Wednesday, December 18, 2024
The Manhattan Theatre Club has revived Paula Vogel's “How I Learned to Drive,” using the same two main actors who performed it back in 1997, David Morse (Uncle Peck) and Mary-Louise Parker (Lil Bit) with the same director Mark Brokaw. While a quarter of a century has passed since its award-winning run at the Vineyard Theatre, the subject matter (a noxious mix of incest, misogyny and pedophilia) remains sadly relevant. Told in a non-chronological series of reminiscences, the story details years of abuse, using the metaphor of driving and driving lessons for control and sex. The relationship is not the stereotypical
Tag: Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
The Height of the Storm – Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
Back in elementary school, we all learned that a story has a beginning, a middle and an end. Apparently, playwright Florian Zeller was absent that day, or perhaps, he merely couldn't be bothered to edit his script. Despite a fine and talented cast led by Eileen Atkins and Jonathan Pryce (two of their generation's finest who are at the top of their game), supported by the finest set design and lighting tricks, Director Jonathan Kent and the Manhattan Theatre Club have a broken production on their hands. They don't have enough duct tape to fix it. The story (defined loosely) involves
A Few Minutes with Ethan Hova of “The Nap”
Stagebiz.com recently caught up with Ethan Hova who is playing in the Manhattan Theatre Club's production of “The Nap,” probably the best (only) play ever written about snooker, a version of pool that is to 8-ball what chess is to tic-tac-toe. He kindly answered our questions about the play, snooker, and his career. Stagebiz: The Nap, like a lot of comedies, depends on a degree of chemistry among the actors. How did the cast find that and how easily did it happen? Hova: It's a kind, funny group of people, so finding chemistry wasn’t hard. Alexandra Billings is a catalyst for real
The Nap – Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
Manhattan Theatre Club's production of “The Nap” is the American debut of Richard Bean's new comedy about snooker, a British version of billiards that is to 8-ball what chess is to tic-tac-toe. Why would anyone who wasn't a snooker fan (and there can't be that many in the US) go see a play about it? Well, Bean has made it about gambling, cheating and quirky characters. To be fair, the play could be tweaked a bit to be about darts, golf or video games. It's the people we meet that makes the show work. In brief, Dylan Spokes (Ben Schnetzer) is
“Saint Joan” at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
Three-time Tony nominee Condola Rashad stars in the title role of Saint Joan at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre. Her performance all but guarantees a fourth, and I expect her to win this time. She is, simply, a brilliant actor. In addition to her talents, the Manhattan Theatre Club has assembled a cast with chemistry and expert craftsmanship under the direction of Daniel Sullivan. When the weak link is George Bernard Shaw's rather long script, you have the makings of theatre at its best. The story is set in 15th century France during the Hundred Years' War, and the English are