Review of "Junk"

Playwright Ayad Akhtar is one of the most compelling dramatists writing for the stage today.  His Disgraced won the 2013 Pulitzer Prize.  During the past few years, his work has been performed at Connecticut regional theaters, winning numerous awards including the 2016 Best Play from the Connecticut Critics Circle for The Invisible Hand.  His new play, Junk, continues his exploration of the intersection of human nature, religion, politics, morality, and finance, but on a much grander scale.  While in his previous works there were just a handful of actors, in Junk the cast has over 20 speaking parts.  It is more of an English state-of-the-nation play, which playwright and author Jeffrey Sweet describes as a play that tackles the “big political picture.”

The focus of Junk is the rough and tumble times, beginning in the early 1980’s, of Wall Street’s infatuation with high-yield bonds, known as junk bonds.  Robert Merkin is a financier who has come up with the idea of how a company can take over another through the issuance of junk bonds.  In his words, debt is an asset.  His target is Everson Steel and United and his conduit is the company run by an up-and-coming businessman named Israel Peterson.  The machinations portrayed in the production can be riveting at times as strategies and intrigues take shape.  A host of players—on both sides of the battle for Everson’s survival--become involved in the gambit as does the F.B.I. who begin investigating Merkin for securities fraud and other illegal activities.  In the end, the resolution is equal parts satisfying and bittersweet.

Akhtar states in an author’s note that the play is “a fictionalized account suggested by events in the historical public record.”  This makes the work both captivating and, at least for the non-Wall Street professionals in the audience, somewhat off-putting as greed and arrogance take center stage.  But this is not a simple story.  The playwright succeeds in placing the narrative in a much larger historical context that has produced profound and lasting changes in society.  He has skillfully woven into the drama many connecting parts, alternating allegiances, and hypnotizing twists and turns.  Sometimes the action and language on stage is hard to follow as the vocabulary and business jargon will be unfamiliar to most individuals.  However, Junk is anything but dry and tedious.  The gaps in understanding are greatly overshadowed by the sheer exhilaration of the production.

The sizeable cast, led by Steven Pasquale as Robert Merkin, is superb.  Pasquale, known more for his musical theater roles, is a fervent zealot, almost evangelical in his pursuit of rewriting the take over textbook.  The actor is at times charismatic, frightening and unforgiving as he stalks his corporate prey.  Other notable members of the Lincoln Center troupe are Matthew Rauch as the brash and boastful Israel Peterman; Joey Slotnik as the sleazy, not-to-be-trusted Boris Pronsky; Rick Holmes as Thomas Everson, Jr., the upright, dedicated president of the doomed Everson Steel; and Michael Siberry as Leo Tresler, an old-school financier wavering between the new reality and conventional traditions.

Director Doug Hughes has the numerous scenes moving at a crackling pace, paralleling the swift maneuverings of the big deal.  He brings forth both a vigor and forcefulness to the production, with characters flitting in and out of the turmoil in rapid succession, as well as providing intervals for explanatory flourishes.  The director deftly builds a palpable tension as the climax of the show nears its conclusion.  Hughes also elicits exacting portrayals by the cast, which gives the overall production an epic quality.

Scenic Designer John Lee Beatty has created a sleek two-tiered set that, along with Mark Benett’s Original Music and Sound Design and Ben Stanton’s Lighting, pulsates with intensity while at the same time aptly compartmentalizes the action into highly charged vignettes.

Junk, an engrossing and gripping drama, playing at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theater.

Review of "The Band's Visit"

This critique is adapted from my review of the Off-Broadway production.

When a hit musical transfers from Off-Broadway to Broadway there is always the trepidation of whether it will succeed artistically and commercially. Fortunately, these fears are unwarranted for the captivating musical, The Band’s Visit, which reopened this month uptown. There is still the poetic charm and dreamy quality of the original production that does not sacrifice the show’s intimacy and warmth.

 

Members of the cast of "The Band's Visit."

The musical centers on the Egyptian musicians of the Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra who are invited by the Arabic Cultural Center an Israeli town. However, through a miscommunication, the group ends up in the wrong locale in the middle of the Israeli desert. With no bus service until the following day, the group ends up stranded in the sleepy town with little money and options. Thus begins the 24-hour odyssey of the Arab entertainers as they become warmly and enchantingly intertwined with the lives of some of the residents.

The show, based on the 2007 film of the same name, focuses on three ongoing vignettes between some members of the band and the Israeli citizens. They are poignantly portrayed, sometimes amusingly and at other moments with deep wistfulness. What comes forth is how much alike people are, no matter what their background and beliefs.

 

Katrina Lend and Tony Shaloub from "The Band's Visit."

As he has demonstrated throughout his theatrical career, composer David Yazbeck’s score is inventive and full of surprises. There is no full-throttled production number like “Great Big Stuff” from Dirty Rotten Scoundrels or “Jeanette's Showbiz Number” from The Full Monty or “Tangled” from Woman on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown. The songs form a gratifying whole that come across as more heartfelt and revealing with influences of Arabic and Klezmer music from beginning to end.

The cast is led by Tony Shaloub as Tewfiq who, at first, appears as a gruff, autocratic leader of the police orchestra.   As the play progresses and the actor begin interacting with the residents, especially the beautiful and alluring Dina, he subtly begins to change, becoming more reflective and reminiscent under the desert moon. While not endowed with the most dynamic vocal chords he, nonetheless, suitably conveys his plaintive yearnings and passionate longings. Katrina Lenk, an absolutely enchanting performer, has a lovely and seductive voice. She plays the shop owner, Dina, who is a resilient, no-nonsense Israeli. As with Tewiq, she initially comes across as dispassionate and tough. But as the magic of the day progresses the actress becomes more absorbing and reflective, delivering a nuanced, fuller portrayal of a woman stuck in time with little options open to her. John Cariani is a little too over-the-top as the husband Itzik, whose man-child antics cause a seemingly irreconcilable riff in his marriage. Ari’el Stachel comes across, initially, as a lumbering, boorish Casanova as the trumpeter Haled. Yet, as with the other characters in the play, the actor deftly sidesteps our introductory thoughts and develops into a more ingratiating and charming person.

 

Tony Shaloub and members of the cast from "The Band's Visit."

Director David Cromer plays up, at first, the drama caused by the sudden confluence of the two disparate groups. But as the wariness quickly dissipates he brings into focus the relationships that slowly develop among the denizens of the small town and the traveling troubadours. It’s the stories that draw the audience into the rhythms and flow of the action on stage. This is an intimate piece of theater and Mr. Cromer, smartly, does not incorporate any unnecessary embellishments.

Scott Pask’s scenic design of an austere, unadorned, rotating structure in the center of the stage reminds us of both the plainness and stark nature of the resident’s lives and that life is a circle that continually revolves. Sometimes we have the option of getting off, but other times the choice may just be fleeting.

The Band’s Visit, a heartening and bewitching new musical.

Review of "The Phantom of the Opera"

The national tour of The Phantom of the Opera, playing at the majestic Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT, is a extravagant triumph. The production is big with an impressive scenic design and immersive orchestral sound.  The venue itself, with its grand marble staircases, ornate interior and sumptuous drapery, is the ideal theatrical setting for the musical, which is set in the opulent Paris Opera House.

When the show opened on Broadway in 1986 it was part of the British invasion of sweeping, over-the-top musicals with a signature set piece that included 1980’s Les Miserables (the barricade) and Miss Saigon (the helicopter), from the early 1990’s.  Phantom, of course, has The Chandelier.  These shows were criticized, at the time, for their scale, but their grandeur and magnitude added a lavishness, which has all but vanished from the musical stage.  In this production, however, the richness and immensity are stunning and at times breath-taking, making the show a truly spectacular event.

This look is exemplified in Paul Brown’s set designs.  There are towering pieces that recreate the gold gilded glamor of the Opera House, an imposingly massive backstage tower, a mirrored ballroom, and the Phantom’s underground lair.  Paule Constable’s lighting and Mick Potter’s sound design give both an atmospheric eeriness and luster to the production.  Maria Bjornson’s costumes still look fresh and luxuriant.

The special effects and pyrotechnics add a menacing aspect to the production.  Fire leaps from the stage, stairs ominously appear from nowhere, and then there is the chandelier which I actually found to be one of the lesser effects of the musical.

The book of the show, adapted by Richard Stilgoe and Lord Webber from the Gaston Leroux novel, Le Fantome de l’Opera, is part love story and part horror story.  It centers on Christine Daae, a young singer who is thrust into the limelight after diva Carlotta Giudicelli walks off a production at the famed Opera House.  The young soprano has been secretly and mysteriously tutored by a shadowy figure who has big plans for his pupil.  At the same time, the man known as the Phantom, a disfigured musical genius, threatens the management of the theater with tragic consequences if they do not obey his demands for his protégée and the operation of the theater.  Into the fray enters Raoul, the theater’s new patron.  He knew Christine when the two were young and now yearns for her love.  The Phantom, obsessively jealous, has other plans.  Christine is both put off and enamored with the ghostlike persona.  A back and forth with all protagonists produces a thrilling series of events where love ultimately wins out.

The score, with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics, mostly, by Charles Hart, melds Broadway styled songs with more operatic influenced melodies.  The musical contains such iconic numbers as the title song, “Think of Me,” “The Music of the Night,” and the Act II opener, “Masquerade.”  They are presented by a sizeable orchestra, augmented by local musicians, whose sound is beautifully enhanced by the flawless acoustics of the theater.

The entire cast is outstanding, possessing powerful and rapturous voices that resonant magnificently throughout The Palace.  The notable cast members are led by Derrick Davis as the Phantom.  He has a striking presence on stage and brings a multi-layered interpretation to the role.  We are repulsed and seduced by his performance.  He is horrific, arrogant, but also pitiable.  Kaitlyn Davis, stepping into the role of Christine in place of the laid up Emma Grimsley, is marvelous, with a brilliant singing voice and stage presence.  You would never know this petite actress was the understudy.  Bravo.  Jordan Craig is a dashing Raoul, the love interest of Christine.  There is not as much depth in his role—more the bounding hero constantly rescuing his imperiled beau.   Trista Moldovan is wonderfully feisty, contemptuous, and haughty as the displaced diva Carlotta.  She adds a delicious impetuosity to the mix of characters.

Director Laurence Connor has kept this substantial multi-faceted production humming.  Even though the musical has been on the road for a couple of years it remains crisp and lively.  The show is like a well-oiled machine, running seamlessly on all cylinders.  Even for such a large production, the director is still able to elicit a certain amount of humanity from the characters, especially the Phantom.

The Phantom of the Opera, an iconic show not to be missed, playing at The Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT through November 26^th.

Review of "The Last Match"

A semi-final match of the United States Tennis Open is the unique setting for playwright Anna Ziegler’s drama The Last Match.  On one side is the American ace Tim Porter (Wilson Bethel), a seasoned veteran who has been at the top of the game for years.  His opponent, Sergei Sergeyev (Alex Mckiewicz), is a younger Russian upstart with a volatile temper and serve to match.  On the surface the two opponents talk trash, pound out winners, and try to psyche each other out.  But the show is more than just the two antagonists battling for a berth into the finals.  We learn about their backstory, their personal relationships, what drives them, their joys and personal demons.

 

The cast of "The Last Match."

Ziegler has crafted a drama that is absorbing and engaging.  She skillfully paints both a picture of the on-court intensity and gamesmanship as well as the behind-the-scene glamour and spotlight of big time sports.  By integrating Mallory, wife of Tim, and Galina, the girlfriend of Sergei, into the mix she humanizes the tennis stars and adds depth and complexity to the characters and story.  The playwright has a good, working knowledge of tennis vernacular and does a convincing job of incorporating appropriate banter into the production.

 

Alex Mickiewicz and Wilson Bethel from "The Lat Match."

The cast is outstanding.  Wilson Bethel is athletically built, self-assured, and introspective as Tim Porter, the long running number one player in the world.  He can also come across as vulnerable, self-doubting, and flawed.  Alex Mickiewicz gives the character of Sergei Sergeyev, a hot-blooded and impulsive player rapidly moving up the world rankings, an authentic sheen.  The actor, full of bravado, also convincingly shows his anguish and pain when out of the limelight.  Zoe Winters as Mallory has an endearing persona with a winning smile.  Playing a former member of the professional tennis circuit, she has a toughness and determination as she searches for her own identity within the glare of her husband’s brilliance.  Natalia Payne’s Galina is gruff, self-confident, and loud but, like her impassioned partner, tempers her performance with melancholy and insecurity.

 

Wilson Bethel and Mickiewicz from "The Last Match."

Director Gaye Taylor Upchurch deftly handles the tennis action on stage.  The combatants seem at home on the faux court, swinging and serving with authority and finesse.  She adroitly weaves in the side stories, primarily, with the players’ significant others.  The intimate interactions can be playful, honest, yet also full of tension and heartache.  During the continuous interplay between the on-court match and off-court activity Ms. Upchurch slowly and nimbly builds up the drama of, what turns out to be, a tightly, hotly contested tennis clash.

Scenic Designer Tim Mackabee is on-target with the dark, sky blue and green color scheme of a center court at Arthur Ashe Stadium, home of the U.S. Open.  The array of flood lights and life-sized score board off to the side of the stage add a touch of authenticity to the set.  Bradley King’s Lighting Design impressively changes the backdrop from a late summer sky to a warm twilight glow.  Bray Poor’s Sound Designer contributes well-timed, accurate sounding pings of tennis balls booming off tennis rackets.

The Last Match, an engrossing drama being played out at the Laura Pels Theatre Off-Broadway through December 24^th.

Review of "What We’re Up Against"

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Twenty-five years ago playwright Theresa Rebeck penned What We’re Up Against, a show that dealt with sexism in the workplace.  Unfortunately, the premise portrayed in the play is as true today as it was in 1992.  It is receiving a satisfying, well-expressed production at the WP Theater on the Upper West Side through December 3rd.

The cast of "What We're Up Against," (l - r) Damian Stuart, Marg Helgenberger, Skylar Astin, Krsta Rodriguez and Jim Parrack.

The storyline concerns Eliza (Krysta Rodriguez), a young, determined newcomer to a small architectural firm.  She is eager to show her skills to Stu (Damian Young), the boozing office manager who is not too keen to involve the strong-minded self-starter.  She doesn’t receive much support from Ben (Jim Parrack), another employee; Weber (Skylar Astin), an obtuse, talent-less, recent hire; or Janice (Marg Helgenberger), the only other female employee of the company.  The problem for the firm is how to solve a thorny renovation job for a local mall.  Eliza, supposedly, is the only person that has resolved the troublesome issue, but no one wants to listen to her solution.  At least not officially.  But, with a lot of squabbling, shouting and posturing by the characters, along with some savvy deviousness by Eliza, there is a gratifying conclusion to the show and, maybe, the beginnings of some sensible dialogue between the combatants.

 

Krysta Rodriguez and Skylar Astin in "What We're Up Against."

Rebeck’s play doesn’t come up with a complex or sophisticated scenario on sexism on the job.  However, its straightforwardness gets the point across and provides focus on this disconcerting issue.   The characters she has created lack a well-rounded persona, coming across as more one-dimensional.  But, nevertheless, they can be quite funny.  Maybe lamentable is a better description.

Every cast member offers a superb, well-hone portrayal of their character.  Krysta Rodriguez imbues Eliza with a fiery resolve.  She is patient, playing the game to a point, before literally screaming her frustrations to the world.  Damian Young’s Stu comes across as one of those beloved boozers that talks and talks, but who’s logic is suspect and slightly askew.  Jim Parrack’s Ben is an interesting character.  You can feel the actor having an internal debate on whether to buck the office trend to ignore Eliza’s ability and acumen or to embrace it.   Skylar Astin is hysterical as the dim-witted staff member Weber, who as Eliza states is great at “archi-talk,” but nothing else.  Marg Helgenberger’s Janice, at first, is more concerned about not upsetting the apple cart, but by the end of the show comes across as a touch more complicated and heartrending.

 

Marg Helgenberger and Krysta Rodriguez in "What We're Up Against."

Director Adrienne Campbell-Holt steers the focus of each scene to the characters, their dogmatic ramblings, and silly digressions.  Her main concern, it seems, is to position each actor appropriately on-stage and having them wander around the office every so often to break up the static activity.  This isn’t a negative observation on Ms. Campbell-Holt’s directorial prowess.  It’s more a critique based on what the playwright has presented.

Scenic Designer Narelle Sissons has crafted a two-level set that suitably represents two every day, functional offices.  Nothing special.  Uncomplicated, but effective.

What We’re Up Against, a humorous, thought-provoking primer on sexual discrimination in the workplace, playing through December 3rd.

Review of "Rags"

The immigrant experience comes forcefully alive the in the heavily reworked, mostly successful production of the musical Rags, playing at the Goodspeed Opera House through December 10^th.  The original 1987 Broadway production is one of the biggest flops in musical theater history, closing after a mere four performances.  The main culprit was the book by Joseph Stein (Fiddler on the Roof), which was hard to follow with too many subplots and a lack of a compelling dramatic arc.  In the Goodspeed version, the original narrative has been revamped to make it easier to follow.  While improved, with more balanced story telling, there is still a lot for the audience to digest.

 

It’s a “Brand New World” for Rebecca Hershkowitz (Samantha Massell) and her son David (Christian Michael Camporin) in Goodspeed Musicals’ Rags, now playing at The Goodspeed through December 10.
Photo Credit © Photo by Diane Sobolewski

The plot centers on Rebecca, her son David, and a friend Bella as they head to the new world.  Upon arriving at Ellis Island they are met by Bella’s father, Avram, and then taken to the cramped apartment of Anna and Jack Blumberg, Avram’s brother and sister-in-law.  Here, they eke out a living hand stitching dresses for the mogul Max Bronfman, who also has an eye for the captivating Rebecca.  Helping out the family is Ben, a young man trying to court Bella under her father’s disapproving eyes. Completing, and complicating, the picture is Sal, an Italian immigrant concerned with rallying the “Greenhorns” for better pay and working conditions.  The new arrivals begin to feel at home as dreams of a better life take hold, until a cataclysmic event changes lives forever.

 

“Meet an Italian” Sean MacLaughlin as Sal with Christian Michael Camporin and Mitch Greenberg (seated), Samantha Massell and Adam Heller in Goodspeed Musicals’ Rags, now playing at The Goodspeed through December 10.
Photo Credit © Photo by Diane Sobolewski

The revised book by David Thompson advances smoothly and naturally.  He has reworked plot lines, reconfigured some player’s roles, and added additional characters.  There are still too many plot lines but, overall, there is a pleasing, down-to-earth feel to the story.  The structure of the show also puts a spotlight on the plight of the recent arrivals, their struggle to assimilate, and the scorn and disdain they experience from the populace.  This aspect of the show, sadly, has a present-day feel to it.  

The songs, with music by Charles Strouse (Bye Bye Birdie, Applause, Annie) and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (Godspell, Pippin, Wicked), is the strongest element of the show.  There are numerous musical styles incorporated into the beautiful and melodic score.  Many of the compositions are infused with undertones of Klezmeir music.  The numbers, which also includes Broadway styled standards, are impassioned and powerful and demonstrate what musical theater veterans can bring a production.

 

“And all who could not make this journey: we’re alive here…and we’ll thrive here” Samantha Massell in  Goodspeed Musicals’ Rags, now playing at The Goodspeed through December 10.
Photo Credit © Photo by Diane Sobolewski

The cast is led by Samantha Massell as Rebecca Hershowitz.  She exudes the fervor and excitement of entering immigrants.  The actress possesses an exquisite voice and brings a strong-minded independence, sobering genuineness, and courage to the role. Sean MacLaughlin’s Sal Russo is strong and passionate as he rallies for worker rights.  He brings a compassionate zeal to the role while, at the same time, attempts to woo Ms. Massell’s character. Sara Kapner as the fiery Bella Cohen and Nathan Salstone as Ben Levitowitz, an Irving Berlin styled songwriter, are delightful as the secondary comic, yet star-crossed couple.  David Harris, a frequent performer on Connecticut stages, gives an aristocratic affection to the character of Max Bronfman, a dress manufacturing mogul with salacious and dishonest intents.  Adam Heller, a past Connecticut Critic Circle winner for his role as Teyve in Goodspeed’s Fiddler on the Roof, once again shows his pious nature and comic gifts as the overly protective father, Avram.  His devastating silence near the musical’s end speaks volumes. Emily Zacharias is suitably mother as Anna Blumberg and Mitch Greenberg injects comedic bon mots as husband Jack Blumberg.  Lori Wilner is endearing as Rachel Brodsy, Avram’s soon-to-be love interest and Michael Camporin is effective as tween David Hershowitz.

 

“I want to be a Yankee Boy” Nathan Salstone (Ben) with Sara Kapner (Bella), Christian Michael Camporin (David) and the cast of Goodspeed Musicals’ Rags, now playing at The Goodspeed through December 10.
Photo Credit © Photo by Diane Sobolewski

Director Rob Ruggiero, who has helmed many first-rate productions at Goodspeed over the years, once again shows his flair for the musical theater form.  The show pulsates with the rhythms of the New World.  There is an easy flow to the progression of scenes.  With multiple threads to the story, he provides the supporting characters enough time on stage to develop their portrayals. Ruggiero has not totally solved the problems inherent in the book of the show, but he has worked through the problem with skillful pacing and eliciting impressive performances from his acting troupe.

Scenic Designer Michael Schweikardt’s set keeps with the unpretentious and humble times of the era, including the confined tenement apartment and street life of Orchard Street. 

 

Jeff Williams, Sarah Solie, Danny Lindgren, Ellie Fishman and J.D. Daw play the Quintet in Goodspeed Musicals’ Rags, now playing at The Goodspeed through December 10.
Photo Credit © Photo by Diane Sobolewski

Costume Designer Linda Cho has crafted a superb array of outfits.  They run the gamut from simple clothing one would see on the Lower Eastside of New York City during the early 20^th Century to luscious high society gowns.

Rags, a rarely seen musical being given a gratifying and worthy production through December 10^th.

Review of "Seder"

Seder, the uneven play that takes place during the Passover holiday meal, is anything but festive.  Simmering mother/daughter relationships explode, past wounds are ripped open, and questions of loyalties are torn asunder.

Playwright Sarah Gancher has drawn from the recent phenomenon of younger Jews, in such Eastern European cities as Prague, Krakow and Budapest, discovering their Jewish roots.  Parents and other relations discarded their heritage during and after World War II as a way to stay alive but now, as they have aged, these older adults have divulged their religious identities to their children and grandchildren. 

The Seder, at the heart of the show, has been organized by Magrit (Julia Sirna-Frest), the younger daughter of Erzsike (Mia Dillon), to observe her newfound ancestry.  Guests include her brother Laci (Dustin Ingram), older sister Judit (Birgit Huppuch) and an American, David (Steven Rattazzi), leading the meal time service.  What starts out as a hopeful celebration soon devolves into festering animosities, as unanswered question from the past, primarily stemming from the existence of a shadowy building at 60 Anrassy Street, come to light.  Current economic and political realities of Budapest society also bubble over.  Relations from the past—a notorious officer of the Hungarian Secret Police and Erzsike’s sorrowful and misunderstood, now deceased husband—appear in flashbacks and augment the back story behind the household drama.

Gancher effectively intertwines the Passover observance—the Jew’s exodus from Egypt—as a metaphor for individuals escaping the unsatisfying and difficult life in this East European capitol.  Weaving this image along with the discovery of Jewish identity makes for a thought-provoking dramatic presentation.  However, the admonishments and accusations that begin to fly across the stage eventually become hard to follow.  They lack a rhythm and flow.  Soon, the indictments and denunciations overwhelm the desired impact of the play.  Some of the characters, most notably Magrit and David, could have been more fleshed out.

As a whole, the cast does not coalesce into a satisfying whole.  Mia Dillon, as the mother with many repressed and dark secrets, is the most complete and absorbing character.  She delivers a multi-layered performance that is engrossing, pitiful and moving.  We might not always agree with her motives, but we leave the theater with, at least, an understanding of her heart rendering history.  Birgit Huppuch, who plays the well-heeled daughter with an age-old antipathy, comes across as a bit too shrill in her rants and rebukes, which lessens the impact of her portrayal.  Julia Sirna-Frest’s Magrit is meek and sub-serviant, becoming somewhat lost within the famial skirmishes.  Dustin Ingram’s Laci initially comes across as a whining lunkhead but, as the production progresses, he convincingly brings out the seething anger and bitterness felt by Budapest’s younger generation.  Steven Rattazzi’s David, provides the show’s comic relief even though you wonder how he became emeshed with this clan.  As the Hungarian KGB-styled agent, Steven Rattazzi is chillingly low-key and focused on his duties and ambitions.  Liam Craig as Erzsike’s husband Tamas, renders a melancholy portrait of a humble man seeking only love and acceptance.  In just a short time on stage he gives one of the play’s best performances.

Director Elizabeth Williamson is only partially successful with what is essentially a kitchen drama with interlaced flashbacks.  After a rather lackluster beginning, she skillfully begins to incorporate the present-day tensions with the historical underpinnings of the work.  However, the conflicts between the household members are sometimes too boisterous.  Character motivations and shifting allegiances are occasionally hard to follow. 

Seder, a meal time experience full of volatile family dynamics and long kept secrets, playing through November 12^th.

Review of "The Diary of Anne Frank"

We know what happens.  Still, The Diary of Anne Frank at Playhouse on Park is a gripping and moving production.  With an outstanding cast and taut direction, this is one of the best dramas I’ve seen at the West Hartford theater in years.

 

"The Diary of Anne Frank" features Frank van Putten as Otto Frank, Joni Weisfeld as Edith, Alex Rafala as Peter Van Daan, Allen Lewis Rickman as Mr. Van Daan, Jonathan D. Mesisca as Mr. Dussel, Lisa Bostnar as Mrs. Van Daan, Isabelle Barbier as Anne, Ruthy Froch as Margot.  
Photo by Curt Henderson.

The play follows the four-person Frank household—Otto (Frank van Putten), Edith (Joni Weisfeld), Margo (Ruthy Froch) and Anne (Isabelle Barbier); three members of the Daan family—the mother (Lisa Bostnar), father (Allen Lewis Rickman), and their son (Alex Rafala); and a sardonic dentist (Jonathan Mesisca)—all Jews--as they live, secreted from the Nazis, in a hidden area in the Frank office building.  One employee, Mr. Kraler (Michael Enright) and a friend, Miep Gies (Elizabeth Simmons) are their only link to the outside world during Germany’s occupation of Holland.  In the small, cramped area they try to eke out some manner of normalcy during, what turns out to be, 1 ½ years of confinement.  At the center is Anne.  She is a precocious, inquisitive, and sometimes meddlesome teenager that is the spark that helps keep the group from becoming too despondent and hopeless during their time concealed from the world.  In her diary, she records the ebb and flow—the good and bad--of life within their undersized accommodations.  As time progresses, the hideaways settle into a routine, hoping to ride out the war safely.  Tragically, they are rooted out by a person unknown, and sent to concentration camps where all perish with only Otto surviving.

 

Isabelle Barbier as Anne in "The Diary of Anne Frank."  Photo by Curt Henderson.

Playwright Wendy Kesselman has incorporated new material from Frank’s diary as well as survivor accounts into the original work of Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett.  The writers have taken this slice of history and created a work that shows how individuals persevere in times of incredible hardship.  They demonstrate how faith, along with the human spirit, can carry us through such trying and difficult times.  The characters are well-drawn within the confines of their mundane, everyday existence.  By putting the figure of Anne Frank at the helm the audience has a guiding beacon to carry us through the darkness of this era.  They balance Anne’s optimism and spirit with the practicality and steadfastness of her father Otto.  Their ying and yang allow for a consistent and satisfying dramatic arc.

The ten performers, a large troupe for Playhouse on Park, is superb.  It is led by Isabelle Barbier as Anne Frank.  The actress has an eerie resemblance to the real-life teenager.  She is full of spunk layered with the emotions of a young woman discovering herself and those around her.  Without such a dynamic performance, the show would simply not work.  Equally as important is Frank van Putten as Otto Frank.  His quiet demeanor and thoughtfulness belies the authority and respect that is entrusted to him.  The actor has an unwavering presence that steadies the performers through despondency, anger and excitement. The other cast members are equally as good.  They present well-rounded portrayals of human beings in crisis.  They are all astute and discerning depictions.

 

Frank van Putten as Otto Frankin in "The Diary of Anne Frank."  Photo by Curt Henderson.

Director Ezra Barnes guides a production that is intelligent and sensitively helmed.  He shows restraint, focusing, primarily, on the normalcy of the group, but deftly intersperses occasional emotional and heartfelt outbursts to heighten a realistic portrayal of the oppressive conditions. The interactions of the characters are well-orchestrated and even though we know the heartbreaking ending there is still a sustained and palpable suspense within the production.

Scenic designer David Lewis has done a masterful job creating the living quarters for the sequestered families.  The large set fills every available space of the stage, giving it a three-dimensional look and feel.  He gives understated separation to the various living quarters that are distinct, but unified at the same time.

The Diary of Anne Frank, worth the trip to Playhouse on Park.  Now, through November 19^th.