‘THE LAST FIVE YEARS’: Adrienne Warren & Nick Jonas. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

THE LAST FIVE YEARS
Book, music & lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Directed by Whitney White
Through June 22, 2025
Hudson Theatre
141 W 44th St
https://thelastfiveyearsbroadway.com/

By Scott Harrah

Jason Robert Brown’s musical The Last Five Years originated in Chicago in 2001 and was first produced Off Broadway in New York in 2002, starring Norbert Leo Butz and Sherie Renee Scott. It was adapted into a 2014 film starring Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Jordan. Now, the one act has arrived on Broadway with Tony Award winner Adrienne Warren and former teen pop star and Broadway veteran Nick Jonas. Some may not know it, but Nick Jonas has been appearing in Broadway shows since he was a child, long before he hit it big with his sibling pop group The Jonas Brothers. He even did a fine job replacing Daniel Radcliffe in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying in 2012.

Unorthodox narrative

This musical has gained a devoted cult following for its unorthodox narrative. The Last Five Years chronicles the five-year marriage of aspiring actress Cathy (Ms. Warren) and up-and-coming novelist Jamie (Mr. Jonas).  Cathy’s story is told backwards, from the end of her relationship with Jamie to the beginning. Jamie’s story is told the conventional way, from beginning to end.

The two characters’ tales finally merge but just once, at their wedding, and this happens halfway through the show. The musical is almost like an operetta since there’s little spoken dialogue. However, the overall tone is serious and ultimately gloomy. The show isn’t exactly an operetta nor is it a traditional musical. Nothing about the production fits any conventional category, so perhaps that is why The Last Five Years has an ardent fanbase.

‘Nice Jewish boy’ novelist Jamie

Mr. Jonas’s Jamie is a stereotypical “nice Jewish boy” from New York. He’s ambitious and tired of the women he meets in his social circle. When he meets Cathy, she’s unlike anyone he has ever met. With effervescent songs such as “Shiksa Goddess,” “Moving Too Fast” and “A Miracle Would Happen,” Mr. Jonas is in fine voice. As he finds success as a novelist, Cathy struggles.

Aspiring actress Cathy

Theatergoers already know Adrienne Warren has a powerful, angelic voice. She originated the role of Tina Turner in Tina: The Tina Turner Musical both on London’s West End and on Broadway, earning her an Olivier and Evening Standard Theatre Award nomination and a Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Award. From the moment the show opens with Cathy belting out “Still Hurting,” a song about the painful ending of her marriage to Jamie, Ms. Warren starts out on a proverbial high note. Her vocals are consistently lush and melodic from beginning to end.  She is top notch when singing such songs as “I Can Do Better Than That” and “Goodbye Until Tomorrow” with her mellifluous voice.

Show’s edgy appeal

The fact that the narrative follows two opposing timelines (Cathy’s in reverse and Jamie’s chronologically) makes the musical edgy, and one can see why it has developed a dedicated group of enthusiasts the past 24 years

Both Mr. Jonas and Ms. Warren have amazing chemistry and stage presence. Fans of either star won’t be disappointed seeing them both shine in the 90-minute one act. Whitney White directs both actors well and they are both continuously fluid and have great timing.

Despite the two amazing performances and the superb vocals, this chronicle of a love and marriage falling apart is not exactly upbeat material. In addition, the awkward and wonky book is exactly why The Last Five Years may not please mass audiences. This cult favorite will certainly thrill those who are already fans of the show, but the confusing nature of the story could make winning over new aficionados difficult indeed.

Published April 16, 2025
Reviewed at press performance on April 9, 2025

‘THE LAST FIVE YEARS’: Adrienne Warren. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘THE LAST FIVE YEARS’: Nick Jonas. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘THE LAST FIVE YEARS’: Nick Jonas & Adrienne Warren. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

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‘ONCE UPON A MATTRESS’: Sutton Foster. Photo: Joan Marcus.

ONCE UPON A MATTRESS
Book by Jay Thompson, Marshall Barer & Dean Fuller
Music by Mary Rodgers
Lyrics by Marshall Barer
Adapted by Amy Sherman-Palladino
Directed by Lear deBessonet
Hudson Theatre
141 W 44th Street
https://onceuponamattressnyc.com/

By Scott Harrah

Once Upon a Mattress recently transferred from a hit City Center Encores! production earlier this year to Broadway. It is the perfect vehicle for two of Broadway’s most delightful musical comedy talents: Michael Urie and Sutton Foster. With a crisp new adaptation by Amy Sherman-Palladino of “Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” fame, this latest revival of the Mary Rodgers/Marshall Barer classic is one of the summer’s hottest shows.

Once Upon a Mattress is the story of a fictional medieval kingdom. The musical focuses on Princess Winnifred the Woebegone (Sutton Foster), an awkward, gawky woman from a mystical swamp kingdom who is chosen to be the bride of Prince Dauntless the Drab (Michael Urie). Queen Aggravain (Ana Gasteyer), Prince Dauntless’ mother, is determined to ensure her son remains unmarried and devises impossible tests for Princess Winnifred to pass. The queen has been sabotaging all potential matches to maintain control of the kingdom. Her husband King Sextimus the Silent (David Patrick Kelly) is powerless because he was made mute by a curse cast by a witch. Princess Winnifred—or “Fred” as she prefers to be called—is not the first princess to be tested to see if she is a worthy bride. Queen Aggravain has already rejected several princesses that her son wanted to marry. She devises what she thinks will be a foolproof test, with the help of the Wizard (Brooks Ashmankas): Winnifred must sleep on a huge stack of mattresses with a tiny pea underneath one and if she is truly “royalty,” she will be hyper-sensitive and not sleep and, thus, pass the test. Otherwise, if she actually sleeps, the “test” will show she’s merely a commoner and, therefore, cannot marry the prince.

The musical is mostly famous for launching the career of comedienne Carol Burnett when she originated the role of Princess Winnifred when Once Upon a Mattress opened on Broadway in 1959. Based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale The Princess and the Pea, the saga is a lighthearted spoof of the storybook genre. It was last revived in 1996 with Sara Jessica Parker in the lead role, and a 2005 TV version starred Tracey Ullman. So, the show has always been a vehicle for its leading lady, and this iteration is perfect for Broadway and TV veteran Sutton Foster. Ms. Foster shows off talents many never knew she had, such as her natural gift for physical comedy. With her many pratfalls and slapstick moves—from eating grapes to lifting weights—she has much more to do onstage than in her role as Marian the Librarian in the 2022 revival of The Music Man, in which she was often overshadowed by mega star Hugh Jackman. When she belts out the show’s signature song “Shy,” one can see why Once Upon a Mattress was such an important career starter for Carol Burnett, but Ms. Foster manages to give her own unique interpretation of Princess Winnifred. The musical is Ms. Foster’s from the moment she arrives, wet and dirty from the moat, jumps into the castle and into the prince’s life.

Michael Urie, as Prince Dauntless, is outstanding as always. Is there chemistry between Mr. Urie and Ms. Foster? Not really, but it doesn’t matter, because this is a goofy musical that never takes itself seriously. In his tights, crown and cape, Mr. Urie is a lovable nerdy prince.

Other standouts include Nikki Renée Daniels as Lady Larken, the girlfriend of Sir Harry (Will Chase). Ms. Daniels has a beautiful coloratura voice and she and Mr. Chase are in rapturous harmony on such duets as “In a Little While” and “Yesterday I Loved You.” “Saturday Night Live” alum Ana Gasteyer plays a caustically mean Queen Aggravain.

Daniel Breaker as the Jester, and Brooks Ashmankas as the Wizard, fare less well in supporting roles in which they ham it up with goofy antics, but Once Upon a Mattress is supposed to be an absurdist musical comedy so there’s nothing wrong with screwball high jinks.

David Zinn’s sets are fairly spartan, featuring the orchestra right on stage above the action. Director Lear deBessonet gets consistently good performances from the cast, and one thing is certain: This revival of Once Upon a Mattress features one of Sutton Foster’s best comic performances to date.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published August 17, 2024
Reviewed at August 15, 2024 press performance

‘ONCE UPON A MATTRESS’: Michael Urie, Sutton Foster & cast. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘ONCE UPON A MATTRESS’: David Patrick Kelly, Michael Urie & Ana Gasteyer. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘ONCE UPON A MATTRESS’: The cast. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘ONCE UPON A MATTRESS’: Daniel Breaker & Brooks Ashmankas. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘ONCE UPON A MATTRESS’: Sutton Foster, Michael Urie & cast. Photo: Joan Marcus.

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‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: (left to right) Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff & Lindsay Mendez. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG
Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by George Furth
Directed by Maria Friedman
Hudson Theatre
141 West 44th Street
www.MerrilyonBroadway.com

By David NouNou

It is easy to see why Merrily We Roll Along was savaged by critics and bombed when it opened on November 16, 1981. It used up its advance sales on 44 previews and lasted only 16 performances. It was to be a Stephen Sondheim vehicle with a no-name cast; “just Sondheim” as its selling point. This was before he was a deity. It failed on so many levels.

It lacked the grandiosity of his 1979 Sweeney Todd, or the majesty of 1976’s Pacific Overtures, or the beauty of 1973’s A Little Night Music, or the extravaganza of 1971’s Follies or the brilliance of 1970’s Company. Merrily We Roll Along was a dreary musical about three friends examining their lives in 1978 and going backwards in time to 1957 when they first met in their prime. It lacked any sets; the costumes were made up of jeans, khakis and T-Shirts with the character’s names on it. I guess because the cast was so lackluster, it was the only way the audience could identify them. Its failure was also due to the feeling of detachment from the musical itself and its characters. In 1981, audiences wanted to feel empathy for their characters and Merrily just didn’t give them that. Another blow came in the form of Michael Bennett’s explosive razzle-dazzle Dreamgirls, loosely based on the formation of the musical group Diana Ross and the Supremes. There was plenty of attachment and empathy there. The choice was simple: It came down to dreary or razzle-dazzle.

Merrily has developed a cult following over the years. With songs like the bouncy “Old Friends,”  and the haunting “Not a Day Goes By,” the musical started picking up steam. Fast forward to 2023: Sondheim is a deity now. You’ve got three leads that are big names, full of charm, charisma and audience visibility/connection. It’s a fully mounted production with a multi-functional set and costumes galore. The detachment that failed in 1981 works wonderfully for the age we live in now. However, it is Maria Friedman’s visionary direction that has reshaped a dreary musical into a full-blown, knockout production.

Having Daniel Radcliffe (Charley Kringas), Jonathan Groff (Franklin Shepard) and Lindsay Mendez (Mary Flynn) has given this musical a luster that it desperately needed. It is 1976 in Franklin Shepard’s Bel-Air mansion with all the phonies and sycophants surrounding him and extolling him. He is a producer now; he has left his roots of composing music for the glamour of Hollywood and all its pretentiousness. He is on his second marriage to theatrical actress, Gussie Carnegie (Krystal Joy Brown). She divorced Broadway producer, Joe Josephson (Jeremy Kushner), who produced Franklin and Charlie’s first musical hit, Musical Husbands.

Also at the party is a second member of the original trio, Mary Flynn, who has always been in love with Franklin but he has always been blind to it. She has written a bestseller and has now become a critic. Also, she loves her liquor. She is the mirror that Franklin has to look into to see what he has turned into; not the brilliant composer he always wanted to be. He is a success as a moneymaker, but a total failure as a man, a friend, a husband, and a father.

Moving backwards in time to 1973 at NBC Studios in Manhattan, Charley Kringas is awaiting the arrival of his composing partner and friend Franklin for an interview, but instead Franklin is late due to another venture of moneymaking. They are asked what it is like to be working together, and Charlie interrupts by “if I may…” and sings “Franklin Shepard, Inc.,” the showstopping number of the show, which incidentally sounds much like the style and tempo of “I’m Not Getting Married Today” from Sondheim’s Company.

Going further back to 1967, a courthouse where Beth Shepard (Katie Rose Clarke) is divorcing Frank and he asks her if she still loves him, and she sings the heart-wrenching “Not A Day Goes By.” End of Act I.

Act II is the weaker of the two. It starts in 1964 with Franklin and Charley’s first huge success, and keeps moving backward to 1960 when they formed their first revue at a downtown club in New York City where Beth auditions for them and Frank ends up proposing to her, until it’s finally 1957 on an NYC rooftop where the trio (Franklin, Charley and Mary) first meet, and sing about their bright future which is ahead of them in the song “Our Time.”

The musical was problematic from the onset. It had a difficult book to navigate through and the characters were most unlikable in its original formation—a no-no in musical comedy. However, over the years the book has been revised a few times, and there is no overlooking Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez. They are the oomph this show so desperately needs. Their charisma and charm make you overlook a lot of their character flaws and that’s perfectly okay, because everyone is flawed in some form or another. They work in harmonious sync. They complement each other’s performances. This is a tremendous asset to this complicated show. They smooth out the wrinkles and give it an easy flow.

In addition to Maria Friedman’s excellent direction, there is the sublime live orchestra—not pre-recorded tracks that are used in so many musicals today to cut costs—conducted by Joel Fram, and the divine orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick carry this musical into melody heaven. This is how you take a flop, reimagine it, cast it with a splendid trio, and turn it into an incredible memorable revival.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 23, 2023
Reviewed at October 22, 2023 press performance.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: Katie Rose Clarke & Jonathan Groff. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: (left to right) Reg Rogers, Katie Rose Clarke, Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe & Lindsay Mendez. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: The cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: Krystal Joy Brown & Jonathan Groff. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: (left to right) Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff, Reg Rogers
& Krystal Joy Brown. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: (left to right) Krystal Joy Brown, Reg Rogers, Natalie Wachen & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

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‘JUST FOR US’: Alex Edelman. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

JUST FOR US
Written by Alex Edelman
Directed by Adam Brace
Through August 19, 2023
Hudson Theatre
141 West 44th Street
(855-801-5876), www.JustForUsShow.com

By David NouNou

Starting with a Robin Williams joke, ending with attending a White Nationalist get-together in Queens, New York, and in between a tale of Santa attending his Orthodox Jewish family’s home at Christmas time—these are some of the anecdotes Alex Edelman regales the audience with in Just for Us. He has written this solo monologue about his “Jewishness” and his Orthodox family, the trials and tribulations of being Jewish, and the different degrees of being Jewish. What makes this tale of the Jewish experience so much fun is its freshness and sincerity.

Mr. Edelman is a comedy writer, born in the WASP part of Boston to a Jewish family, who had to make a lot of changes in his life starting with his long Hebrew name, condensed to Alex Edelman. What is unique to Mr. Edelman’s humor is the dark humor infused in his material. As the saying goes, “He’s not afraid to go there.” He can laugh at life’s foibles and ironies. His impish, boyish looks also help maneuver this slippery slope between comedy and reality. He is mischievous and manic which in many instances heightens the humor.

Director Adam Brace (who passed away on April 29, 2023) was working with Mr. Edelman for a long time, fine-tuning this comedic gem. They trimmed it to 90 minutes of constant merriment. The pace is nonstop, and Mr. Edelman is in total control of the stage and his charm makes the evening that much more pleasurable.

Most Jewish humor came from what was known as the Borscht Belt. Would-be comics went to the Catskills to test, and sometimes pilfer, material from other Jewish comics, to use on their Jewish audiences who went there for their summer vacations. Having played in Melbourne, Australia, at the Edinburgh Fringe in Scotland, Soho in London, off-Broadway, and finally to the Hudson Theatre, here in New York, Just for Us has managed to hit the comedy spot in various continents. With antisemitism on the rise, to Mr. Edelman’s credit, he has cleverly taken Jewish humor and translated it to 21st century humor. It is great seeing younger and older audience members enjoying the same humor. Whether the material is related to social media or Chanukah, everyone was getting the humor, everyone was in on the fun. Kudos to Mr. Edelman for bridging the gap between the young and the old.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published July 6, 2023
Reviewed at July 5, 2023 press performance.

‘JUST FOR US’: Alex Edelman. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘JUST FOR US’: Alex Edelman. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

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‘A DOLL’S HOUSE’: Arian Moayed & Jessica Chastain. Photo: Courtesy of ‘A Doll’s House.’

A DOLL’S HOUSE
Written by Henrik Ibsen
New Adaptation by Amy Herzog
Directed by Jamie Lloyd
Through June 10, 2023
Hudson Theatre
141 West 44th Street
(855-801-5876), www.ADollsHouseBroadway.com

By David NouNou

Henrik Ibsen wrote his renowned drama A Doll’s House—one of the first and finest pre-feminist plays of the day— in 1879. Amy Herzog has translated it into a riveting post-feminist play, and director Jamie Lloyd has taken this splendid piece and reinvented it into his usual dreary manner of stripped-to-the- bone-bare minimalism. Remember his equally misguided venture in the 2019 revival of Harold Pinter’s Betrayal?  It appears that Mr. Lloyd’s vision of any revival is not to deal with the content and detail of the play, no anchoring of the play—just a gimmick of letting it play on any bare stage and let it land where it lands.

In A Doll’s House, Ibsen provided a wonderful grounded play of a beautiful, young, self-absorbed woman chirping like a bird at the onset of the play, to amuse her husband, and by the end to an open-eyed woman of her day to map out her life moving forward. Amy Herzog has modernized the language brilliantly, almost word for word, as the original text to simplify the dialogue for modern audiences.

Nora (Jessica Chastain) and Torvald Helmer (Arian Moayed) have been married for eight years and have three children. They’ve had hard times but now Torvald has been made manager of his bank and money will be easier to spend. Nora is visited by her old friend, the widower, Kristine Linde (Jesmille Darbouze) and Nora reveals her problems to Kristine. Nora has borrowed money from a loan shark at the bank years ago, and has been paying it slowly, paying as much as her allowance permits. Torvald believes the money was from her father before he died, but in reality, to save Torvald’s pride, she borrowed it from a loan shark to pay for his health retreat in Italy to save Torvald’s life.

Kristine needs and ultimately lands a job at Torvald’s bank through Nora’s influence. Kristine gets to replace Nils Krogstad (Okieriete Onaodowan), a man who is her ex-boyfriend. Nils has made shady forgeries at the bank and is being dismissed. Nils comes to Nora to plead his case to Torvald to let him stay at the bank. He reminds Nora that he is the loan shark, that it was she who forged her father’s signature on the promissory note. Nora goes into a freefall on how to avert this crisis. The suffering of Nora and Torvald’s rebuking Nora upon finding what Nora has done is the crux of living in a doll’s house. Nora was her father’s little doll, married Torval and became his chirping doll, had kids and played dolls with them. She has to finally assess her life and realize herself as the woman she wants to be.

Having seen Claire Bloom, Liv Ullmann, Janet McTeer, and now Jessica Chastain, never have I seen a Nora as disciplined as what Ms. Chastain displays in her performance. When one enters the auditorium of the theatre, one sees Ms. Chastain sitting on a hard wooden-backed chair, spinning around a bare stage for 35 minutes not moving a muscle while other cast members amble in and take their positions on stage. It is Ms. Chastain’s alabaster beauty that rivets you to her and with it being a bare stage, you can’t take your eyes off her.

Watching Ms. Chastain start as the chirping doll, coquettish and self-indulgent, morphing into despair and desperation, her disillusionment in her husband, and finally coming to her own resolve and what she must do is an entrancing and a formidable performance. What’s more amazing is that her performance is being given while sitting on this uncomfortable chair. She has to deal with each character, sitting down, and go through her emotions without being able to move. Even in the end when she asks Torvald to return her ring and in turn, she gives him back his, there are no rings to exchange. Wow, now that is minimalism.

Ms. Chastain is ably supported by Ms. Darbouze as Kristine, Okieriete Onaodowan as Nils Krogstad, but Arian Moayed is a different story. Mr. Moyaed’s character starts out as the obnoxious self-consumed Torvald, and his childish tantrum near the end is so over the top that a medic has to be called in. Dr. Lloyd, where were you when all this was taking place?

Amy Herzog has delivered a beautiful translation of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, Ms. Chastain delivers what could easily be a Tony-winning performance for Best Actress in a drama, and Jamie Lloyd doesn’t even let the actors interact face to face with each other. They are either talking back-to-back, across the stage from each other. I guess this is to show the great divide between his characters. Go see this production simply for the sublime Ms. Chastain giving one of her best performances ever and overlook all the other shortcomings.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published March 17, 2023
Reviewed at March 16, 2023 performance.

‘A DOLL’S HOUSE’: Okieriete Onaodowan & Jessica Chastain. Photo: Emilio Madrid.

‘A DOLL’S HOUSE’: Jessica Chastain. Photo: Courtesy of ‘A Doll’s House.’

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‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: (left to right) Sharon D. Clarke, Wendell Pierce & André De Shields. Photo: Joan Marcus.

DEATH OF A SALESMAN
Written by Arthur Miller
Directed by Miranda Cromwell
Through January 15, 2023
Hudson Theatre
141 West 44th Street

(855-801-5876), www.SalesmanOnBroadway.com

By David NouNou

Death of a Salesman exists in two worlds, that of delusion (Willy Loman and his two sons, Biff and Happy) and denial (Linda Loman, his wife). Willy lives mostly in the faded past of imagined glory and his halcyon days as a salesman (real or imagined), but Linda is always grounded in the present and reality. Her denial is rooted in her deep love and devotion to Willy.

Set in 1949, Willy (Wendell Pierce) has returned home unexpectedly from a trip he was supposed to make to Boston and couldn’t make it past Yonkers. Willy has been working as a salesman for his company for 36 years. He is tired and spent. He now talks to himself a lot and lives with the ghosts of his past. He can’t seem to make those long hauls to New England to sell his wares; instead, he gets into accidents because of his wandering mind. His salary has been cut and he lives on commission. His friend and next-door neighbor, Charley (Delaney Williams), provides him with $50 a week to help pay off the mortgage on his home and the premium on his life insurance. Willy is a broken man and lives with his demons and fantasies of the American dream and success. Success comes to everyone around him but not to Willy or his family. Even his sons, both of whom were his prized treasures, have turned out to be wastrels and failures.

Linda (Sharon D. Clarke) is his long-suffering wife who has always stood by Willy and buoyed him to keep moving forward. She has never made him feel like a failure.

The boys: Biff, now 34 (Khris Davis), was a football star in high school and had a lot of hot air blown into him by his father, but has been a failure at everything since he was 17 and dropped out of school due to his father’s indiscretion on the road. Biff has just come back home from working in a farm in Nebraska. Happy, the younger son who worshiped Biff (McKinley Belcher III), has a lot of pipe dreams of his own and lies to and about himself.

This is a beautifully textured play that Arthur Miller wrote about the downfall of all the Willys/salesmen  who had dreams that didn’t come to fruition. It has at least 15 universal themes interwoven throughout. It has been 73 years since this play first opened and it is still as relevant today, if not more so than in 1949. Because the pressures of life have gotten harder, and we still live in life’s turmoils—ageism, losing jobs, paying bills, fear of failure, life’s disappointments and missed opportunities. The only way to do justice to this play is to cast it perfectly and direct it in a seamless manner, as Mike Nichols did in 2012 with Philip Seymour Hoffman; as Robert Falls did in 1999 with Brian Dennehy; and as George C. Scott did in 1975, directing himself. No extemporaneous business or gimmicks are needed. Just perform the play.

Starting with the good, God bless Sharon D. Clarke, because she is the only person that comes across the stage in blazing glory. She is grounded in reality and has the depth of Linda Loman’s duality. She knows Willy’s failures but would never betray him by admitting them to anyone. She loves her sons but will not stand for one bad remark made about Willy. She would rather throw them out from the house than to see Willy hurt. She is the heart and soul of the play. Wait until she recites “Attention must be paid to such a man…” It breaks your heart.

The problems that have risen in this production stem from directorial viewpoints and the choices made. Directors now are taking more risks and liberties to bring new but often misguided visions to established masterpieces. Just look at the abysmal choices Diane Paulus made with the current revival of 1776, and now Miranda Cromwell has inserted so many needless extras, that she dilutes the piece, and her direction, from Willy to the boys, is all over the place.

When Willy walks in, we know he is a tired salesman, and his prospects are dim. But as played by Mr. Pierce, we don’t see him so much as tired but of someone who is losing his mind and hallucinating. He is brash, bombastic and a blowhard. There is no descent to the man. He is a loser from the start. He is a man who lives on dreams and blows smoke into his sons and they in turn are failures like him. Mr. Pierce doesn’t imbue Willy with any shadings; he’s bombastic throughout the show and there is no progression or arc to his character.

Biff and Happy never talk to each other; they’re always either whining or screaming with each other about their differences, gripes, and about their father. This is where a strong director steps in to modulate performances for all three men and to give their characters dimension and let the audience ultimately figure out they are losers and not know this from the onset.

There is also Ben Loman (André De Shields), Willy’s much older brother. He left Willy when he was very young. Ben went into the jungle at 17 and came out a millionaire at 21. Mr. De Shields is a theatrical treasure. He is almost in the same costume and character as Hermes, messenger from the Gods, from Hadestown. Thankfully, he seems to be yet again the messenger from the Gods. But who cares? He can walk across the stage with his glitz and we are dazzled by him.

Ms. Cromwell is not helped at all by her set designer, Anna Fleischle. Last year she did a brilliant job with Martin MacDonagh’s Hangmen. Here the space compendium is nonexistent. In a crucial scene in Act I where Willy is having one of his breakdowns with Linda, young Biff, Happy, Willy’s mistress and others, scenes shift from the Loman’s backyard to Boston. The scene is so confusing from what is past and what is present and where are these scenes taking place. In another instance in Act II, when Biff calls his mother to tell her about dinner with dad, the phone rings, Linda picks up the phone in the living room, and a TV monitor at a bar turns on and, in squawky cartoon sounds, Biff is talking to Linda while she is instructing him to behave well with his dad. Someone has to explain how that absurd idea came to be.

Laughs are not a staple in Death of a Salesman. However, Ms. Cromwell felt that comic relief was needed in the form of Willy coming across as a blustering Ralph Kramden from “The Honeymooners” on a bad day.

Let’s just say thank you to Sharon D. Clarke and may she reign supreme on Broadway for years to come in better Broadway productions. The woman is the bravest Linda Loman I have ever seen on the stage.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 13, 2022
Reviewed at October 12, 2022 press performance.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: The cast. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: Wendell Pierce & Sharon D. Clarke. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: Blake De Long & Wendell Pierce. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: McKinley Belcher III, Wendell Pierce & Khris Davis. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: (left to right) Khris Davis, (top left) Wendell Pierce, Sharon D. Clarke & McKinley Belcher III. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: (left to right) Sharon D. Clarke, Wendell Pierce & Khris Davis. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: Wendell Pierce. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: Sharon D. Clarke. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘DEATH OF A SALESMAN’: André De Shields. Photo: Joan Marcus.

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‘PLAZA SUITE’: Sarah Jessica Parker & Matthew Broderick. Photo: Joan Marcus.

PLAZA SUITE
Written by Neil Simon
Directed by John Benjamin Hickey
Through June 26, 2022
Hudson Theatre
141 West 44th Street
(855-801-5876),www.PlazaSuiteBroadway.com

By David NouNou

In the Hudson Theatre’s lobby, there is an impressive wall full of theatre posters (by my count 33), displaying all of Neil Simons plays and musicals. The man was indeed prolific, starting in 1960 with Come Blow Your Horn to his last Broadway play 45 Seconds From Broadway in 2001. Most of them were extremely successful: the likes of Barefoot in The Park, The Odd Couple, Promises, Promises and Plaza Suite, which originally starred George C. Scott and the legendary Maureen Stapleton. As I was reading all the names of his shows, I was astounded that so many of them, as remarkable and hilarious as they were in their day, now seem so dated and frozen in time. Plaza Suite is no exception. What keeps it afloat is the joyous buoyancy of the real-life husband-and-wife team of Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker.

Act I: “Visitor From Mamaroneck” has Karen Nash (Ms. Parker) coming to the Plaza Hotel to celebrate her 24th anniversary in suite 719, the same suite in which she spent her wedding night. She is waiting for her husband Sam Nash (Mr. Broderick) to arrive. In the course of their time together that afternoon, Sam informs her they are celebrating their 23rd anniversary, they were in suite 819, and Karen finds out Sam is having an affair with his secretary. She is dismayed by the fact that he’s so typical, as to have an affair with his secretary; she expected more of him.

Act II: “Visitor From Hollywood” features Jesse Kiplinger (Mr. Broderick), a big-shot Hollywood producer in town for a deal, staying at the Plaza Hotel in Suite 719, awaiting his former girlfriend from 17 years earlier, Muriel Tate ( Ms. Parker) from New Jersey. Jesse is a letch. Muriel is lovely, sweet, innocent, married and enthralled by Jesse’s career and his associations with names like Lee Marvin, and Frank Sinatra and Mia Farrow (now there’s a couple I bet you forgot they were married to each other; dated factoid). The hilarity ensues when their roles get reversed.

Act III: “Visitor From Forest Hills” focuses on Norma Hubley (Ms. Parker) and Roy Hubley (Mr. Broderick) in Suite 719 where their daughter is to be married at the Plaza Hotel that afternoon. Their daughter, Mimsey, has locked herself in the bathroom and refuses to come out. The merriment for the audience is all the travails the Hubleys go through to try to lure Mimsey to unlock the bathroom door.

It’s never fair to compare different sets of actors in the roles they play. George C. Scott and Maureen Stapleton were galvanizing in their parts in 1968. In 2022, it’s refreshing to see an actual married couple play these roles.

In Act I, it is Ms. Parker’s Karen who is full of life, energy and excitement, coming to New York to celebrate her anniversary, only to have her heart broken by her husband, Sam. Ms. Parker is the glue here that keeps this act afloat. Mr. Broderick as Sam, having a mid-life crisis by having an affair with his secretary, is so passive and monotone that you would think Karen would be glad to get rid of him. What’s missing in this act is Sam’s strength and determination and Karen’s heart-wrenching fear and vulnerability of losing Sam to a younger woman. He is too weak and she is too strong.

In Act II, they both ace their parts. Mr. Broderick as the Hollywood letch Jesse, and Ms. Parker as the innocent, ditsy Muriel, are perfection. It’s a laugh riot from start to finish.

Act III was always the overwrought section of slapstick comedy. Ms. Parker as the mother of the uncooperative bride is in a constant state of a breakdown, and Mr. Broderick as the frazzled father of the bride uses physical energy he never displayed before trying to break down the bathroom door to get his daughter out of there and get her married.

It is a joy to watch Ms. Parker and Mr. Broderick playing in a fun show together. They know each other’s rhythms and it is a pleasure to watch them banter, seduce, and bicker with each other. Also, I’m a thrilled to report that Ms. Parker plays three characters with each having a distinct tonal voice and personality and none of them resemble Carrie Bradshaw from “Sex and the City” as she offers appropriate mannerisms for each of her characters. Kudos to both of them for the laughs they provide.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published March 31, 2022
Reviewed at March 30, 2022 press performance.

‘PLAZA SUITE’: Matthew Broderick & Sarah Jessica Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PLAZA SUITE’: Sarah Jessica Parker & Matthew Broderick. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PLAZA SUITE’: Matthew Broderick. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PLAZA SUITE’: Sarah Jessica Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PLAZA SUITE’: Sarah Jessica Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PLAZA SUITE’: Sarah Jessica Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PLAZA SUITE’: Sarah Jessica Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PLAZA SUITE’: Sarah Jessica Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus.

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‘DAVID BYRNE’S AMERICAN UTOPIA’: David Byrne (center) & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy

DAVID BYRNE’S AMERICAN UTOPIA
Performed by David Byrne & cast
Production consultant Alex Timbers
Choreography & musical staging by Annie-B Parson
St. James Theatre
246 West 44th Street
(877) 250-2929, https://americanutopiabroadway.com/

Editor’s note: This review is from the 2019 production at the Hudson Theatre.

By Scott Harrah

Way back in my university days, there were many “cool” musicians that students at my large Midwestern college admired. However, there was one guy in particular everybody loved listening to: David Byrne of the Talking Heads. He was artsy, edgy and nerdy enough to appeal to the “left-wing liberals” I worked with on the college newspaper, but mainstream enough to be heard at virtually every party on campus. His videos were on MTV all the time and his songs were all over the radio. Everybody loved David Byrne. With his crazy big suits and David Bowie-style whine of a voice, he was that proverbial man all the girls wanted to be with (or so I was told) and all the guys wanted to be. Fast forward more than three decades later, not much has changed. David Byrne, looking great and in fine voice at age 67, is an indie artist for the masses, starring in one of the hottest shows on Broadway in David Byrne’s American Utopia.

Mr. Byrne still wears the funky suits, as do the other 11 musicians and performers on stage, most in their bare feet. The show opens with Mr. Byrne on a stage surrounding by industrial-looking metal curtains. He’s holding a plastic brain and talking about how babies have more “neural connections” than adults, asking if that means babies might be smarter and if we get “stupider” as we age. The stage is bare but what happens over the next 100 minutes is consistently amazing, inspiring and upbeat.

The 11 performers seen and heard with Mr. Byrne include a guitarist, a bassist, two singers who double as dancers, and a variety of percussionists. With clever, innovative and razor-sharp choreography and musical staging by Annie-B Parson, Byrne and company constantly move, with some singing while others play instruments. The show is based on a 2018 album of the same name and, although many of the songs will be unfamiliar to most, it doesn’t matter because American Utopia is all about the experience of seeing 12 people, Byrne included, performing live music without any prerecorded tracks. He even includes a short speech about how everything in the show is live when he introduces his performers.

Mr. Byrne truly delivers when he performs his biggest hits, including “Once in a Lifetime,” “Naive Melody (This Must Be the Place)” and the iconic “Burning Down the House.” He encourages people to get up and dance if they want, despite what fire marshals would say. At the performance I attended, audience members were bopping, clapping and singing along to “Burning Down the House,”a cherished golden oldie and his signature song.

Politics also play a role in the show. A native of Scotland who naturalized as a U.S. citizen years ago, Mr. Byrne says he appreciates immigrants and notes many of his cast are from all over the world. He also discusses working to help register voters in North Carolina in 2016. He notes that the average age of voters in the last election was 57 and most will be dead before the full effects of climate change wreak havoc. He explains that voter registration workers are camped out in the lobby of the Hudson Theatre and can register anyone in any state. In addition, he shines a spotlight on part of the audience, in the orchestra, mezzanine and balcony and states that this is 20 percent of the audience and in local elections, only an average of 20 percent vote. By avoiding voting, people are letting only a fraction of the public decide their fate, he notes. It is a chilling thought but also underscores the zeal and faith Mr. Byrne obviously has regarding today’s youth and their ability to make a difference.

Politics are also part of a cover Mr. Byrne does of Janelle Monae’s song “Hell You Talmbout” for which he said he had to get permission from the artist because he wasn’t sure she wanted a “white man of a certain age” singing the tune, a protest anthem that mentions famous victims of racist violence from Trayvon Martin to Eric Garner. For some reason, Mr. Byrne did not include his classic hit “Psycho Killer,” possibly due to all the mass shootings in America lately, and he knows gun control is such a divisive issue and might make the evening too heavy-handed.

Overall, American Utopia is a celebration of life and Mr. Byrne’s quirky perspectives about the world. Everyone in the cast is in perfect sync, whether they are dancing, singing or playing instruments, and the collective synergy of Mr. Byrne’s company is mind-blowing. Most of his performers were probably either babies or not even born yet when he was doing all his iconic MTV videos back in the 1980s. In a sense, the show is a tribute to the younger generation, giving them hope in these dark days of America.

For the encore, Mr. Byrne and company do a rousing rendition of the 1985 Talking Heads classic “Road to Nowhere,” but in the dynamic 100 minutes of American Utopia, Mr. Byrne shows us that by believing in ourselves and our nation and voting in leaders who care about the planet and ways to advance us as conscientious human beings, the road to the future does not have to lead to “nowhere.” David Byrne believes Americans all have a chance for a better tomorrow, and that’s a trenchant and encouraging notion everyone needs to know right now.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published November 1, 2019
Reviewed at October 30, 2019 press performance.

‘DAVID BYRNE’S AMERICAN UTOPIA’: (from left to right): Daniel Freedman, Bobby Wooten III, Chris Giarmo, David Byrne (center),Tendayi Kuumba & Stéphane San Juan. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘DAVID BYRNE’S AMERICAN UTOPIA’: (left to right) Mauro Refosco, David Byrne (center) & Gustavo Di Dalva. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘DAVID BYRNE’S AMERICAN UTOPIA’: The company (left) & (right) David Byrne. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘DAVID BYRNE’S AMERICAN UTOPIA’: David Byrne (center) & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘DAVID BYRNE’S AMERICAN UTOPIA’ : (from left to right): Jacquelene Acevedo, David Byrne, Mauro Refosco, Chris Giarmo, Angie Swan & Bobby Wooten III. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

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‘SEA WALL/A LIFE’: Tom Sturridge. Photo: RIchard Hubert Smith

SEA WALL/A LIFE
Written by Simon Stephens & Nick Payne
Directed by Carrie Cracknell
Through September 29, 2019
Hudson Theatre
141 West 44th Street
(855-801-5876), www.SeaWallALife.com

By David NouNou

‘Tis the season when a lot of older Broadway shows have closed (or are about to) and currently lots of theaters are vacant. So, what do you do when you have empty houses? Fill them up with as many Off-Broadway or regional theater two- or three-character shows as you can. If they had a modicum of success somewhere else, now is the time to bring them to Broadway. They are comprised of minimal sets, costumes or changes so the move would not be that expensive to transfer. Sea Wall/A Life is one such example. Having recently closed from a successful run at a smaller venue, the Public Theatre, it was only a matter of time for the show to move, especially since the original stars, Jake Gyllenhaal and Tom Sturridge, were available.

Sea Wall/A Life is not so much a two-character play as two-one act monologues. They are connected by the thread of life and death. The first being Sea Wall written by Simon Stephens who gave us the masterpiece The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Here Tom Sturridge plays Alex, a man recalling his life and love of his wife Helen, daughter Lucy, and stalwart father-in-law who now lives in France. The incidents are recalled vividly and intensely, but the recollections are done as unfinished sentences. Every so often, Alex starts remembering an event that took place with a member of the family, gives us a great visual journey but doesn’t complete the story, and goes off on a tangent about another story. After a while this becomes very frustrating because as he gets to the emotional section of the incident, the gears are shifted and we are left stranded. You get the full gist of what’s going on (no spoilers by me), but you have to fill in the gaps.

A Life is written by Nick Payne who gave us such recent works as Constellations at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre and If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet at Roundabout’s Laura Pels, both starring Jake Gyllenhaal. Here, Mr. Gyllenhaal is Abe, a music producer who is caught between the illness of his father and the impending birth of his daughter. Abe can deal with his father’s illness and his obligations to him, but is not prepared for the role of impending fatherhood. He can do son, but he can’t do father; that was his father’s job. Again everything is beautifully narrated but we are dealing with dual narratives.  Abe shifts his narrative between his father’s dilemmas and the birth of his daughter; we are again taken to a certain part of the story and midway shifts to the other story, zig zags back and forth and we have to differentiate.

Due to the intense content of both monologues, the evening is made palatable due to the expert performances of its two stars. Mr. Sturridge as Alex breaks the heart with his rendition of his tale and the sensitivity he emotes. He is this fragile figure that is crumbling before our eyes by the overwhelming grief of his tale.

Mr. Gyllenhaal is one of the most unique actors that Broadway audiences get the pleasure to see every couple of years. He is a huge international movie star, and such a person does not come to Broadway often, but Mr. Gyllenhaal is the exception to that rule. Every appearance becomes a must-see event because he gives so much of himself to the roles. You can see the love and respect he has for the medium and it is always a delight watching him create a new role.

Although as a show Sea Wall/A Life might not be an uplifting theatrical experience, the experience is watching two young talented actors. Mr. Gyllenhaal and Mr. Sturridge, both giving emotionally charged performances.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published August 14, 2019
Reviewed at August 13, 2019 press performance.

‘SEA WALL/A LIFE’: Jake Gyllenhaal. Photo: Richard Hubert Smith

‘SEA WALL/A LIFE’: Jake Gyllenhaal (left) & Tom Sturridge. Photo: Richard Hubert Smith

‘SEA WALL/A LIFE’: Jake Gyllenhaal (left) & Tom Sturridge. Photo: Richard Hubert Smith

‘SEA WALL/A LIFE’: Jake Gyllenhaal. Photo: Richard Hubert Smith

‘SEA WALL/A LIFE’: Tom Sturridge. Photo: Richard Hubert Smith

‘SEA WALL/A LIFE’: Tom Sturridge. Photo: Richard Hubert Smith

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‘BURN/THIS’: Adam Driver & Keri Russell. Photo: Matthew Murphy

BURN/THIS
Written by Lanford Wilson
Directed by Michael Mayer
Through July 14, 2019
Hudson Theatre
141 West 44th Street
(855-801-5876), www.BurnThisPlay.com

By David NouNou

Death, mourning, guilt and grief make strange bedfellows in Burn/This.

Anna (Keri Russell) a dancer who recently became a choreographer, has just returned from her gay choreographer roommate Robby’s funeral where his family had no idea of what he did as a profession, who he was as a person, or that he was gay and had a lover. The general belief of the mourners is that Anna was his girlfriend. All they knew was from the news media that he was in a boating accident with his partner but didn’t want to know the details. Burton (David Furr) arrives from Canada to comfort the grieving Anna and offer solace. Burton is a well-to-do author and is serious about her. In comes her other gay roommate, Larry (Brandon Uranowitz), an adman that delivers everything with a biting sting, and they are all commiserating over the death of their friend and roommate, Robby.

Anna wants to be alone to pull her thoughts together, Burton leaves and Larry goes to his room. Like a bolt of lightning, Pale/Jimmy (Adam Driver) smashes drunkenly into the scene, in this case this vast downtown loft. He stumbles in with a barrage of incoherent cursing. Known as Pale professionally, “Jimmy” to friends, he is the brother of the deceased Robby. He is a month late in coming to pick up Robby’s belongings. Through his mumblings we ultimately learn of the guilt he feels for not knowing anything about his brother and abandoning him. Grief and guilt bring these two together. Anna finds out in the morning as he leaves that Jimmy is married and has two children.

Act II begins with Anna and Burton returning from a New Year’s Eve party. Burton is writing a new book, Anna is trying to choreograph a piece to dedicate to Robby, and Larry returns from Detroit after spending time with his family. This happy trio’s celebration is interrupted by Jimmy crashing in again and getting into a fight with Burton. Anna throws Burton out and Jimmy passes out momentarily. Thus starts the complications of their life.

The story is paper thin. How do these two mismatched people get to come together when the forces act against them? The late Lanford Wilson sets up the premise but for feasibility you have to stretch the imagination. I was not a fan of the 1987 Broadway production, featuring a psychotic John Malkovich and a more relatable Joan Allen as Anna, but in the original production there was a raw chemistry between Anna and Pale/Jimmy. Unfortunately, no such chemistry exists here. Keri Russell is gorgeous but lacks the theatrical presence of a frustrated choreographer. On the other hand, Adam Driver is hypnotic and galvanizing as Pale/Jimmy. So magnetic is his performance that when he leaves the stage, his presence can still be felt. It is unfortunate that it boils down to “The Beauty and the Beast.”’

There are two other interesting performances: One from David Furr as the losing suitor; he embodies strength, character and a sense of humor. The other is from Brandon Uranowitz, who supplies all the acidic humor with gusto and panache.

Director Michael Mayer has opted to infuse a comedic spin to the proceedings, and it is fine in some places, but it dilutes the more profound moments. There is enough solid acting and substance here to make this revival of Burn/This worth seeing, but the real burning comes from Adam Driver. He makes the stage come alive.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published April 19, 2019
Reviewed at April 18, 2019 press performance.

‘BURN/THIS’: (left to right) David Furr, Keri Russell & Brandon Uranowitz. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘BURN/THIS’: Adam Driver. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘BURN/THIS’: Keri Russell. Photo: Matthew Murphy

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