December 2014: NYC

December in NYC!

Despite a steady rainfall for the first half of the trip, we managed to do all of the things we wanted and even some R&R as well (it's hard to get out of a comfortable bed when it's raining). Despite the weather, NYC is beautiful during the holidays and it's hard not to get into the spirit. Bergdorf's once again had the best windows overall (see pic above), but Barney's had Baz Luhrmann to jazz theirs up (see video below).

 *****

Side Show

I've been in love with this show ever since the cast recording of the first Broadway production was released. Sadly, that production closed before I could see it and the show has never had much of a life in regional theatre. Thankfully, this expensive new production from the Kennedy Center transferred to New York (just like their revivals of Ragtime and Follies). I loved, loved, loved the first act of this production and the cast, including Emily Padgett and Erin Davie as the Hilton sisters, is outstanding!!! But, I now recognize that the second act, reflecting the second half of these "Siamese" twins' real lives, doesn't make for that compelling of a musical and, as such, the whole thing is flawed to the point of being unsalvageable. The show's big climax, in this version at least, is the revealing of the name of the Hollywood movie the sisters are cast in. Wha? Granted the title of the movie, "Freaks," is off-putting, but why is it made out to be such a big shock? It's not a surprise to the audience since the scenic design incorporates the movie's poster at the top of the show. Are the sisters supposed to be outraged? I guess so since it immediately and awkwardly segues into a reprise of "Come Look at the Freaks" with the other "freaks" from the top of the show. What a weird ending. Seriously, wha? This revival's imminent closure is not a surprise given the fact that the mezzanine was less than half full on a Friday night during the busy holiday season. Yikes!

Henri Matisse, The Cut-Outs at MoMA

We skipped this one in London at the Tate Modern knowing that we would see it for "free" as members of MoMA in NYC. I've never loved Matisse's cut-outs and I don't think he ever intended the "method" in which he worked out compositions in his later years to be exhibited in such a way. But boy, is this show popular and drawing in crowds! Seriously, it was too crowded to be ideally viewed, not that it really would have changed my mind about the work.

More interesting were the installations by Robert Gober that took over the first floor, including build-outs into MoMA's huge atrium. Photos weren't allowed, but the invoked feelings can't be captured anyway. Very cool stuff though!

A Delicate Balance

I had never seen this classic by Edward Albee, always waiting for a revival like this one for my first exposure. Like many of Albee's plays, I think much is gained on repeat viewings. There is great work done here by everyone: the cast (including Glenn Close, John Lithgow, Martha Plimpton, and Lindsay Duncan), the director (Pam MacKinnon), and the designers (including legendary costume designer Ann Roth)! While I still don't understand everything about this crazy piece (even after wiki'ing afterwards), there was enough on the surface in keep me entertained for its nearly 3-hour running time. The only disappointing thing was the lack of a Broadway Cares solicitation with requisite autographed Playbill offering. :(

The Real Thing

This was the one big disappointment of the trip. Knowing the mixed reviews this Tom Stoppard revival received, we even tried to see A Gentlemen's Guide to Love and Murder instead, though that show has turned into one of the hottest tickets in town with no seats released at any point during the week before. I liked some of what the actors, including Ewan McGregor, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Cynthia Nixon, were doing, but not enough to hold my interest despite this being such an acclaimed play. I get the play's themes concerning the "real thing," but this production doesn't put them over in a very entertaining manner. When the characters started discussing English politics in the second act (and all contemporary English plays seem to turn political in their second acts), I completely tuned out. A snore.

Cabaret, this time with Emma Stone!

I had deep reservations about Michelle Williams's performance as Sally Bowles when we saw this recreation of the Roundabout's smash revisal of Cabaret this past May. Thankfully, Emma Stone has erased her and every other Sally from my mind! WOW!!! Stone is so incredible in this role, equal parts charisma, desperation, and mediocre talent, the perfect Sally! Sally's relationship with Cliff is now bolstered with Stone in the role so that Bill Heck performance is immediately improved without him having to change anything. Stone's delivery of "Cabaret" starts soft and wounded, but builds in ferocity and defiance. The ending of the song is so electric and theatrical it takes your breath away. Alan Cumming and Linda Edmond continue to amaze, as did Danny Burstein's understudy, who I actually preferred as Herr Schultz.

When rumors started at the end of summer that Stone would be joining the company, we purchased (at a decent subscriber discount) tickets at one of "cheaper" floor tables at the corner of the small thrust stage. Our gamble paid off big time, not only because of Stone, but because our table turned out to be ripe for pre-show interaction with the company, mainly Helga, who is a very dirty girl. During our lengthy conversation with her, while she stretched on the stage, not only did she offer us "something extra" for the right price, she also offered up one of the cabaret boys to us as an alternative! A fun addition to a production that right now is so good, so devastating!!! The clear highlight of the trip!

The Elephant Man, opening night!

I had always heard that opening night tickets to Broadway shows get released the week before and sure enough, we managed to squeeze in one more show: the Sunday night opening of The Elephant Man with Bradley Cooper! We didn't hang around outside to see to the red carpet arrivals, but did bump into John Lithgow and Emily Blunt during the bathroom break at intermission. Cooper, the only good thing about Three Days of Rain, Julia Robert's Broadway debut with Paul Rudd, again acquits himself nicely in the title role and his scenes with Patricia Clarkson are heartbreaking. The most interesting character though, at least as written in this play, and the main role is that of Doctor Treves, who cares for the EM, real name Joseph Merrick, but John in the script. Alessandro Nivola is great in the thankless role and any faults in the storytelling are not due to him, but rather the script, which I feel doesn't exactly know how to make the end of Merrick's life as dramatic as the rest of it. The conflict created around Treves's character just isn't that compelling. Still, this is about as good of a production as I imagine one will ever see.