On A Stool at the End of the Bar

A new play by Robert Callely had its debut over at 59E59 Theaters.  I always enjoy seeing different things over on the east side in the intimate theaters.  The productions that grace the stage are usually unique, provocative, or just a different and interesting theatrical experience.

Last night's opening, however,  of On a Stool at the end of The Bar left me feeling a bit empty and somewhat puzzled.  Mr. Callely wants to convince us of something that simply seems preposterous (not only to the characters in the play).  When the entire premise of the play is suspect, it's hard to really enjoy the general goings-on.  Despite some fairly decent performances, there's not much to salvage from this show.

However, to be applauded are the three young actors who grace the stage - Luke Slattery (Joey), Zachary Brod (Mario), and Sara Kapner (Angie).  Anyone who writes material for such young, eager, and energetic talent is to be applauded.  All three turned in fine performances, with Mr. Slattery and his good college-boy looks taking the pole position.  Robert Hogan (Father Connors) made a fairly impactful cameo appearance in his scene playing and old and old fashioned priest with limited experience in dealing with the issues presented to him.  Possibly the most well written part of Mr. Callely's play.  Timothy John Smith, a Boston native recently transplanted to NYC, has a bright future in front of him here whether in musicals (his bio suggests he has much experience in this area) or dramatic plays - which is what he demonstrates quite nicely in this awkwardly written conflict of this play.

That just leaves Antoinette Thornes, quite a quixotic choice for the leading lady.  She turned in as best a performance she could for the very awkward and poorly written part for her.  She never fought.  She never stood up for herself.  She found herself in quite a pickle and with such a past I would have expected an entirely different, potent, angry, repressed, and strong character.  And since this is the central nerve of the entire play... well, I think u see the problem now.   None of this is Ms. Thornes' fault, of course.  She herself is a rock-band singer/songwriter - and this likely may have been her debut on stage.  To that end, she is triumphant and I applaud her risk taking.  Her character, on the other hand, was likely the most disappointingly written character I have ever encountered.

In the end, direction by Michael Parva was lackluster and lacked any sizzle given the explosive nature of the subject matter.  Actors were angry but that anger was flat and muted.  In such a small theater, sometimes miracles are possible and the show transports you in an intimate setting to an entirely other place.  Unfortunately none of that happened this evening.  We were left in the end with uncertainty, anger, unresolved conflict, and although I believe we are supposed to see a glimmer of hopefulness in the very last line of the script, it was not nearly enough to clear the black cloud of gloom that hung over the entire evening.

Abraham Lincoln's Big Gay Dance Party

If only Chris Smith's direction was better - this play might be the hot ticket of the season.  Instead, I'm left merely pondering the potential of this soggy mid-western corn dog at the Acorn Theatre.

Don't get me wrong Aaron Loeb's play is a potential future juggernaut but its currently overloaded and slow.  There are too many story lines, too many jokes (albeit funny) that seem to pop out of nowhere.  In one sense it's a solid drama but suddenly becomes a rag tag Saturday night live skit - round and round it went.  Behind all of this is a strong, worthwhile message, but that message is diluted by the constant juggling of the story and focus.  Scene changes are laborious and too long.  The show should be cut to 90 powerfully funny minutes.  The "audience chooses the order of the 3 acts" gimmick takes precious time and is purely academic.  Unless I plan to see it all 6 different ways or do my doctoral dissertation on the show, it's useless to me as an audience member at this performance.

Acting was solid.  It's a diverse cast.  Arnie Burton steals the show as the Pulitzer prize winning journalist, Anton -  as does Stephanie Pope Caffey as Regina/Esmeralda.  Robert Hogan is a stage veteran and doesn't disappoint.  Ben Roberts, a relatively new face (and chest), certainly can play "cute (gay) mid-western boy" quite well too.

Politics, religion, education, gay rights, deception, double crossing, bigotry (oh, i already covered a few of these with politics) and the liberal media - all at once - just to name a few of the subjects covered!  At a few points, I lost track of who was screwing who.  One of my favorite scenes was the argument that ensues between the journalist (Arnie) and the black senator (Regina) when she confronts his turning "gay" into being the new "black".  Very powerful stuff packed into that dialogue.  Very powerful stuff packed into this whole play as a matter of fact.

Maybe I need to see it again?  Or maybe it just needs to be fixed so those who follow me get all they need from one great performance.  David Cote summed it up recently by saying that Broadway was the last place this play needs to be.  It belongs playing in regional theaters in small cities and towns all over America.  That's really where it's needed most.