Picnic by William Inge and directed by Sam Gold opens tonight at the Roundabout's American Airlines Theater and is scheduled to run until February 24th.
I'll kick off the reviews:
Are all single women to be pitied? Would an undisciplined drifter in the 1950’s have a torso with a sculpted six-pack? Did William Inge’s “Picnic” really deserve the Pulitzer Prize for Drama over all other plays and musicals that debuted in 1953, including Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot” and Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”?
These are fair questions to ask while sitting through the third Broadway production of Inge’s play, now opening at the American Airlines Theater. There is no disguising how dated and relatively slight the playwright’s script, nor anachronistic some of director Sam Gold’s choices. But there is also no denying the power of a good cast – and this is a good cast, full of reliably stellar veterans and exciting newcomers — to fashion out of “Picnic” an enjoyable outing.
Picnic Broadway Review
Click Here for our Video Review of Picnic
Updated On: 1/13/13 at 10:17 PM
Brantley's one hand couldn't give this a rave
By the way, Ben, it was Ralph Meeker who premiered the play, not Paul Newman.
Broadway Star Joined: 1/28/04
Villagevoice.com says the production lacks a burning heat at the center.
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/dailymusto/2013/01/picnic_is_back.php
Did you read the whole review? It's a quote pulled from the play.
Joined: 12/31/69
Whether Picnic won (or deserved) a Pulitzer prize should have no bearing on an audience's enjoyment.
Man, Brantley really slams into Elizabeth Marvel. Ouch.
"Ms. Marvel, usually the best thing in any show she’s in, embraces that description with an embarrassing vengeance, giving an over-the-top performance that suggests vintage Lily Tomlin (I mean in “Laugh-In,” not “Nashville”)."
Videos