Born Yesterday

"Born Yesterday" at the Cort Theatre, April 7, 2011

Garson Kanin's classic spin on Pygmalion has returned to Broadway in a gorgeous, but uneven production directed by Doug Hughes.  This vehicle, which made Judy Holliday a star, provides a similar opportunity for Nina Arianda, making her Broadway debut as Billie Dawn.  Ms. Arianda certainly has earned the chance with her turn in the title role of Venus in Fur last year at Classic Stage Company.

The material is very different here.  (For a plot summary, click here.)

The first two acts are quite engaging.  It's the third act when things begin to falter.  Mr. Kanin's script (perhaps inspiring at the end of WWII) devolves into a cheesy pageant of patriotism as Paul (Robert Sean Leonard) and Billie explain the error of his ways to Harry (Jim Belushi). 

The change in language and tone are particularly noticeable because of the very miscast Mr. Leonard.  Adding to the problem, he and Ms Arianda have such minimal chemistry that other events in Act II and Act III make very little sense. Mr. Leonard's performance is otherwise serviceable, but unremarkable.

Ms. Arianda starts out nicely, bouncing back and forth from sullen to perky to uncouth, and all with a certain charm.  She reflects Billie's evolution adequately, but it's missing that spark from the chemistry with Paul that keeps it from working as well as it should.

Mr. Belushi's Harry huffs and puffs and darn near blows the set down.  While occasionally effective, it's not enough to carry the role. Frank Wood is oddly inarticulate as Harry's lawyer, Ed Devery - disappointing from such a talented actor.  Perhaps the choices were more those of director Dough Hughes, that Mr. Wood.  It's as though Mr. Hughes spent most of his time on Acts I and II and ran out of time to focus on the weakness in Act III.

John Lee Beatty's black and white hotel suite set echoes the stark contrasts in characters, honest and criminal, cruel and kind, polished and uneducated.  Catherine Zuber's costumes are gorgeous as always.

Born Yesterday is on a limited run through July 31.  Click here for tickets.

Oleanna

"Oleanna" at the Golden Theatre, October 9, 2009

David Mamet's 1992 work, "Oleanna" twists a tale of a college professor trapped into a battle with a female student. John (Bill Pullman) came reluctantly to the world of academia, never having fully jettisoned the baggage of his upbringing which labeled him as stupid. Capitalizing on this weakness, Carol (Julia Stiles) first appears in his office after class, desperate for help to pass his course. It's a frustrating and unsatisfying work. (Spoiler Alert)

In the first scene, John is trying to negotiate the purchase of a new house - something more befitting his incipient tenure at the college. Phone calls repeatedly (and predictably) interrupt his appointment with Carol. She appears vulnerable and near her wit's end at what to do, since failing the course would cause a significant setback to her ambitions. Emotions run high and John wants to help, offering to work with her individually to get her back on track and through the class successfully. Some of Carol's own baggage is intimated along the way as she wavers on the edge of emotional control.

When the lights come up on scene two, the tables are dramatically (almost inexplicably) turned. John's tenure is now in jeopardy, since Carol has filed a complaint of sexual harassment against him following their first meeting. By the third scene, not only has John been suspended from the school, Carol has filed attempted rape charges with the local police. John finally snaps and the curtain falls as he attacks her.

Mr. Pullman brings us a man strung so tightly, it's a wonder he didn't snap years before, yet there is a kindness within despite the haughty attitude of "esteemed academia." His stammered delivery works very well with the rat-a-tat style of Mr. Mamet's writing.

Ms. Stiles, in her third appearance in this role following productions in London and Los Angeles, brings a full emotional commitment to her scheming and heartless character. We get no foreshadow of the evil intent during the first scene, making the character shift all the more shocking. Despite her sense of emotion, her actual delivery of the lines sound as though she's reciting verse, rather than speaking naturally as her character. I've always thought that Mr. Mamet's rapid-fire, overlapping writing style is one that only certain actors can master. Sadly, Ms. Stiles isn't there yet.

Director Doug Hughes seems to have needed more time to get the "Mamet-speak" smoothed out. He has clearly come down on John's side here, leaving Carol as a vicious and bitter harpy. And bitter is the taste that will leave the theatre with you.

Neil Patel's office set is dramatically nicer than any college office I've ever seen, though the annoying automatic raising and lowering of the levelors between scenes felt totally pointless. This was exacerbated by the poor quality sound design resulting in ear-splitting feedback reverberation.

It's nice to see Mr. Pullman back on stage in NY and I'm glad that Ms. Stiles is making her first open-run appearance. I hope to see her back again in a more suitable vehicle.

The Royal Family

"The Royal Family" presented by Manhattan Theatre Club at The Samuel J. Friedman Theatre

George S. Kaufman and Edna Ferber's classic play, based on the Barrymores is in a new revival directed by Doug Hughes.

It's a terrific cast with Rosemary Harris, Jan Maxwell, Tony Roberts, John Glover, Ana Gasteyer and Larry Pine.

With Mr. Hughes at the helm of such a talented crew, you'd expect a rollicking evening of smashing theatre.

Sadly, it's merely cute and fun.

I will grant that having seen a preview, there may be some bugs still to work through, but even then the bones should be in place if things are going to work well or not. Mr. Roberts, miscast as business manager, Oscar Wolfe, was still fumbling with lines. Ms. Harris as the matriarch, Fanny Cavendish was regal, as always. Her death scene was remarkable, particularly since she faces upstage at that moment - a tribute to the art and craft of stage performance. Ms. Maxwell, one of my favorite NY actors, felt oddly miscast as the reigning stage diva, Julie Cavendish. She had the patter and flourishes in place, but they somehow felt forced.

It looks as though John Lee Beatty recycled the apartment set from last spring's Accent on Youth, embellishing for the grandness of the Cavendishes. Catherine Zuber's costumes are spot on.

It's certainly a worthy goal get Rosemary Harris on a Broadway stage, but shouldn't the production be worth her time and effort? This traditional staging seems to offer no reasons to explain why this revival has come to pass. It certainly meets none of the points outlined in the MTC mission statement, being neither new nor innovative.