Review: Wasserstein's "Third" at LCT

[Liz_Bennet]

Posted: 10/4/05 at 10:33pm

I guess I'm the first person to report on this- it's sold out but there are cancellations and Studentix area available, and I really encourage you to give it a shot, especially if you've ever attended a liberal arts college. I saw the Sunday matinee, and sat behind Nora Ephron.

The play concerns Laurie Jameson (Dianne Wiest), a middle-aged literature professor at an elite New England college (which seems rather Amherst-like, except in location), who is having a rather dramatic midlife crisis. A jock in her Shakespeare class by the name of Woodson Bull III (or "Third") (Jason Ritter) has submitted an exceptionally good paper on "King Lear", and she doesn't believe he could have written it. Her father (Charles Durning) has Alzheimer's, her college freshman daughter (Gaby Hoffman) isn't quite meeting her expectations, and her best friend (Amy Aquino) has breast cancer. As her life seems to implode, she has to question many of the assumptions she has made. Despite her prejudices, she remains a very sympathetic figure.

The play's mostly gentle satire on the academic life, particularly the gender studies field, is on target, and occasionally hilarious. (Laurie's most recent book is entitled "Girls Will Be Boys: Emasculating Tropes in Literature".) As she goes through the school's academic honesty hearings with Woodson Bull III, it turns out that he is not at all the "walking red state" Laurie assumed him to be: he's not especially privileged, not stupid, and not even quite a Republican. Much ruminating ensues.

The production is in good shape, I thought. Dianne Wiest is very convincing as a professor who half reminded me of one of my music professors and half of my mom (also a professor). I found Hoffman more convincing as a college student than Ritter- he was mostly there, but he seemed just a little too articulate or put-together or too good-looking or something; he wasn't quite convincing me (disclaimer: I go to one of the several colleges mentioned in the show by name). But again, it's a really early preview.

The production design wasn't all that complicated, and was generally effective. The lighting was very good, and I liked the wood paneling backdrop.

Maybe this is just because its a very realist sort of play and life is messy, but I didn't find that all the elements of the play quite added up and fitted together smoothly, particularly Laurie's father. They began to assemble themselves more towards the end. But even now it's very dramatically compelling and entertaining, and I highly recommend it. (And it's way more realistic and convincing as a portrayal of college life than most movies.)

This play will also reveal the fascinating secret that Robert Frost's "Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening" scans exactly to "Hernando's Hideway." Needless to say, I've been singing it ever since. Whose woods. These are. I think I know...

Updated On: 10/5/05 at 10:33 PM

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 10/5/05 at 6:30am

Superb review! I'm seeing the show in several weeks and am really looking forward to it.

[Pinguin]

Posted: 10/5/05 at 8:08am

I want to see this play SO badly because I think Jason Ritter is fantastic...thanks for the review!

[LucilleAndLeoFrank]

Posted: 10/7/05 at 10:57pm

Two quick questions:

1. What is the likelihood of getting cancellations day of at the box office?
2. If they have cancellations, would I have to pay full price (I'm a student) or could I get them at the Lincoln Center box office student rate?

Any info is appreciated.
Jim

[Garland Grrrl]

Posted: 10/7/05 at 11:43pm

i wish to see this. wonder if i can. i saw dianne weist this morning at 7:45 AM walking her dogs on 79th street.

[truffula]

Posted: 10/7/05 at 11:59pm

There are house seat releases almost everyday for this show. Try calling Telecharge the day before and the morning of the show you want to go to and you might have luck. Full price although it may be.

[Holbee]

Posted: 10/8/05 at 1:48am

What I also found sort of brave was Wasserstein's characterization of "biased liberals", of the intellectual bigotry those of the Democratic Party pursuasion have against people who don't think like them, who are "bad" because they don't share their liberal politics. For such an obviously left wing writer, she shows wonderful balance, never really skewing the scale toward conservatives, but more or less pointing a finger at liberals who hypocritically judge others as they often accuse thier Republican adversaries of doing.