski was forced to keep the stage somewhat dark, which help the audience slip into a deep sleep.

             Although the cast is magnificent and the tech is spectacular, this is not the show to see this season. If you want to spend your money to sit through two and half hours of dragging dialogue, then The Road to Mecca is now playing at The American Airlines Theatre through March 4, 2012.

Man and Boy @ American Airlines Theatre

          Adding another classic to their astound company, Roundabout Theatre Company puts Terence Rattigan’s Man and Boy on the Great White Way. With elaborate characters and a twisting plot line, this piece delivers laughs, tension, and an ending that will leave you saying, “Did that just happen?” Lead by legendary Frank Langella, the cast of Man and Boy delivers an emotional journey that supplies quality, truly Broadway at its best. No doubt, a completely satisfying experience.

          At the peak of the Great Depression, cutthroat financier Gregor Antonescu’s (Frank Langella) business is at an extreme low and is at risk of failing. In order to avoid the press and public, Gregor tracks down his estranged son Basil (Adam Driver) with the hopes of using his little Greenwich Village apartment as a place to make company saving deals.

          You know how you can tell a show has good acting in it? You are not thinking about the acting. When the audience is completely entranced by a show they don’t often take notice of the technical bells and whistles that go into an actor’s performance. Yet, is this a bad thing? After all, the main job of an actor is to tell a story. Man and Boy featured its actor/characters in pairs; each one the yin to the others yang. The dependence and need established between the characters added an intricately dynamic ribbon throughout the production. Adam Driver (Basil Anthony) played the distraught son of the great Wall Street tycoon, Gregor Antonescu. With one of the most intricate back stories, Driver delivers the emotionally battered and beaten son beautifully. Basil Anthony left his father and the world he knew after a falling out between the two. Starting out with a strong hatred for his father and their past, Basil goes on an emotional roller coaster and takes the audience along for the ride. After Ms. Penn (Kull) exits, we see Basil slowly crumble and fall back into the habit of idolizing his famous father leading him to feel remorse towards leaving him. Driver displays an ease within his role and adds the creative behavioral gesture of a stammer whenever he is talking of Antonescu. He produces a strong energy in each entrance and exit leaving the atmosphere richer with each line of text. As stated earlier, each character is presented as part of a pair - some characters are involved in more than one and each relationship radiates a different light. The push and pull of the play revolves around the tension each character creates. The atmosphere of the production thrives on the existence of such contrasting characters. The most intriguing relationship was that of Basil Anthony (Driver) and Mr. Gregor Antonescu, played by the astounding Frank Langella. What the audience is exposed to is a broken relationship between father and son. Most eminent in certain moments, Langella and Driver worked well together producing both chemistry and tension in enormous amounts. What intrigues the audience most is how Basil and Gregor relate to each other. To Gregor, Basil is his own conscience. Gregor operates his business as successfully as he does because he has no feeling of remorse. To have Basil in his presence is to have a constant threat to his way of life. Basil feels as though his father misunderstands him, views him as weak. Although he expresses hatred towards his father, Basil still worships Gregor in a way. Towards the end of the play Basil is the only one who shows Mr. Antonescu true loyalty. Gregor is aware of the fact that his son idolizes him & feels that this only justifies how weak and easily mislead his son is. Throughout the play Gregor views his son as a tactic (probably a view he has of most people he come into contact with) and uses him as he sees fit. It becomes clear through all their interactions that Gregor’s biggest disappointment in his son is that he refuses to see who the real Gregor Antonescu is. The moment right before intermission Basil tells Gregor that he is nothing. As the play goes on the audience starts to realize that this statement is not only completely true, but the hardest truth to accept. Frank Langella graces Broadway as Wall Street giant Gregor Antonescu. Antonescu is facing the possible demise of his empire and turns to the only escape route he has left, his estranged son. Gregor exploits all those in his surroundings for his business and is left alone. He faces continuous abandonment from his inner ring and pushes away the only person who stuck around, his son. Langella’s manner, air, and rich vocal abilities add a majestic air to the character. The confident air with which Antonescu holds himself seems to be a natural step for Langella. He had an ease on the stage which made the emotional downfall which Antonescu descends that much more believable. Sven, played by Michael Siberry, was not only the rock, but the hard place as well. Acting as a puppet master in some cases Sven possessed an unspoken control or power over the other characters. He was an expert in getting his way, always believing he was doing the right thing. It was intriguing to see Sven presented as in Gregor’s control and then slowly come to the realization that Sven was consulted before Gregor even took a breath. We see that Sven becomes the only continuous source of power in the entire show. Siberry actively produces an energetic atmosphere which is impressive because the character of Sven is a strong and silent, get to the point type of guy. His strong posture, movement and vocal tension helped bring the character to new levels. Virginia Kull, who opened the show as the Carol Penn (Basil Anthony’s girlfriend), established a strong “yin and yang” relationship between Basil and herself. The two were very intimate with each other which not only clarified their relationship, but also added credit to their dependence on each other. She seemed to be the anchor in the relationship. Basil is strong with her by his side and crumbles when she leaves. Kull’s voice quality was full and displayed realistic emotion throughout her time on stage. As stated before, the character relationships in this production revolve mostly around partnerships. Everyone is a pair. The two who conveyed this message the most are Mark Herries (Zach Greiner) and David Beeston (Brian Hucthinson). Mr. Herries and his accountant Mr. Beeston bring Antonescu’s criminal activities to light. Although the two enter together, they leave at separate times and in two different emotional states. Mr. Herries accusations are reliant upon Mr. Beeston’s numbers. Yet Gregor Antonescu is a force to be reckoned with, breaking down Mr. Beeston’s logic. Once Beeston is questioning himself, Herries’s cool façade begins to fade. Greiner and Hucthinson emit good chemistry and incredibly in sync comedic timing. The regal character of Countess Antonescu just brought the ugly, disloyal side of Mr. Antonescu’s life to light. We see the first act of betrayal in the Countess. She insists on being treated as Gregor’s wife, but in his time of need she turns her back on him. Francesca Faridany displayed quick timing and clear intentions displaying the Countess as not only shallow, but even brought a sympathetic air to her character, invoking pity from the audience.

          The technical perfection was just the cherry on top of an already incredible show. The original music and sound design by John Gromada set the perfect atmosphere, with train rumbles consistently passing through. Gromada created and maintained an outside world which could be forgotten even for a minute. The light design by Kevin Adams established the lower class feel of Basil’s apartment, by using interesting shadow to make the clear assumption that there isn’t any really any kind of quality lighting. The set design by Derek McLane put the audience smack dab in the middle of a crappy Greenwich Village apartment, while still keeping to the time. It’s not often when you find the most effective moment of a play overlapping Intermission. As part of an overall creative directing process, the moment before Intermission was the moment the audience returned to afterwards. Viewing this as a risk that paid off, the choreography off this particular moment pulled the audience back into the world of the production in an original and effective way. Although the production in its entirety was enthralling, there were moments in the staging of the production that were bothersome. In this production every moment leads to something important or is important in itself. Which is why is was incredibly irritating when an actor would come on stage and deliver an important moment with his back to the audience. It not only made it incredibly hard to understand what was happening, but also demeaned the importance of the moment. (In reference to the missing wall on the set) It was incredibly irritating to see actor’s interact with an object that was not there. Although the set design was beautiful and the missing wall not only produced an unique touch to the overall look of the set, but also symbolized the crumbling world that the characters seem to be functioning in, to see actors interact with it broke the willing suspension of disbelief.

          Will the reunion of father and son help them reconcile? Or will the father use his son to save himself and then toss him aside? Well don’t wait to get a ticket and find your way over to the American Airlines Theatre for a theatre experience of a lifetime, that will leave you guessing who is the Man and who is the Boy.

Review By: Morgan Mack

Guest Writter: Morgan Mack