BRIGHTON BEACH MEMOIRS reviews

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 4:50pm

NY1 is a rave:

"When I first saw "Brighton Beach Memoirs" by Neil Simon 26 years ago, it was a comedy with drama. In the current revival, it's a drama with comedy. While the script is essentially the same with topnotch actors in both productions, the difference is the direction. David Cromer, fresh from his unique, naturalistic off-Broadway staging of "Our Town," applies his now trademark directorial magic to the Neil Simon classic. The result is triumphant, as just as it was a huge hit back then, it deserves to be once again.

...

Unlike the earlier Simon comedies that are powered by the punchline, the humor in "Brighton Beach" is entirely organic. David Cromer, who I bet could locate human qualities in a head of cabbage, is an inspired choice to direct. The outstanding collaboration makes "Brighton Beach" a prime Broadway destination."


Review and Video

[LearnToBounce]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 6:48pm

Variety is a Rave:

"Hats off to the farsighted producers of "The Neil Simon Plays" for taking a risk on their choice of director. While David Cromer's most recent New York hits, "Adding Machine" and "Our Town," mined piercing depths in timeworn texts, they did so in an austere presentational style that seemed a million miles from the warm-hearted humor of "Brighton Beach Memoirs." The first installment of a Simon double that continues with "Broadway Bound," opening Dec. 10, the revival strikes an exquisite balance between comedy and pathos, its impeccable ensemble landing every laugh while exploring every emotional nuance to build a tremendously moving portrait of family life."

http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117941446.html?categoryid=33&cs=1

[TalkinLoud]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 6:51pm

I expect extremely positive reviews all around. David Cromer will be a critics favorite for years to come.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 6:56pm

Agreed. And deservedly so. It's a wonderfully entertaining production; the best I've seen so far this season. And Cromer is really a great director. OUR TOWN has one of the most sensational directorial jobs I've seen in the last few years.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 6:56pm

Sounds good.

Originally was not going to see it. Now we are seeing it next Sunday with my brother in law & his wife.

[LearnToBounce]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 7:09pm

The Hollywood Reporter is Positive:

"...Although Eugene's monologues still score big laughs, much of the rest of the humor has been toned down, giving the play a somewhat more realistic feel even while paradoxically exposing its essential lack of depth.

Still, the evening largely works thanks in large part to the excellent ensemble. Robbins, whose credits include playing Max Bialystock in his high school production of "The Producers," is a real find as Eugene, managing to be touching and hilarious. Metcalf's harsh Kate takes some getting used to, at least until the actress slowly and cannily reveals the character's underlying vulnerabilities; Fontana is warmly engaging as Stanley; Boutsikaris is moving as the physically and emotionally exhausted Jack; Hecht, though sometimes mannered, is effective as Blanche, and Socha and Lawrence do fine in the relatively undeveloped roles of the daughters."

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film-reviews/brighton-beach-memoirs-theater-review-1004030252.story

[adamgreer]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 7:11pm

I think it will also get very positive reviews, and I can only hope it helps the box office. It's a great production, and Laurie Metcalf is astonishing.

I just wonder if the reviews will help the box office. It seems like no one is talking about this show at all.

[LearnToBounce]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 7:22pm

The Associated Press is Positive:

""Brighton Beach Memoirs" was first seen on Broadway in 1983 with Matthew Broderick as Eugene. Now it's returned in an enjoyable revival, which opened Sunday at the Nederlander Theatre, with Noah Robbins, a gawky, thoroughly ingratiating young actor, as the play's narrator and anchor. Robbins' self-deprecating charm sneaks up on you as Jerome struggles to deal not only with his parents but the outside world as well.

You could call "Brighton Beach" a comedy-drama, a play peppered with amusing, often jokey dialogue alternating with poignant moments of personal confrontation and reconciliation. Yet the disconnect is not as disruptive as it could be thanks to David Cromer's smooth, seamless direction and an accomplished cast."

http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=8913253

[Testing1232]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 7:33pm

Agree with the raves, and really hope they get a nice box office boost. Absolutely LOVE this production !!!

[LearnToBounce]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 7:49pm

USA Today gives the show 3 1/2 Stars out of 4:

"As a character in a Neil Simon play might observe, it has not been a great season for menschen on Broadway. From the haughty heroine of After Miss Julie to the ranting student and teacher in Oleanna, few leading characters in drama have aspired to the agreeability and overt decency suggested by that Yiddish word.

Under any circumstances, then, a revival of Brighton Beach Memoirs, Simon's portrait of a thoroughly endearing Jewish family in late 1930s Brooklyn, would be a welcome diversion. But the new production (***½ out of four) that opened Sunday at the Nederlander Theatre is a lot more than that."

http://www.usatoday.com/life/theater/reviews/2009-10-25-brighton-beach-memiors_N.htm

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 9:21pm

NY TIMES is mixed to positive


NY TIMES REVIEW

[LaCageAuxFollesFan]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 9:36pm

I actually agree with Brantley here. Really wished someone else would have directed the return of this work. He really only seems to like the 2 boys, has quibbles with the direction, the play, and the adult actors.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 9:41pm

I greatly enjoyed the production but agree with his lose assessment about the de-jewing of the Jerome family. As much as I enjoyed the entire cast, it was a little odd to me that Eugene seemed so ethnic in a family that could have just as well been irish catholic.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 9:41pm

Despite the fact that he liked some elements of the production, it will be hard to find many good pull quotes from that review.
Updated On: 10/25/09 at 09:41 PM

[CyCoSpAz2]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 10:01pm

Agree completely with Brantley here.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 10:33pm

For what it's worth, Word of Mouth is a rave:


Video

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 10:41pm

Brantley does not like anything including himself.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 10:44pm

That's certainly not true, Mr. Roxy, but the truth has never held you back, has it?

[A Director]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 11:13pm

"I greatly enjoyed the production but agree with his lose assessment about the de-jewing of the Jerome family"

There is little that is Jewish in BBM or BB for that matter. Simon grew up in a Jewish household, but he forgot what it was like when he wrote these plays. Kaufman and Hart didn't set out to write about a Jewish family in You Can't Take It With You, but the play has a Jewish feel.

It's a hard to find depth in BBM when there isn't much in the script.

[Drunk Chita Rivera]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 11:16pm

I may have to see this now. The only reason i haven't was because one thing I hate most is sitting in an empty Theater, the energy always seems to get lost in an empty theater. Hopefully the reviews will attract a bigger audience.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 11:17pm

I understand what you mean Director - and that is certainly true when you look at the original cast of Brighton Beach and the cast for the film. But Noah Robbins is VERY Jewish - and felt a little like he was in a different family than the other cast members. it seemed to make the issue of Jewish/Non Jewish more of an issue when its usually not much of one at all in Simon's works.

[Ed_Mottershead]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 11:29pm

Sorry, my one go-round with this play (the original) was enough to last me a lifetime. Not even the so-far generally positive reviews would change my mind to avoid this one and BB like the plague.

[beautywickedlover]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 11:49pm

I went to theatre camp at the Dalllas Children's Theatre in 2005 and we acted out scenes from Neil Simon plays that included "Brighton Beach memoirs." One of my best friends played the aunt and the guy who played Eugine was really good.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 10/25/09 at 11:50pm

TheaterMania is a Rave:

"You can practically hear the ocean in director David Cromer's beautifully calibrated revival of Neil Simon's autobiographical 1983 play, Brighton Beach Memoirs, now at the Nederlander Theatre. Then again, even if you could, the sound of the waves coming to the shore would be drowned out by the noisy goings-on in the nearby Jerome household, where the Great Depression, the approach of World War II, and the dreams, longings, and troubles of this archetypal Jewish family are constantly colliding.

...

Making an auspicious Broadway debut, Robbins exhibits the expert timing of a seasoned Borscht Belt comedian; but more importantly, he fully captures the now-almost-unthinkable innocence of a sheltered teenager who can't even imagine that a woman would volunteer to have a nude photo taken. The young actor also has fantastic chemistry with the superb Fontana, who marvelously embraces Stanley's man-child dichotomies.

True, the play no longer has quite the same impact it did in 1983, when it signaled a new maturity in Simon's writing. (How we will feel about the superior Broadway Bound, which will soon be presented in repertory with this play, remains to be seen.) Still, Brighton Beach Memoirs remains an accomplished, moving, and sometimes hilarious piece of writing. It's a play that is well worth seeing -- for the first, second, or third time. "


Review

[TalkinLoud]

Posted: 10/26/09 at 12:16am

I'm really glad Fontana is getting some good notices!