#1
Posted: 5/25/08 at 5:01am
STUNNING! MAGNIFICENT! ASTONISHING! Really.
My dear friend Without A Trace and I spent Saturday in Arlington, Virginia, seeing the matinee performance of The Happy Time and then The Visit in the evening. I know that he will post a real review of this (and, I hope, The Happy Time, as well), so here are just a few thoughts.
I have been an admirer of Chita Rivera's since I was a little girl, playing my parents' LP of Bye, Bye Birdie over and over again. (No, I never saw the original. I'm old, but not that old.) I've seen her on Broadway several times over the years and have always enjoyed her singing and dancing (of course) immensely. Tonight I realized what an outstanding dramatic actress she is. Her performance in The Visit is positively captivating. You really cannot take your eyes off her when she's anywhere on that stage.
The theatre world holds her in such high esteem that we forgave and made excuses for her with The Dancer's Life. But The Visit reminds us of why Chita Rivera has remained a leading force in American musical theatre for over 50 years: watching her is like having an audience with the queen. She is regal and commanding...without even uttering a word. One look from her is enough to paralyze you. Oh, and she's incredibly funny, too!
Not that The Visit is a knee-slapping comedy. Hilarious moments abound, but this is serious stuff. Ms. Rivera is perfection, which is saying a lot given the fact that the rest of the cast--most notably George Hearn--is nothing short of superb. Mr. Hearn is in great voice; in fact, I think he is better than ever...a walking (and talking and singing and dancing) advertisement for the benefits of aging. In The Visit, Mr. Hearn quietly projects every aspect of the human condition, gliding masterfully from good to evil and back again. He and Ms. Rivera are exquisitely matched.
The entire cast is sensational. Mark Jacoby, James Harms, Michael Hayward-Jones and Jeremy Webb are stand-outs for me--again, quite remarkable given the strength of all in the ensemble...and how deliciously creepy they are.
It is important, however, to mention that I am not only enamored of the actors and their performances. The production itself is mesmerizing. It's staged beautifully. Frank Galati can just forget about The Pirate Queen because nobody is going to care about that after this. Terrance McNally's book is so well-written, and the production so well-paced that each act is over before you know it, and much sooner that you want it to be. Act II is designed to play like opera, one complete gesture from start to finish. And yet possesses elements of vaudeville, soap opera, allegory and silent films.
Finally, the score. I can't believe I've never heard it before. So lush, so powerful. It actually had me thinking that John Kander and Fred Ebb are underrated!
The Signature deserves much credit for reimagining a work that deserves to be--and needs to be--seen. Maybe the time wasn't right when The Visit was first mounted. Given its political perspective and the current state of the world, I'd say its time is now.
"Be on your guard! Jerks on the loose!"
http://www.roches.com/television/ss83kod.html
**********
"If any relationship involves a flow chart, get out of it...FAST!"
~ Best12Bars
My dear friend Without A Trace and I spent Saturday in Arlington, Virginia, seeing the matinee performance of The Happy Time and then The Visit in the evening. I know that he will post a real review of this (and, I hope, The Happy Time, as well), so here are just a few thoughts.
I have been an admirer of Chita Rivera's since I was a little girl, playing my parents' LP of Bye, Bye Birdie over and over again. (No, I never saw the original. I'm old, but not that old.) I've seen her on Broadway several times over the years and have always enjoyed her singing and dancing (of course) immensely. Tonight I realized what an outstanding dramatic actress she is. Her performance in The Visit is positively captivating. You really cannot take your eyes off her when she's anywhere on that stage.
The theatre world holds her in such high esteem that we forgave and made excuses for her with The Dancer's Life. But The Visit reminds us of why Chita Rivera has remained a leading force in American musical theatre for over 50 years: watching her is like having an audience with the queen. She is regal and commanding...without even uttering a word. One look from her is enough to paralyze you. Oh, and she's incredibly funny, too!
Not that The Visit is a knee-slapping comedy. Hilarious moments abound, but this is serious stuff. Ms. Rivera is perfection, which is saying a lot given the fact that the rest of the cast--most notably George Hearn--is nothing short of superb. Mr. Hearn is in great voice; in fact, I think he is better than ever...a walking (and talking and singing and dancing) advertisement for the benefits of aging. In The Visit, Mr. Hearn quietly projects every aspect of the human condition, gliding masterfully from good to evil and back again. He and Ms. Rivera are exquisitely matched.
The entire cast is sensational. Mark Jacoby, James Harms, Michael Hayward-Jones and Jeremy Webb are stand-outs for me--again, quite remarkable given the strength of all in the ensemble...and how deliciously creepy they are.
It is important, however, to mention that I am not only enamored of the actors and their performances. The production itself is mesmerizing. It's staged beautifully. Frank Galati can just forget about The Pirate Queen because nobody is going to care about that after this. Terrance McNally's book is so well-written, and the production so well-paced that each act is over before you know it, and much sooner that you want it to be. Act II is designed to play like opera, one complete gesture from start to finish. And yet possesses elements of vaudeville, soap opera, allegory and silent films.
Finally, the score. I can't believe I've never heard it before. So lush, so powerful. It actually had me thinking that John Kander and Fred Ebb are underrated!
The Signature deserves much credit for reimagining a work that deserves to be--and needs to be--seen. Maybe the time wasn't right when The Visit was first mounted. Given its political perspective and the current state of the world, I'd say its time is now.
http://www.roches.com/television/ss83kod.html
**********
"If any relationship involves a flow chart, get out of it...FAST!"
~ Best12Bars
Updated On: 5/25/08 at 05:01 AM
(Although the new theatre space IS fabulous.) 
