‘MORNING SUN’: Blair Brown & Marin Ireland. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

MORNING SUN
Written by Simon Stephens
Directed by Lila Neugebauer
Through December 19, 2021
Manhattan Theatre Club
New York City Center Stage
1
131 West 55th Street
(212-581-1212), www.NYCityCenter.org

By David NouNou

Morning Sun by playwright Simon Stephens captures the essence of the 1952 painting “Morning Sun” by artist Edward Hopper. The painting is of a woman in a pink slip, sitting on a bed staring outside her window, at the city. The Playbill lists the three women in Mr. Stephens’ play anonymously as 1, 2 and 3. Like the painting, these women live an abstract life, almost Bohemian in nature. However, as the play progresses, the abstract shifts to isolation and survival in the city.

At the onset in the dark, 1 (Edie Falco) keeps asking “is it safe, am I safe?” and the voices reply “you’re doing just fine, everything is okay.” It poses the question is 1 in labor giving birth—or is it at another stage of her life? As the lights come on, we learn that 2 (Blair Brown) has come to the city in 1947 and just got a two-bedroom apartment in Greenwich Village for $75.00 a month while working at Macy’s. 2/Claudette gets married, and her husband moves into this apartment and they have a long marriage. 2/Claudette gives birth to 1/Charlotte, which takes us back to the beginning, was it safe for 1 to come into the world or is it another stage of her life.

1/Charlotte prefers the name Charley and lives in the same Village apartment as her parents. She doesn’t ask much of life. She has a best friend as a child, but is betrayed by her as an adult. She gets pregnant from a one-night stand with a pilot, and gives birth to a girl, 3 (Marin Ireland) and she names her Tessa. 1 has a 10-year relationship with a semi-abusive man who leaves her for another woman. She works at St. Vincent’s Hospital until it shuts down. She ultimately meets Edwin, a medical supplies salesman, with whom she moves out with to Colorado.

3/Tessa has a difficult life, no real father; just father figures. She lives with her mother and grandparents in the same Village apartment. She has a tough time whether coping in school, in her childhood, with her job, and when her mother decides to move to Colorado.

1, 2 and 3 play multiple characters, both men and women, thus the abstract, but they essentially play mother, daughter and granddaughter who love each other but have a tough time connecting. They represent the strong willed, the survivor, and the loner. They are connected but all three women live in isolation. The beauty here is the seamless connection these women portray. They are three separate women but can speak as one.

Edie Falco gives a gut-wrenching performance as 1/daughter and survivor. In lesser hands, the character might seem a loser; however, Ms. Falco imbues Charlotte with every noble quality a woman can possess. Blair Brown, as 2/mother and strong willed, is fearless. Like a great wine, she gets better with age and experience. Marin Ireland, as 3/granddaughter/loner and a multiple array of other characters, is becoming one of the finest actresses of her generation. She has grown as an actress from her earlier outings in reasons to be pretty  and The Three Sisters. Her Tessa is heartbreaking and her switching from one character to another is seamless.

Simon Stephens has written a lovely abstract play about the connection of three generations of women.  Director Lila Neugebauer gives everything focus, but Edie Falco, Blair Brown and Marin Ireland give the show its pulsating heart.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published November 3, 2021
Reviewed at October 30, 2021 press preview performance.

‘MORNING SUN’: Edie Falco & Marin Ireland. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MORNING SUN’: Edie Falco & Marin Ireland. 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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‘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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PERFORMANCE OF THE SEASON: Alex Sharp is brilliant in ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.’. Photo: Joan Marcus

THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME
Written by Simon Stephens
Based on the novel by Mark Haddon
Directed by Marianne Elliott
Barrymore Theatre
248 W. 47th Street
(212-239-6200), www.curiousonbroadway.com

 By Scott Harrah

Over the past decade, there have been very few truly great stage dramas. The History Boys, August: Osage County and now, direct from the United Kingdom, add The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time to the preeminent list.

This explosive story demonstrates that great original theater— the type that overwhelms the senses and restores one’s faith in quality, live entertainment that actually says something— is definitely possible. Based on Mark Haddon’s eponymous 2003 bestseller, the story starts out with a proverbial bang and, for the most part, never lets up. Christopher Boone (the outstanding Alex Sharp) is a troubled 15-year-old in suburban England. As the play opens, we see that a big, furry dog named Wellington has been brutally murdered with a pitchfork. Christopher desperately tells the dog’s owner, Mrs. Shears (Mercedes Herrero) that he didn’t kill Wellington, but she still calls the police.

What follows is a series of disturbing events, all of which take the audience on a theatrical roller-coaster ride. Everything is shown from the perspective of this scared young lad, moving from an English garden to a train station to fast-paced London. The boy is determined to find the dog’s killer, but this proves to be no simple task because Christopher isn’t your average teen. Although it is never clarified, he has all the signs of Asberger’s syndrome or autism, for he has trouble communicating, screams if anyone touches him, but yet he is a genius at mathematics.

The Curious Incident is a rare blend of traditional and experimental theatrics and high-tech special effects, adapted by Simon Stephens, along with painstaking direction by Marianne Elliott (War Horse), and innovative scenic and costume design by Bunny Christie, lighting design by Paule Constable and video design by Finn Ross. Yes, the scenic and technical designers are as much the stars of the show as the actors because we are treated to a visual feast of everything from starry skies and geometric patterns to a pulse-churning scene on the rails of a London Underground station, using projections, eerie music and lighting on an ever-evolving set.

Gimmicky? Not really, because all the technical wizardry gels beautifully with the storyline, fleshed out by 15 actors, some playing multiple roles. Because the lead is so demanding, Taylor Trensch plays Christopher at certain performances.

Beneath the flashy phantasmagoria before us is a solid narrative, with a cast giving their all, for at its core, The Curious Incident is a story about a boy’s rocky relationship with his complicated parents. Of particular note are Ian Barford as Christopher’s caring father, Ed; Francesca Faridany as his bighearted teacher, Siobhan; and Helen Carey as the kind, elderly neighbor lady that offers him cake and orangeade and tries to be his friend.

Perhaps there’s a little bit of Christopher Boone in all of us: Facing life’s daily battles, having to be brave, uncertain of what lies ahead. It is the ingenious depiction of these very human emotions that makes The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time so heartbreakingly real, touching and exhilarating, and unlike any drama Broadway has seen (or will likely see) in many years.

AN ILLUMINATING THEATRICAL EXPERIENCE: (left to right): Helen Carey, Mercedes Herrero, Alex Sharp (kneeling), Richard Hollis, David Manis & Ben Horner in ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.’ Photo: Joan Marcus

FLYING HIGH: (left to right) Mercedes Herrero, Alex Sharp (above), Richard Hollis & Jocelyn Bioh. Photo: Joan Marcus

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 10, 2014
Reviewed at press performance on October 9, 2014

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