Jaystarr's 10/10 Report on THE HOMECOMING (with spoilers)

[jaystarr]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 11:21am

E35

The Homecoming
Cort Theater
Play Revival by Harold Pinter
4/6 pm 3 pm matinee
2 hours & 10 minutes (with 1 intermission)
Tix Price : $31.00 TDF-did not use(Saturday) + $26.00 Balcony (Sunday)


INTRO:

I was actually supposed to see this show last Saturday 4/5 at 2 pm matinee. I got a $31.00 ticket thru TDF and already packed my bag to go to NYC to see this, but I overslept saturday morning and decided NOT to go...but still it did not prevent me from going the next day to see the 40th anniversary revival of the play. Sunday.. I woke up early and took the 10 am bus to NYC and arrived there at 2 pm. Just a perfect BRAND NEW DAY- and I bought a $26.00 balcony ticket.

Cort Theater is probably my favorite theater in NYC.. I like it a lot .. its cozy and there's really no bad seat in the theater. The last time I was here was THE LITTLE DOG LAUGHED. I actually like the three theater that's located on the other side of Broadway- The Cort, The Lyceum & The Belasco. The theaters have its own unique characteritics.

Things I LIKE about the play (out of 10)

1. The Play: When I got inside the theater.. The balcony was not full.. There were probably 30 people in the balcony, so I moved down to the middle of the balcony after the lights went off... To be honest... I thought I will be bored.. just looking at the set...but I was soo wrong... I love every moment of the it. There were no dull or boring parts at all.

The play has the most beautiful dialogues..I ever listened on stage to date. It barely has any incidental music at all till the second act ( dance scene of Lenny & Ruth) but the dialogues are soo witty, funny and beautiful. This is one play that I enjoyed just listening to the dialogues. The story is very simple. Its a story of 5 men- two bothers- Max (the father) and his brother (Sam) ...Max has three sons- Teddy, a philosophy teacher who came to visit his father,. Lenny...who I thought is some sort of "pimp" and Joey, the youngest - a boxer. Lenny brought his wife, Ruth which is the center of the whole play.

2. Raul Esparza- I really have to get my "Raul fix" this season.. I love him in Company and I love him more here. Its nice to see him in a play with an accent. I thought he was very seductive...there is too much sexual tension at the End of ACT 1- when Teddy teases Ruth.

-nice to see Raul in his pajamas and his sexy seduction scene by removing his slippers and exposing his bare feet and gliding it across the floor.

3. Ian McShane- this man deserves to be nominated this year as Lead Actor. he is indeed very good asthe patriach of the family. There's a lot of memorable dialogues that from him in the play... "You BItch!", "You tit" and "Anyone could have the same time. You'd bend over for a half dollar on Blackfriar's Bridge"

-everytime he is onstage..there's just soo much energy in his perforamance.

4. Michael McKean as the Uncle- I love his portrayal here.. I get that he is "gay" in the play.. he was constantly teased by his brother.." It's funny you never got married", isn't it? a man with all your gifts"

5. James Fraian as Teddy- his inablity to connect with his wife, which makes Ruth restless desires to go out exploring. he was so unemotional available for Ruth even at the end.

6. Gareth Saxe as Joey- I thought he was one the best in the cast...he is somewhat "off" or retarded in the role. I love the part where he was making out with Ruth and begging her not to go.....

7. Eve Best- I think this is really her show.. I missed her last year, but I was glad that catch her this time...I can't tell how much I love her in the play. She is very seductive in the role. Her showing her legs and moving it..

-I thought the part where she is making out with Raul while dancing (finally we have music here) infront of her husband was soo weird but I like it...plus when his father & other brother in law (Joey) came home .. she started making out with him (Joey) too... and that scene with Gareth Saxe & Raul Esparza is almost a sex-orgy without removing their clothes or being graphic... Their acting and the play itself was just soo good!

8. Symbolic "homecoming" of the Mother & WhOre figure that Eve Best represents in the play.

-For me- the play is about Ruth coming "home " to herself. She rediscovers her previous identity prior to her boring marriage to Teddy.

- I think at the end of the play, she appeared to have assumed the role of Teddy's Family in London as a missing wife and mother, while putting her own family (she has three boys too in America) in the same position.

9. The Lighting: The part where Raul is sitting on the couch as the time passes-while Ruth came home after her escapades.. The lighting really conveys how time passes by soo perfectly.

10. The set- I thought as I mentioned earlier...I would be bored.. it does remind me of THE SEAFARER (which I got soo bored & sleepy) but I love the set... specially the wall by the stairs that's deteriorating which represents to me as the male power struggle in Max's family... the plain color & the absence of other colors such as red, pink or orange represents to me as the lack of maternal role in their household.. its almost like they are still mourning for the loss of their mother.


Things I DID NOT LIKE about the play (out of 10)

N O N E

IN SUMMARY:

I really love the play. I was glad that I decided to catch the 10 am bus and just to go NYC again even though I forfeited my TDF ticket the day before. I bought a $26.00 ticket... during intermission.. I asked the Usher at the Mezzanine , if i can sit there, since its not full and they let me sit in the MEZZ CENTER (which is btw - the perfect seat in THE CORT THEATER) If I decided to stay home...I probably wont not forgive myself for missing this marvelous play in which I highly appreciate the beauty of dialogues, symbolism and subtlety of the play.

I was not able to stage door bec. the cast did not go out bec. they have another show at 7 pm -a special event for Actor's Equity Fund. Though I was happy and blessed that I did not miss this fabulous revival, and that's what I really came for...great play and great acting! Its still playing 1 more week- If you have a chance catch the show and DO NOT MISS IT!

Thanks

J*

Score : 10/0 - HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!



Cort Theater


















Production Photos
from Playbill
https://www.playbill.com/multimedia/search/12742.html

Raúl Esparza, Michael McKean and Ian McShane


Gareth Saxe and Raúl Esparza


James Frain and Eve Best


Eve Best


The Playbill











Updated On: 5/14/08 at 11:21 AM

[matty159]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 11:29am

Thanks for the review (as usual), J*!

I am really upset that I missed this. Seeing Esparza and McShane together on stage would have made me a most happy fella!

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 11:31am

Lenny brought his wife, Ruth which is the center of the whole play.

Teddy is married to Ruth, not Lenny.

there is too much sexual tension at the End of ACT 1- when Teddy teases Ruth.

That was Lenny.

Updated On: 4/7/08 at 11:31 AM

[joe5]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 11:35am

Thanks Jay, Do you need a new alarmclock?

[bestinshow2]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 11:39am

Great review, Jay! I love this production to death.

[jordangirl]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 11:40am

Great review Jay! I'm glad you loved it! :) Sorry you didn't get to meet the cast.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 11:41am

YAY! I'm glad you loved it, Jay!

[uncageg]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 11:47am

Glad you enjoyed it Jay. I saw it in December and loved it. Talked about it for a week with the friend I saw it with. I haven't discussed a play like that after seeing it since "DOUBT".

[jaystarr]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 11:49am

oh god! I have another mind block- somehow Raul looks like Teddy (just the name)

Raul Esparza is Lenny.. the "pimp"
James Frain is Teddy- the philosophy professor, the one married to Ruth.

Sorry.. its Monday! lol!

******

Yeah- I need a new alarm clock.. My cell phone is actually my alarm clock.. It must have been off... I am a very moody person sometimes.. plus I kinda really dont feel like going to NYC..I could have drove to NYC...Well- I knew I WANT TO SEE the show..but somehow... I woke up that Saturday..not in the "mood" to go anywhere else..it must be the weather.. it was raining all day Friday and cloudy Saturday...

I am glad that I decided JUST to go Sunday. I made that decision Sunday morning..I am soo unpredictable sometimes.. I did not see to ROCK N ROLL & IS HE DEAD for the same reason!

Edit: I really love the show.. the more I think about it... the more I like it!

J*


Updated On: 4/7/08 at 11:49 AM

[musicalmaster703]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 12:09pm

My mom saw it, she got Raul Esparsa's autograph for me :)

[karen24]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 12:12pm

Thanks for the great review! I'm glad you decided to go even after forfeiting your ticket from the day before. I saw the play with my 15-year-old son and it certainly gave us a lot to talk about afterwards! We both really liked it. We were fortunate enough to meet the cast afterwards at the stage door and they couldn't have been nicer to my son (well, the ones who stopped--which was most of them, including Raul and Eve--Ian McShane just dashed out and got into his car )

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 12:47pm

I'm glad you liked it!

[aliciag]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 12:48pm

Thanks for another great review. I really enjoyed the show too and thought the acting was superb. Plus I am a huge Raul fan and he did not disappoint!

[dave1606]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 1:07pm

glad you enjoyed it so much! I loved all the actors in this, especially McShane who was so brilliant on Deadwood. I guess I'm just not ready for pinter however, as the play just turned me off. but it definitely is one of the best casts on broadway!

[scaryclowns223]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 4:48pm

Glad you enjoyed it Jay!

It really is a brilliant production. If it wasn't for Macbeth, I would totally pick this for Best Revival.

Anther great review.

[keen on kean]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 6:06pm

Thanks, jaystarr! Glad you liked this Pinter masterpiece.

Don't know about Sam being gay - it is a possible reading, but with Pinter you can never be entirely sure. That's half the fun.

[Steve2]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 6:36pm

Thanks Jaystarr. Always a pleasure to read your reviews. It's as if I were there myself.

[folkyboy]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 6:45pm

i found the actual play turned me off due to WAY too many metaphors and subtexts being written into the piece but the acting was riveting and had me questioning my distaste for it all. it was a interesting night of theatre nonetheless

[baddadnpa]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 6:50pm

I have to admit that I really disliked this show, although Raul was wonderful (and I loved seeing his little piggies). The only thing that could've been done to make me enjoy myself was if the 3 brothers stripped down and wrestled in their tighty whities. Now THAT would get, um, a standing ovation from me.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 10:11pm

His little piggies?

[keen on kean]

Posted: 4/7/08 at 10:14pm

Raul slips his slippers off in an early scene and is barefoot.