Posted: 3/14/19 at 2:15pm
It's interesting to me that so many find Kelli miscast in this. I understand it, though I didn't feel the same way. To me, she brought some much needed subtlety to a part that almost begs to be overplayed. Now, I love a hammy actress, but her decision to tone her Kate down, for me, rooted the production in a feeling of genuine fondness between the two leads. It wasn't sizzling hot chemistry, but it had the lived-in quality of a relationship that's put both folks through the ringer and left them still hating and loving each other years later. It took the kind of sexist comedy of yesteryear and found a new way in. And I loved it. I thought the production was effortless and lovely. Seeing it compared here to the abomination that was Jack O'Brien's Carousel makes me want to be very defensive. :) But to each their own! I think if you're open to a new take, this production has tons of very sincere pleasures (even if the design isn't as fun as the same team's work on She Loves Me).
