Margo's Review Update

For those who care --

Due to increased commitments and time constraints in my work schedule I have gotten way behind in my reviews as of late -- as several of you have pointed out to me via PM and other means. I sought to partially rectify the situation this past weekend by managing to finish 8 new reviews which are now posted in my blog.

I was going to reprint them all here in their entirety, but I think that the sheer length of such of post would be rather off-putting, so here are the links. You can either go to my blog and just scroll down the page

https://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/

or you can read them individually here:

HEDDA GABBLER [at BAM with Cate Blanchett]:
https://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/hedda_gabbler.htm

ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL [at The Duke on 42nd Street]:
https://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/alls_well_that_ends_well.htm

DEFIANCE [at The Manhattan Theatre Club]:
https://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/defiance.htm

BERNARDA ALBA [at The Mitzi Newhouse Theatre @ Lincoln Center]:
https://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/bernarda_alba.htm

GREY GARDENS [at Playwrights Horizons]:
https://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/grey_gardens.htm

[title of show] [at The Vineyard]:
https://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/title_of_show.htm

THE PAJAMA GAME [at American Airlines Theatre]:
https://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/the_pajama_game.htm

JERSEY BOYS [at the August Wilson Theatre]:
https://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/jersey_boys.htm

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about The Pajama Game:
"I still personally can't get past thinking that this show belongs in a community theatre or a high school somewhere, not on Broadway. Take that for what its worth. I'm sure I'm in the minority on that score, so if light, mindless, plastic, inconsequential 50s frivolity appeals to your taste, then by all means, go see this show".
I couldn't agree more!!! Im glad im not the only one that felt that way about The Pajama Game.

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I'm surprised to see you didn't believe Cate's Hedda was fully-realized. I'm seeing it tomorrow, and can't wait to be taught a few acting lessons from her.

I can see how she may seem calculated on stage. I'll let you know my impression Wednesday morning.

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Bump.

Always a pleasure and right on target. Thanks Margo

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Thank you for posting your reviews, Margo. I'm sorry that I will miss Hedda Gabler - I'll live vicariously through you on that one!

Phanty, you can't have everything -- and really that boy has everything else ....... though frankly, it's probably more a problem of the material being bland than him, necessarily.

And Touchme, it isn't so much that she needed to play it for sympathy as that if there's no real vulnerability, then you can't care when she kills herself. I've seen several other Heddas, some even bitchier than Blanchett, but they all found that quiet moment with Lovborg that suddenly justified and gave motivation to everything else that followed in the play. I didn't get that from Blanchett. But, anyway enjoy the play. You may love her interpretation and totally disagree with my assessment of this production and that's great if you do!

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You're lucky that's all I called you.

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Thanks for the reviews Margo! Makes me re-think what I see in my few open spots next week for my trip to NYC!

Cheers,

C.

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I was supposed to see Measure for Pleasure a couple of weeks ago, but I was under the weather the night I was supposed to go, so I'll probably past date and see it sometime in the next week or so (my playgoing schedule is very hectic, so it's hard to find the time to squeeze in even more shows).

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Updated On: 3/7/06 at 10:38 AM

"However, I think Cate's version makes the choice to kill him flow more easily. My biggest problem with all the other Hedda's I've seen has always been that scene: if she loves him enough to kill herself, then why would she want -- under any circumstances -- to kill him."

The other Heddas you've seen obviously didn't understand what they were doing and played it wrong. In previous Heddas I've seen I never believed that she intended to kill him -- not for one second. It was just a case of her being dramatic again (she spends the whole play acting and manipulating after all) and trying to get his attention. It's a totally empty threat. Given that her maid is within earshot, it was always obvious to me she would never pull the trigger -- imagine the scandal. In one production I saw, after she pulled out the gun Lovborg burst into laughter, walked over and calmly took the gun out of her hands, and placed it on a nearby table, at which point she began to weep, not even looking at the gun after that. He'd called her bluff and she had nothing in return (and I've seen variations on that staging a couple of times). It was always very clear to me that she loved him too much to ever seriously consider shooting him.


"Cate's makes sure that at the end you unnderstand that her suicide is not caused by a monolythic unrequited love, but rather an inability to face scandal, a torn love affair, being stuck in an unloving marriage, the threat of rape, the need to "go out beautifully", etc."

I think every Hedda I've ever seen has shown that -- it's hard to miss in most translations of the script. But the Lovborg scenes are usually the spark that starts everything and the Brack situation is just the straw that breaks the camel's back. Other Heddas I've seen showed their vulnerability, then quickly resumed their character arc, though you could see the cracks gradually forming in the facade. It was a slow, logical unravelling that was set in motion by the last Lovborg scene and when the final shot occurs it's devastating. With Blanchett, I didn't feel anything for her Hedda. She was a cold, nasty bitch to everyone she ever encountered, including Lovborg, so when she was dead, for me it was a case of "so what?" and "good riddance." I shouldn't have felt that -- and I was FAR from alone in that sentiment -- so for me Blanchett's Hedda, for all of her formidable technique, ultimately didn't work.

Glad you enjoyed it however.

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