Posted: 4/15/22 at 7:34pm
Has anyone checked out "Which Way to the Stage" play at MCC? The customer service person said it was a musical but the description makes it sound like a play. I'm deciding whether to see that or POTUS.
Posted: 4/16/22 at 11:29am
Their own website calls it a play…I’m seeing it tomorrow, yay!
Updated On: 4/16/22 at 11:29 AM
Posted: 4/16/22 at 11:54am
I saw it - it's a play, not a musical. Not sure which "customer service" you mean, but they were mistaken!
I enjoyed it overall - more and more as it went along. I expected it to be some sort of ode to Broadway fandom culture, and that's NOT what it is at all. It starts out that way, but ends up being more of an examination of the musical theatre industry from the vantage point of unsuccessful actors. The play is mostly pretty comedic, but it gets pretty serious and emotional. It really resonated with me as someone who recently gave up trying to be an actor - and in fact, the play brought up a lot of complicated emotions for me.
I feel like I'm too close to this play's subject matter to judge it accurately, but I thought it was pretty well written, especially once the play really settles in; there are maybe 3-4 scenes toward the middle-end that are very well-written, and actually end up being fairly long 2-person scenes where the playwright gives each scene a lot of room to breath, and delve deep into the play's subject matter.
It has a particular focus on the interplay between straight women and gay men in musical theatre culture, covering topics such as internalized sexism and homophobia, drag culture, "type" placement, and employment scarcity - all in a fairly nuanced way. You could see where each character was coming from even when they passionately disagreed with each other.
Posted: 4/16/22 at 5:22pm
Mark_E said: "Can I ask what is the runtime?"
It ran just under two hours with no intermission. I guess they’ll probably try to trim it down in previews, but actually I thought it was paced pretty well. I’m not sure what I would cut, and It seems shorter than it was
Posted: 4/24/22 at 12:22pm
Don't sit on this one guys, it's excellent!
Posted: 4/24/22 at 12:39pm
One of the single worst plays I've ever seen in my life. For some reason, the director has chosen to stage nearly every scene far stage right --- so if you're sitting house right, you'll be staring at a black wall and people's backs for much of the play (or the first hour anyway -- I walked out halfway through).
Between SPACE DOGS and now this, MCC should be ashamed on themselves for this current season.
Posted: 4/29/22 at 1:14am
Lol if only you’d stuck around, you’d have been rewarded with many scenes at stage left.
One of the best plays in recent memory. Certainly the best piece I’ve seen since before the pandemic. It is a love letter to the theatre and those who build their lives around it.
Updated On: 4/29/22 at 01:14 AM
Posted: 4/29/22 at 2:11am
I'm on the this was one of the best things I've seen in years train.
Very funny but with something real to say and definitely written for people who love theater and the arts.
The acting was terrific and just an all around terrific night at the theater.
Posted: 4/29/22 at 11:35am
thecolorofflame2 said: "Lol if only you’d stuck around, you’d have been rewarded with many scenes at stage left.
One of the best plays in recent memory. Certainly the best piece I’ve seen since before the pandemic. It is a love letter to the theatre and those who build their lives around it."
HA. Great comment and couldn't agree more.
Posted: 5/2/22 at 11:18am
I liked this quite a lot, but it's all over the place (especially the ending). Reminded me of POTUS as another recent play where it has good jokes, some good scenes, good ideas but isn't a great piece of writing overall. Though this is a far stronger play than POTUS.
A lot of people are calling this the "Idina Menzel stage door play," which feels reductive. Yes, there are scenes that occur there, but it's much more than that.
The performances are A+ and they carry this play. Sas Goldberg and Max Jenkins are mavelous, in both comedic and dramatic scenes. I had never seen him before, and I only knew her comedic work from the Moscow play and Significant Other; she brings real depth here.
It's also one of those shows where I cannot IMAGINE a tourist or person who isn't steeped in the theatre industry enjoying or understanding this. It's written for an extremely niche audience. Possible more niche than [title of show]. (I was surprised to be ushered into the MCC mainstage space –– I wrongly assumed it was playing the smaller space.)
These scenes will be done to death in BFA acting classes and showcases for years to come.
I'm going to tag the rest in spoilers:
It's a REALLY lazy move to end the play with Sas performing Rose's Turn in full. After that, they hug, and the play ends. I was hoping we'd at least get a scene post-Rose's turn where they have a final conversation and reconciliation. Not nailing the ending brings down the rest of the play for me.
Sas's character is lacking backstory. Weirdly, Evan Todd's character gets the most. We don't really know Sas's character as a person beyond her being a failed actor-turned-realtor. We don't know WHY she is the way she is. There are both despicable and lovable elements of all 3 of the main characters...but that's human nature. Some of the "observations" are pretty on-the-nose, even if they're worth calling out.
It's a very binary portrayal of gender (which makes sense for a period piece –– it's set in 2015), so cue the discourse in 3...2... But some of the other conversations feel VERY 2022, so there's a bit of dissonance.
Updated On: 5/2/22 at 11:18 AM
Posted: 5/2/22 at 12:01pm
ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "A lot of people are calling this the "Idina Menzel stage door play," which feels reductive."
To be fair, it kinda feels like it's being marketed that way.
"It's a very binary portrayal of gender (which makes sense for a period piece –– it's set in 2015), so cue the discourse in 3...2... "
I guess I'll take that bait!
I was thinking about this too, and I even considered bringing it up in my first post, but like you I was a little wary of opening that can of worms. After some reflection, my feeling is: yes, it's very binary, and I can definitely imagine some trans or non-binary people seeing this play and feeling left out of its discussion of gender, and that's a totally valid reaction.
However, it also seems to me that Nogueira is knowingly choosing to focus her examination on the specific dynamics that exist between cis straight women, cis gay men, as well as "straight-passing" men. Despite being rooted in a false binary, the intricate dynamics between these groups DO exist, and are worth examining on their own terms. It's the difference between saying "let's talk about gender, and here are the two genders!" vs. saying "let's talk about cis straight women and cis gay men, because there's something interesting to explore in that relationship."
It seems to me that a playwright in Nogueira's position is well within her rights to say "I can easily fill a 2-hour play with everything I have to say about this specific subject matter; and if I broaden it, the play could be 4 hours long, AND feel less focused, and I STILL might not do it justice because I'm not a part of that group." So it seems to reasonable to keep it focused and specific so that she can actually say what she's trying to say about the subjects she's choosing to tackle.
It feels like the long-term solution is simply to say: plays like this can continue to be written if it's done with a focused intent, and not with a broad stroke of generalizations that actively seek to uphold the gender binary. But meanwhile, we really need more companies to produce and uplift plays from trans and non-binary artists that add their own voices to the broader conversation.
But I'll add the disclaimer that I'm a cis straight man, so maybe there are some problematic nuances to the play's representation of gender and sexuality that I missed, and if so I'm happy to be challenged on anything I said above.
Posted: 5/10/22 at 10:07pm
Vincentelli in NYT is mixed:
‘Which Way to the Stage’ Review: Theater Buddies, With Claws Out
In her new comedy, Ana Nogueira spins zippy fun out of a fairly conventional story about a friendship strained by resentment.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/10/theater/which-way-to-the-stage-review.html
Posted: 5/10/22 at 10:07pm
The Wrap is positive:
‘Which Way to the Stage’ Off Broadway Review: Drag Yourself to This Stellar New Comedy
Drag gets a radical makeover thanks to playwright Ana Nogueira
https://www.thewrap.com/which-way-to-the-stage-off-broadway-review-ana-nogueira/
Posted: 5/10/22 at 10:09pm
Theatrely is a rave:
WHICH WAY TO THE STAGE is a Love Letter to Theatre Fans — Review
https://www.theatrely.com/post/which-way-to-the-stage-is-a-love-letter-to-theatre-fans-review
Posted: 5/10/22 at 10:10pm
4 stars from NY Stage Review:
Which Way to the Stage: A Witty Love Letter to the Theater
https://nystagereview.com/2022/05/10/which-way-to-the-stage-a-witty-love-letter-to-the-theater/
Posted: 5/10/22 at 11:59pm
Shaw in Vulture is positive:
https://www.vulture.com/2022/05/theater-review-which-way-to-the-stage.html
Posted: 5/14/22 at 2:27am
Got an email a couple days ago my performance on Sunday evening has been cancelled due to Covid in the company. I’m assuming all other performances between the time I got the email and Sunday evening were cancelled as well. Bummer. I was really looking forward to this. Hope everyone heals quickly!
Posted: 5/14/22 at 1:28pm
As someone who waited at the If/Then stage door many a time in 2015, I loved parts of this.
I definitely went into it expecting one thing and discovered it was something else entirely.
I connected with the diva worship/theatre-lover/self-confidence aspects, but the struggling actor/drag life stuff was lost on me as a non-actor and gay woman. (I think if it were perhaps written a bit more effectively, it wouldn't have been lost on me?)
I really wanted to love it, but I only liked it.
But what I did love was that something like this was written and produced at all.
Posted: 5/16/22 at 6:32pm
Cancelled through May 19 but extended to June 5.
Posted: 5/28/22 at 8:16am
Finally caught this and absolutely loved it! Great writing and just so so funny. Definitely one for the musical theatre fans, there were some people in last night who seemed totally lost by a lot of the references.
