I saw this tonight and I agree, that it is often very funny. Laura Benanti walks away with the show, and I agree, that she should be in consideration for another tony for this performance. (The way she says no to the dip in one hand motion was just brilliant and hysterical)
Amy Schumer is great in the later scenes as mentioned above, where she gets to be closesr to well...Amy Schumer. I liked her throughout though and thought she had a warm presence onstage even when her character has to be more of the straight man. She also had one of my favorite lines "Would you like some pre-wine? You know, the wine you have before the wine before the guests arrive? It doesn't count."
I think I have discovered that Keegan-Michael Key is not for me. His schtick of being loud grew very tiresome to me though he did deliver some funny lines. Jeremy Shamos was game and has settled in nicely for a last minute replacement.
There is no question Martin can write funny, but the real question is can he write a fully formed play? While I adored Bright Star, this play is a kitchen sink of ideas and though it makes you laugh it is also quite frustrating and becomes more so as it heads towards its unsatisfactory conclusion.
There is a a bit of Groundhog Day here, and also the "Get the Guests" section of Virginia Woolf as well. My issue is I felt like none of these ideas were really followed through. Maybe this will be tweaked in previews, but I think the show is largely going to stay as it is. It's a stellar production (loved the set design as well), and all four actors are great, but you can only dress up a so/so play so much. I know it is sounding like I didn't have a good time, but thanks to a strong cast I definitely did laugh quite a bit.
