On the Twentieth Century

And the Tony goes to.....  yes, this one is a shoe-in for a nom... or six... and we'll just see who they are up against for the wins.  Warren Carlyle (Choreography) has got to be on the nominee list for his craft.  And let's not leave out Scott Ellis (Director) for his craft.  And don't think for a minute that Kristin Chenoweth is not a shoe-in her category.  Peter Gallagher just might be on the list too.

With an introduction like that - what's left but just the entire ensemble.  I have been saying since intermission of the show that this is perhaps the hardest working, singing, dancing, and entertaining ensemble that is currently running on Broadway.  It's seriously THAT good.
On the Twentieth Century is actually a musical by Comden & Green with music by Cy Coleman which is an adaptation of a play, Twentieth Century by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur based on the unproduced play Napoleon of Broadway by Charles B. Millholland, inspired by his experience working for the eccentric Broadway impresario David Belasco. Well that's a mouthful!
It's a good old-fashioned Broadway musical.  That alone doesn't guarantee success.  This production, however, goes every extra mile to ensure the delivery is crisp, bold, smart, and rhythmic. From the invisible orchestra to the tap dancing Porters (Rick Faugno, Richard Riaz Yoder, Drew King, and Phillip Attmore), to the show-within-a-show type story, this show has razzle, dazzle, sequins, slapstick comedy, Mary Louise Wilson (Letitia Peabody Primrose) and the audaciously sexy Andy Karl (Bruce Granit).

I never doubted for a moment that Roundabout's sets (David Rockwell) and lighting (David Holder) would be magnificent.  They were.  Costumes were simply lavish perfection (William Ivy Long).

From the moment the perfectly costumed and supremely gorgeous porters tap danced onto the stage until the very end when, all in white, the cast returns to the stage not a minute was ill-spent.  Every single minute was filled with a laugh, a song, or a dance.  Every single minute.

Get your ticket to board On the Twentieth Century today.  It leaves from Chicago to New York 8 shows each week.

You Can't Take It With You

Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman's stale and dated play is currently exploding (literally) on stage at the Longacre Theatre in a 3rd Broadway revival since it was written in 1936.  This is a commercial run that was somehow caught up in the non-profit theatre vortex of Roundabout Theatre Company at the same time (I'm sure this was another trick up Roundabout's leave to keep costs low by not having to produce an original work this season).  

While the plot is madcap (frankly, crazy), the mayhem level and star level on stage is quite substantial.  The only problem is that it's frankly too stupid with a rather banal message of simply "be happy".  There is a love story going on amongst all the hubbub and but the Carol Burnette and Saturday Night-like sketch and physical comedy simply overpowers the message and muscles its way through all 3 acts with laughter often the result but never much satisfaction past that.

The cast is huge and stars abound - James Earl Jones (Martin Vanderhof) could read the phone book and we'd all be happy and the role of the patriarch fit him age wise, but not quite stylistically.  Kristine Nielsen (Penelope Sycamore) simply knocked it out of the park with her physical comedy and infectious personality.  Annaleigh Ashford (Essie) was a bit too over the top for me as the incessant ballet dancing ditsy daughter, Mark-Linn Baker (Paul Sycamore) seemed lost in the overall mix for his talent level, Elizabeth Ashley (Olga) came in at the very end and it seemed her voice was straining to make sound.  Plus by the time she entered, the endless cast of characters parading on stage simply got me tired.  There were no less than 10 other cast members who all looked good and seemed to complement the ensemble but after a while too many characters are introduced.  I applaud a producer who undertakes such an ambitious production and employs such a large cast, but this old firecracker is a dud.  I could go on... as did the play for over 2 hours and 30 minutes over  three acts... but I won't.  

In traditional Roundabout style, the set was magnificent (kudos David Rockwell).  I do not think the actors were mic'd and it was pleasing to hear real people speaking in non-electonicized tones on stage for a play.

You could skip this production, save a few bucks, and leave the audience-going to the Roundabout subscribers who paid good money into their subscription only to find out they were subsidizing a commercial run of a Broadway production.

Relatively Speaking

Some quick research tells me that these three one-act gems came together around the one that Woody Allen wrote.   The umbrella title, Relatively Speaking, refers to the concept of family - as in your relatives and close friends.  Each of the plays has a connection to that theme and while none of them was written with the other in mind, they certainly have been packaged up together in as a 3-item gift-set for all to enjoy.

The first play, by Ethan Coen (of the famed film brother duo), Talking Cure, is the shortest and starts the evening off with some intelligent and witty banter between a prison inmate (Danny Hoch) and his psychiatrist (Jason Kravits) where we discover his issues probably stem from his mother and father.  Flash back - and we are brought to the dinner table where his pregnant mother (Katherine Borowitz) and father (Fred Melamed) are engaged in banter and bickering that is as acerbic and barb-filled as only a great writer could conjure up.

The second play, by Elaine May, entitled George is Dead, dives a bit deeper into the farcical with the always delightful and still attractive Marlo Thomas playing Doreen, an older, very wealthy, and very shallow woman in New York whose husband has just died on the ski-slopes in Colorado.  Doreen shows up at the apartment of the daughter (Lisa Emery) of her favorite nanny (Patricia O'Connell) who is, herself (the daughter), in the middle of a personal relationship crisis.  Ms. May has succeeded in this medium length gem to mix a ton of hilarity, along with a potent dose of sadness and pity.

The final play, Mr. Allen's Hollywood Motel, is a classic grand-farce that takes place in a seedy 1960's era roadside motel that involves a runaway bride, the mid-life-crisis-filled father of the groom, his wife, the father and mother of the bride, a best friend, a rabbi, a psychiatrist, the groom himself, and a pizza delivery man.  Think hysterical Carol Burnett Show skit.  Think Woody Allen.  Think Jewish humor.  Think - I never laughed so hard in all my life.   This is due, in part, to the all-star cast and their impeccable comedic timing in this gem - Steve Guttenberg, Ari Graynor, Grant Shaud (from Murphy Brown), Caroline Aaron,  Julie Kavner (Marge Simpson's voice), Mark Linn Baker (Bosom Buddies), Richard Libertini, Jason Kravits (The Practice), Danny Hoch and Bill Army.

A nicely packaged, witty, and all around entertaining evening in the theatre.  Every play on Broadway does not have to be a powerful, moving, and ground-breaking drama.  Sometimes you just need to laugh and director, John Turturro, has given us quite a treat this fall season in Relatively Speaking.

Romantic Poetry

John Patrick Shanley should be ashamed of himself after such fine work on Doubt and Defiance.  At aminimum, Lynn Meadows, Artistic Director of the Manhattan Theatre Club should for subjecting her loyal flock to this trash.  At best, this crackpot musical could be a few marginally amusing skits on the Big Gay Comedy Sketch Show - but as a show on Broadway?  Absolutely not.  It's a flop.  A grand mistake, significant miscalculation, and waste of money to subject your subscribers and, heaven forbid, paying customers to.  Shame on you, MTC!!

Losing Louie

Truly an entertaining evening at Manhattan Theater Club's first production of the 2007 season. Louie, the namesake about which the play transpires, is dead. The story seamlessly eases between the current and the past. Two stories - one the story of his life, the other the story of his funeral and all the dirt that finally comes out. Aren't all families twisted in some familiar way?

This is the story of family, conflict, and infidelity in the 1960's. It's the story of secrets, lies, and the extent to which people go to cover them up and smooth things over. It's about the truths you are afraid to tell yourself. Perception is reality? Possibly.

Matthew Arkin leads the talented lineup on the stage at the Biltmore. The staging and direction by Jerry Zachs is brilliant. The use of lighting to change the mood and time periods was brilliant. It all comes together in the end and the truth always comes out... or does it?

It really struck me that while this story, chock full of twists, turns and laughs just might contain some element of truth or relevancy to just about everyone in the audience.

Doonsbury

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doonesbury_(musical)