BROADWAY BOB’S

“The Fear of 13” at James Earl Jones Theatre is a riveting play based on the life of Nick Yarris. Making his Broadway debut, Adrien Brody is excellent in the lead role. Through a Ph,D student in the field of poetry, Jacki Miles (Tessa Thompson), Yarris relives his life, his hopes and his knowledge that he has acquired through reading over 1,000 books while on death row at the Huntington, Pennsylvania Correctional Facility.

Miles has donated her time at the institution and shows up weekly to hear the concerns of the inmates on death row. She particularly is interested in Yarris’s life. As she begins to bond with him, she tries to help him get off death row and out of prison entirely.

What makes “The Fear of 13” so good is several fold: Adrien Brody is a natural in his role; both funny and poignant, Brody commands his role. The set design by Arnulfo Maldonado shines, the lighting by Heather Gilbert back stops the mood of this deep play and the superb direction by David Cromer. This may very well be the best direction by Cromer that I have seen by him. He is deft in locking in the actors in this well written story by Lindsey Ferrentino.

Ferrentino pays careful attention in the dialogue between Brody and Thompson. The two slowly unwind their lives; what their fears are, what makes them tick. Yarris is unconventional, his statements and loud thoughts at times are hilarious. We feel like we know him personally over the two hours. Even though he has been given a raw deal over his lifetime, Cromer never brings out the really ugly side of prison, he only dabbles which makes the story that much better.

“The Fear of 13” is so well done. From the excellent writing, the direction as well as the acting and everything that supports the show is first rate and a must see!

John Lithgow who plays Roald Dahl in “Giant” at the Music Box, looks physically very much like the writer that he is playing. He moves about the stage sometimes child-like, other times flashing the bad temper that Dahl was known for. The real life Roald Dahl was an intellect, a soft spoken gentleman who could become irate when talking about world issues, especially the children who have suffered from around the world due to war efforts.

The two- and -a -half hour show starts off slow with Dahl (John Lithgow), his fiance Felicity Crosland (Rachael Stirling) and his close confidant, Tom Maschler (Elliott Levey) conversing about his new book about to be released. Writer Mark Rosenblatt tries to introduce the main characters, give some insight into their personalities. The play in the first ten minutes drags but picks up steam nicely when publicist Jessie Stone enters (Aya Cash).

The play focuses on politics at Dahl’s home at Gipsy House as it is called in 1983 in a small village in England. The politics in question is the Israeli bombing of children’s hospitals in Beirut, Lebanon. Dahl has written a piece condemning Israel, and the Jews in general which starts a row among the literary community.

Throughout the play director Nicholas Hytner straddles the temperment of all the actors well. Dahl’s fiance who is much younger than he is, tries to protect Dahl from the publishers, the community, and tries to keep his reputation in tack. Where Tom tries to avoid politics at all costs, the main battle of the play is between Jessie Stone and Dahl himself. When it comes down to the issues at hand, both make good points defending their beliefs. It is Felicity and Tom who try to calm as well as deflect the situation at hand that at times tends to get out of control.

Even though this play was written years ago it is earrily topical today. From October 7th to what is happening right now in the Middle East, Rosenblatt brings front and center just how people feel about the war torn Middle East. He tells us in the show to pick a side and the emotion in the dialogue is raw like an open wound. To Dahl, a lover of children, it has become an obsession, one that is front and center in his everyday life.

Where “Giant” succeeds is that the writer gives us all sides of the argument. Even though Tom and Jessie are not particularly religious, they still have their Jewish traditions. They both give arguments as to why Israel has the right to exist. Dahl, on the other hand makes a strong case for his beliefs and that is what makes “Giant” such a worthwhile play to see!

"Fallen Angels" , Roundabout Theatre Companies production by Noel Coward is a play that is not produced very often. It is a wind sprint of 90 minutes with great acting :Kelli O'Hara as Julia Sterroll is one of Broadways biggest stars. Rose Byrne as Jane Banbury is the perfect counter part to Ms. O'Hara.

Written in the mid 1950's. the play is a little dated and stale by some measures. What keeps the audience engaged here though is twofold: the directing by Scott Ellis and the brilliant staging by Mr. Rockwell. David Rockwell has the audience transfixed on the set design. He captures the period perfectly with the deft life-like buildings peering through the Sterroll's Aristocratic flat in London, late 1920's.

Coward captures the funny as well as the airs put on by both woman. They both are upper-crust even though they weren't exactly proper ladies when they were younger. In fact, they both dated a sexy available Frenchman around the same time (maybe at the same time). The girls are practically giddy when they both find out that Maurice (Mark Consuelos) is coming for a visit.Part of the charm, as well as the fun, is how they plan and prepare for the gentleman caller, much to the chagrin of their husbands.

While "Fallen Angels" never hits the high notes that Coward's other plays have, it does have some genuine good fun to it. The woman drink and smoke all evening and have little regard for the help and careless about anyone, even their husbands. The selfish woman treat themselves to what makes them happy. Coward suggests here that the woman are not at all in high society's morals and values, but rather lower class woman who married less worldly men as a means to an end.

In Ellis's direction, all four have quarrels over foolish things; things that are meaningless in the way of importance. Yet the two men who are awkward to begin with fight over trivial things. The woman have a different set of rules than their husbands, their quarrels are over more materialistic things ... status and position are their goals.

Coward's writing, his comedic signature is frenetic. In "Blithe Spirit" it is the supernatural and the people directly involved in the supernatural; in "Present Laughter", perhaps my favorite of Coward's, it is the patriarch who is run ragged. What is common place of Coward is that he knows how to dig up the laughs and incite humor into his plays. In "Fallen Angels", the laughs come but not like the other Coward plays that I have seen in the past. The plot just isn't deep enough to make this play great. Even with the great acting by the main characters, the very good direction, it languishes in the good, solid C range. 

"Beaches" at the Majestic Theatre is not exactly like the book, nor the blockbuster movie. It has changes to it but no matter, it is still great to watch on Broadway!. In the movie Bertie White (Kelli Barrett) has had her daughter Nina for many years; in the musical, the child comes after Bertie leaves her husband. Changes like this and a few more never affect the plot. What is brilliant about "Beaches" is that, like the musical "Notebook", we get the three phases of Cee Cee Bloom (Jessica Vosk) and Bertie White (Barrett); from children; teenagers and adults, and all six characters are terrific.

Dual directors Lonny Price and Matt Coward do a stellar job as to the movement and pace of the musical. The show is pithy throughout the two and a half hours. The choreography by Jennifer Rias blends into the plot nicely; never overbearing for the performance, the dance numbers move so well with the story. Ken Billington's lighting is in the "glam" genre. The lights hit the stage as well as the actors in support of the theme, the lights too never are overbearing against the musical.

James Noone's set design is open as well as pleasant to look at. From the beach to the theater company, Noone creates the image well as too where the characters are at that particular time in the story. So too does the costumes (Tracy Christensen). From the Hippie area, Bertie's meticulous fashion, the costumes are always right on the mark.

In the movie we get less about the stars background. Midler's character is a brash Jew, Hersey's character it is understood that she is a proper woman. This musical explains the characters better. Writers Dart and Thomas do a better job bringing Vosk and Barrett front and center as people. Even though I am not sure that Stroller's music and Dart's lyrics will go down in the annals of great writing, they get the job done as far as pace and movement, however.

"Beaches" for the most part is a comedy, it pokes fun at how Cee Cee is foul mouthed and lower class, she befriends a young girl who comes from the other side of the tracks. Bertie is bright, destined for a great future. All six actors play their roles to believability, particularly the youngest actors in this magnificent musical. The show shifts quickly however. In the end of the performance Bertie's life comes to an abrupt end, and even though they come from different worlds, Bertie's decision to entrust Cee Cee with here daughter speaks volumes. The story as put into a Broadway format shines brightly and audiences will embrace this well executed musical.

"The Pushover" at Chain Theatre is written by John Patrick Shanley who gave us some great works in "Doubt" and "Moonstruck". Another play that Shanley wrote, "Danny and The Deep Blue Sea" was another show that I have seen a few times which was great at the Lortel Theatre and awful at the Davenport Theatre.

The world premier of "The Pushover" is not one of Shanley's best works, in fact, it is awful. Directed by Kirk Gostkowski, "The Pushover" never gets moving. The writing is all over the place as the audience sits and tries to make sense of the play unfolding before them.

The four person show does not have great acting in it, Rebecca De Mornay, who I was looking forward to seeing onstage was bland, uninspiring on stage. Christina Toth as Soochi was out of her depth as a stage actor as was Christopher Sutton as the Therapist/ Kenny. Di Zhu as Pearl was effective at times, at other times the writing drowned out her acting ability.

With a very small stage at Chain, Jackson Berkley put together a very slipshod effort in the staging. Set in two places, New Mexico spa and a restaurant in Queens, New York, we never get a jolt from the sets. The set never makes us immersed in the ninety minutes. Neither does the lighting make any sense. Dariel Garcia for no reason at all hits us with Industrial lighting in the middle of the play. The brightness takes the audience out of their element by doing this. The lighting belonged in either romantic or glam.

This play and its writing belongs where it is, off off Broadway. I do not believe that "The Pushover" will go anywhere bigger because the story is that bad. Today, however, you never know where it will end up,but it truly belongs on the shelf where it belongs.

"Ken Rex" at the Lucille Lortel Theatre is right now the most talked about, hottest ticket off Broadway in New York City. If you liked "Girl From The North County" or "Dead Outlaw", this musical is for you. The show takes place in Skidmore Missouri and focuses on the life of Ken Rex Mackelroy. His life has been filled with crime and general misbehavior. He avoids jail constantly because of his bright lawyer, McFadden.

"Ken Rex", like the other aforementioned plays has music on the stage: John Patrick Elliott is brilliant as a musician. He plays several instruments and the music compositions are extraordinary.

"Ken Rex" is hot off winning The Olivier Award for best musical. It's nitty gritty story is only a small part of the show... Star Jack Holden imitates all the characters that he plays, he changes his voice on the fly as he commands the stage. While we look at the solo character, we see a different performer each and every time he changes his voice as well as his body language.

The success of "Ken Rex" is several fold here: both Jack Holden and John Patrick Elliott are consuming for two hours, the show never gets slow or uninteresting. The two writers, Holden and Ed Stambollouian brought not only the story but the idea for the direction (Stambollouian directed this as well), how the movements occur and how Holden uses the stage. Two other effects in this show make it a success as well: the lighting by Joshua Pharo and the deft sound by Giles Thomas. The lights give off a edgy, county feel much like an Eastwood western movie, but it is the sound that brings the intensity at times to this very unique show.

The space in which "Ken Rex" plays, the Lortel Theatre is a big part of the shows success as well. This intimate, smallish theater brings the stage to the audience in an up close and personal way. Hot off "Danny and The Deep Blue Sea", the Lortel is one of the best and most successful off Broadway houses today. The stage size for this show was used effectively for Holden to move about, his usage of the latter, the top part of the stage as well as the bottom was well thought through; it allowed the director to do more with the written material.

Ken Rex" plays through June and I highly recommend this show. It is not a typical show by any stretch. The craftsmanship, the story behind it; the music; and the staging makes it unique and one of a kind!