Old Hats
Posted: May 28, 2013 Filed under: Comedy, Off-Broadway, Play | Tags: billirwin, davidshiner, oldhats, signature Leave a comment
I could not have started with a bigger grin on my face at the top of this show. As the curtain was drawn, it was like the corners of my mouth were drawn with it, pulled up as high as they could go, and I didn’t stop smiling for the entirety of the performance. I wrote in my previous blog post that Here Lies Love hits the ground running. Well, these two actors literally hit the ground running, and it is instant comedy. Thanks to a few friends absolutely insisting that this show was not to be missed, I made it a priority, and I’m happy to report that you should too, if only to have the opportunity to see these two men share a craft that’s more and more difficult to find in mainstream theatre.
Old Hats stars the immensely talented Bill Irwin and David Shiner and is now extended through June 9th (Playbill has a $60 offer if you’re looking to save a little money. Sign up if you don’t have an account). I was immediately captivated by them. They have the audience in the palms of their hands from the first moment, and it is miraculous to witness. This piece is like a master class in comedy, watching two genius clowns do an incredible dance. Not a word is spoken, but hundreds of stories are told. Yeah, yeah, I know how cliché that sounds. Deal with it. From a businessman to a hobo to a magician and his assistant, they transform from sketch to sketch, and it’s like seeing your favorite cartoons brought to life before your eyes.
A kick-ass band led by Nellie McKay accompanies the sketches and is featured between them. I really want this girl’s job. She has a Regina Spektor-type vibe to her voice, and the jazzy blues keep your toes tapping from scene to scene. There are moments when the music is so in sync with the sketches that it’s as if the actors are creating the sounds with their bodies. Speaking of which, I want to give a shout-out to the sound and lighting team. They have a ridiculously hard job. Those cues are crucial for the comedy to work and the punch“lines” to land.
I cannot stress enough what a pleasure it is to watch these two play off each other. Whether it’s a simple magic trick or bringing a person to life out of a rag and beer bottle, they are a wonder to watch. The sketches are a mix of classic clowning we already know and love and modern age clowning involving projections and iPads. I should also mention that the audience interaction is priceless. Unlike the plants used in One Man, Two Guvnors (as funny as that was), Bill and David are working with fresh, clueless audience members every night (they’re definitely not plants; my friend was pulled up on stage when she went). They were handled with such care that I never felt uncomfortable for the participants or feared they would be embarrassed, and it set up the building blocks for enormously funny comedy, especially in the second act.
There is so much more I want to say about individual bits and scenes, but I don’t want to give anything else away! I guess you’ll just have to check it out for yourselves. I’ll leave you with this: a copious amount of spaghetti is always funny. Always.
Old Hats
Created by Bill Irwin and David Shiner, Directed by Tina Landau
Signature Theatre Company
Photo Credit: Joan Marcus
Pictured: Bill Irwin and David Shiner
The Assembled Parties
Posted: May 15, 2013 Filed under: Broadway, Play | Tags: assembledparties Leave a comment
The Assembled Parties is a new play written by Richard Greenberg currently playing at the Samuel Friedman Theatre. It follows the lives of a wealthy Jewish family living in a 14-room apartment right off Central Park. Act I takes place Christmas Day in 1980, and Act II is exactly 20 years later. We learn about the whole family, but the primary focus is on Julie (Jessica Hecht), her sister-in-law, Faye (Judith Light), and her son’s best friend, Jeff (Jeremy Shamos).
I came to the theatre that night with very high expectations. The reviews were all extremely positive, it received three Tony nominations, and as always, I was excited to see a new play. But the evening was lukewarm for me. For two and a half hours, I kept waiting for something to happen. After a first act full of exposition and character setup, I was sure that shit would finally hit the fan (as shit is wont to do), particularly in the second act of a modern-day family drama. August: Osage County anyone? [coming soon to a movie theatre near you]. Instead, it was a steady simmer all night. Don’t get me wrong, I was invested in the characters, and the majority of the acting was first-rate, but the takeaway still left me feeling unfulfilled.
It wasn’t until the final moments of the piece that I realized I was watching a contemporary Chekhov piece. The last image specifically struck me because it mirrors the last image of Three Sisters to a tee. For those of you who don’t know Anton Chekhov’s work, he is most famous for plays such as The Seagull, Three Sisters, and Uncle Vanya. Why did this play remind me of Russian plays from the late 1800s you ask? Because it’s a group of people sitting around a living room (or one of the other 13 rooms) talking about their lives. They are frustrated with the present and longing for a better future. Chekhov’s plays did not focus on “action,” nor does Greenberg’s play.
The actors in the three major roles were excellent, as expected. Judith Light, nominated for her performance, is, as always, a wonder. Her delivery is consistently dead-on, with dialogue packed with one-lined zingers (“Republican Jews? That’s like saying a skinny fat person.”). Jeremy I love. I only found out about him last season in his Tony-nominated performance in Clybourne Park. His work is subtle, simple, and ever-present. Jessica Hecht, of whom I am typically not a fan, was wonderful. Since her days as Susan on Friends, she has always made me feel uneasy, but I cannot say enough good things about her in this role. She was perfectly cast and extremely generous on stage. I’m surprised she was not recognized by the Tony committee.
I have been trying to develop a closing thought for a while now, but I find myself coming up blank. This sense of being unsettled is very similar to how I felt leaving the show that night. I suppose the question is: would I recommend this play? I think I would if you’re interested in seeing good acting. There are some wonderful charming moments, and it’s always a pleasure to see good actors do what they do best.
The Assembled Parties
Written by Richard Greenberg, Directed by Lynne Meadow
Manhattan Theatre Club
Photo Credit: Sara Krulwich
Pictured: Judith Light, Jessica Hecht, and the Cast of The Assembled Parties
Becca on Broadway 