APPLE
Wednesday, April 29th, 2009RECOMMENDED
Theatre 40 offers its subscribers something out of the ordinary in their latest production, the Los Angeles premiere of Vern Thiessen’s Apple. Far more “theatrical” than their customary bill of fare, and rated R for liberal use of the “F” word, Apple is the kind of drama that could easily have become a “Disease Play Of The Week” if not for its unusual structure/staging and a trio of accomplished performances.
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EMILIE
Sunday, April 26th, 2009RECOMMENDED
When South Coast Repertory announced the world premiere of Emilie—La Marquise Du Châtelet Defends Her Life At The Petit Théâtre At Cirey Tonight, I had two thoughts. The first was, “What a long title for a play!” and the second was, “Who the heck is Emilie?” Doubtless for those with an inability to remember long titles, SCR’s webside has redubbed Lauren Gunderson’s play a short but sweet Emelie. As for Emilie du Châtelet, a quick Wikipedia search reveals the following: Gabrielle Émilie Le Tonnelier de Breteuil, marquise du Châtelet (December 17, 1706 – September 10, 1749) was a French mathematician, physicist, and author during the Age of Enlightenment.
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THE COLUMBINE PROJECT
Saturday, April 25th, 2009
Paul Storiale’s The Columbine Project attempts the impossible—to document, explore, and try to make sense of the 1999 massacre of twelve students and one teacher at Columbine High School, outside of Denver, Colorado. Against all odds, The Columbine Project proves a triumph for the writer-producer-director and his cast of twenty-one mostly very young actors. That Storiale has been able not only to explore the hows and whys of that most horrific of days, but that he has also somehow managed to fill his stage with nearly two dozen gifted performers is nothing short of miraculous.
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THE SEAFARER
Thursday, April 23rd, 2009NOT RECOMMENDED
Once in a great while, I see a show which, despite first class acting, direction and design, just doesn’t work for me. This is the case with Conor McPherson’s The Seafarer, now playing at the Geffen. The London Observer called The Seafarer “succinct, startling and eerie, and the funniest McPherson play to date,” and Ben Brantley of the New York Times wrote about the Broadway production, “McPherson is quite possibly the finest playwright of his generation.” As someone who would prefer all his theatergoing to provoke wows, I wish I could understand their enthusiasm.
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BETRAYAL
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009
It’s New Year’s Eve, 1968, and Jerry is confessing to Emma his love for her, in the very bedroom she shares with her husband Robert, Jerry’s best friend. “I must tell you,” Jerry declares passionately. “I want to tell you. I have to tell you. You’re lovely. I’m crazy about you. All these words I’m using, don’t you see, they’ve never been said before. I’m bowled over, I’m totally knocked out, you dazzle me, you jewel, my jewel…” Heady words, and with them Jerry and Emma begin a love affair, virtually under the eyes of his wife and her husband, an affair which will last seven years, only to have become a distant memory when they meet again, nine years later.
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MAURITIUS
Tuesday, April 14th, 2009
A play about stamps. How boring, you might imagine.
Wrong!
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OUR MOTHER’S BRIEF AFFAIR
Sunday, April 12th, 2009RECOMMENDED
Seth and Abby are adult twins whose mother has kept a secret from them most of their lives. When the two siblings were in their early teens, Anna had a brief affair. It’s only now, with the twins entering their forties, that the truth has come out. Or is it the truth? Anna is an Alzheimer’s patient, and the tale she tells may be actual memory, or imagination, or a combination of both.
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STICK FLY
Friday, April 10th, 2009
The wealthy LeVay family are having a weekend get-together at their Martha’s Vineyard home away from (Manhattan) home. Housekeeper’s daughter Cheryl is removing slipcovers just in time for younger son Kent to arrive with fiancée Taylor, who is awestruck at the home’s opulence. “I was going to marry you for love,” Taylor tells her handsome beau with a smile, “but now I’m going to marry you for money.” Next to arrive is older son Flip, a successful plastic surgeon, soon to be joined by Kimber, his latest girlfriend. Last to show up is patriarch Dr. Joseph LeVay, who greets Taylor with old world manners—a slight bow and a kiss on the hand. Absent from the weekend gathering are Mrs. LeVay and Cheryl’s mother, for reasons that will eventually become clear. Over the next day or two, family secrets will be revealed and no one will prove to be quite the person he or she has seemed on first impression.
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