La Bete

La Bete, at the Music Box Theatre on Broadway
Gratuitous Violins rating: **** out of ****

I was a little wary going into the revival of La Bete, knowing the work, which first appeared on Broadway in 1991, was written in rhyming couplets and set in 17th-century France. I was afraid it might be hard to follow or seem a little musty.

Well, I'm happy to report that I was enthralled for the entire 1 hour and 45 minutes. The performances were wonderful and I loved David Hirson's play, which is funny, thought-provoking and entirely accessible.

Without being preachy, La Bete raises questions about artistic integrity, the debasement of culture, even the fickle nature of arts funding, that resonate today. And it does so while maintaining a terrific sense of humor.

A highbrow theatre troupe, under the patronage of a princess, is forced to accept a lowbrow street performer into the company. It's a situation Hirson uses to explore just how far we're willing to go in order to be entertained.

The rhyming dialogue, witty and clever, was delivered so naturally that I got into the rhythm of it immediately. And a couple of times I even guessed the word that was coming next - which was kind of fun.

Under a lesser creative team, I can see where this might not work as well. But director Matthew Warchus has a trio of superb comedic actors - Mark Rylance, David Hyde Pierce and making her Broadway debut, Joanna Lumley of Absolutely Fabulous.

Rylance is brilliant as the buffoonish, outrageous Valere. He delivers a 20-minute monologue in which, among other things, he's insulting, vulgar, childlike, apologetic and full of himself without seeming to realize it. What an amazing clown - and I mean that in the highest sense.

Hyde Pierce, as the principled - and perhaps a bit stubborn - playwright Elomire, is repulsed by Valere. His facial expressions, his body language, the props he uses all convey increasing disbelief and exasperation, while hardly getting a word in edgewise.

Lumley, wonderfully regal, enters in a shower of golden confetti. She's infatuated with Valere, her newest discovery, and demands that he join the troupe or they will lose her patronage. As for Elomire, his work has become tiresome and doesn't amuse her so much anymore.

With gorgeous period costumes and a massive book-lined study of a set, both designed by Mark Thompson, you can tell that this is a very comfortable company of actors, happily settled on a grand estate. They've got a lot to lose.

Stephen Ouimette, from Slings and Arrows, provides a voice of reason as Bejart, Elomire's assistant. He reminds him of what it was like before, when they were sleeping in haylofts, traveling from town to town. "Life is compromise! We learn to live with that which we despise."

The strength of this production is that while I was laughing so hard, it gave me so much to think about. In the end, here's what it comes down to for me:

Would it really hurt to give in to the person who controls the purse strings? It's not so terrible to simply give the audience what it wants once in awhile. Don't we all enjoy a bit of light entertainment? As awful as Rylance makes Valere, you can't take your eyes off of him.

And yet ...

In our desire to laugh or be shocked or frightened, isn't there a point at which we go too far? (Think about Network or those Jackass movies.) The impassioned Elomire, offended at being asked to lower his standards, warns, "We're measured by the choices that we make."

I'm so disappointed that La Bete is closing on Jan. 9, a month ahead of schedule. I wish more theatergoers had given it a chance. This is a play that will stay with me for a very long time.

The Norman Conquests on television

Nothing brings home the power of theatre like seeing the same play on stage and on television.

Since I loved The Norman Conquests on Broadway I figured I could re-live the experience by watching another version of Alan Ayckbourn's trilogy on the small screen with a different cast. Wrong!

I'm in the middle of the 1978 British television production. (I got the VHS tapes from the library - used copies start at $195 on Amazon.)

Wow, what a difference! These three plays that cover one weekend at a house in the country were so much better live.

Part of it is the quality. The picture on the tapes isn't exactly the sharpest. Plus, I'm watching them at home, so it's easier to get distracted.

And the six-person cast of the Broadway revival was so perfect. I really don't think anyone in this production can compare.

As Norman, Tom Conti is more low-key and annoying, whereas on stage, Stephen Mangan was endearing and a bit manic. I've liked Conti in other roles but as Norman, Mangan gave one of the best performances I've ever seen.

I realize there's a big difference between film/tv and stage acting and you can't really compare them. But there's something thrilling about having the actors right there in front of you.

And on Broadway, director Matthew Warchus ramped things up. The dialogue seemed sharper, the action more hilarious. Whereas on television, it's kind of bland and slow and not all that funny or vibrant.

Most importantly, theatre is a communal activity.

Watching the plays on television makes me realize how much my enjoyment comes from simply being in a room with hundreds of other people, joining in their gasps and laughter and exhilaration.

The Norman Conquests

Gratuitous Violins rating: **** out of ****

I never intended to see even one part of British playwright Alan Ayckbourn's trilogy The Norman Conquests when it transferred to Broadway from London's Old Vic Theatre.

The plot didn't particularly interest me and the thought of seeing three plays in one day was daunting. (Never mind standing in line at the ladies room for three bathroom breaks.)

But then the reviews started coming in - from my fellow bloggers and other theatergoers I respect. They were so enthusiastic, beginning with Broadway & Me, that I thought well, it'll be an experience - my first theatre marathon. I'd be at Circle in the Square from 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., with breaks for lunch and dinner.

(Plus, I got to share the experience with my blogging buddy Chris, of Everything I Know I Learned from Musicals. We had a fun lunch at Vynl. Then, dinner at Pigalle with Steve On Broadway, the love of his life and some very tasty grilled yellowfin tuna. A win, win, win.)

The plays - Table Manners, Living Together and Round and Round the Garden - were written and take place in 1973. They are set at different times on the same weekend in different parts of the same house. The same six characters are in all three and I knew within the first hour that I'd love spending time with them.

I definitely related to the frazzled Annie, played by Jessica Hynes, who cares for her needy but unseen mother and desperately needs a break. Ben Miles plays Tom, Annie's possible suitor, a taciturn veterinarian who seems ill at ease around people and animals.

Annie's brother Reg is played by Paul Ritter in a self-centered way that reminded me a bit of the character Ricky Gervais portrays in the British version of The Office. Reg and his wife Sarah, a prim and somewhat bossy Amanda Root, come for the weekend so that Annie can get away.

Also on hand is Annie and Reg's sister Ruth, played by Amelia Bullmore, whose nearsightedness causes many comic moments. She's just about at the end of her rope when it comes to her lothario of a husband Norman, an assistant librarian played brilliantly by Stephen Mangan.

While the entire cast is superb, Mangan was my favorite. Bearded, unkempt, with a wild head of hair, he is such a physical, expressive actor. And he delivers a performance that I will never forget.

From the way the other characters talk about him, I was prepared to despise Norman. But Mangan makes him sympathetic and charming, totally honest, lacking in guile and quite sensitive - even if he is an unscrupulous cad at times. I could never hate Norman - only love him.

I'm a fairly easy theatergoer to satisfy - just don't bore me. It's a tribute to the wonderful ensemble - and director Matthew Warchus - that even after seven hours, I never got tired of watching these six distinct, vivid personalities interact.

There was always something unexpected, some wound to be reopened, some revelation, some argument to break out - often with hilarious consequences, some new person for Norman to seduce. The plot that I didn't think would interest me, well, I ended up being totally absorbed. It was so much fun to sit there all day and watch this story unfold.

The plays are witty and hilarious with a lot of physical humor. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard, so often, sometimes to the point of tears. But Ayckbourn also gives us some very serious moments when you truly get a sense of these characters' anxieties.

The Norman Conquests turned out to be one of the best and most unique theatergoing experiences I've had. I'm so glad I didn't miss it. Because it was in the round and because I spent so much time with them, I feel like I got to know these characters so well.

But I'm afraid that the popularity of the "trilogy days" may have led people to believe that if you can't see all three, it's not worth seeing any of them. And that's absolutely not true.

If you can only see one, I recommend Table Manners, which I think stands best on its own. Unfortunately, The Norman Conquests, which won the Tony award for Best Revival of a Play, closes on July 26. So you haven't got much more time.

God of Carnage

Gratuitous Violins rating: ***1/2 out of ****

Seeing God of Carnage reminded me of the narrator's line at the beginning of the MTV series The Real World: "Find out what happens when people stop being polite and start getting real."

The play start off politely enough. Alan and Annette, an affluent New York City couple played by Jeff Daniels and Hope Davis, are in the home of another affluent New York City couple, Michael and Veronica, played by James Gandolfini and Marcia Gay Harden.

The four of them have come together because Alan and Annette's son has hit Michael and Veronica's son in the mouth with a stick, breaking two of his teeth. (I think both kids are around 11.) Michael and Alan have a much more "boys will be boys" attitude while Veronica and Annette find it much more upsetting.

Alan is a high-powered lawyer annoyed at being taken away from work; Annette, a wealth manager, is kind of meek and very apologetic. Veronica, a writer, is justifiably angry; and Michael, an importer, is low key and seems a little embarrassed by the fuss his wife is making.

As you can probably guess, things don't stay polite for very long. The characters undergo some surprising personality changes and by the end, it's the adults who need a timeout. I don't think it's a coincidence that set designer Mark Thompson has painted the walls of the Jacobs Theatre stage a fire-engine red. No warm, soothing tones here.

What I found so enthralling to watch is the way events unfold, which I think is a testament to the skill of director Matthew Warchus and this terrific ensemble cast. (Yasmina Reza's 90-minute play has been translated from the original French by Christopher Hampton.)

There's a lot of physical and verbal sparring and it would be easy to let things get out of control. But the actors make such a seamless transition from civility to acrimony that by the end, I couldn't quite remember when things began to go wrong. It all just seemed so inevitable.

And it was so great to see four actors I've loved from movies and television tackle meaty roles onstage, making them so memorable in the process. Harden's meltdown is especially amazing to watch.

It's not terribly difficult to make me cry but making me laugh is another matter. God of Carnage, which had a 2008 run in London with a different cast, is hysterical. At one point, Davis' Annette erupts in a way that you wouldn't think would be funny but all four actors working in concert make it one of the most hilarious moments I've seen on stage.

I'm a big fan of The Soporanos, so I was especially thrilled to see Gandolfini. A few moments, like when he's talking on the phone to his mother, gave me some "Tony" flashbacks. But Michael is a much quieter, less thuggish character and Gandolfini mostly made me forget his larger-than-life tv role.

And Daniels, whom I've loved since Terms of Endearment and The Purple Rose of Cairo - what a treat. He has wonderful body language and facial expressions that show you just how impatient and annoyed he is at having to be at this get-together.

There were parts of Reza's play that didn't work quite as well for me. The subplot involving one of Alan's clients seemed like too much of a coincidence. Still, she makes some good points about humanity's propensity for violence, how adults sometimes act like children. (And we wonder where the kids get it from!)

As civil and well-mannered as most of try to be in our daily lives, we all have our buttons waiting to be pushed. While Reza's characters move to the extreme end on the scale of human emotions, what she does so well in God of Carnage is make us think about how close we are to that breaking point.