'Grand Horizons' a rare comic gem

‘GRAND HORIZONS’: James Cromwell & Jane Alexander. Photo: Joan Marcus

GRAND HORIZONS
Written by Bess Wohl
Directed by Leigh Silverman
Through March 1, 2020
The Helen Hayes Theater
240 West 44th Street
(212-541-4516), www 2ST.com

By David NouNou

Sustaining a marriage for 50 years is difficult. However, writing a good, sustainable comedy that doesn’t sound or read like a script from a TV sitcom these days is even harder. Playwright Bess Wohl has achieved this feat with Grand Horizons. Watching Nancy (Jane Alexander) and Bill (James Cromwell) for a few minutes setting up their dinner table and sitting down to eat, and Nancy nonchalantly uttering “I want a divorce,” is a wonderful starter.

Nothing is extraordinary about this situation and this doesn’t mean the play doesn’t have its shortcomings and filler, but what is extraordinary is the genuine laughter that playwright Ms. Wohl achieves. Grand Horizons is the name of the retirement home that Bill and Nancy live in. The remarkable cast elevates the material to hysterical heights.

The divorce isn’t so much about Nancy and Bill but how it affects their two sons: the older Ben (Ben McKenzie), his wife Jess (Ashley Park), and their younger son Brian (Michael Urie), a high-school drama teacher. The three are there to form an intervention against this divorce. In the process they discover their own shortcomings, the disillusionment of unhappy parents as they were growing up and their parents’ own secrets. The divorce stems from Nancy discovering Bill has been “sexting” Carla (Priscilla Lopez).

The setups aren’t new but there is a freshness to the tone. There is crispness to the dialogue, but the humor also comes with fillers. One such scene is Brian bringing a one-nighter (Maulik Pancholy) to his parents’ home. The scene is to establish Brian’s feelings about his parent’s divorce but the one-nighter is horny and isn’t interested in anything but sex. The scene has genuine truths in it, but is highly implausible.

What keeps the material afloat is the wonderful acting by an all-star cast, and I must admit I am a sucker for an all-star cast. Starting with Jane Alexander, long absent from the New York stage, making a regal comeback. Having first seen her in The Great White Hope, though the material here isn’t as compelling, she hasn’t lost her touch or command of the stage. She, like fine wine, has matured with age but is still lilting and grand.

Having seen James Cromwell in countless movies and TV shows, it’s great to finally see him on the New York stage. He is crotchety, compelling and ideal in trying to sort his life out.

Michael Urie plays another gay character here, but is absolutely beguiling as the lost son trying to make sense of it all. He touches the nerve of why he has never been able to connect with another person and wrenches the heart with his sincerity.

Priscilla Lopez as Carla, the other woman, just dazzles in her too-brief scene with Jane Alexander as they are discussing what to do with Bill, and starting to talk intimately is civility done to perfection.

Ben McKenzie, Ashley Park, and Maulik Pancholy add to the comic hysteria at various stages in bringing in their own perspective to this scenario.

Comedy is such a rare commodity these days and we are in such desperate need to laugh during these hard times. Grand Horizons hits the funny bone and is a welcome start to the New Year.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published January 29, 2020
Reviewed at January 28, 2020 press performance.