On Golden Pond Reviews — Page 2

Linda Winer (Newsday) is mixed-to-positive:

"To a distressing number of people, James Earl Jones is that big guy with the big-barrel voice who sells phone service on TV. If they recognize the sound, then he is also Darth Vader, papa Mustafa in the animated "Lion King," and, sigh, the plummy intonation of "This is CNN."

So we must thank whomever or whatever coaxed this magnificent actor back to the stage, where he began - and to Broadway, where he won a Tony Award for "The Great White Hope" in 1969 and another for "Fences" in 1987.

On the other hand, the theater needs another look at "On Golden Pond," which opened at the Cort Theatre last night, about as much as we required the return of that other middle-brow massage, "Steel Magnolias," which opened down the street on Monday. Both were made into popular films in the '80s and neither has been heard crying in the wilderness for revival.

That said, Leonard Foglia has directed a loving, leisurely production of Ernest Thompson's sentimental serio-comedy about another season at the Thayers' summer home in Maine. What's different is that the long-married regulars at Golden Pond are African-Americans, which seems a conspicuous narrative non-issue in a town that, according to crusty old Norman Thayer himself, boasts "no native Jews" and "no native Negroes."

But this is the sort of play - complete with the sound effects of loons - that functions best by questioning least. Jones is at the top of his form as Norman, the curmudeonly retired English professor, and Leslie Uggams is pleasantly elegant as Ethel, who calls him a "poop" and adores him perhaps more than Thompson means for him to deserve."

---

By my count, Brantley devotes roughly two paragraphs to the movie, previous production,and the play itself, one paragraph to Uggams, one to Powell, one to the rest of the cast, and TEN paragraphs to James Earl Jones. Talk about a love letter (and he certainly deserves it).

---

Updated On: 4/7/05 at 11:38 PM

EQUUS is being revived this summer at THE BERKSHIRE THEATRE FESTIVAL--directed by Scott Schwartz.

---

Theatremania is Mixed:

"Foglia seems to have emphasized the comedy within the play, and there are several sections that are very funny indeed. It helps that all of the actors have superb comic timing, as well as a nice rapport with each other. The more serious themes of impending death and the difficulty of communication between different generations are still present but not as fully developed as they might have been. The revival is certainly enjoyable, but if you want to experience the full dramatic impact of On Golden Pond, you still can't do better than the film. "
http://www.theatermania.com/content/news.cfm/story/5879

---

Dear Linda Winer of Newsday,

It's Mufasa, not Mustafa.

Love,
TinATL

Isn't it nice to have all three playhouses on 48th Street occupied, and with shows featuring theatre stars doing what they do best? When there were three more theatres on that street (the long since demolished Vanderbilt, Playhouse and the 48th Street/Windsor theatres, respectively), 48th Street used to be known as "The Street of Hits". It's been a long time since the Longacre had a show as high profile as Virginia Woolf, and the Cort, a lovely theatre, has also sat empty for long periods at a a time. The Walter Kerr gets used a lot, but even it was empty for months, between Sixteen Wounded and Gem of the Ocean. Now, with On Golden Pond, Virginia Woolf and Doubt, 48th Street feels so delightfully retro, I'd like to walk up and down the block thinking that I've stepped back in time. (In a way, it's not hard to imagine I've stepped back in time, since Woolf and Pond are revivals, but a boy can dream...)

---