THE HEIDI CHRONICLES Previews — Page 3

Well, since somebody asked for a woman to weigh in...

I'll be upfront and say I am of a generation much younger than the one depicted in The Heidi Chronicles (I'm 24). I can absolutely understand why, when the play was written, it was radical in its depictions of women and feminism. I wouldn't necessarily say the play is dated, but more than two decades have passed since it was written and using the word "feminist" in a positive context is becoming less and less rare. The scene that struck the biggest chord for me was the television interview, in which both Peter and Scoop talk over Heidi and barely allow her to speak at all and, in fact, attempt to speak for her. That's certainly something I have experienced in my life, particularly in academia but in other realms as well.

I think feminism has become more intersectional in the years since Heidi Chronicles was written. The play is very much about middle- to upper-class white women (and I know one of the actresses in the play happens to be Asian but there isn't anything in the script that indicates that she has to be and hers is still a very privileged life), and I think since the advent of different depictions of women in popular culture like Orange is the New Black it feels like we've seen Heidi's story told before.

I did really enjoy the play and many of the issues it brings up are still absolutely valid today but the way in which they're presented is the part of the play that's perhaps a little dated.

Perhaps radical wasn't the right word, but I think it was still less common to see such outward declarations in support of feminism (that actually used the word feminist/feminism) than it is today.

I saw this last night and thoroughly enjoyed it. I got a rear mezz ticket through TodayTix and was happy to be in the center of the mezzanine, which was probably less than half full. There were two completely empty rows in the middle of the center mezz.

This was a good thing because I had to move at intermission because the two girls behind me (mid-20's) kept making dumb comments when they appreciated something or it perhaps related to an inside joke. So childish, it's not your living room. I took solace when they didn't laugh at cultural references that I got and I'm 32.

I'll admit that I didn't get a couple references, but I understood most and appreciated the comedy. I didn't find the material in the play to be dated. It felt incredibly relevant given the frequent discussion of "women having it all" these days - women my age seem to still be facing pressures felt by our mothers. I connected to it by thinking about my own mom's experience (she's the same age as Heidi) as a successful businesswoman and mother.

I thought Elisabeth Moss did a wonderful job with the role. She captured the audience early during the opening "lecture" scene and kept our attention. Bryce Pinkham was a delight and both of his big one-on-one scenes with Moss brought tears to my eyes. I'm not a real Jason Biggs fan but I tried to go into this with a clean slate. He was just okay. I was much more emotionally & invested in Heidi & Peter's relationship than Heidi & Scoop.

Seems like they are ready for opening night. The audience last night was kind of strange, sometimes not applauding at the end of scenes, etc. Glad I saw it and I'll be curious to hear the reviews.

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Ok, I saw this today, and I can't say I'm particularly impressed. I had read the across-the-board opinions on this thread, and had no idea whether I'd like it or not, so I went in with an open mind. It had its good moments. I particularly liked the television scene, the big monologue, and the hospital scene. The rest of it wasn't horrible, but also not very good. Way too long, in my opinion. Also, to me it doesn't feel outdated at all. It's not very GOOD, but I don't think being outdated is among its issues.

Elizabeth Moss is giving a great performance, definitely worthy of a Tony nod in my opinion. Bryce Pinkham is also great, but goes a little over the top at points. Jason Biggs is doing a serviceable job. I don't think he's giving a very memorable performance, but in my opinion he's doing as well as can be expected in that role. The supporting actors are also doing pretty well, but I don't think their roles are very well-written.

For those wondering, I got to the rush this morning at 9:00 and was the 3rd party in line (2 pairs of people in front of me), and I got matinee tickets easily. By 10:00 there were about 10 or so people behind me. The seats were all in the front row, and were pretty good, but not for everyone. I personally enjoy sitting really close, and I don't mind having to look up, but if you're not a fan of neck-craning, these seats are not for you. Everything was pretty visible except the actors' shoes, and the bottom of the upstage doorways. I definitely didn't miss anything though.

Updated On: 3/14/15 at 09:05 PM

^For the most part, I agree. I could have done without a few of those scenes, but I agree that many of them could have been much shorter without losing any effectiveness.

Agreed Auggie. I felt, as an audience member, no driving force. It's kind of a character study, but it fails in that sense since we never really get to know Heidi too well. I just wanted it to be better than it was.

I attended a preview performance last night. I also saw Brooke Adams as Heidi when she succeeded Joan Allen in the role. Seeing this when I was very young, I was scared by the cautionary tale it told. This was almost 30 years ago before women hit their stride. Heidi's fearfulness that her career would be one more drowned by the patriarchy despite her education, wit, hard work, and humanity was palpable. The context of the times is crucial to remember in order to respect this work. This was before America's first woman attorney general (Janet Reno 1990s), secretary of state (Madeleine Albright 1990s), the first woman won a Tony for directing a play, the first woman won an Oscar for directing a movie - NONE of this happened at the time Wasserstein wrote this play. For Pete's sake, Hillary Clinton, in her mid-40s at this point, was fighting against being put in the box of someone's "wife."

With that in mind, this play is a precious museum piece. It's too dependent on where history was at that time (1988/89) to make it timeless. In the direction, the cultural signifiers were blatant to the point of condescension - see audience: these are newspaper headlines and images from 1968, this is what Urban Outfitter tells you people wore then, and this is the song from Kasey Kasem's Top 40. I was surprised by how heavy-handed that was. But reading some comments here I guess Wasserstein's references in the script expired. Bertrand Russell?

Most of all I was let down by the direction of Elisabeth Moss and her performance. Heidi's monologues at the lectern set in motion her doubt that her students will take the women shown on the slides seriously, should build to her sarcastic remarks about them, and climax with her doubts and anger turned on herself at the alumnae luncheon. Rather, Moss giggled through the monologues and played it girlish and cutesy. Ask a seasoned Boomer woman - working extra hard to be taken seriously wasn't fun or dignified. Look at Heidi on the Good Morning NY set. It was humiliating at times but you forged ahead and you didn't giggle not even if your life depended on it. If played correctly those three moments should escalate Heidi's crisis.

I wonder why "The Heidi Chronicles" was revived? Why did Lincoln Center choose to produce this on Broadway when it would have worked better in the intimate Vivian Beaumont Theater? This production is a disservice to Wasserstein's milestone thesis when she says aloud to her sisters in the struggle "I feel stranded ... I thought the point of this was we were all in it together." That accusation and confession stunned in the late 1980s.

Bryce - scene stealer and I loved his chemistry with Moss on the bench outside the Chicago art museum.

Jason Biggs - no, poor casting. Scoop must be the hot guy who was wrong for you then and still now but he still gives you tingles.

Updated On: 3/18/15 at 08:34 PM

"Why did Lincoln Center choose to produce this on Broadway when it would have worked better in the intimate Vivian Beaumont Theater?"

It's not a Lincoln Center production and I have no idea where you got the idea that it is. It's a commercial production by Jeffrey Richards and Jerry Frankel.

Updated On: 3/19/15 at 04:13 PM