Well, let's see now: The Rorschach folks got a sweet little spread in the WashPo, where Nelson Pressley argued that Rough Magic "works best when it makes knowing fun of [the premise's] goofiness."
Me, I had a good enough time -- yes, that was me guffawing at the Tennessee Williams joke -- but I thought exactly the opposite: The troubles with the evening (and there were many) had to do with too much wink-nudge. The comedy was snappy enough to come across without extra help, so for me the production worked best when it me believe in the play's darknesses.
The best shiver all night, in fact, was when it became clear how Prospero intended to get around the curse that said his feet could never leave the island -- everything worked in that moment, and it creeeeeeped me the hell out.
(Note that while the Post went with the drag photo -- shiny things! -- the City Paper picked this hot-for-teacher shot of Gwen Grastorf, who has now been referred to, in print, as both "kittenish" and "luscious." She has Tboy's sympathies.)
Other takes: Washingtonian (mixed, with bonus plot summary); DC Theatre Reviews ("a silly pop culture confection for literature lovers"). Also, this endorsement (list of superlatives, with SuperSized plot summary) from a blog called DragoLife, which the Rorschachnoids apparently want you to see.
The African Continuum/Ford's Theatre collaboration turns out nicely: In the City Paper, Bob Mondello says Jitney is "a play of such modest ambitions that it’s a little startling to find it achieving so much." (Me, I thought it worked better, surprisingly enough, than Arena's Gem of the Ocean, which I caught last night. Review next week, natch.)
Pressley and the Post say that as a play, Jitney "idles noisily" and "meanders even by Wilson's own profoundly unhurried standard," but the "exuberantly acted production ... proves that the play still gives audiences a pretty good ride". He especially likes KenYatta Rogers' performance as Youngblood.
And believe it or not, that was it. Pardon Tboy while he goes to rest up for the remainder of the 7-show weekend.
Leftovers: Since I posted last week's roundup, Celia Wren has weighed in on Keegan's The Tempest. ("Mostly overcast," say, or "drizzle." That's gotta smart.)
Comments