Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Harvey: When the Imaginary Becomes the Reality
By Jonathan Jones
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Roundabout Theatre's Production of Harvey is playing at Studio 54. Tickets can be purchased here.
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Roundabout Theatre's Production of Harvey is playing at Studio 54. Tickets can be purchased here.
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Death of a Salesman: Breathtaking
By Jonathan Jones
Saturday, June 2, 2012
I went into this production with low expectations due to a distrust of Philip Seymour Hoffman's stage persona (see below). In fact, I wasn't going to see this production at all as a result of that distrust. Somehow, I put my feelings aside and laid out a ridiculous amount of money on eBay to catch this surprising gem before it closed.
Framing the work with the original set designs and incidental music, Mike Nichols created a stirring rendition of what has been described as the great American play. Just hearing that moniker also provided additional distrust. I've seen a number of productions in my youth, but none recently and thus, I was skeptical about what made this so 'great' in the eyes of so many. As the play opened, I immediately began to think that perhaps this was the great play of White America, which was equally troubling. Forgetting the exact turns that were forthcoming, and finding myself incredibly vested in the story due to the captivating performances across the board, I uncovered what made the work so great: identifying that the hyper-optimism of Americans is a great illusion and if we were to give up the dream that we will be more than we are (i.e. the American Dream) and accept that we are just another cog in the wheel, we would have grave difficulty getting out of bed everyday. Further, many (like Willy) would rather die than give up their illusion.
When Andrew Garfield's Riff rails on Hoffman's Willy at the end of the show, the rapture of the audience was palpable. Sniffles and tears were audible as was the communal breathing that had taken over the audience. Michael Musto would describe this moment as "acting with a capital A" where the screen performer has to scream at the end of the show to get accolades - but I would make a converse observation. What I perceive to be this bad acting is what Mr. Hoffman did three years ago in LAByrinth Theatre Company's Othello - which is to portray an angry, unlikable Iago by yelling from start to finish. No nuance. No character arc. Mr. Garfield's Riff is played like a fine symphony; moments of quiet; moments of shocking awe; moments of heartbreak and moments of disbelief. In The First Wives Club, Goldie Hawn's character leads us to believe that she has all emotions because she's an actress. While she says this line for great comedic effect, it is true that a great actor should be able to inhabit a range of emotions, yet have honest reactions to the given circumstances - and Mr. Garfield has a supreme fluidity in his portrayal of Biff that really was incredible to behold.
Saturday, June 2, 2012
I went into this production with low expectations due to a distrust of Philip Seymour Hoffman's stage persona (see below). In fact, I wasn't going to see this production at all as a result of that distrust. Somehow, I put my feelings aside and laid out a ridiculous amount of money on eBay to catch this surprising gem before it closed.
Framing the work with the original set designs and incidental music, Mike Nichols created a stirring rendition of what has been described as the great American play. Just hearing that moniker also provided additional distrust. I've seen a number of productions in my youth, but none recently and thus, I was skeptical about what made this so 'great' in the eyes of so many. As the play opened, I immediately began to think that perhaps this was the great play of White America, which was equally troubling. Forgetting the exact turns that were forthcoming, and finding myself incredibly vested in the story due to the captivating performances across the board, I uncovered what made the work so great: identifying that the hyper-optimism of Americans is a great illusion and if we were to give up the dream that we will be more than we are (i.e. the American Dream) and accept that we are just another cog in the wheel, we would have grave difficulty getting out of bed everyday. Further, many (like Willy) would rather die than give up their illusion.
When Andrew Garfield's Riff rails on Hoffman's Willy at the end of the show, the rapture of the audience was palpable. Sniffles and tears were audible as was the communal breathing that had taken over the audience. Michael Musto would describe this moment as "acting with a capital A" where the screen performer has to scream at the end of the show to get accolades - but I would make a converse observation. What I perceive to be this bad acting is what Mr. Hoffman did three years ago in LAByrinth Theatre Company's Othello - which is to portray an angry, unlikable Iago by yelling from start to finish. No nuance. No character arc. Mr. Garfield's Riff is played like a fine symphony; moments of quiet; moments of shocking awe; moments of heartbreak and moments of disbelief. In The First Wives Club, Goldie Hawn's character leads us to believe that she has all emotions because she's an actress. While she says this line for great comedic effect, it is true that a great actor should be able to inhabit a range of emotions, yet have honest reactions to the given circumstances - and Mr. Garfield has a supreme fluidity in his portrayal of Biff that really was incredible to behold.
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