A STEADY RAIN Reviews

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 5:35pm

2-stars from London's Telegraph:

"This is theatre as stripped-down story-telling; a two-hander played out on a sparse set over a gripping 90 minutes.

The duo gave a tight, nuanced performance, complete with convincing Chicago accents. Jackman, who won a Tony Award for his 2004 Broadway debut in The Boy From Oz, was enthralling as the big hearted but corrupt cop.

By turns humorous, dark and tense, the actors handled Keith Huffs evenly paced drama, directed by John Crowley, with a skill and subtlety which rarely gets chance to shine in Hollywood."

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 5:38pm

Postive for the cast, middling for the piece from Michael Sommers.

"Although the modest play is little more than a conventional cop drama, its troubled characters and the painful incidentals of their fraying ties should satisfy anybody not expecting to watch the stars interpret Shakespeare. Their expert performances lend the slick play credibility.

His good looks disguised with a bad haircut and bushy mustache, Craig infuses his brooding loner Joey with a wistful sort of he-man sensitivity. Hands blurring in constant motion, Jackman's foul-mouthed Italian paisano Denny is a simmering stew of mixed emotions. The actors' interplay is swift, true and confident and their final face-off reduces the audience to a hush."



http://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/movies/stars-brighten-a-dark-cop-drama-in-a-steady-rain

[Play Esq.]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 5:42pm

Correction: London's Telegraph gave it three stars.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-reviews/6243814/A-Steady-Rain-at-the-Gerald-Schoenfeld-Theatre-review.html

[LearnToBounce]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 5:47pm

I didn't know Michael Sommers was still reviewing. Good to see him back in the game.

[James2]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 7:21pm

Talkin' Broadway is Positive.

"[Craig and Jackman] do throughout exactly what great actors must: not only make the roles their own, but make it difficult to imagine they could (or should) be played any other way. Theirs is a terrific pairing, one that makes a satisfying but forgettable script into something memorable and electrifying for reasons that go well beyond merely seeing big movie actors onstage. Itâ??s great talent using good material to show the amazing things theyâ??re capable of when theyâ??re allowed to let loose. Producers and audiences everywhere - assuming they can get tickets - should look at A Steady Rain as the ultimate example of the magic that smart star power - and smart star casting - can work."

http://www.talkinbroadway.com/world/index.html

Updated On: 9/29/09 at 07:21 PM

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 7:27pm

I just breezed through the review but I totally agree with what I read of Matthew Murray's thoughts.

[jo]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 8:00pm

Sounds like a POSITIVE review from VARIETY, both for the play and the performances.

http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117941264.html?categoryid=33&cs=1


>But playwright Keith Huff recharges those familiar elements by approaching events usually outlined in action terms with the probing eye of a forensics investigator and psych profiler combined. Pair that with John Crowley's taut production, not to mention actors with the charisma and command of Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman, and you get riveting theater. <<<<

>>Likewise the performances are not star turns but complex characterizations that peel back layer upon layer of reticent self-protection to reveal increasingly uncomfortable truths.<<<<



Updated On: 9/29/09 at 08:00 PM

[tking001]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 8:11pm

I hear that people who see this show walk out very wet
from the Steady RAIN

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 8:22pm

I hear that people who see this show walk out very wet
from the Steady RAIN

Die.

[ljay889]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 8:27pm

^ Going to harass coolkid again?

[NYadgal]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 8:49pm

I have to agree with the sentiment that the actors deserve good reviews, but the material falls a little short...

But, will enjoy reading the reviews as they come out.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:09pm

That's pretty much the gist of my "review". GREAT performances in an interesting story, without the "convention" of a great script.

[tking001]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:32pm

What if it happens to Thunderstorm
Would they rename the play "A Steady Storm" ?

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:36pm

Updated On: 9/29/09 at 09:36 PM

[singer73192]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:44pm

http://www.usatoday.com/life/theater/reviews/2009-09-29-steady-rain-jackman-craig_N.htm

This USA Today review is very positive!

Huff's briskly absorbing script has its clichés and contrivances, but Denny and Joey are drawn with such earthy wit and non-patronizing compassion that Rain never rings false or superficial. It's hard to imagine a better vehicle for two actors who clearly don't need larger-than-life characters to deliver grand performances.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:45pm

NY1 seems mixed to positive:

"Playwright Keith Huff must have studied an awful lot of police dramas on TV, because "A Steady Rain" could easily have been an episode from one of them.

And while he does a fine job loading up the play with melodramatic plot twists and gritty violence, it's hard to believe that this two-hander would have made it this far without the star power of Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman.

The cop thriller marks a return to Broadway for Jackman, who received a Tony Award for his portrayal of Peter Allen in 2004's "The Boy from Oz," and the Broadway debut for Craig.

....


"A Steady Rain" is at best a modest drama for Broadway that not even the strength of Wolverine and James Bond could turn into must-see theater.

But Jackman and Craig in their first dramatic roles on the Great White Way have certainly earned their stripes, deserving a more worthy vehicle for their superstar talents."
Review and Video

[jo]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:49pm

The Los Angeles Times is drawn by the compelling performances but had reservations about the adequacy of the material to show off the talents of the two actors.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/09/theater-review-a-steady-rain-on-broadway-.html

>Don't tell the movie studios, but Jackman can be astonishingly cinematic even without a blockbuster budget furnishing the illusion for him. And Craig manages to achieve a romantic intensity even with his Adonis looks tucked under a nebbishy facade.

As drama, "A Steady Rain" is mostly drizzle. But as entertainment, the play packs hurricane force, thanks to its lightning headliners.<<<<



Updated On: 9/29/09 at 09:49 PM

[tking001]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:50pm

I wonder
If it starts to Thunderstorm outside would they rename the play
"A Steady Storm"
?

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:51pm

YOU'RE NOT FUNNY!!!

[tking001]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:54pm

But Only if it thunderstorms steadly
If not
Would it be called a scattered storm
Or a light drizzle

[Fan2]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 9:55pm

Backstage.com love it.

http://www.backstage.com/bso/content_display/reviews/ny-theatre-reviews/e3i49ed8b00bbe771aad6ff077a49d8e97a

>>Though its plot sounds like one you might hear at a Hollywood pitch meeting, Keith Huff's "A Steady Rain" offers one of the most powerful theatrical experiences in many seasons. This is mainly due to John Crowley's tight direction and the masterful performances of a pair of movie hunks best known for their adventure capers. Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman prove they are much more than James Bond and Wolverine in this heavyweight smackdown.

[jo]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 10:22pm

Ben Brantley of The New York Times --

http://theater2.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/theater/reviews/30steady.html


Seems neither rave nor rant!

[LearnToBounce]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 10:27pm

Brantley is Indifferent-to-Snobbish, or Negative:

"“A Steady Rain,” which opened on Tuesday night at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater, is probably best regarded as a small, wobbly pedestal on which two gods of the screen may stand in order to be worshiped. Not that Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman are striking Olympian poses in Keith Huff’s 90-minute, two-character melodrama, directed by John Crowley. On the contrary, playing a couple of all-too-human Chicago cops whose friendship is direly tested, these strapping actors work hard to tamp down associations with their super-heroic franchise film roles, that of James Bond (Mr. Craig) and the X-Man mutant known as Wolverine (Mr. Jackman).

For the record, both are just fine in their parts, and in the case of Mr. Craig, almost unrecognizable with a milquetoast mustache and cowed mien, more than fine. But it’s hard to avoid thinking that had they chosen to recite the alphabet in counterpoint (which might have been more fun), their joint appearance would still generate ticket sales unknown for a straight play since Julia Roberts appeared in Richard Greenberg’s “Three Days of Rain” (which had a cast of three instead of two) three years ago."

http://theater2.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/theater/reviews/30steady.html?hpw

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 10:32pm

Odd review...

DidHeLikeIt.com has him "on the fence."

[April Saul]

Posted: 9/29/09 at 10:32pm

My favorite, wtf part of the Times review is when Brantley reports that the woman accompanying him to Steady Rain says she is disappointed that Jackman and Craig don't take their clothes off...guess that forever dispels any notion of theater critics having serious post-show conversations on press nights!