The highlight of the year thus far in theater is now playing in New York at Lincoln Center in the form of the outstanding Broadway revival of "South Pacific," starring the radiant Kelli O'Hara as Nellie Forbrush and the perfectly cast Paulo Szot as Emile de Becque. Every detail of this production, from the casting, to the sets, to the glorious sounding orchestra is sheer perfection on stage. In stark contrast to the overacted revival of "Gypsy" with Patti LuPone that I saw earlier in the year, "South Pacific" is quiet and subtle, allowing the rich emotions embedded in the work to flourish. "South Pacific" was a big winner at last month's Tony Awards, and deserved every accolade it received. and then some.
Speaking of the Tony Awards, Kelli O'Hare deserved to win (but did not) over the scenery-chewing performance of Ms. LuPone. That was not the biggest injustice wrought by the Tony's this year, however. The biggest slight has to be awarding the Best Musical Tony to the mediocre-at-best "In The Heights" over the year's unquestionable (IMHO) best musical, "Passing Strange." I saw "Passing Strange" again during my last NY trip, and the show is even better on Broadway than at the Public, and hold up well on second viewing. I fear "Passing Strange" will soon close, while "Heights" will have the longer run that "Passing Strange" should have had.
My NY trip included two other theatrical disappointments- a terribly cast and cold "Sunday In The Park With George" at Studio 54, and a well cast but unevenly written "Saved" at Playwrights Horizons.
As for the Los Angeles theater scene, I recommend "American Tales" by Antaeus at the Deaf West Theater, "Shipwrecked" at the Geffen and "The Lost Plays of Tennessee Williams" at the Coast Playhouse. While these recommended productions are not perfect works, they each prove to be intriguing and inspiring productions. Although the "American Tales" production may be lacking outstanding singing talent (the fine actors in the show have minimal singing credentials), the show itself is creative, unique, smart and engaging. I would love to see this show at some future date on the Taper or at Lincoln Center's Mitzi Newhouse stage. "Shipwrecked" is an engaging love letter to theater and story telling, and "The Lost Plays" provide a chance to see some lesser Willimas works that are nonetheless beautiful in their own way. While it has not been a stellar year thus far on local LA stages, these three shows are current stand-outs that are well worth a visit.
My next posting will likely have reports on plays in San Diego and Chicago.
