Theater Reviews

Susan Granger’s review of “Out of Time” (Public Theater-Martinson Theater/Off-Broadway)

 

Serving the recent quest for diversity and inclusion, “Out of Time,” a presentation of the National Asian American Theater Company (NAATCO), consists of five staged monologues reflecting how older Asian-Americans continue to feel unaccepted by the general public.

Playwright Anna Ouyang Moench’s “My Documentary” is a powerful beginning. Dressed in black, actress Paige Leong reveals: “I remember the last time I touched someone.” As her narrative evolves, she relates how her parents fled China in 1949, how she became a documentary filmmaker, how she met her husband and other turning points in her life.

She reflects on the pleasure she derives in knitting: “I make one sweater every three years. I don’t make them for other people. I don’t do homemade gifts. Nobody wants your handmade gift. They say they do. They think they do. But, in reality, you pour your spare hours into this beautiful collection of tiny knots…(only to discover) your daughter-in-law wants to look like that model she saw in the Gap ad.”

Mia Chung’s somewhat confusing “Ball in the Air,” performed by NAATCO co-founder Mia Katigbak, who enters playing with a paddleball, reflects on betrayal and crumbling relationships.

Then there’s Jaclyn Backhaus’ “Black Market Caviar,” performed by actress Rita Wolf, that delves into eggs and her family’s genetic predisposition for cancer: “Don’t succumb to the fear.”

Following the intermission, there’s Naomi Iizuka’s “Japanese Folk Song,” a ghost story performed by Glenn Kubota, who introduces himself as Taki but then admits he’s only an imitation – like zirconium, or margarine, or pleather. Nevertheless, he’s an admirable raconteur, confessing to hating jazz but loving good whiskey and a good cigar.

Then there’s Sam Chanse’s “Disturbance Specialist” with Natsuko Ohama as a once-popular but now ‘problematic’ novelist delivering a speech at her alma mater. She refers to those who endured painful setbacks – like the Pinatubo volcanic mouse, the only species that survived the aftermath of a volcanic eruption at Mount Pinatubo. Scientists dub this animal a ‘disturbance specialist.”

Conceived and directed by Les Waters, it’s a moving, yet uneven, emotional experience revolving around global anxiety. Kudos to scenic designer dots, costumer Mariko Ohigashi, lighting by Rza Behjat, and sound by Fabian Obispo.

“Out of Time” is performed through March 13 at the Martinson Theater, part of The Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street at Astor Place.

Susan Granger’s review of “sandblasted” (Vineyard Theater/Off-Broadway)

 

Here’s a thought-provoking conundrum: what if – in response to the relentless sexism, racism and oppression they encounter on a daily basis – Black women’s bodies simply start to fall apart – literally?

That’s the idea of Charly Evon Simpson’s neo-absurdist satire now at the Vineyard Theater.

As their surreal story begins, two women – cool and confident Odessa (Marinda Anderson) and anxious, intense yet eager-to-please Angela (Brittany Bellizeare) – strangers at first – are determined to discover why their limbs –  along with toes, fingers and ears – are falling off.

Having come to the desert seeking the bright sunlight and fresh air that might ‘slow the process’ of their leprosy-like condition, they’re half-buried in sand dunes.

On their wandering spiritual quest, they’re ‘guided’ by Adah (former anchorwoman/talk-show host Rolonda Watts), an aging, Oprah-like health guru who, seemingly has not been afflicted with whatever disease is oppressing and debilitating other Black women.

In a motivational, self-help message – “Girl, Stop Falling Apart!” – Adah explains how “waiting is suffering.” To which Angela later retorts: “Waiting can be just us, living!

Angela’s search includes finding a ‘fulgurite,’ a fragile glass tube that looks a bit like a tree root; it’s formed when lightning hits sand in a particular way – and often called ‘fossilized lightning.’

There’s one male character – Jamal (Andy Lucien), Angela’s brother. He’s a bartender who flirts with Odessa….and his presence detracts from – rather than enhancing – the basic concept.

Charly Evon Simpson’s self-conscious, philosophical, 18-scene parable – designed with a lower-case ‘s’ – is adroitly cast and directed by Summer L. Williams, who should have trimmed/condensed the non-chronological, often-repetitive narrative, which runs an hour and 40 minutes.

Kudos to set designer Matt Saunders, costumer Montana Levi Blanco and ethereal lighting by Stacey Derosier.

Bottom Line: This is a provocative premise that needs further development.

“sandblasted” plays through March 13 at the Vineyard Theatre (108 E. 15^th Street).

 

 

 

Susan Granger’s review of “The Daughter-in-Law” (Mint Theater/New York City Center Stage II)

 

Boasting “Lost Plays Found Here,” Off-Broadway’s Mint Theater Company has unearthed a play by D.H. Lawrence that was neither published nor produced during his lifetime. Indeed, it first appeared in print in 1965 in a compilation of his work.

In 1967, The Royal Court staged the world premiere, which Michael Billington of The Guardian hailed as “One of the great British dramas of the 20^th century.”

Written in 1913 amid concern about the impending national coal strike of 1912, it’s set in Lawrence’s native Eastwood in Nottinghamshire and revolves around Luther Gascoyne (Tom Coiner), a gruff, young Lincolnshire miner, and his bride Minnie (Amy Blackman), a former governess.

Married only seven weeks, trust between the newlyweds is shattered by betrayal when Luther’s opinionated, outspoken mother (Sandra Shipley) discovers that her boorish son impregnated a local girl just before the wedding.  Barely disguising her pleasure, she’s delighted at her daughter-in-law’s dismay.

Why? Is it socio-economic class conflict – because Minnie is more cultured and better educated? Perhaps because she has a nest egg? And does she take some perverse pleasure that Minnie’s money will pay off the 40 (British) pounds that Mrs. Purdy (Polly McKie), the pregnant girl’s mother demands, ostensibly to avoid a public scandal?

According to widowed Mrs. Gascoyne: “Marriage is like a mouse trap, for either man or woman – you’ve soon come ter th’ end o’ th’ cheese.”

Eventually, having proposed to him herself, Minnie skewers Luther’s less-than-manliness and refers to his younger brother Joe’s (Ciaran Bowling) dysfunctional attachment to his mother.

Problem is: the cast’s East Midlands dialect is difficult to understand although dramaturg Amy Stoller’s coaching makes their disctinctive language sound remarkably authentic.

After directing a previous production of this play in 2003, Martin Platt revives the provocative, emotionally charged, psychologically driven concept with confidence, effectively sharing his vision with set designer Bill Clarke, costumer Holly Poe Durbin, lighting designer Jeff Nellis and composer Lindsay Jones.

Yet in 2022, some may find that the ‘dated’ theme of maternal dominance/blame conflicts with contemporary feminism.

Running two hours and 20 minutes including an intermission, “The Daughter-in-Law” plays at the City Center Stage II (131 W. 55^th Street) through March 20.

Susan Granger’s review of “Skeleton Crew” (Manhattan Theatre Club/Samuel J. Friedman Theater)

 

Set in a break room at an automotive sheet-metal-stamping plant in Detroit during the winter of 2008, Dominique Morisseau’s new play evokes employee vulnerability when rumors of a permanent shutdown begin circulating.

As this drama about kinship and class opens, Faye (Phylicia Rashad) is sitting at a table on which there’s a prominent “No Smoking” sign. 

Flouting the rules by puffing away on a cigarette, Faye is the brassy union leader of UAW 167, which may be why the plant foreman Reggie (Brandon J. Dirden), son of her deceased lover, decides to confide in her that management has decided to shut down the facility.

Although she’s a breast-cancer survivor and currently living out of her car, Faye is desperately hoping to make it to 30 years on the assembly line so she can collect her pension. Which may be why she agrees not to tell her younger co-workers that they’re going to be laid off.

Shanita (Chante Adams) is pregnant but seemingly estranged from the baby’s father. She’s proud of the work she does, relishing what she perceives as her job security: “I love the way the line needs me. You step away, the whole operation shuts down.”

Shanita perpetually bickers with Dez (Joshua Boone), who is obviously crazy about her. Dez is ambitious, planning to open his own repair shop.

But then a series of robberies hits the plant. Suspicion falls on Dez, who is not only hiding a gun but a mysteriously wrapped pouch in his locker.

Caught between his working-class background and current ‘management’ position, Reggie promises Faye that he will do his best to help Shanita and Dez, among others, explaining, “I’m sick of walking that line – line that say I’m over here and you over there, even though we started with the same dirt on our shoes.”

Timely and political, this is the final installment of Morisseau’s haunting “Detroit Project” trilogy, which premiered at the Atlantic Company in 2016. Dominiue Morisseau, who won the 2018 MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellowship, creates vibrant characters whose tenuous dilemma is all-too-real.

Directed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, it’s a taut, well-cast character study of African-Americans who are striving for the American Dream which now seems out of reach.

 

Susan Granger’s review of “Winnie the Pooh Musical” (Theatre Row – Off-Broadway)

 

A.A. Milne’s beloved adventures of Christopher Robin and his anthropomorphized animal friends has become a charming Off-Broadway musical, as the Hundred Acre Wood is brought to life on-stage in life-size puppet form by producer Jonathan Rockefeller and Disney Theatrical Productions.

Youngsters familiar with the folksy stories will delight in watching the gentle antics of Pooh Bear, Piglet, Eeyore, Rabbit, Owl, Tigger, and Kanga and little Roo while listening to familiar songs from the Grammy-winning Sherman Brothers – Richard and Robert – best known for their “Mary Poppins” and “Jungle Book” tunes.

This whimsical tale begins as Christopher Robin departs for school, leaving silly ol’ Pooh – who feels ‘”rumbly” in his “tumbly” –  to search for delicious honey while experiencing the changing seasons with his forest friends.

Each of the seasons heralds its own nostalgic enchantment. Blustery autumn means Piglet must be rescued from a runaway kite. Snow showers introduce Miss Winter, although perfectionistic Rabbit’s vegetable garden gets decimated in a bouncing lesson. And so it goes.

Puppeteer/actor/singer Jake Bazel is charismatic as Winnie the Pooh; according to his bio, Bazel first tackled the role of the ‘tubby little cubby’ when he was nine years old, long before he went to work in Disney’s media world.

Plus there’s Emmanuel Elpenord, triple-cast as gloomy Eeyore, exasperated Rabbit & talkative Owl, along with Chris Palmieri as spirited, scatter-brained Tigger, Kristina Dizon as nurturing Kanga and Kirsty Moon as Piglet & Roo.

Enhancing the wholesome enchantment is David Goldstein’s bucolic set with Matthew Lish’s puppets, Jamie Roderick’s warm lighting and Lindsay Williams’ costumes. New songs include Carly Simon’s “The More It Snows” and composer Nate Edmonson’s “Sing-Ho.”

Family-friendly, 65 minute-long “Winnie the Pooh” plays on 42^nd Street’s Theatre Row through January 30^th when it heads to Chicago to begin a national tour. Tickets are available at www.WinnieThePoohShow.com.

Because of Covid, all patrons are required to wear a mask and everyone above the age of 12 must show proof of vaccination. Those under 12 need to show a negative PCR test within three days or a negative rapid antigen test from a physician or testing site within six hours of the performance. To that end, there’s free, on-site testing up to 1.5 hours before curtain time.

 

 

Susan Granger’s review of “I Just Want to Tell Somebody” (Theater for the New City/Off-Broadway)

 

Just when many Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters are temporarily closing because of the Covid-19/Omicron pandemic, the Theater for the New City has extended the premiere of this remarkable solo show through January 30.

Written and performed by Ronald “Smokey” Stevens, it’s an autobiographical chronicle of how Smokey’s rise as a Black performer on stage and screen was torpedoed by his cocaine addiction, which inevitably led to his incarceration, and then how he was able not only to recover but also to revive his career.

Adapted from his confessional memoir “I Just Want to Tell Somebody: The Autobiography of Ronald Smokey Stevens,” it’s a one-man, two-character play, starring suave Smokey as himself and his caustic, demonic nemesis called “D Man.”

Because his name might not be immediately familiar, director Stephen Byrd wisely inserts various archival video clips of his ensemble appearances, including Smokey tap dancing with Charles “Honi” Coles in “Bubbling Brown Sugar” and as one of the Crows dancing with Michael Jackson in “The Wiz.”

Inevitably, Smokey’s career trajectory encompasses many of the highlights of Black musical theater in film and on television – which he acknowledges, citing ground-breaking Black producer/directors like Woodie King Jr., organizer of the New Federal Theater, and Robert Hooks, co-founder of the Negro Ensemble Company and creator of the D.C. Black Repertory Company.

Smokey is now a documentary filmmaker and Artistic Director of Capital City Readers Theater in Washington, D.C. and recipient of the @NAACP 11th annual Theater Award.

Kudos to Larry Law’s multimedia and Alexander Bartenieff’s lighting design.

“I Just Wanted to Tell Somebody” held its first preview on January 6 with Opening Night on January 7. Audience members must show proof of vaccination to attend, and masks are required for all audience members.

This show’s original closing date was January 23 but it has been extended through January 30 at the Theater for the New City, located at 155 First Ave. at East 10^th Street. For tickets, call 212-254-1109.

 

 

Susan Granger’s review of “Assassins” (Classic Stage Company – Off-Broadway)

 

After the death of Stephen Sondheim, I felt compelled to re-visit this cynically macabre musical, presented as a stripped-down revival, focusing on the desperately demented people who decided that their only remedy was to grab a gun and kill the President of the United States.

What didn’t occur to me until I was in my seat was how relevant the show is today, as investigations and prosecutions of those who participated in the January 6^th Capitol insurrection and attempted assassinations of multiple members of Congress move forward.

In an insidiously stark fairground with a stars-and-stripes painted set, it follows the Proprietor (Eddie Cooper), who supplies weapons to nine volatile murderers as they pursue their various targets: “Everybody’s got the right to be happy/Everybody’s got the right to their dreams”….followed by “”Hey, fella, feel like you’re a failure? Feel misunderstood? C’mere and kill a President.”

Starting with frustrated actor John Wilkes Booth (Steven Pasquale), who went to the theater to target Abraham Lincoln in 1865, and including Lee Harvey Oswald (Ethan Slater), who shot John F. Kennedy in Texas,  they tell their tales – in counterpoint to a folksy Balladeer (also Ethan Slater).

But there are also the wannabe killers who were foiled: Leon Czolgosz (Brandon Uranowitz) who loathed William McKinley; Giuseppe Zangara (Wesley Taylor) who shot at Franklin D. Roosevelt; Samuel Byck (Andy Grotelueschen), whose target was Richard Nixon; John Hinckley Jr. (Adam Chanler-Berat) who went after Ronald Reagan; and Gerald Ford’s frustrated femmes Squeaky Fromme (Tavi Gevinson) and Sara Jane Moore (Judy Kuhn).

Based on Charles Gilbert’s darkly comic concept with a prescient book by John Wideman & music/lyrics by Sondheim, it premiered Off-Broadway in 1990 at Playwrights Horizons. Then in 2004, it opened on Broadway. In this 2021 incarnation, it’s cleverly directed by John Doyle (“Sweeney Todd,” “Company,” “Pacific Overtures”), who excels with ensemble presentations but – in this case – needs a choreographer.

For me, the most memorable moment was when delusional Charles J. Guiteau (Will Swenson), the jittery lawyer who shot President James A. Garfield in 1881, swings his gun around at the audience.  I immediately thought about the so-called ‘prop gun’ that Alec Baldwin aimed on the set of “Rust.” He said he had no idea it would kill the director. What if this ‘prop gun’ exploded?

Running one hour and 45 minutes, “Assassins” plays through Jan. 29, 2022 at the Classic Stage Company.

 

Susan Granger’s review of “In the Southern Breeze” (Rattlestick Playwrights Theater – Off-Broadway)

 

The Rattlestick Playwrights Theater is proud to produce works “that will lead to positive social change as they embody their core values of community, equity, empowerment and artistic freedom.”  In partnership with Mansa Ra, the current production is “an autobiographical fever dream, spotlighting mental health recovery and centering the Black male experience.”

According to Mansa Ra, idea for this production began in 2015 as “two simple questions to four of my friends: Does being Black scare you as much as it scares me?…How do we stop living in fear?”

His play begins as a nameless, obviously depressed Black Man (Allan K. Washington) arrives home, checking to be sure the deadbolts are set. He’s relieved to strip off the fixed smile he wears in order not to be threatening to others, calling it: “The Obama Deluxe.”

“Everybody was freaking out about quarantine, cooped up with nowhere to go,” he muses. “But I was glad. I finally had a real excuse for not leaving my apartment.”

After he rhetorically questions, “Has there ever been a happy place for Black men in America?” the stage suddenly goes dark as a surreal Time Travel segment begins.

Terrified Madison (Charles Browning) is an escaped slave in 1780. Tennessee sharecropper Lazarus (Victor Williams) is a union organizer in 1892. Hue (Biko Eisen-Martin) is a Black Panther in 1971. And Tony (Travis Raeburn), who turns out to be Lazarus’ great grandson, is a gay AIDS activist in 1993.

One comes to realize that “In the Southern Breeze” takes its title from “Strange Fruit,” Billie Holiday’s anti-lynching protest anthem, as dread of racial violence permeates the drama.

“But the noose is still there. Why is that noose still there?” the Man anxiously asks. “It gets prettier and smarter and more complicated and more camouflaged. But it hasn’t gone away.”

It’s a compelling concept, well-acted under the direction of Christopher D. Betts on Emmie Finckel’s set, lighting by Emma Deane, costumes by Jahise Lebouef, music by Allen Rene Louis and sound by Kathy Ruvuna.

Running 65 minutes with no intermission, “In the Southern Breeze” is performed virtually and in-person through December 12, 2021, at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, 234 Waverly Place…tickets available at https:www.rattlestick.org.

Susan Granger’s review of “Approval Junkie” (Audible’s Minetta Lane Theatre – Off-Broadway)

 

By her own admission – from winning her Atlanta high school Miss Aphrodite beauty pageant, to graduating with a Master’s degree from Harvard – Faith Salie is the ultimate approval seeker. So, having enjoyed her comedic commentaries on “CBS Sunday Morning,” I was in her corner before this introspective, one-woman show even began.

Based on her 2016 book of essays, “Approval Junkie” chronicles her persistent striving for success -whatever that word means.

Is success measured by being svelte? Faith Salie describes herself as a person who once “considered rice cakes a sensible dinner,” as part of her “tortured crusade to be thin,” restricting herself to 800 calories and two workouts per day. That led to anorexia.

Is validation achieved by pleasing her first husband – a.k.a. “wasband”? When he asked her to get an exorcism, she actually did – at an Ayurvedic Healing Center in a strip mall in Sarasota, Florida.

Not surprisingly, when Salie finally opted to end the marriage, she still yearned to look “sexy” during divorce hearing.

Does one find affirmation in re-marriage, even if you met your future spouse, as she did, through “Gay Date”?

Then is perfection measured by procreation? Salie endured egg-freezing, artificial insemination and IVF.

If you live in New York, do you measure success by getting your four year-old into the right kindergarten? That, apparently, involves a nerve-wracking “observed play date,” among other indignities.

“Seeking approval has not undone me,” Salie admits. “It’s built me.”

Admittedly, I found all of this far more amusing than my husband did, even though he, too, is an admirer, often listening to lighthearted Salie on NPR’s quiz show “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me.”

Wearing a belted, navy silk jumpsuit and beige heels (courtesy of costume designer Ivan Ingermann), Salie’s adroitly directed by Amanda Watkins and polished by Jack Magaw’s minimalistic set design, Amanda Zieve’s lighting, and Brandon Bush’s sound design.

“Approval Junkie” plays at the Minetta Lane Theatre until December 12. For tickets and information: www.audible.com. And, if you cannot get there, rest assured that Audible is recording this 90-minute show for future release.

 

Susan Granger’s review of “Diana: the Musical – on Broadway” (Longacre Theater)

 

Producers of “Diana: the Musical” were clever to have Netflix stream this new pop musical before it opened because I suspect – sooner rather than later – the ‘live’ performance will be only a memory.

By any theatrical standards, it’s not very good – certainly not as compelling as “The Crown,” as intriguing as Pablo Larrain’s “Spencer,” or as comprehensive as the recent CNN series. But there is still something fascinating about a tacky, campy musical interpretation of the Diana/Charles/Camilla scandal.

From the beginning, as she sings “Underestimated,” it’s obvious that Diana (Jeanna de Waal) is a hapless heroine, facing two formidable adversaries. There’s scheming adulteress Camilla Parker-Bowles (Erin Davie), encouraging her lover Charles (Roe Hartrampf) to marry this naïve, virginal 19 year-old to produce  Windsor heirs. Plus the omnipresent, trenchcoat-clad paparazzi, relentlessly hounding Diana.

Supporting players include the Queen and Diana’s step-grandmother/romance novelist Barbara Cartland (both played by Judy Kaye), along with Diana’s butler Paul Burrell (Bruce Dow), her older sister Sarah Spencer (Holly Butler) and hunky lover James Jewitt (Garth Keegan), emerging bare-chested like a Chippendale’s dancer, proclaiming: “You don’t need a messy divorce! All you need is a man on a horse!”

One of the more bizarre scenes is the fight-ring staging when the smirking Princess of Wales confronts her cheeky rival with lyrics heralding “the thrilla’ in Manila with Diana and Camilla.” It has more suds than a soap-opera.

With ironic book/lyrics by Joe DiPietro and simpering music/lyrics by Bon Jovi’s keyboardist David Bryan (Tony winners for “Memphis”), it’s inanely directed by Christopher Ashley (Tony winner for “Come From Away”) with couture costumes by William Ivey Long.

Years ago, producers would have shunned filming a musical, thinking that it would cannibalize theatrical sales but – in the case of “Chicago” – it only helped. Even poorly received film adaptations, like “Phantom of the Opera” and “Rent,” seemed to help lift their respective stage productions.

So, while “Diana the Musical” is embarrassingly abysmal and will inevitably be considered a Broadway flop, audiences will have the Netflix version to remember why.