Nine Arianda Starring in MTC's Red Vienna

[TheatreFreak05]

Posted: 10/23/13 at 6:07pm

I missed her in Venus in Fur, so I am very excited for this production!




Link Updated On: 10/23/13 at 06:07 PM

[GlindatheGood22]

Posted: 10/23/13 at 7:17pm

Please see my avatar.

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 10/23/13 at 8:11pm

This news pleases me. Arianda is far and away one of my favorite actresses, and I'm so excited she's doing something on stage so soon!

[FishermanBob]

Posted: 10/23/13 at 8:58pm

Hopefully this follows the same off-Broadway limited run to longer Broadway run path that Venus in Fur followed. Anxious to see her on stage again. She was electric in Venus.

[followspot]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 1:36pm

[GreasedLightning]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 1:51pm

Does anyone know if there will be a 30 Under 30 discount for this? I know that is usually MTC's policy but I have not seen a show of theirs at a City Center Stage.

*edit: or ANY type of student discount/rush? Thanks! Updated On: 2/19/14 at 01:51 PM

[oncemorewithfeeling2]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 1:51pm

Wow, that's a stunning ad! Ms. Arianda looks great. Really looking forward to this.

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 1:57pm

Does anyone know if there will be a 30 Under 30 discount for this? I know that is usually MTC's policy but I have not seen a show of theirs at a City Center Stage.

*edit: or ANY type of student discount/rush? Thanks!

I'm pretty sure they do 30 Under 30 for shows at City Center Stage I. (I think there was a discount offered for the last few performances of Commons of Pensacola.)

I am GREATLY looking forward to this, and agree that Arianda looks stunning in that artwork (per usual).

Updated On: 2/19/14 at 01:57 PM

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 2:03pm

I'm sure there will be 30 under 30 but it is weird that we haven't gotten an email blast about it yet.

[WayTooBroadway]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 2:35pm

NINE! THE MUSICAL!

[GreasedLightning]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 2:47pm

Thanks! That's why I was asking - surprised we haven't heard about it yet through an e-mail blast because I remember reading something about this a few weeks ago and tickets ARE already on sale. Will post back if I get an e-mail!

[Rainbowhigh23]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 3:22pm

My goodness - Nina and Zizi Strallen are practically twins.

Updated On: 2/19/14 at 03:22 PM

[GreasedLightning]

Posted: 2/21/14 at 12:58pm

The code is out for anyone interested.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 2/21/14 at 4:03pm

Does anyone know, if you buy two tickets for the 30 and under, do both people have to be under 30 or just the one who ordered the tickets?

[GlindatheGood22]

Posted: 2/21/14 at 4:40pm

Looks great. I'm so very excited for this.

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 2/21/14 at 5:03pm

Per the MTC website:

"How many tickets can I buy? 30 UNDER 30 members can purchase up to two tickets per performance, subject to availability. You may bring a guest of any age, but YOU must pick up your tickets, not your guest."

[GreasedLightning]

Posted: 2/26/14 at 1:17am

Anyone going tonight? Curious to hear what you think! Please post it here.

Edit: If anyone was wondering… the running time is 2 hrs and 30 mins with TWO intermissions, as per the box office.


Updated On: 2/26/14 at 01:17 AM

[GreasedLightning]

Posted: 2/26/14 at 9:55pm

Just grabbed tickets for first week in March! Did anyone go tonight!?

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 2/27/14 at 9:19am

I'm going Saturday night.

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 2/27/14 at 10:16am

I'll be there tomorrow, but am looking forward to hearing any reports before then!

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/27/14 at 12:14pm

But will she ever live up to her sister, Eight?

[Mark-o]

Posted: 2/28/14 at 11:02am

Really looking forward to this show!

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 3/1/14 at 12:33am

So I don't know what genre anyone else thinks this play would fit into, but it certainly was different than what I was anticipating. I thought it would be darker and more noir-ish, but it was significantly brighter and lighter than that. Someone on Twitter compared it to Ibsen, which I think is a fair assessment, especially since the third act called A Doll's House to mind for me. (And how incredible Arianda would be as Nora.) I also was expecting a completely different conflict to arise, and for more tension throughout the show.

That being said, the show is beautifully designed and has very good to great performances. The three women were the standouts for me, although in the cast of six it was only Lucas Hall that wasn't really doing anything great for me. As funny as the show was, I don't think it highlighted all of Arianda's comic gifts the way Venus in Fur and Born Yesterday did, but she was a luminous anchor and seeing her expressive face up close in such an intimate space was wonderful. (She reminds me so much of Cherry Jones in that regard.)

I'm interested to hear what other people think, and will probably go back later in the run, especially now that I know what genre it actually fits into.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 3/2/14 at 12:56am

Sadly, I didn't think it was all that great. The acting is fine and the design work is wonderful, but the writing didn't do much for me. There were some exciting moments, but they were all too fleeting. It plods along most of the time at a slow pace, and the two "twists" in the plot didn't impress me. The first twist I could see coming from a mile away and the second felt like a recycled plot line from DAYS OF OUR LIVES. I also thought the "resolution" was anticlimactic. I at least hoped there would be a worthwhile climax that left me on a high as I left the theater, but alas, there wasn't. It just kinda...ended. Also, the aforementioned tone of the piece seemed all over the place. Broad humor and jokes, with a very modern sensibility and language, for a play that takes place nearly 100 years ago in Vienna.

It's solidly directed, however, and the acting is good, with Nina Arianda at the helm. Sadly though, this part is nowhere near as juicy as Vanda or Billie Dawn, and we only get glimpses of how astonishing she could have been if the part offered more for her to sink her teeth into. But to watch her onstage is to truly grasp the epitome of a "magnetic" performer. She commands the stage and you truly can't take your eyes off of her. If you're expecting a performance akin to Vanda or Billie, though, you'll be disappointed. This is nowhere near the realm of her work in those shows. The sets, costumes, and lighting designs were all great. This is by far the best and most elaborate set work I've seen at City Center's Stage I in a long while.

I didn't outright DESPISE it, but I had high hopes and unfortunately, it certainly left me quite underwhelmed. Updated On: 3/2/14 at 12:56 AM

[RippedMan]

Posted: 3/2/14 at 6:46pm

I have to agree and disagree. I saw the matinee today. For those of you wanting to rush it, I don't think you'd have a problem going a couple minutes before curtain.

The design is really cool and interesting, but that can only hold your attention for so long.

The writing is just terrible. That first scene between the housekeeper and the grocery boy has so much painfully obvious exposition it's crazy. The big twists aren't that big, and the last one just seems pointless. I don't think the character needed to be there.

The acting was okay. I wasn't really impressed with anyone but that's probably because the writing/story just weren't that involving. Everyone seemed to be acting in a different play. The housekeeper was cracking jokes about masterbating and whatnot. Nina seemed to be too contemporary. Mittzi was the only one that really made me believe she was living in that area. She was the only one doing a "character" and everyone else was far more natural, so the whole tone was weird.

It was just a weird show. It was a melodramatic soap opera at times, and then it was a drawing room comedy.

It's hard to discuss this without giving away some plot points, but as someone in the audience said "What's the moral here?" I think the best way to describe this show is "How Frau Got Her Groove Back." It's basically just about a widow who finds herself again. And she's also a prostitute, but nobody really mentions it and then they sometimes do, but it's not a big deal and then sometimes it is.