A Couple of Off-Broadway Picks

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 4/18/05 at 5:59pm

For the two or three of you on this board who like going to see good nonmusical plays from time to time Off-Broadway, here's a couple of recommendations:

ORSON'S SHADOW

I saw Austin Pendleton's fascinating "Orson's Shadow" Friday night and found it to be one of the finest new plays I've seen in some time. It's set in 1960 and deals with the larger-than-life characters of Orson Welles, Laurence Olivier, Vivien Leigh, Joan Plowright and the critic Kenneth Tynan. It's a fictionalized account, based on a true scenario of what happened behind the scenes when Tynan convinced Welles to direct Olivier and Plowright in a production of Ionesco's "Rhinoceros." All the characters are at a crossroads in their lives and careers. Welles is still haunted by his early success in "Citizen Kane" which over the years has become an albatross around his neck that's led him to being viewed as a failed genius who's potential was never fulfilled. Olivier is dealing with the end of his tortured, tormented marriage to the tragic Leigh, the beginning of his relationship with Plowright and confronting a bold new theatre that's come to be dominated by angry young voices who view him as a relic from the past. Leigh's fragile sanity is on the verge of becoming completely unhinged and Tynan has emphysema and may be dying.

It's always a danger with plays about famous people that the writing dwells too much with gossip and tabloid-fodder and that the performances may suffer from caricature. "Orson's Shadow" manages to avoid both pitfalls. Pendleton creates a compelling portrait of artists struggling to remain relevant and contemporary, the difficulties they face adapting to changing times and the energies they spend wrestling with inner demons from the past -- not always winning the battle. The play is in turns funny, tragic, and being a memory play told from TYnan's perspective, dream-like and surreal. The dialogue crackles with fire and intensity whenever these over-sized egos bump up against one another, each trying to win the upper hand in this game of wills. Yet, there's also some lovely poetry to be found whenever they express the baleful recriminations of their pasts. This is a group of lost souls who at times give off the air of ghosts in search of a peaceful resting place. It's clear that Pendleton has tremendous sympathy and compassion for each of them as they find themselves trying to regain past glory and find a hopeful path into the future. Just to quibble, there are some awkward shifts in tone here and there and a bit too much shorthand occasionally in the dramaturgy, but all in all, a wonderful play.

The acting is superb throughout, never resorting to imitation, but always managing to convey fully-dimensional portraits of these intriguing characters. Jeff Still, rich of voice and large is stature, makes for an ideal Welles. Tracy Letts, perhaps better known here in New York as the playwright of "Bug" and "Killer Joe," is as fine an actor as he is a writer, capturing the pitiable essence of Tynan. Also excellent are John Judd as the conflicted and volatile Olivier, Susan Bennett as the ever-patient Plowright, Lee Roy Rogers as unstable Leigh, and Ian Westerfer as Sean the young Irish stage manager, who doesn't always know what to make of these oversized personalities he has to deal with.

David Cromer's direction is exceptional -- dynamic and blisteringly-paced when it needs to be, but still managing to maintain a somber, rueful air during the proceedings. The design elements couldn't be better. Definitely a must-see.

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ORANGE FLOWER WATER

I saw it Sunday night.

"Orange Flower Water" is an emotionally raw, shockingly honest and deeply effecting portrait of marital infidelity and its aftermath. Written by Craig Wright of "Six Feet Under" fame, it has an unblinking and achingly matter-of-fact honesty to it that's astonishing in its naturalism, aided immeasureably by its cast of four first-rate actors.

The story is simple -- David (Jason Butler Harner) is having an affair with Beth (Arija Bareikis). When Beth decides to leave her boorish husband Brad (Paul Sparks), his revenge is to inform David's wife Cathy (Pamela J. Gray) of what their spouses have been up to (he had long suspected that something had been going on between the two). In a series of scenes over the course of 95 minutes, we see all of the pain and anger and disappointments and passion (there's a fairly graphic, yet rather unerotic sex scene at one point between two of the characters) and conflicts and resentments and uncertainties of these four imperfect, yet very real individuals. There's nary a false note throughout. While the play's raw reality is certainly quite unsettling, it's expertly performed, written and directed (by the gifted Carolyn Cantor). And special note should be made of David Korins's simple, attractive and intimate set design, which has the effect of nearly pulling the audience into at the action on stage, adding to the play's effectiveness.

This is a production of Edge Theatre which has previously presented similarly powerful work such as Adam Rapp's "Stone Cold Dead Serious" and "Blackbird." This is a young company and already their shows are notable for their high quality of acting, acutely effective writing and claustrophobically intense design and direction. I look forward to their future presentations (by the way, my ticket cost just $19 -- I think under Equity showcase rules, the price jumps to a still extremely reasonable $29 this week).

Updated On: 4/18/05 at 05:59 PM

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 4/18/05 at 7:45pm

Incidentally, here's an interesting article about Pendleton and "Orson's Shadow" from yesterday's Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/17/theater/newsandfeatures/17hoff.html

[pooryorick]

Posted: 4/18/05 at 7:57pm

Agreed on both of those shows.

Also, Mark Schultz's show at Soho Rep, "Everything will be different" which I saw over the weekend. Pretty brutal, but touching at the same time. Smart acting, directing and playwriting -- a triple run.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 4/18/05 at 8:01pm

ORSON'S SHADOW is absolutely brilliant. Everybody, go see it!

[cturtle]

Posted: 4/18/05 at 10:29pm

thanks for the reviews! ORSON's SHADOW sounds especially intriguing to this olivier/leigh fan