Asuncion

Asuncion, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater off Broadway
Gratuitous Violins rating: ** out of ****

I think Jesse Eisenberg intended his play Asuncion to be about the clash of cultures: what happens when two white liberal college students share their apartment with a young woman from the Philippines.

But it struck me as more of a collision of quirky characters than insightful social satire. Asuncion seemed like a younger Odd Couple with Eisenberg and Justin Bartha portraying mismatched roommates and Camille Mana as the woman who comes into their lives, a la the Pigeon sisters.

The play takes place in Binghamton, N.Y., where Bartha's Vinny is a graduate student in black studies and Eisenberg's Edgar runs a website denouncing American imperialism. Mana is Asuncion, the new wife of Edgar's older brother, played by Remy Auberjonois. For some mysterious reason, Asuncion has to hide out with Vinny and Edgar for a few days.

Mana is very sweet and endearing as Asuncion. It was interesting to see the impact she has on Vinny and Edgar and their interaction was fun to watch. Bartha's smooth and laid-back Vinny was great. But Eisenberg's Edgar felt way too frenetic. I think his character was supposed to be neurotic and socially awkward but this was too often over the top.

Still, Eisenberg can be a witty and thought-provoking writer, especially in the way he deflates Edgar's overblown cultural perceptions and brings out Vinny's latent bigotry. There's a great scene in which Asuncion compares America to a pop song. And Edgar's description of booking a plane flight to a far-flung location is hilarious.

But overall, Asuncion felt kind of slight. The satire wasn't sharp enough and the humor got weary. Not a lot really happens. It's hard to believe Edgar's brother would leave his wife in a messy, dumpy apartment for any amount of time - or that she'd agree to stay. And when we finally learn the reason, it didn't seem all that necessary.

I also couldn't figure out the relationship between Edgar and Vinny. There's one scene where, in a drug-induced haze, Vinny taunts Edgar in a way that seemed cruel. Edgar doesn't pay rent, so does Vinny let him stay in his apartment just to mock him? Or maybe it was a short-term deal and he can't get him to leave? In any event, they don't seem like friends.

(One thing about Asuncion that I absolutely loved was John McDermott's set design. From the Afro-centric posters on the walls to the dirty dishes overflowing in the sink, it was exactly the kind of place you'd expect a struggling grad student like Vinny to have.)

I've enjoyed Eisenberg's movie roles, especially his Oscar-nominated take on Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network. I hope he continues writing plays and acting onstage. (Although I'd like to see him in someone else's play next time.) I was also impressed by how down to earth he seemed at the stage door, taking a lot of time to pose for pictures and sign autographs. At 28, he's incredibly youthful looking, too.

And Asuncion is attracting younger audiences who seemed to be having a good time. At the performance I attended, one woman sat down in the front row and propped her skateboard up against the wall of the Cherry Lane Theatre. You'll probably never see that on Broadway!

The Shaggs: Philosophy of the World

The Shaggs: Philosophy of the World, at Playwrights Horizons off-Broadway
Gratuitous Violins rating: ***1/2 out of ****

Unfortunately, shows are closing faster than I can write reviews. The last performances of The Shaggs: Philosophy of the World are this weekend, which is a shame because it's such an offbeat and absorbing musical.

The Shaggs tells the true story of the Wiggin sisters in New Hampshire in the late 1960s whose father, Austin, had a premonition - which turned into an obsession - that they were destined to become a successful rock 'n' roll band. Sadly, the girls were supremely musically untalented.

As Austin, Peter Friedman is riveting - becoming more and more unhinged and controlling. Annie Golden as their mother, Annie, watches helplessly while the blue-collar family's savings dwindle and tries to control her husband's outbursts.

As Dot, Betty and Helen Wiggin, Jamey Hood, Sarah Sokolovic and Emily Walton are terrific. They're awkward teenagers who know they're awful and hate being onstage. They want to please their father but at the same time, they're petrified of him. Dot tries to be supportive, Betty is rebellious and Helen retreats behind silence.

Cory Michael Smith is appealing as Kyle, the gangly and goofy classmate who falls for Walton's Helen. (One quibble, it's never completely explained why she remains mute for much of the musical.) Kevin Cahoon, a favorite of mine from The Wedding Singer Broadway cast recording, has a funny turn as their agent.

Now you might ask, "Who would want to listen to 2 1/2 hours of terrible musicianship?" Composers Joy Gregory and Gunnar Madsen have come up with a very effective work-around. When the girls are using their "inner" voices to sing about their lives, they sound like angels. It's only when they're performing that you get an idea of how they really sounded.

And I really enjoyed the score - there's a hilarious ensemble number that takes place at the local high school, "Career Day." Hood is touching in "Don't Say Nothing Bad About My Dad." I was first smitten by the score of Hair from the movie, in which Golden played Jeannie, so it was thrilling to hear her solo, "Annie's Lessons."

Clearly, it would have been very easy to make fun of the sisters and their lack of talent but Gregory, who wrote the book, treats their lives with great sensitivity and poignancy. At a time when too many new musicals seem big and overblown, The Shaggs is human-scale, unique and refreshing.

As a band, you can't really say that The Shaggs faded into obscurity because they were always pretty obscure. But the sisters did get a burst of acclaim when their one-and-only album, Philosophy of the World, was re-released in 1980. Susan Orlean profiled them in The New Yorker in 1999. Here's the title song from Philosophy of the World.)

Trust

Trust, at the 2nd Stage Theatre off-Broadway.
Gratuitous Violins rating: ** out of ****

The description on the 2nd Stage Web site says Trust "explores the corrosive effect of power on relationships."

Actually, Power would be a better title. Paul Weitz' play deals with what happens when one person has the upper hand and how that can change depending on the circumstances, sometimes in the blink of an eye.

Weitz is best known for working with his brother Chris as a director and screenwriter (About a Boy, American Pie). But he's also a playwright and he's penned a quirky dark comedy about two couples in failing relationships whose lives intersect.

What drew me to Trust was the cast, notably Zach Braff and Bobby Cannavale, two actors whose films I've enjoyed - Braff in Garden State and Cannavale in The Station Agent.

Braff plays Harry, an Internet millionaire who sold his company before the dot.com bust and spends his days giving money away through his charitable foundation. He's sweet, funny, a little neurotic, not all that happy with his life.

On a whim, Harry visits a dominatrix. She turns out to be his former high school classmate Prudence, a no-nonsense Sutton Foster. If you only know Foster from musical comedy, it's almost worth it just to see her in a very different role.

Ari Graynor as Harry's wife, Aleeza, and Cannavale as Morton, Prudence's boyfriend, do a good job with unsympathetic characters. Aleeza, a painter who's stopped painting, struck me as a whiny and grating. Morton is a brilliant but hot-tempered tough guy who never realized his potential.

The problem is, there's not much depth to Trust. The characters were so broadly drawn, it was hard to feel much of anything for them or their problems. And while the play has its humorous moments, in the end it seemed slight and inconsequential.

I did enjoy the opening scene, with Foster in her skimpy black getup, all the tools of her trade laid out on a metal cart, and Braff as her nervous customer. The interaction between the two of them was pretty funny.

Besides shocking us with the dominatrix angle and a plot twist or two, I'm not sure of the point that Weitz was trying to make. Sometimes I think contemporary drama can be like modern art - I enjoy looking at it but the deeper meaning escapes me.

Still, I don't regret seeing Trust. It's always interesting to take in a new play. And to be fair, I saw an early preview. Perhaps this one simply was too weird for me.

Summer vacation in New York!

I'm almost ready to head to New York City for my first visit of 2010.

I've done my sandwich research and decided to go for No. 77.

I've got my tickets for La Cage aux Folles, Lend Me A Tenor, Fela! and The Addams Family on Broadway and Trust off-Broadway. I'm also planning to take in a concert at Joe's Pub to benefit Broadway Impact and its fight for marriage equality.

Given the heat wave, I'm not sure how much energy I'll have for sightseeing but I've picked out a couple of exhibits: Race to the End of the Earth at the American Museum of Natural History and Curious George Saves the Day at The Jewish Museum.

One thing I won't be seeing is Al Pacino in Central Park in The Merchant of Venice. When you've got a too-short summer vacation, spending three hours with Shakespeare and anti-Semitism isn't very appealing.

Yeah I know, opinions differ, it has to be understood in the context of its time, it's a plea for tolerance, yada, yada, yada. Maybe another time.

Should the Tonys invite off-Broadway?

I have to disagree with Bloomberg News writer Jeremy Gerard, who argues that the Tony Awards should expand to include off-Broadway plays and musicals.

I understand his point - the best theatre in New York City doesn't always take place from 41st to 54th Streets, with a quick detour to Lincoln Center. Over the past few years, I've seen terrific off-Broadway productions and some Broadway shows I could have missed.

But the Tonys, in addition to recognizing artistic achievement, are also a marketing tool, just like the Oscars, the Emmys and the Grammys.

People who tune in Sunday to watch the Tonys (8 p.m. CBS), including some of the tourists who buy 65 percent of the tickets to shows, are watching because they want to see "Broadway." No disrespect to the rest of New York theatre but I think that's pretty indisputable.

The Tonys and Broadway are inextricably linked in the public's mind. It's "Broadway's Biggest Night." And Broadway, for better or worse, has name recognition.

The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing have a stake in protecting the Tony Awards brand. Once the Tonys become a mix of Broadway and off-Broadway, you've diluted the brand in the eyes of the viewing and ticket-buying public.

Besides, even if off-Broadway shows were eligible, it still wouldn't make Gerard's last statement true:

"Off-Broadway has been playing the supporting role for way too long. It’s time for the Tony Awards to invite everyone into the tent and give real meaning to the phrase 'outstanding achievement in the theater.' ''

If you really want the awards to reflect outstanding achievement, then you would have to include all of the great work being done by theatre companies across the United States, not just give out one regional Tony per year.

All you would accomplish by including off-Broadway is to turn the Tony Awards into "outstanding achievement in New York City theatre." And I'm sorry but that doesn't sing quite like "Broadway."

Theatre 2009 - the ones that got away

I've now gone through most of the best of 2009 theatre lists for New York City. I thought Elisabeth Vincentelli from The New York Post had the most interesting comments, especially for Brief Encounter and Becky Shaw, two of the many shows that I wish I'd seen.

(Although I'll get a second chance in the spring with Becky Shaw at the Huntington Theatre Company in Boston.)

Becky Shaw (Second Stage Theatre)

Gina Gionfriddo's cutting play opened at the beginning of January and nearly 12 months later, it remains the funniest of the year. It was also the first in a series of excellent comedies written by women -- definitely the trend of 2009. "Becky Shaw" was deservedly popular but like other hits by women, it didn't move to Broadway. Surprise surprise: Producers are willing to take chances on transferring Off shows by guys, like Neil LaBute's "Reasons to Be Pretty" and Geoffrey Naufft's "Next Fall" (reopening in the spring after a run at Playwrights Horizons).

Brief Encounter (St. Ann's Warehouse)

Director Emma Rice uses all the tools at her disposal to tell a lovely little story that draws from David Lean's 1946 movie and Noel Coward songs. The show's an import from Wales, which begs the questions: Why can't American directors come up with this type of mainstream production, which boasts smart, theatrically savvy, heartfelt but not sappy, and completely accessible storytelling?

Okay, Vincentelli brings up some excellent points.

I think Becky Shaw garnered pretty good reviews. Charles Isherwood of The New York Times included it among the year's best and in his review, called the play "a big box of fireworks fizzing and crackling across the stage from its first moments to its last." So, why didn't some producer take a chance on it?

And I also wonder why American directors can't come up with the kind of theatrically savvy productions that British theatre companies seem to do with ease. Part of the reason I loved Black Watch, from the National Theatre of Scotland, and the import The 39 Steps is because they're both so inventive, yet they're both very accessible.

Although I'd argue that Our Town, from Chicago's The Hypocrites and directed by David Cromer, is a great example of that kind of smart and heartfelt storytelling. (It also made Vincentelli's list of the year's best - and mine.)

I'm so glad I got to see Our Town at the Barrow Street Theatre in Greenwich Village, but I really regret not seeing Ruined or A Streetcar Named Desire or The Emperor Jones or The Orphans' Home Cycle or So Help Me God or The Starry Messenger or A Boy and His Soul or The Brother/Sister Plays.

Well, I could go on and on but you get the idea.

I guess I did pretty well for someone who doesn't live in New York and can't get there all that often. I really enjoyed almost everything I saw. Still, I feel like there were a few cases where I could have made better choices, picked things that would have been more satisfying.

Yes, it's exciting to see the shows that open on Broadway every year, and it's especially handy for filling out my imaginary Tony ballot. But this year especially, reading the best of 2009 theatre lists makes me realize how much I'm missing beyond the confines of Times Square.

Love, Loss, and What I Wore

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

I wasn't sure how much I'd relate to Love, Loss, and What I Wore, at off-Broadway's Westside Theatre. After all, it examines women's lives through what's in our closets. While I am a girl, fashion and accessories aren't exactly my thing.

Well guess what, they had me from the very first dress.

The play begins with Rhea Perlman talking about a New Yorker named "Gingy" and the Brownie uniform she wore as a child. I had one just like it when I was a little girl and that memory was enough to make me teary-eyed.

Far from wondering whether I could relate, I found so much that resonated, moved me and made me laugh in this work, based on a memoir by Ilene Beckerman, (Gingy is her story) with additional material collected by Nora and Delia Ephron.

Love, Loss, and What I Wore is a staged reading, with a rotating cast of five actresses who take turns with brief sketches like "The Prom Dress" and "I Hate My Purse." Occasionally they'll glance at their scripts but mostly they're acting rather than simply reading the stories. And there's a little interaction, too.

Through Sunday, the cast includes Perlman, Kristin Chenoweth, Capathia Jenkins, Rita Wilson and Lucy DeVito - Perlman's daughter.

They're all wonderful, moving seamlessly between hilarious stories about searching for the right purse, bra, prom dress and wedding gown, and stories of great poignancy, about coping with serious illness and the death of loved ones.

I liked how so many types of relationships were alluded to in the stories - husbands and wives, fathers and daughters, mothers and daughters, sisters, two lesbians planning their wedding ceremony.

Perlman, a great comedic actress, tells Gingy's story from her girlhood in Manhattan in the 1930s thorough adulthood with so much humor and warmth. It's accompanied by illustrations of the clothes that played a role at different points in her life.

I was so excited about seeing Chenoweth and it was hysterical to hear her talk about searching for the right purse, and all of the things that we keep in our purses. (I've certainly shopped for my share!)

I have to give special props to DeVito, who's on stage with four much more experienced actresses, including her four-time Emmy-winning mother three seats away. Talk about pressure! But she was terrific, so funny and spot-on as a teenager disappointed by a birthday present.

We chart our lives by the clothes we wear - by the clothes our parents wore. What Beckerman and the Ephrons have done is show how much we define ourselves by our relationship to our clothes, to the stuff we own, and the powerful memories they evoke.

Love, Loss, and What I Wore is about women, and the audience I saw it with was overwhelmingly female. But it's also for anyone who's ever had a woman in their life - yes, that includes men. It's for anyone who appreciates good storytelling. Hopefully, that includes everyone.

And if you don't get everything, don't worry. Honestly, I'd never heard of Eileen Fisher either.

My next New York theatre trip

I have tickets for my next New York City theatre trip!

I'm going to see two new musicals on Broadway next month: Fela! and Memphis. Plus, I'll be taking in the revival of Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music, the premiere of David Mamet's Race and the long-running Wicked. Finally, I'll be seeing off-Broadway's Love, Loss and What I Wore, with Kristin Chenoweth in the cast!

It's tough, because I always want to see everything. Okay, there are exceptions: I could not bring myself to sit through 3+ hours of Hamlet. And I have zero interest in Burn the Floor. But I'm happy for people who love them because Broadway shouldn't be all about me and my tastes.

Sometimes events are beyond my control, in the case of highly praised off-Broadway shows that close before I get there, like Circle Mirror Transformation. Others, like A Streetcar Named Desire, are sold out the weekend I'll be in New York.

There are some shows I knew I wanted to see, including Race and A Little Night Music. But I was on the fence about a few until they started getting good buzz from my friends and fellow bloggers: Fela!, Memphis and Love, Loss and What I Wore.

Sure, I pay attention to the professional critics, too. A pan can deflate my interest and praise can pique my curiosity. But a positive word from a friend really puts it on my radar.

It also helps that Fela! has a Sunday evening performance. I've had great luck catching musicals on Sunday nights. I always keep Chicago, which I've never seen onstage, as my fallback but so far, I haven't had to use it. Someday.

My 2009 off-Broadway wish list

Twelve slots. If I'm lucky and the weather cooperates, that's the number of performances I'll be able to attend in New York City this fall.

To theatergoers who live a lot farther from Times Square than I do, that might seem heavenly. And it is pretty sweet. Then there are people who want to know, "Haven't you seen everything on Broadway already?" (Uh no, I haven't. But thanks for asking.)

I've written about my most-anticipated Broadway shows but I haven't mentioned off-Broadway yet. Every season there are a few off-Broadway shows I wish I'd seen and a few Broadway shows I definitely could have missed.

So, I pored over the listings in the New York Times' exhaustive fall theatre preview, and here are some of the shows on my off-Broadway wish list:

The Understudy, with Tony-winner Julie White, at the Laura Pels Theatre. I just think Julie White is hilarious. Plus, Theresa Rebeck's play is a "bitingly funny look at the underbelly of the acting world," and I like backstage stories.

Starry Messenger, by Kenneth Lonergan, at The New Group. It features Matthew Broderick and Catalina Sandino Moreno as an astronomer and a single mother. I've loved Broderick ever since the 1983 movie War Games. And Moreno gave a wrenching, Oscar-nominated performance as a young drug mule in the 2004 film Maria Full of Grace.

The Orphans' Home Cycle, by Horton Foote, at the Signature Theatre. Last fall, I saw Foote's Dividing the Estate on Broadway, with a cast that included his daughter, Hallie Foote. She was terrific and I really enjoyed the play. Foote was adapting the nine-play Cycle into three parts when he died in March. It would be great to see more of his work and see his talented daughter on stage again.

A Streetcar Named Desire at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. I'd gladly make a trek from Manhattan to see Cate Blanchett as Blanche DuBois in this classic Tennessee Williams play. (Check out those pictures from the BAM Web site. Don't Cate and her Sydney Theatre Company costars Joel Edgerton and Robin McLeavy look intense!)

But the most intriguing plot description in the Times' listings: Romeo and Juliet, presented by the Nature Theater of Oklahoma. "Members of the troupe called people on the phone and asked them to recount from memory the plot of the Shakespearean tragedy of young love gone wrong. This version is the result."

Drawing the curtain on my theatre season

Barring some miracle, my 2008-2009 New York City theatergoing season is complete. It was a great year as always - I saw so many terrific performances and the plays especially were great - so much absorbing and inventive storytelling.

Now it's time for some end-of-the-season thoughts.

1.) Be flexible. In January, the plays that make up Alan Ayckbourn's trilogy The Norman Conquests weren't even on the list of shows I planned to see, yet they turned out to be one of the best theatre experiences I've ever had. I've never laughed so hard, so consistently. While each of the six actors created a memorable character, in my opinion Stephen Mangan as Norman gave a performance for the ages.

2.) Go off-Broadway more. Every season it seems like there are a few Broadway shows I could have missed and a few off-Broadway I wish I'd seen. Two of the best plays I saw were Black Watch at St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn, and Our Town at the Barrow Street Theatre in Greenwich Village. And I'm kicking myself that I probably won't make to Ruined.

3.) Luck was with me. Broadway actors are a pretty dedicated bunch but I know sometimes people get sick, go on vacation, etc. West Side Story was apparently hit with a rash of understudies earlier this summer. So I'd like to mention that practically every performer I wanted to see when I bought my ticket was in the show the day I saw it - even some who left soon afterward.

4.) The list grows shorter. I crossed seven more theatres off my list this season, including the adorable 597-seat Helen Hayes, which is so tiny I wish I could have packed it up, put it in my suitcase and taken it home with me! I've now been in 29 of the 40 Broadway theatres - not bad when you consider that in April 2007, I hadn't been to a single one. By the end of the year, I could be down to the single digits.

5.) I saw the light. I exited the Palace after seeing West Side Story and then realized the stage door was on the other side of the building, so I walked back through the theatre. To my surprise, the ghost light had already been put out on stage. I was thrilled! I'd read about that particular theatrical tradition but never seen one. A little thing, but it was cool.

6.) TKTS prices. I used the reduced-price ticket booth in Times Square twice this year but it's not always a great bargain. At about 20 minutes before curtain time on a recent Sunday, TKTS wanted $91 for a partial-view seat at Hair. I couldn't believe it. Sorry, but as much as I wanted to see Hair a second time, that's way too much money for not being able to see the entire stage.

7.) Where's the VIP? My ticket for Our Town cost $49.50, before fees. If I'd wanted to splurge, I could have spent double that amount - and I would have been upset once I saw the size of the theatre. Barrow Street, really, how in good conscience can you charge $95 for "VIP premium" seats in a theatre that's smaller than some living rooms? And where are the premium seats anyway - in David Cromer's lap?

8.) Color me disappointed. I don't buy a lot of souvenirs when I go to New York, but I do keep all of my Playbills. Now I realize when I see shows that have been open for awhile, I'm not going to get one with a nice color cover. But if you're switching to black and white, at least make it decent. I was shocked at how washed-out my black and white 9 to 5 Playbill looked.

The kid takes a big step forward

Why didn't somebody tell me about this! I just found the BMI Workshop Songbook Podcast, featuring Broadway notables singing songs from musicals in development. (Okay, maybe somebody did tell me and I forgot.)

I definitely have to go to iTunes and download the entire series even though I already have about 200 podcasts I haven't listened to yet.

I found the podcasts because I was looking for information about the new musical The Kid, based on the book by Dan Savage about his effort to adopt a child with his partner, Terry Miller. While I was following Sarah's tweets Saturday from Wall to Wall Broadway, and wishing I were there, I noticed that she mentioned hearing songs from The Kid, so I did some research.

It turns out the musical, with a book by Michael Zam and music and lyrics by Andy Monroe and Jack Lechner, is going to be presented next spring as part of the 2009-2010 season by The New Group, a New York theatre company that's new to me.

I have to admit I've never heard of any of the people involved with this project. But they won the 2009 BMI Foundation Jerry Bock Award for Best New Musical. That's promising, right?

On the BMI blog, you can listen to an interview with Monroe and hear Cheyenne Jackson sing the title song. Just scroll down to March 14, 2008, and click on the link.

The song is funny in a self-deprecating kind of way and the lyrics definitely embody Savage's wit. It's also interesting to see how passages from the book - Savage's tongue-in-cheek rationale for wanting a child - are turned into song lyrics. Some lines, I think, are pretty much word for word.

As I mentioned before, I was a little skeptical that The Kid would work as a musical. I really liked the book - it's a very heartwarming story and Savage is a terrific writer. But I wondered how some of it, especially the more tension-filled parts, would translate into song.

The more I think about it though, the story is so inherently dramatic. Whether you're gay or straight, the adoption process seems like a journey riddled with frustration and anxiety, marked by moments of great hope and excitement contrasted with sadness and despair.

Savage definitely brings home those contrasting emotions and he handles them with a great deal of humor, compassion and poignancy. Hopefully the musical will do the same.

A front row seat with my laptop

Well, I had fun watching and tweeting the Drama Desk awards last night even though the streaming video kept freezing.

The Drama Desk, made up of theatre critics, writers and editors, puts Broadway and off-Broadway shows in the same categories. It also recognizes Outstanding Ensemble Performances and separates the score category into music and lyrics.

As Tom O'Neil notes in the Los Angeles Times, it's usually the Broadway shows that end up with the lion's share of the honors. This year was no different - Billy Elliot was the big winner. The list is here. It does seem a little unfair to pit Broadway and off-Broadway against each other - especially in categories like set design - were Broadway shows have much bigger budgets.

O'Neil's not exactly a big fan of the awards, referring to their "sagging reputation." Still, I enjoyed watching them and seeing some of my favorite performers give their acceptance speeches.

I know there's been discussion in the past about the Tony awards recognizing ensemble work. But separating music and lyrics seems a little odd to me. Isn't the whole point of musical theatre that the music and lyrics work together?

Tonight, it's the 54th annual Obie Awards, presented by The Village Voice and hosted by Martha Plimpton and Daniel Breaker.

The Obies, honoring excellence off-Broadway, are also being streamed live, beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern Time, and I may check them out. Anne Hathaway is supposed to be among the presenters.

Plus, this is where you'll see the stars of tomorrow. If you check out the story at Playbill, there's a list of some of the previous winners - people like Meryl Streep, Dustin Hoffman and James Earl Jones. And I always like to get a head start on my stargazing.

Pulitzer for Drama goes to Ruined

Congratulations to Lynn Nottage, who won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play Ruined, about the plight of women in the African nation of Congo who have been scarred by civil war. You can see it off-Broadway at the Manhattan Theatre Club through May 17.

The citation calls Ruined "a searing drama set in chaotic Congo that compels audiences to face the horror of wartime rape and brutality while still finding affirmation of life and hope amid hopelessness."

You can read more about Nottage and Ruined in a Los Angeles Times profile, in the New York Times review and in a review from Broadway & Me.

In this piece from the New York Post, Nottage writes about the play's origins, including how she and director Kate Whoriskey traveled to Uganda to interview Congolese refugees. (Thanks to Elisabeth Vincentelli, the Post's drama critic, for pointing me to it in her new blog for the paper.)

There's a very interesting quote in the Los Angeles Times story about what Nottage, 44, sees as the failure of her generation of playwrights to engage audiences:

'Our job as artists is to literally keep our eyes open while everybody else's are shut,' " she recalls. "And we've fallen down very badly in the last couple of decades. We're in a really unique position to have a conversation with an audience. But we are not challenging them, not their morality, their religion, their politics, liberal or conservative. We are not shaking them to the core."

Before the award was announced, Nottage said what she'd really like, more than the plaque, was to see Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey in the audience for Ruined. "I would like to see them take up the plight of women in the Congo as their special cause. That would be the prize."

Here's a clip that includes scenes from the play and an interview with the playwright about the issues raised in her work:



And kudos, too, to the Windy City.

I definitely have to get to Chicago someday because among other things, it's a great theatre town, which I'm embarrassed to admit I didn't realize until the last couple of years.

Chris Jones, of the Chicago Tribune, notes that Ruined was commissioned by the Goodman Theatre. That makes 2009 the second year in a row that a play originating in Chicago won the Pulitzer, coming on the heels of Steppenwolf's August: Osage County.

As this year's winner shows, the drama prize doesn't always go to a play with an American theme. Most notably, in 1956, Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich won for The Diary of Anne Frank. The citation notes that the award is given "for a distinguished play by an American author, preferably original in its source and dealing with American life."

The 2009 finalists were: Becky Shaw, by Gina Gionfriddo, "a jarring comedy that examines family and romantic relationships with a lacerating wit while eschewing easy answers and pat resolutions;" and In The Heights, by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegría Hudes, "a robust musical about struggling Latino immigrants in New York City today that celebrates the virtues of sacrifice, family solidarity and gritty optimism."

John Cullum pulls double duty

I have a soft spot for John Cullum. We go way back - in the 1980s I saw him on stage in Syracuse, in Look Homeward, Angel. This was years before I saw him on Broadway in 110 in the Shade.

So I really enjoyed this interview Jeff Lunden from NPR did with the 79-year-old Cullum about what it's like to perform in two plays at once.

As patriarch Beverly Weston, Cullum has the opening scene in August: Osage County. The 3 1/2-hour play begins at 7:30. But he's only on stage at Broadway's Music Box Theatre for about 15 minutes. Then that's it, he's done. Well, not really.

Six days a week, the two-time Tony winner leaves the Music Box on West 45th Street, between Broadway and 8th Avenue, and takes a brisk 11-minute walk to the Harold Clurman Theatre on 42nd Street, between 9th and 10th Avenues. (New York magazine has a timeline.)

He arrives at the off-Broadway venue roughly 20 minutes before curtain time for his second role of the evening. In Heroes, Cullum portrays one of three World War I veterans who dream of escaping from an old-soldiers home. (That's him on the right, with costars Jonathan Hogan and Ron Holgate.)

There's a nice interactive map showing Cullum's route and you can hear more from him at several points along the way. As he passes the Majestic Theatre, for example, he talks about auditioning for his first Broadway role, in Camelot, in 1960. "It was a hard drinking, wild partying extravagant musical."

I have to hand it to him. Cullum could have just done his August: Osage County bit and gone home. But he truly loves being on stage:

"More people see you in one episode of a big TV series than will ever see you [in] your entire career onstage," he says. "Something very strange about that. But look at how many actors come back to New York to recharge their batteries, so to speak. Or else they just want to do stuff onstage, because there's nothing quite like performing in front of a live audience. It's infectious."

Of course, Cullum isn't the only actor who's pulled double duty. In a 2006 interview with the American Theatre Wing's Downstage Center program, Cynthia Nixon talks about appearing simultaneously in Hurlyburly and The Real Thing for a span of about three months in 1984.

(And if the person from the American Theatre Wing who left a comment yesterday is reading this, I hope Downstage Center returns soon!)

Raising the curtain on 2009

Okay, 2009 is here and I'm psyched for another exciting year of theatergoing.

Locally, I'm looking forward to seeing productions of two classic plays, A Raisin in the Sun and Awake and Sing; plus some more contemporary works, including David Hare's The Secret Rapture and A.C. Grayling and Mick Gordon's Grace.

Then, there are touring companies of the musicals A Chorus Line, Fiddler on the Roof, The Color Purple, Spring Awakening, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and last but not least, Annie, to bring a little joy into my hard knock life. (Tomorrow, tomorrow!)

Of course, I'm hoping to take in some more Broadway shows and of course, I'm excited by almost everything that's coming up. Here's a preview of the plays and musicals opening on Broadway this winter and spring.

And here are the shows I'd most like to see. Yeah, I know, it's a very long list. The chances of my getting to New York City for all of them by the end of June are remote - unless they start scheduling performances at 10 a.m. on weekends. Still, a girl can always dream, can't she?

9 to 5: I haven't seen the movie in years but I remember that it was very funny. Even though the musical doesn't have Dolly Parton, it does have Parton's songs and I'm sure the story, about a group of working women trying to get even with their sexist, egotistical boss, will be just as much of a hoot on stage. Plus, Vance and Linz McC saw 9 to 5 in Los Angeles during its pre-Broadway tryout and really enjoyed it. First preview: April 7. Theatre: Marquis

33 Variations: I'm not a huge Jane Fonda fan but the subject - a musicologist obsessed with a Beethoven mystery, sounds promising. And I have an enormous amount of respect for playwright Moises Kaufman from The Laramie Project, so I'm interested in whatever he's doing. I think there's piano music involved, too. But sadly, no violins. First preview: Feb. 9. Theatre: O'Neill

Accent on Youth: Maybe the revival of this 1934 work about a dramatist and his muse isn't on everybody's list of the most highly anticipated shows but I have my reasons. After seeing a wonderful performance from David Hyde Pierce in Curtains in 2007 - my very first musical on Broadway - and then meeting him at the stage door afterward, I've definitely become a fan. Anything he does, musical or play, I'm there. I hope he remembers me! First preview: April 7. Theatre: Friedman

Blithe Spirit: I wasn't a big fan of Noel Coward's 1940s drawing-room comedy when I saw it at Trinity Repertory Company in April. But with Christine Ebersole, Rupert Everett and above all, Angela Lansbury as the eccentric psychic Madame Arcati, I definitely want to give it another try with this Broadway revival. First preview: Feb. 26. Theatre: Shubert*

Guys and Dolls: I've only seen the movie version, so I'd love to see this classic musical on stage, no matter who's in the cast. Still, I have to admit that Oliver Platt and Lauren Graham don't exactly have me doing cartwheels. Not that, you know, I could ever do a cartwheel even if I wanted to. But I also have to admit that I've never seen a single episode of Gilmore Girls, so maybe that's my problem. First preview: Feb. 3. Theatre: Nederlander*

Hair: My biggest regret of 2008 was missing Hair in Central Park, so this is the show at the very top of my list for 2009. I've always been interested in the history and culture of the 1960s and I've always loved the songs. I saw Hair on tour once, long ago, but seeing it on Broadway would be a real treat. There's been quite a bit written about the problems backers have had raising money for the musical, but new producers have stepped forward so hopefully things are on track. First preview: March 6. Theatre: Hirschfeld

Impressionism: I like seeing new plays and I'm curious about this one, by Michael Jacobs, which revolves around the relationship between a photojournalist and an art-gallery owner. And it does have Jeremy Irons, which is a big plus. Yeah, I know, last time I got excited about a Jeremy it was a bit of a letdown. But I'm hoping this time it'll be different. First preview: Feb. 28. Theatre: Schoenfeld*

Joe Turner's Come and Gone: Sadly, the most recent August Wilson play on Broadway closed before I had a chance to see it. I don't really think I can consider myself a student of postwar American drama until I've seen one of this plays, so I'm looking forward to this revival, directed by Bartlett Sher. It's the second in Wilson's 10-work cycle chronicling African-American life in the 20th century. First preview: March 19. Theatre: Belasco

Mary Stuart: Transfers from the West End have been a mixed bag for me. Some I've loved, some made me wonder what all the fuss was about. So I'm a bit wary about this play, which deals with the relationship between Britain's Queen Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots. (Haven't we seen a lot of Elizabeth I in the past few years?) But I've heard that Janet McTeer is amazing as the Scottish monarch. First preview: March 30. Theatre: Broadhurst

The Philanthropist: What is this play about? I don't know. (Just kidding. It's about the lives of academics at a British university.) Yeah, too often I pick my must-see shows based on a movie or tv actor who's in the cast. A lot of times that leaves me one disappointed theatergoer. Still, hope springs eternal, as they say. I'm excited at the prospect of seeing Matthew Broderick - Mr. Ferris Bueller - on stage! And I think he's just as much a theatre actor as a movie actor anyway. First preview: April 10. Theatre: American Airlines*

Waiting for Godot: Don't ask me why but for some reason I was a big fan of theatre of the absurd when I was in high school, without ever actually seeing any of the plays performed. Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot is probably the classic of the genre. And the cast - Bill Irwin, Nathan Lane, David Strathairn and John Goodman, sounds terrific. First preview: April 10. Theatre: Studio 54.

West Side Story: The music is great, the choreography is awesome and who doesn't love the story of Romeo and Juliet? I've enjoyed Matt Cavenaugh both times I've seen him on stage, in Grey Gardens and A Catered Affair. But I can't quite picture him as a gang member. Still, that's why they call it acting. Vance has seen the tryout in Washington, D.C., several times and raves about it. First preview: Feb. 23. Theatre: Palace*

And there's so much to see off-Broadway:

Happiness: A musical about a group of New Yorkers caught on a subway train. Could there be a better subject for someone who loves Manhattan as much as I do? Plus, the Lincoln Center production has music and lyrics by Scott Frankel and Michael Korie, of Grey Gardens, and a book by John Weidman. And, this will be very exciting to all of my former coworkers in Syracuse, none of whom read my blog. It's at the Mitzi Newhouse! First preview: Feb. 27.

Humor Abuse: Something about the description of this one-man show by Lorenzo Pisoni, (Nugget in Equus), at the Manhattan Theatre Club, intrigues me. "Humor Abuse is the unique story of Pisoni’s upbringing as the youngest member of the Pickle Family Circus, the Bay Area’s tiny big top that entertained thousands of people worldwide and launched the careers of several legendary performers." It sounds so unique. First preview: Feb. 19

Mr. and Mrs. Fitch: I missed Douglas Carter Beane's two previous shows - The Little Dog Laughed and Xanadu. But I know that he's supposed to be a very witty writer. And the subject of his new play this spring at the Second Stage Theatre, husband and wife gossip columnists, sounds like a great recipe for comedy. Here's the description: "When the social circuit no longer provides juicy morsels, they find that great celebrity can appear out of thin air."

Our Town: Really - Our Town? Seen it. But then I read a review in The Chicago Tribune by Chris Jones and it was such an incredible rave I was practically salivating at the thought of seeing this play. He calls director David Cromer's interpretation of life and love in a small New England town "revelatory." Cromer is also Jones' pick for Theatre Chicagoan of the Year. The play opens, with a different cast, at the Barrow Street Theatre in February.

The Singing Forest: Another playwright whose work I've been waiting to see on stage is Craig Lucas. I like historical fiction and the plot from this Public Theater production sounds pretty intriguing: the play "takes you on a passage through time—from today's world of Starbucks, celebrity and therapy to Freud's inner circle in 1930's Vienna and to Paris at the end of WWII." First preview: April 7.

* Denotes Broadway theatre I've never been to.

Rating the Critic-O-Meter

There's an interesting discussion going on regarding the Critic-O-Meter, a new theatre blog that summarizes the critical consensus regarding Broadway and off-Broadway productions and assigns each show a letter grade.

The blog is a project of Rob Weinert-Kendt of The Wicked Stage and Isaac Butler of Parabasis who wanted to create a theatre equivalent of the Web sites Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic.

Well, not everyone thinks this is such a great idea. In the L.A. Weekly, writer Steven Leigh Morris commends the pair for their passion but decries the cultural shorthand that he believes the Critic-O-Meter represents:

"Ours is a culture with a prevalent and public rush to judgment, to a letter grade or score, a thumbs-up or thumbs-down mentality that appears to be replacing the love of investigation, which comes from curiosity."

And Morris apparently finds the very notion of assigning a letter grade offensive:

"Teachers have been complaining for a decade that the test-scores results mandated by the No Child Left Behind program are an irrelevant reflection of a child, of his or her abilities and potential. A theater production, too, is a kind of child, intricate and multidimensional, born of a family history lodged in some cultural context. To assess a play with a grade is mildly insulting to the critic but deeply insulting to the creators."

I have to respectfully disagree. We do this all the time for other aspects of popular culture - movies, books, music, television. Stars or letter grades don't automatically shut off discussion. They're just clear, concise starting points in a world where we're short on time and bombarded with information.

From what I can see, the love of investigation is alive and well in our culture. The Internet may have its share of crackpots, haters and conspiracy theorists, but it's also home to passionate, knowledgeable and well-thought-out discussion on movies, books, music, television and theatre.

If anything, I believe a site like Critic-O-Meter can actually encourage discussion. It presents the whole range of choices - Broadway and off Broadway - in a convenient, familiar way. Information about theatre - especially plays - needs to be more accessible, more widespread. The more voices, the better.

When I was in New York last month, whenever I struck up a conversation with a fellow out-of-town theatergoer I always mentioned Gypsy and August: Osage County. Some people had heard of Gypsy but no one had heard of August: Osage County, winner of the Tony award for best play and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. When the movie comes out in a few years, then they'll know about it.

So if the blog does become a stop for people who are looking for some guidance, I think it could help rather than hurt. For some shows, like Wicked, the critics don't matter. But for others, maybe it'll give them a little boost.

And Critic-O-Meter doesn't just give a letter grade. It summarizes how critics in general felt about the show, gives a brief overview of each review and provides a link to the full piece. If you read a handful of them you'll get a pretty lively debate.

(Morris also points out that the site give equal weight to reviews from the New York Times and Theatermania but that doesn't bother me, as long as the critic can write well and make a compelling argument.)

Like it or not, this is the way popular culture gets judged. The question is: Do we have to treat theatre differently because plays - and the people who create them - are too fragile to exist in the rough-and-tumble world of the critical marketplace? I don't think so. That, I would argue, is truly offensive.

Moving to the third stage

As much as I love a Broadway show, and regular readers know how much I do love them, I also enjoy taking in some theatre off Broadway whenever I can. (And sometimes, it's just barely off Broadway). I regularly check out the listings at Playbill of upcoming off-Broadway shows, and a lot of them sound very tempting.

Unfortunately, I haven't had much opportunity to sample the fare off Broadway because my time in New York has been limited. But I have been to a couple of plays - The Receptionist and From Up Here - at the Manhattan Theatre Club at City Center, and in May, I saw Good Boys and True at the Second Stage Theatre.

While Good Boys and True didn't get the best reviews, I found it thought-provoking, with some compelling performances. Plus, it gave me a chance to see a new American play just a block away from Times Square in a theatre where I'd never been before. It's safe to say that most people who visit New York don't realize how much great theatre there is all over the city. I know I really didn't realize it.

I guess before I went to New York, I thought of off-Broadway as something that wouldn't really be worth my time or money. I didn't realize how many Broadway show that I've loved started there. For example, I didn't know that one of my favorite recent musicals, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, was at Second Stage before it moved to Broadway.

So I was very interested when I read yesterday that the nonprofit Second Stage is acquiring the Helen Hayes Theatre, currently home to the musical Xanadu, to use it as a Broadway home beginning in 2010. It'll become the fifth Broadway theatre operated by a nonprofit. The Playgoer has an interesting perspective on the purchase, with a lot of good points that I have to admit I hadn't thought about.

According to its Web site, Second Stage was founded in 1979 by director Carole Rothman and actress Robyn Goodman "to give 'second stagings' to contemporary American plays that originally failed to find an audience due to scheduling problems, inappropriate venues or limited performance runs."

An Associated Press story noted that Second Stage currently leases the two theatres it operates off Broadway. "You can't make plans when you are renting,'' Rothman said. "You have to find a way to really sustain an institution over a long period of time."

Rothman tells The New York Times that Second Stage will raise $35 million to purchase and renovate the 597-seat Helen Hayes, which "will be the only theater company on Broadway dedicated exclusively to the development and presentation of contemporary American drama."

Personally, I think this sounds promising. We all know how difficult it is for any type of play to be successful at a time when Broadway caters mostly to tourists who want to see big, splashy musicals with familiar titles. So I'm in favor of anything that provides a home for homegrown drama. And Rothman was equally emphatic to the Associated Press: "We only do plays by contemporary American writers. We don't do classics or go shopping for plays in London."

Many of the stories about the sale have noted that Helen Hayes' name was on a theatre that was demolished to make way for the Marriott Marquis hotel in Times Square, and now the name is in danger again, since the rights will most likely be sold. But Ellen Richard, the executive director of Second Stage, tells Bloomberg News that "Helen will definitely have a presence at the theater.''

Good Boys and True

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

Brandon Hardy is at the top of the high school food chain in Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa's Good Boys and True, currently playing off-Broadway at the Second Stage Theatre.

Hardy is the captain of the football team at St. Joseph's, his Catholic boys school outside of Washington, D.C., and he's been admitted early decision to Dartmouth. As portrayed by Brian J. Smith, he's a polite, personable, confident overachiever who makes his parents very proud. Even his last name evokes an all-American wholesomeness.

But the perfectly formed life that Brandon has created for himself is in danger of falling apart. His coach, Russell Shea, played by Lee Tergesen, has come into possession of a videotape in which a boy who looks suspiciously like Brandon is seen having rough sex with a girl. Brandon's father is a doctor off on some lifesaving medical mission to Central America, so Shea calls his mother, Elizabeth, played by J. Smith-Cameron, to the school and confronts her with the tape.

Tergesen plays the coach as someone whose primary concern is to protect the school's reputation. He seems perfectly willing to sweep the whole incident under the rug, as long as it's kept quiet. And if it can't be kept quiet, well Brandon will be offered up as a sacrificial lamb.

It turns out that Brandon is hiding something - from his coach, his teammates, his family, and most importantly, from himself. He's had a secret relationship with a classmate, Justin, played with great sensitivity by Christopher Abbott, and he's desperate to ward off even the slightest hint that he's gay.

In some ways, Good Boys and True left me feeling a bit unsatisfied. Some plot points are only vaguely hinted at, the story seems a little rushed at 90 minutes and it ends rather abruptly. Despite those shortcomings, this is a play that had me thinking about how we define masculinity, how teenage boys treat teenage girls, about how athletes get treated, and about what a confining, threatening place high school can be for a gay teenager.

Smith vividly portrays a 1980s teenager struggling with his sexual orientation. I know that coming-out stories aren't exactly a novel concept in 2008, but this is the first one I've seen on stage and there were a couple of scenes in particular that were heart-wrenching for me to watch.

Brandon is living with a fear that I can't even contemplate. He knows the taunts that get piled on gay boys, including Justin. He believes that as a gay man, his future won't be as bright. It's to the point where the fear warps his judgment. To be what his teammates would consider a "real man," he hurts everyone around him. He may even have ruined the bright future that he's expended so much energy working toward. It's also telling that the girl on the videotape, played by Betty Gilpin, isn't from the same wealthy, private-school world. In one sad scene, Gilpin's Cheryl tells Elizabeth how she's been horribly scarred by the incident.

As Derek McLane's trophy-filled set design drives home, he lives in a very jock-oriented culture. The locker room, the gym, the football field are places where being gay is light years away from being accepted. In fact, for Brandon, it's preferable to practically be considered a rapist. He doesn't even really understand why the incident on the videotape is such a big deal. He's shocked that when the scandal becomes public knowledge, the school won't protect him.

As the story unfolded, I expected Smith-Cameron to be angrier as she tries to draw the truth out of her son. But I realized that she's an affluent, educated woman, a doctor like her husband. Even Tom Broecker's costume design signals tasteful, expensive, restrained. I realized that this is not a family where people get too emotional or spend a lot of time discussing their feelings.

Naturally, Smith-Cameron cannot believe that the boy on the videotape is her son. Her inclination is to protect Brandon. But she also remembers a pretty disgusting testosterone-filled incident from her own youth, involving Brandon's father, and she worries that history is repeating itself. Elizabeth's sister Maddy, played by Kellie Overbey, bluntly reminds her that this "boys will be boys" attitude has been going on for a long time.

I was impressed at the way, under Scott Ellis' direction, Good Boys and True doesn't squander its emotional capital by overdoing it. The two loudest, angriest, most emotional scenes occur when Brandon denies that he's gay. During the first one, I got choked up as he hurls vile, homophobic insults at Justin. He's going to have a better life, he taunts Justin, he'll make more money, be more successful, be happier, because he's not going to be gay. It's as if he could will himself to be straight.

At first, I felt horrible for Justin. But Justin is actually in a much better place than Brandon. He's hurt by the taunts of his classmates, but like most gay teens - and adults - he hasn't let those taunts destroy him. He's further along in accepting the fact of this sexual orientation. Hopefully, he'll find a partner and he'll be fine. As for Brandon, I remember thinking, he'll either come to terms with being gay or in 30 years, he'll end up like Larry Craig in an airport men's room.

In its earlier incarnation, at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, the ending of Good Boys and True apparently was different, more clear cut. The play was also about 30 minutes longer. But I think a more vague ending works better. Elizabeth brings up Justin in a way that strongly hints she knows about their relationship, but when Brandon heatedly denies it, she drops the matter. Brandon doesn't seem at all ready to come out, to his mother or anyone else. Elizabeth is left frustrated and bewildered. She thought she knew everything about her son. She blames herself for his involvement with this scandal and she's disgusted by his nonchalant attitude toward the matter.

In the end, what got to me is that Brandon didn't have anyplace to turn for help when he feared his relationship with Justin would become public knowledge. He couldn't go to his coach. His mother gave an indication that she'd be supportive, but I wasn't completely sure. I also wasn't sure about how his father would react to having a gay son. I hope his parents would still love him and still be proud of him. Whatever you have to go through in life, whatever challenges you face, your family's love should never be in doubt.

When I was growing up, I had parents, a community to tell me what it meant to be Jewish. Brandon is going through something much tougher, and he's going through it all alone. I just wish he'd had someone to talk to, someone who could have eased his fears about what it means to be gay. I wish someone could have told him that it's simply a matter of who he loves, a part of who he is like his hair color or eye color, that it doesn't change any of the other things about him. He's still a great athlete, a good student, a caring son, a model citizen, the same wholesome, clean-cut all-American kid that he's always been.

I wish someone had reassured him that he would survive the hateful name-calling, the taunts and the doubt, that he didn't have to live his life as a lie, in a sham marriage, closeted and miserable. I wish someone had told him that he could have his dignity as an open, confident gay man, that he could meet his true love, find a successful career, have a wonderful life filled with great adventures and close, supportive friends. I wish someone had told him that he was a good boy and true, and that he would grow up to become an equally good man.