A DOLL'S HOUSE, PART 2 previews — Page 6

I saw this Friday night and enjoyed it tremendously. It's a taught play that moves at a very swift pace, but it's packed with lots to think about in relation to marriage, gender, and class. I think Lucas Hnath deserves a lot of credit for writing a piece that ably explores these areas while still being extremely entertaining. I'm not sure when he started writing it, but the play felt all the more powerful in the wake of the election as well- but had that gone differently this would still be worthwhile. I hope to see it again as I keep thinking about all the points raised by each of these characters.

The entire cast is firing on all cylinders. Chris Cooper has the least intriguing role, but I thought his performance was effective, especially in his last scene with Metcalf. Condola Rashad and Jayne Houdyshell are both wonderful. Houdyshell, of course, knows how to deliver a one-liner, but she nicely plays the more emotional moments as well. This was my first time seeing Rashad and I loved her performance- she has a great stage presence. And Laurie Metcalf is, of course, tremendous in every way. I can't imagine she doesn't win the Tony for this.

The staging and set are quite simple, but it's all in service of the excellent acting and script. I still need to see Sweat and Indecent, but I think this would be a very worthy winner of Best Play.

Honestly, I feel pretty mixed about this one. Saw it the other night in a packed (mostly comped) house and while the actors all seem to be really digging in and earning all of their humor, they transcend the material. The play itself feels like a lecture, with several of Nora's monologues actually acting as lectures. The humor and pathos that arrive seem more a testament to the skill of the actors and Sam Gold than the skill of Lucas Hnath. I'm mostly unfamiliar with Hnath's work, but this is a criticism I've seen made often about him. If that's the case, I think maybe he's just not my cup of tea.

Regardless, the cast really does make the evening fly by. Chris Cooper does his best with a mostly bland role. Jayne Houdyshell is reliably hilarious, both warm and stern in equal measure. Condola Rashad has the most difficult role as Nora and Torvald's daughter and she plays the role almost as an emotionless robot, which is jarring given the wonderfully natural performances from the rest of the quartet. And then there's Laurie Metcalf, who absolutely nails her performance. She never leaves the stage and the layers she brings to the character are stunning. You'll be howling in laughter one moment and your heart will be broken the next; she'll have you in the palm of her hand even as she keeps you at a distance. It's a performance that Tony Awards were made for: gutsy, physical, nuanced, lovely.

Overall, I'm glad I saw it once so I could experience the joy of seeing some really fine acting by some of my favorite actors working in the theatre. But I don't know that I would recommend it to others. It just felt like Mr. Hnath thought he was being a lot more clever than he ended up.

Updated On: 4/23/17 at 01:45 PM

Has anyone gone to the stage door? Would love to meet Metcalf after the show (she didn't stop during Misery when I saw it).

Hnath sure knows how to write an argument. Only in Isaac's Eye have I ever felt that one character was "right" and the other was "wrong", and that's actually my main problem with the play.

And Houdyshell yelling "f*ck you, Nora!" might be one of the funniest one-liners I've ever heard, though I also agree that the play isn't as much of a comedy as others have been saying. Part of this is because of Sam Gold's staging, which emphasizes comedy as much as possible.

Has anyone in D-111 of the orchestra? Curious about the view.

n2nbaby said: "Has anyone gone to the stage door? Would love to meet Metcalf after the show (she didn't stop during Misery when I saw it).

I was there last night. They all signed and took pictures.

"

little_sally said: "I was there again last night and don't have much more to say other than I think Chris Cooper has really grown in his role. It makes the final scene between Torvald and Nora so much stronger.



Agreed- I was worried about him the most given the divided response on the boards. But I saw it last weekend and thought he was great- the month of previews has definitely helped him the most.