The Submission

Jeff Talbott's new work, The Submission, is a tinder-box of race and prejudice packed into about 100 power-packed, tension-filled minutes.  Walter Bobbie's keen directorial ear lights the match which burns the volatile fuel provided by Jonathan Groff (Danny), Will Rogers (Trevor), Eddie Kay Thomas (Pete), and Rutina Wesley (Emily).

While Mr. Groff may be the headliner and main character (and still, by the way, absolutely adorable) in the Talbott's tumultuous plot, all 4 actors handily contribute to the heat and tension on the stage equally.   Crisp, staccato dialogue, rapid and ascorbic banter, and quick and uncomplicated scene changes contribute to the evening's experience.  Having seen this one at the very beginning of it's preview period, I can say with certainty that it is an extremely all written play and well acted production that can only get even better with age.  Mr. Bobbie in conjunction with Tesley + Company (Casting) are to be applauded for this fine ensemble.  The selection of each actor for his and her respective part is superb - each embodying what i presume is exactly what Mr Talbott envisioned.

No spoilers here.  Just know it will be a provocative evening of theatre that you will most likely carry out of the theatre with you into the streets afterwards.

Unnatural Acts

"Fasten your seatbelts, ladies and gentlemen.  Prepare to be mezmerized, electrified, and transported to another time and place for the next two hours" is what the pre-show announcement should proclaim.  Director and co-conceiver, Tony Speciale, has amassed a mightly arsenel of high drama in this haunting play presented at the Classic Stage Company, Unnatural Acts,  filling it with intergue, evidence, tension, speculation, passion, and betrayal.   

The play, inspired by the true story of the Secret Court of 1920 at Harvard University that attempted to rid the institution of "homosexualism" after the suicide of one of its students, Cyril Wilcox, opens on an elegantly, warmly and purposefully lit, darkly-hewn wooden-clad stage where we meet each of the very handsome and well clothed upper-crust Harvard boys attached to the scandal and begin our journey into their intricate, delicately balanced lives filled with intelect, innuendo, pride, double-talk, and deeply-guarded secrets and we follow them to their ultimate demise by play's end.  Each of the elvevn young actors brings an etherial and haunting presence to the stage under what I can only categorize as the superb directorial and choreographical choices of Mr. Speciale.  Actors Jess Burkle, Joe Cumutte, Frank De Julio, Roe Hartrampf, Roderick Hill, Max Jenkins, Brad Koed, Jerry Marsini, Devin Norick, Will Rogers, and Nick Westrate form a perfect union, an ensemble cast in the truest sense of the word.  Amplifying thier fine performances was lighting and lighting effects by Natalie Robin and sound design and the subtle and supremely effective sound effects by Christian Frederickson. 

I am torn between screaming from the mountain top that this play, cast intact, should be moved to Broadway and the thought that a Broadway house would most surely destroy the intimacy and power of the show.  Unnatural Acts is a an evening of compelling, well-written, well-acted, well-directed story-telling that lured me in, captured and held my attention, and, most importantly, kept me thinking about it and discussing it long afterwards.  Now that's powerful theatre!

From Up Here

Liz Flahive has penned a darkly funny, brutally honest, and shockingly common-place new work now unfolding on Stage I at the Manhattan Theater Club. From up Here tells the "everyday" tale of what might be considered the "normal" American family today.

And by "normal", I mean a family that has a slightly neurotic and frazzled working mom; a step-father who has no real career and can't seem to "find" himself; a daughter who is having sex with all the boys in high school; an aunt who basically ran away from life and enjoys climbing mountains and living like a backpacker. and last, but not least, a son who has done something wrong at high school - and by wrong i mean really wrong - and now has to live with the significant consequences of his actions. All normal, right?

Also, it's not really surprising that the setting is listed as "The Suburban Midwest", although these days, that could read "Anytown, USA. What Liz Flahive and director, Leigh Silverman, have done here is to skewer the "typical" American family and lay it bare for all to see.

No spoilers here - I won't tell you what Kenny has done. But it is OK for me to tell you that Tobias Segal (Equuis, Doris to Darleen) is a young, rising star to watch very closely. He's mastered the art of the troubled and disenchanted youth and he's given possibly the best performance of his career thus far. Tony award winner, Julie White aptly plays Grace, Kenny's mom. She's got a whole host of problems unto herself and now must deal with Kenny's new problem and its far reaching consequences.

Playing now thru June 22nd, come to The City Center and catch this new, smart work.