REVIEW: Collected Stories

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 4/8/10 at 8:39pm

Intermission here at the Biltmore. The play is really fascinating. Very solid thus far. Introspective, funny, never dull. Sarah Paulson got more comfortable as the act went on. She just needs to get more comfortable with the text and being on stage. Linda Lavin is really remarkable. Her monologue at the end of the first act is positively riveting theatre.

I'm loving it thus far.
Updated On: 4/9/10 at 08:39 PM

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 4/8/10 at 8:42pm

Correction: Friedman. Haven't been in this theatre since MAURITIUS. My bad.

[singtopher]

Posted: 4/8/10 at 8:51pm

Intermission at 8:39? What time did this start?

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 4/8/10 at 9:53pm

The show started at 7:30. It runs 2 hours.

It's a really excellent play. Slips into Lifetime movie mode occasionally, but what could be sentimental, catty schlock in a less skillful hand is pure gold done by Marguiles. Sarah Paulson tries too hard from time to time, but finds her footing more often than not. This was just the invited dress, however, and she was FAR from bad. Very good, actually. Linda Lavin is truly stunning. I won't give anything away, but her work in this play is nothing short of perfection and I see her giving Linney a serious run for her money, if not easily running away with the Tony. Lynne Meadow has directed these two women beautifully and has an undeniable gem on her hands.

I didn't have a clue what this show was going into it, but I'm so happy I saw it.
Updated On: 4/8/10 at 09:53 PM

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 4/9/10 at 9:53am

Great to hear! What IS this show about? Because I have no clue. But I am excited to see Paulson and Lavin!

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 4/9/10 at 11:38am

A graduate student/aspiring writer becomes the personal assistant of her professor and they form a friendship that is ultimately pushed to its limit by jealousy and competition. The play spans about 5 years.

[CyCoSpAz2]

Posted: 4/9/10 at 12:39pm

glad to hear positive things about this one so early. I LOVE Sarah Paulson, so I'm excited!

[Gothampc]

Posted: 4/9/10 at 2:16pm

I saw the original off-Broadway with Uta Hagen.

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 4/9/10 at 3:09pm

Oh, wow. I had no idea that the play was over 12 years old, let alone that Linda Lavin has played the role previously and that Uta Hagen starred in a production. At MTC, no less.

Well, Gotham, I suggest you make it to see Lavin's portrayal. It's really something.

[WOSQ]

Posted: 4/9/10 at 3:29pm

The play was done at MTC on West 55th Street with Maria Tucci and an unknown actress named Debra Messing. There is a large color photo in the lobby.

Uta did another production at the Lortel a few seasons later.

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 4/11/10 at 11:20am

No one else caught the show yet?

[LaCageAuxFollesFan2]

Posted: 4/11/10 at 1:00pm

I'm seeing it this evening. I will report back after. Looking forward to it.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 4/11/10 at 1:51pm

"Well, Gotham, I suggest you make it to see Lavin's portrayal. It's really something."

I have seen the PBS version with Lavin.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/11/10 at 2:20pm

I saw the show the other night. I'm still not 100% sure how I feel about it. The play itself isn't "great" but it has very good moments and the ending of it really did make me think hard about what I had just seen and about a few areas of my own life. I do have to say though, that I don't know why this particular show was chosen to close out MTC's season. It just seems too "small" in all aspects to be on the Broad-way. The house was maybe a quarter filled when I saw it and I can't see it pulling in the big crowds. I've been wrong before, though...

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 11:55am

I caught this on Tuesday and really enjoyed the performances by Lavin and Paulson. The theater was barely half full, so I'm worried about how it will sell beyond the subscriber base, but it's definitely worth seeing.

The play is small, simple and not exactly life-altering, but I found it to be very satisfying and loved the final scene. Lavin is giving a wonderful performance and I would hope to read raves from the critics. Paulson is more than holding her own with this legend and I was impressed with the character arc she traveled.

I hope this catches on and doesn't stay as under the radar as it currently is.

[TalkinLoud]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 12:12pm

The play wasn't really that great. The only time it ever really delves into any issues is that final scene. I mean, I understand that everything builds up to that, but there is a ton of excess before that.

Paulson is good, but Lavin is giving a very good performance.

[MiracleElixir]

Posted: 4/18/10 at 12:02am

The final scene is the high point, but I was really engaged throughout. I think it's a strength that this relationship/play builds, complicates and grows more interesting -- it certainly never felt like there was filler. If anything, I think the structure is almost deceptively careful/specific.

Both actresses are terrific, and I agree Lavin will give Linney a run for her money (though Linney would likely be my preference).

For a Saturday night, the theater was startlingly empty (I was in the third row mezz, and there was not a single person behind me), but the few that were there seemed to be appreciative, if not rapturous. The play is super small-scale, relatively modest in scope (narratively AND thematically), so not sure if it'll garner the "you gotta see this!" buzz it'll need to survive, but if you're into works where relationships/characters take center stage (like, say, TIME STANDS STILL) more than plot mechanics, you do, in fact, gotta see this.



**vague, non-specific spoilers about the ending**

I think the note the play/final scene ends on is fantastic. Even given how smartly the rest of the play is written, I was absolutely expecting a bittersweet characters-resolve-their-s**t-and-hug-or-something conclusion. But what we get totally doesn't let the audience off the hook, and ends up being (morally and thematically) ambiguous in the best possible way. Just perfect. Updated On: 4/18/10 at 12:02 AM