Anyone See "The Castle" With Jan Maxwell?

[PianoMann]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 1:38pm

Has anyone seen or heard anything about Howard Barker's "The Castle," with Jan Maxwell? The two reviews I have read elsewhere have been great, but I'm wondering if anyone here has seen it and can give some feedback!

[sorano916]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 2:24pm

I saw it yesterday. I thought it was good - maybe a little over my head at some points. LOL. I'm not familiar with the play or the playwright so I wasn't sure what to expect. It's not a straight drama; there are some dark humor scattered in. The performances were excellent. Jan is amazing; she looked nothing like herself in Act 2. The other leads were great, too. The set is very minimal & you have to use your imagination on what's actually happening, though. Luckily, there's a digital sign that says the location. It took me halfway through Act 1 to realize it was there. Heh.

There's some language that I wasn't expecting... My friend that went with me is more familiar with the playwright & she loved it so... *shrugs*

[PianoMann]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 2:27pm

Thanks sorano916! I'm thinking about going just to see Maxwell, since she's one of my favorites, and to know that it's definitely good is probably convincing enough!

[whatever2]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 2:30pm

it's a NYT critics pick, and TONY gave it four stars.

if that helps.

[PianoMann]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 2:35pm

I read the Time Out New York review, which certainly was very positive, but I can't find the Times review!

[whatever2]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 3:31pm

oh, crap -- brain freeze!

I was looking at something else ... sorry, mann.

fwiw, I bought my ticket based on the glowing TONY review ... going next week.

[sorano916]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 5:46pm

Here's Brantley's review: http://theater.nytimes.com/2013/07/18/theater/reviews/the-castle-from-the-potomac-theater-project.html

[PianoMann]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 6:18pm

Looks like a very positive review! Here are some pull quotes; I would post more but I'm on mobile:

“The Castle” is hugely, disgustingly entertaining. It may even be enlightening..."

"Ms. Maxwell, a five-time Tony nominee, has ceased to surprise only because she always surprises. And here she brings a marvelously gritty, ambivalent majesty to the broken witch..."

[AC126748]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 6:54pm

I bought a ticket for the final performance. With such good reviews and low ticket prices, in a small theatre, I don't want to take any chances.

[whatever2]

Posted: 7/17/13 at 11:15pm

holy cr*p -- it IS a NYT Critics' Pick!!!

I swear I had no idea when I posted this afternoon ... I really was confusing it with another Times Pick (Gibraltar).

So, anyone want to know tomorrow's winning Mega Millions numbers? :)

(BTW, if you like Joyce, Gibraltar is *well* worth seeing ... if you don't like Joyce, well, the acting rocks but the dialogue may grate.)