CurtainUp
The Internet Theater Magazine of Reviews, Features,
Annotated Listings
| |
CurtainUp The Internet Theater Magazine of Reviews, Features,
Annotated Listings |
|
A CurtainUp Review
This Day Forward
By Elyse Sommer
Many of the current play's structural elements and themes are very much a case of The Lyons-Redux. But the story is now told in two different time frames and the characters, though different, have much in common. The Lyons began as Rita and Ben Lyons' forty miserably unhappy years together was coming to an end courtesy of the Grim Reaper's embrace of Ben. This Day Forward opens with Irene and Martin (Holley Fain and Michael Crane) on their wedding night. A surprising confession from Irene injects a note of suspense as to how that wedding night will end. It's pretty clear soon after Martin's opening monologue that he and Irene shouldn't stay together. But their personalities (he's insecure, she rather dizzy) might get in the way of common sense. Adding to the unpredictability of their future is the arrival of three additional cast members, one of whom turns the honeymooners into a triangle. The first ends with the audience still unsure whether this will be a replay the Lyons' unhappily, undivorced situation — and if so, just how and why. Immediately after the curtain rises on the second act we do find out if Irene and Martin made it to that Acapulco honeymoon. However, it's not until the play has made its last forward move that we find out why and how it happened. Clearly This Day Forward is not a sequel, but neither is it really new in terms of the issues raised regarding love, marriage and parenting. I wish I could say, Mr. Silver's revisit to these issues with a new set of characters struck me as vital, and that This Day Forward was actually fresher and better than The Lyons. Though it does have enough assets to make it reasonably entertaining, it's not prime Silver. The first act is mainly an extended set-up for the better second act and seems borrowed from Neil Simon's laugh-a-minute comedies and an episode from a 60s TV comedy show. The darker and better second act's repartee is more typically and better Silver, but it still echoes The Lyons too much. Add to the previously mentioned familial problems, that of grown children of dealing with an aging, memory challenged parent; at that a parent of whom they're not particularly fond. The last part of the play does tug at the emotions but doesn't escape coming off as too facile to be convincing. To get back to those previously mentioned assets. Allen Moyers, who also designed The Lyons, has created two drop-dead sets for each act's distinct time zone and location. The first act takes us back to 1958 and a room in New York's St. Regis Hotel where Martin (Michael Crane) and Irene (Holley Fain) are spending their wedding night before a honeymoon in Acapulco. The second act jumps forward to 2004. We're still in New York, but the setting now is a sleek Manhattan apartment. With Mark Brokaw again at the helm, the shift from 1958 to 2004 and from character to character is balanced and smooth, as are the interactions between the characters. Under his guidance, the actors, all but two of whom are here double cast, give first-rate performances. Holley Fin as Irene is pretty enough to be on the cover of a bridal magazine and aptly dizzy an yet surprisingly complicated. Michael Crane (whose work I last admired earlier this year ( The Body of an American and the superb Vineyard premiere of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' Gloria ) reveals the insecurities of the closely connected Martin and Noah. Andrew Burnap taps into the cheekiness of hotel bellhop Donald and the charm and sensitivity of Leo. Francesca Faridany makes up for her initial cameo role at the St. Regis when she reappears as Noah's tense and enraged sister Sheila. Joe Tippett's Emil shows up only briefly in both acts but is excellent both times. But the really big standout performance belongs to June Gable, who morphs from a heavily accented Polish hotel maid into the 2004 persona of Irene. Her performance is as close to Linda Lavin's Rita Lyons as this play gets. While Nicky Silver did give Rita Lyons a happy ending of sorts, he's tougher on Irene. She may not agree with Martin's "This is life, not a movie. Not everyone is Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck" — but as Silver sees it, Martin is depressingly right. Life is filled with unhappy people who make bad choices and don't know how to undo them. |
Search CurtainUp in the box below PRODUCTION NOTES This Day Forward by Nicky Silver Directed by Mark Brokaw Cast (in order of Appearance: Michael Crane (Martin/Noah), Holley Fain (Irene),Andrew Burnap (Donald/Leo), June Gable (Melka/Irene), Joe Tippett (Emil), Francesca Faridany (Mrs. Schmtt/Sheila) Scenic design: Allen Moyer Costumes: Kaye Voyce Lighting: David Lander Original music and sound design: David Van Tieghem Wig, hair, makeup: Dave Bova and J.Jared Jana Dialect Coach: Stephen Gabis Fight Director: J.David Brimmer Stage Manager: Cynthia Cahill Running Time: 2 Hours, including 1 intermission Vineyard Theater 108 E. 15 St. From 11/03/16; opening 11/21/16. Reviewed by Elyse Sommer at November 18th press preview REVIEW FEEDBACK Highlight one of the responses below and click "copy" or"CTRL+C"
Paste the highlighted text into the subject line (CTRL+ V): Feel free to add detailed comments in the body of the email. . .also the names and emails of any friends to whom you'd like us to forward a copy of this review. For a feed to reviews and features as they are posted at http://curtainupnewlinks.blogspot.com to your reader Curtainup at Facebook . . . Curtainup at Twitter Subscribe to our FREE email updates: E-mail: esommer@curtainup.com put SUBSCRIBE CURTAINUP EMAIL UPDATE in the subject line and your full name and email address in the body of the message. If you can spare a minute, tell us how you came to CurtainUp and from what part of the country. |
