‘HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE’: David Morse & Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE
Written by Paula Vogel
Directed by Mark Brokaw
Through May 29, 2022
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
261 West 47th Street
(212-239-6200), www.ManhattanTheatreClub.com

By David NouNou

How I Learned to Drive, Paula Vogel’s 1998 Pulitzer Prize-winning memory play, lives eternally when done well. The thrill of seeing the original cast, Mary-Louise Parker and David Morse reprising their roles of L’il Bit and Uncle Peck, is a theatrical wonder that seldom happens. It’s been 25 years since they created these roles and it seems as if time has stood still for these two to bring their characters back to life.

Set throughout the 1960s, the story follows the strained sexual relationship between Li’l Bit (Mary-Louise Parker) and her aunt’s husband, Uncle Peck (David Morse) from her adolescence through her teenage years and into college. The play delves into pedophilia and the ability to control and manipulate. All this is in the guise of learning how to drive a car.

The narrative shifts to different time periods starting in 1969 in a parking lot in rural Maryland. Li’l Bit is 17 and we see what seems for the first time, Uncle Peck unhooking her brassiere through her flannel shirt and admiring her breasts. She feels discomfort with this act, and the scene breaks into Li’l Bit describing her dysfunctional family life and the dynamics of her family. Her father left her mother early on, her grandparents called her Li’l Bit because of her small breasts when she was young. Her biological Aunt Mary was married to Uncle Peck and he became her father figure.

Like any memory play, times shift and one thinks of things at different stages of their life. Li’l Bit has a lot of memories of events that took place in 1968, to 1964, and all the way back to 1961. Whether it was in the car, a restaurant, a motel, the memories keep flooding.

Inserted is a wonderful scene of Aunt Mary (Johanna Day) confessing to the audience that she knew what was happening. The fact that her husband was an alcoholic, but Li’l Bit in a deal with Uncle Peck stopped him from drinking. He shaped up, and she knew that Li’l Bit was manipulating her uncle to get him to do some of these things. In a heartbreaking moment, Aunt Mary says that she just has to sit it out till Li’l Bit goes to college in a year and she can have her husband back.

The whole play has to be seen to be appreciated for its nuances. Not everything is as clear as it seems. There are gray shadings, but that’s for the audience to decide. Mark Brokaw, the director keeps the proceedings moving without any confusion of the different times.

Seeing the original cast members—Mary-Louise Parker, David Morse and Johanna Day—is one of the highlights of this theatrical season. A definite must-see.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published April 24, 2022
Reviewed at April 23, 2022 press performance.

‘HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE’: Davis Morse & Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE’: Chris Myers & Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE’: (left to right) Mary-Louise Parker, Johanna Day & Alyssa May Gold. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE’: Mary-Louise Parker & David Morse.

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‘THE SOUND INSIDE’: Will Hochman & Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

THE SOUND INSIDE
Written by Adam Rapp
Directed by David Cromer
Through January 12, 2020
Studio 54
254 West 54th Street
(212-239-6200), www.soundinsidebroadway.com

By David NouNou

When you have an intense 90-minute, two-character drama that is almost a monologue and a thriller, the less said the better. That being said, it is better for the viewer’s benefit to go into The Sound Inside with as little knowledge as possible.

Bella (Mary-Louise Parker) is a Yale professor. She is a loner and is heavily involved in academia. She loves books and enlightening students with the bounty that’s inside them. Bella also has been diagnosed as having an advanced stage of stomach cancer.

Her life is interrupted by a most challenging and rebelliously stringent student, Christopher (Will Hochman). Christopher wants to write a novel, and Bella is intrigued by his ideas and the concept of his writing. This forms an unusual bond between them. It leads into twists and turns that the viewer has to decipher and that is a good thing. The possibilities are boundless.

The dialogue is crisp and the chemistry between Bella and Christopher is palpable. It is incredible how David Cromer, the director, paces the proceedings and extracts beautiful, unforgettable moments from such a delicate, intricate drama

What makes the show so indelible are the two exquisite performances by Mary-Louise Parker and Will Hochman. Ms. Parker’s performance is subtle and divine; she pulls you in ever so gently. Mr. Hochman’s performance is so perfectly matched to Ms. Parker’s, that he, as a newcomer, is fresh and destined to become a new force on Broadway.

Between the great acting onstage and precise direction, suffice it to say that Adam Rapp has written the most fulfilling, engrossing play of the season and it is open to each viewer’s interpretation, which is the stuff of great theatre.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 25, 2019
Reviewed at October 24, 2019 press performance.

‘THE SOUND INSIDE’: Mary-Louise Parker & Will Hochman. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘THE SOUND INSIDE’: Will Hochman & Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘THE SOUND INSIDE’: Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Jeremy Daniel

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‘HEISENBERG’: Denis Arndt & Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus

HEISENBERG
Written by Simon Stephens
Directed by Mark Brokaw
Through December 11, 2016
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
261 West 47th Street
(212-399-3050),www.manhattantheaterclub.com

By David NouNou

Simon Stephens, better known to American audiences for his adaptation of Mark Haddon’s novel The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time, has veered into the a new direction. From the epic Curious Incident, this time he has dropped us in the middle of a very unusual love story. Though it may seem small in size, it is epic in opening the layers that form a relationship.

Georgie Burns (Mary-Louise Parker), an American living in London, meets Alex Priest (Denis Ardnt) in a crowded train station. Georgie in essence picks up Alex. She is much younger and an incessant talker and Alex is a shy, gentle man who likes to sit on a bench and observe people on his days off. Georgie deals in half truths and lies while Alex enjoys his quiet life. With her maniacal jabbering, she somehow makes her way through to Alex. Questions and answers begin to become more personal and truthful and start striking at the center of each person’s core. We find out that Alex is a butcher and Georgie works in a school with small children. Her 19-year-old son abandoned her many years ago. Georgie is 43 and Alex is 75. Georgie is on a mission and Alex goes for the ride.

What separates this duo from others is the way their conversations and questions get them under each other’s skin. The play does not make it merely about a younger woman meeting an older man; it delves into their physiological inner being on how they talk to each other and treat each other. There are no boundaries with Georgie; she does what she has to do. Meanwhile. Alex having had one true love when he was in his 20s, of course is the more innocent and reserved of the two. He is always on to her next move.

Through swearing and their offbeat communication, they manage to form a relationship, and it is interesting to watch, because Georgie can be an obnoxious and an incessant nuisance and the type of woman you want to stay clear from. Alex, on the other hand, sees her as something so unusual that he is attracted to her vulnerability  What makes the relationship interesting is how their oppositeness brings them closer together.

Mary-Louise Parker gives one of her strongest performances in years and is a joy to watch. Denis Arndt is equally brilliant in his shy, strident man of many interests. Mark Brokaw has given them just enough direction so they can express themselves as they do and expose their raw nerves. He also has made them interesting to watch, one not to be too overbearing and the other not to be a milquetoast. Of all the two-character plays that have come out in the last decade, Heisenberg has got to be one of the most provocative dramas of bringing two diametrically opposed people together, and is certainly one of the best.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 16, 2016
Reviewed at press performance on October 15, 2016

‘HEISENBERG’: Denis Arndt & Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘HEISENBERG’: Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘HEISENBERG’: Denis Arndt. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘HEISENBERG’: Dennis Arndt & Mary-Louise Parker. Photo: Joan Marcus

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