The theme that seems to be emerging for this trip is enjoying well-written,powerful dramas. On Tuesday night, I went to a small theatre in Greenwich Village to see
The Pride, starring British actors Hugh
Dancy and Ben
Whishaw.
Dancy and
Whishaw play two different sets of lovers, one in 1958 and the other at present time. In the earlier story (1958), Oliver is a repressed homosexual trying to pass as a happily married man. He falls in love with his wife's colleague, Phillip, but does not have the courage to be open about his homosexuality. In the present, Philip has just left Oliver because he can't deal with the latter's addiction to anonymous sex. The play is pitch-perfect, the dialogue is funny and heartbreaking at the same time, and Andrea
Risenborough is excellent as Sylvia, Oliver's wife in the 1958 story line and Phillip's best friend in the modern story line. I came away emotionally exhausted and with a great deal of respect for
Dancy and
Whishaw for having the courage to dive into their demanding roles and giving
incredibly honest and raw performances.
Last night, Ann (y
ea! she finally made it to NYC!) saw
Time Stands Still starring Laura
Linney, Brian
d'Arcy James, Alicia
Silverstone, and Eric
Bogosian. Again, it was an
intelligently written play and perfectly cast.
Linney and
d'Arcy James play a couple who have lived together for six years;
Linney is a photographer and
d'Arcy James is a writer. Both are drawn to war zones and documenting horrific events in violent hot spots all over the world.
Linney's character has been seriously injured by a road-side bomb and has come home to heal, D
'Arcy's character is also recovering--from a nervous breakdown caused by seeing a young family blown up right in front of him. He's ready to call it quits; she is not.
Bogosian plays
Linney's editor, and
Silverstone is his young, rather naive lover who becomes his wife by the end of the play. All are excellent, especially
Linney who captures her character's toughness,
her underlying vulnerability, and her addiction to the adrenaline rush she gets from her work. Her character put us in mind of the character in
Hurt Locker who finds it tougher to be at home than diffusing bombs in Iraq. It was a great night of theatre.
On a rather different note, my mother-in-law and sister-in-law came into the city to see a matinee of Twyla Tharpe's new show,
Come Fly With Me, a
celebration of the music of Frank Sinatra. Of course, the music was great--how can you go wrong with Sinatra?--but it was made even better by a kick-ass big band and an amazing ensemble of talented dancers. It was a very enjoyable afternoon, and a nice treat to see some of my favorite family members!
The theme that seems to be emerging for this trip is enjoying well-written,powerful dramas. On Tuesday night, I went to a small theatre in Greenwich Village to see The Pride, starring British actors Hugh Dancy and Ben Whishaw. Dancy and Whishaw play two different sets of lovers, one in 1958 and the other at present time. In the earlier story (1958), Oliver is a repressed homosexual trying to pass as a happily married man. He falls in love with his wife's colleague, Phillip, but does not have the courage to be open about his homosexuality. In the present, Philip has just left Oliver because he can't deal with the latter's addiction to anonymous sex. The play is pitch-perfect, the dialogue is funny and heartbreaking at the same time, and Andrea Risenborough is excellent as Sylvia, Oliver's wife in the 1958 story line and Phillip's best friend in the modern story line. I came away emotionally exhausted and with a great deal of respect for Dancy and Whishaw for having the courage to dive into their demanding roles and giving incredibly honest and raw performances.
Last night, Ann (yea! she finally made it to NYC!) saw Time Stands Still starring Laura Linney, Brian d'Arcy James, Alicia Silverstone, and Eric Bogosian. Again, it was an intelligently written play and perfectly cast. Linney and d'Arcy James play a couple who have lived together for six years; Linney is a photographer and d'Arcy James is a writer. Both are drawn to war zones and documenting horrific events in violent hot spots all over the world. Linney's character has been seriously injured by a road-side bomb and has come home to heal, D'Arcy's character is also recovering--from a nervous breakdown caused by seeing a young family blown up right in front of him. He's ready to call it quits; she is not. Bogosian plays Linney's editor, and Silverstone is his young, rather naive lover who becomes his wife by the end of the play. All are excellent, especially Linney who captures her character's toughness, her underlying vulnerability, and her addiction to the adrenaline rush she gets from her work. Her character put us in mind of the character in Hurt Locker who finds it tougher to be at home than diffusing bombs in Iraq. It was a great night of theatre.
On a rather different note, my mother-in-law and sister-in-law came into the city to see a matinee of Twyla Tharpe's new show, Come Fly With Me, a celebration of the music of Frank Sinatra. Of course, the music was great--how can you go wrong with Sinatra?--but it was made even better by a kick-ass big band and an amazing ensemble of talented dancers. It was a very enjoyable afternoon, and a nice treat to see some of my favorite family members!
