The Homecoming first preview tonight — Page 2

i was there lastnight with my aunt. i loved it. raul was great. the whole cast was great. i would love to see them win a tony and raul whould win a tony too for this show....nicole

Esparza came off simply as playing at being menacing, and never really achieved the feat of making it seem natural or believable. I was aware of his "acting" from the first time he opened his mouth. His accent was a touch shaky, as well.

I went to the run-through last week, and that was what I noticed with his performance, too -- that he was doing too much performing and not enough acting, so to speak. It sounds like he's gotten more of the menacing side down, though, which I'm actually glad to hear. He had moments of that last week, and it was something I really wanted to see more of. I know the character is absurd and ridiculous and vaguely nutty, but he has to play it like it's normal for it to be believable. I think he'll get it -- it's just about a tricky balancing act, I think. At any rate, thank you for saying something more substantial than an unfounded "HE SHOULD WIN A TONY" squeal.

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I know the character is absurd and ridiculous and vaguely nutty, but he has to play it like it's normal for it to be believable. I think he'll get it -- it's just about a tricky balancing act, I think.

I agree with you, and I definitely do think he can play the character as written, and play it well. I'll definitely be seeing this production again and I hope that by then he will be working up to his potential. He's halfway there, which is admirable, especially since this part doesn't seem like a natural fit.

And you're welcome.

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I should read all the Harold Pinter plays. You know, I should get every single Harold Pinter plays that are out there in the stores.

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Yeah, I think I'd get confused, too. I really don't know which one I'd like.

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Anybody else go?

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I just found out that I am seeing it on Saturday afternoon. The friend I am visiting was offered tickets and we are going. Will post my thoughts after seeing it

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I'm going tonight. As my nickname probably implies, I'm a huge fan of Pinter, and The Homecoming way well be the most powerful play I've read. I've never seen it, though. My excitement is palpable. Will post after!

Great interview/feature story on Ian McShane from The Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/theater/09gree.html?ref=arts

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I just got back from the Saturday matinee. This was my first Pinter play. Quite interesting. Two words, one name....Eve Best. WOW. She was just incredible. I was not expecting what unfolded in this story and you can come away with your own version of it. Nothing is explained. It is kind of left up to you to decide, a la "Doubt". Raul Esparza was wonderful but just a wee bit intense. The intensity kind of overwhelmed the slyness I feel should have been there. I think he should find a bit of a better balance. Aside from being hotter than July, Gareth Saxe turned in a wonderful and believable performance as Joey. It was wonderful to see Michael McKean onstage finally. I was quite impressed with his performance. I have never seen him live in a drama. Ian McShane did a good job but seemed a bit over the top at times. James Frain turns in a very subtle performance, in my opinion. Especially when you find out what his character may or may not be up to. There is a very disconnected feeling between the characters but you will find out why. All in all, it works and as an ensemble, they do compliment each other and it all comes off well. I thought the set was perfect. In my opinion, it served well as part of the story. Along with the characters, it pretty much had its own story. Very simple, but very effective. I try to pay attention to everything and for some reason I had a bit of a problem with the lighting at points. Especially downstage. It may have just been me. But the show should have you talking when you leave. A number of people seemed to be quite confused at the intermission, but the second act "pulls" it all together. Whatever together may be! Just my thoughts without giving anything away.

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Updated On: 12/10/07 at 06:40 PM

<< Testing - someone's going to kick your ass for calling Pinter "ridiculous." Not gonna be me, but... that is a brave statement. I'm sorry you didn't like it. I think your reaction is one that's going to happen a lot. People who expect a play to hand them all the answers are not going to like it. What you see is supposed to be strange; you're supposed to look at what these people are doing and just go, "... what?" Not all theater is meant to be a representation of what people would "really" do.

wee bit intense.

Hehe.

I'm hoping to be able to go this week! >>

LOL Emcee.. I am not sure that I was actually calling Pinter "ridiculous" (well, maybe a tad bit- but not in general- I admit, that I am not that familiar with Pinter)

It was more the way it came off, than the way it was written.

Totally understand what you mean about the reaction happening alot. I saw SO many people shaking their heads. Seemed like everyone was just waiting for something to happen.

I am not sure if it had that much to do with people expecting to have all of the answers handed to them.

That wasnt the problem that I had with the play. I just thought it was way too out there for me. It just wasnt believable enough.

I saw the show last night...my thoughts are similar to everyone else's...

"Just got back, and unfortunately (because I went in with high expectations), I REALLY didnt like it. Totally agree with the above. It was beyond strange, and I kept waiting for "that moment" and it just never came. To me, the entire premise was just totally unbelievable. "

"You should come out of it scratching your head. And that turns a lot of people off, because they don't want to feel that way. They want to feel like everything is resolved and makes logical sense."

These are my thoughts exactly. Having seen Esparza in Company, I was very excited to see this production. But Esparza just did not do it for me....the plot was very "WTF?" and was too unbelieveable...

All in all, I did not enjoy this play and was glad that I bought the ticket through TDF.

I was at yesterday's matinee. I saw the original back in 1967 and was very taken with the play then, even though most of it was way over my head. I think I'm doing better now, however. IMO, Ian McShane wiped everyone else off the stage. Truly a brilliant performance and one that is definitely Tony-worthy (but there's an awful lot of competition in that category this year). The others were fine (with one caveat) and it was far more graphic (not pornographic) than I recalled from the previous version. House was about 2/3's full and people around me seems somewhat puzzled (what else is new with Pinter?). It was a good reminder of how powerful a writer Pinter is, funny and devastating at the same time. The play opens up many issues, which, in my case, followed me long after the show was over. And, without naming names, it served as a reminder that profundity need not be a crashing, conceited bore that succeeds only in putting people to sleep while trying to scare them into believing that they're too stupid to get it.

My reservation with this production centered around Raul Esparza, a performer for whom I have enormous esteem and greatest respect. Maybe it was too early in the run, but I just don't think this was the right fit for him. And when you're sparring with McShane, your work is cut out for you. I greatly admired Raul's work in The Normal Heart, so it's not a matter of his being ill-suited to a serious play. I repeat, I ADORE Raul's work, so please don't anyone start flaying me on this.

BTW, it's still one of the wickedest plays in the canon. Loved it!!!

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