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A CurtainUp Review
Summer Shorts 2 Part B
Our Time is Up, Peoplespeak, Plaisir D‘Amour, On Island
Since CurtainUp’s critic, Paulanne Simmons, found Series A disappointing, especially in light of Summer Shorts gleaming 2007 inaugural season, it's a relief to report that Series B showed some bite. This series also has its shortfalls — starting out with a skit that is positively mousy, and ending with a room-temperature playlet— but in-between, there are some real tremors of talent that quicken into a solid pair of plays.
Our Time is Up by Keith Reddin, about a middle-aged analyst and her teen-aged patient in a therapy session, is a trifle. The play has many squeaks of anguish, but no roar of protest. The only action worth noting is when Sharon (Clara Hopkins Daniels), the teenaged patient, turns the tables on the analyst Calley (Janet Zarish), and begins to quick-fire questions about her personal life. In a surreal shift of atmosphere, Calley responds to Sharon’s aggressive inquiries, and gradually has a psychic meltdown. Directed by Billy Hopkins, this piece is a skit with a bizarre psychological twist, but little more.
John Augustine’s Peoplespeak emerges as a parody about people’s obsession with cell phones. There’s no doubt that the piece is emotionally over-the-top, but the acting is uniformly first-rate. The action springs from Siobhan's (Sherry Anderson) holding a serious-looking gun to one ear, and an ordinary cell phone to the other. The juxtaposition of the two instruments speaks volumes even before Siobhan deadpans her opening line: "I love myself." Although Sharon’s depression will not conspicuously improve in any scene, her gung-ho positive thinking and her reading aloud of her mother’s musical life-affirmations are hugely amusing and pull the audience in. The other two characters, the Waiter (Nick Westrate) and Cassie (Patricia Randell), are perfect foils for the suicidal Siobhan. The Waiter, who is gay and has a crush on a married man, is surprisingly compassionate, showing genuine concern for Siobhan's emotional mood swings. Cassie, Siobhan’s boss and die-hard fashionista, also seems to have a touch of the humanitarian in her soul. Still, the cell phone rules the communicative airwaves surrounding them and remains the lynchpin of their frenetic world. Directed with levity by Robert Saxner, all the characters desire to get out of themselves, and to become connected with a world larger than that which confines them.
The only real variant in the play collection is Terrence McNally and Skip Kennon’s musical Plaisir D‘Amour. This bittersweet piece centers on Sam (Jonathan C. Kaplan) and Ruth (Stephanie D’Abruzzo), who fall head-over-heels in love at a Carnegie Hall lieder recital and get married. Thirty years pass as the story takes a scathingly realistic look at their marriage and family life. We see the wild aspirations of youth slowly give way to the practicalities of middle-age. To be sure, this work isn’t McNally at his wittiest, or most creative but as directed by Elizabeth Lucas, the musical (with the classic French song "Plaisir D’Amour"”peppered into certain scenes) proves to be pertinent to our own lives, and soars with the sublime acting of its two principals.
On Island by Michael Domitrovich and directed by Mary Catherine Burke, is more a case of naval-gazing than drama. The story about a nervous groom getting ready for his Greek wedding ceremony on Martha‘s Vineyard, may sound like incredibly romantic stuff. Unfortunately, it falls flat. The groom George (Anthony Carrigan) is a bit too willy-nilly about his wedding plans, and leaves his bride stranded on a sand dune as he attempts--five minutes before the ceremony--to write his wedding vows. Worse, his older brother Leo (Jorge Cordova) adds to the nuptial confusion, in his lame attempts to define to George what true love is, and isn‘t. Curiously, Sandi (Lisa Birnbaum), the impatient bride, is the one who resolves the delayed wedding by completely losing her cool. Except for the final scene the play--remains at room temperature.
Summer Shorts Series A
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Summer Shorts 2 Series B Our Time Is Up By Keith Reddin Directed by Billy Hopkins Cast: Clara Hopkins Daniels (Sharon), Janet Zarish (Calley). PeopleSpeak By John Augustine Directed by Robert Saxner Cast: Sherry Anderson (Siobhan), Patricia Randell (Cassie), Nick Westrate (Waiter). Plaisir D’Amour Book By Terrence McNally Music and lyrics by Skip Kennon Directed by Elizabeth Lucas Cast: Stephanie D’Abruzzo (Ruth), Rita Harvey (The women in their lives), Jonathan C. Kaplan (Sam). Neal Mayer (The men in their lives). On Island By Michael Domitrovich Directed by Mary Catherine Burke Cast: Lisa Birnbaum (Sandi), Jorge Cordova (Leo), Anthony Carrigan (George). Set Design: Maruti Evans Costume Design: Michael Bevins, Megan Sanders Lighting Design: Maruti Evans Props Master: Sean Ryan Sound Design: Chris Cotone Running Time: 2 Hours, including one intermission 59E59 Theater at 59 E. 59th Street From July 31st -- August 28th For the performance scheduleee the 59E59 Theaters Website: http://www.59e59.org/ Reviewed by Deirdre Donovan Aug. 17, 2008 |
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Wicked
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Playbill 2007-08 Yearbook
Leonard Maltin's 2008 Movie Guide
Wicked
Jersey Boys
The Little Mermaid
Lion King
Shrek The Musical
South Pacific
In the Heights
Playbill 2007-08 Yearbook
Leonard Maltin's 2008 Movie Guide