Saturday, February 12, 2011

Theater Review: Other Desert Cities


War Rages Overseas and at Home
Lauren Yarger
War rages on the deserts of Iraq and in the desert-toned Palm Springs living room of the Wyeth family in Jon Robin Baitz’ witty and moving new play Other Desert Cities playing Off-Broadway at Lincoln Center.

Baitz uses humor and some excellent writing skills to create flawed characters you care about and who care about each other. Bringing them to life are excellent performances, directed by Joe Mantello.

Stockard Channing and Stacy Keach play Polly and Lyman Wyeth, well-to-do bigwigs in the Republican Party who emerge from a sort-of self-imposed, reclusive existence in Palm Springs to hobnob with the Reagans and Bushes (most of the play is set in 2004). Every so often Polly also enjoys taking pots shots that reveal underlying prejudices.

Interrupting the peace is a rare visit from their liberal daughter, Brooke (Elizabeth Marvel), whose marriage is on the rocks and who, after suffering a breakdown, has come to drop a bomb: she’s written a memoir that exposes some of the families secrets and will embarrass the Wyeths, particularly her ex-ambassador father. Keach is really solid as the passive father who refuses to read an advanced copy of the book so he won‘t have to criticize his daughter. Polly, on the other hand, devours the manuscript, and threatens Brooke with being cut off from the family permanently if it is published.

Trying to keep the peace is Brooke’s TV producer brother, Trip (Thomas Sadoski), whose reality trial TV show with a jury of celebrities gives him some background for mediating disputes. He loves Brooke, but also better understands his parents, with whom he still lives.

Meanwhile, they all have to deal with Polly’s sister, Silda Grauman (a wonderfully loopy Linda Lavin), who recently moved in with the Wyeths to try to kick her alcoholism. The new resident, however, might just prove to be a spy and enemy behind the lines in this family battle. She urges Brooke to publish, despite her parents pleas to wait until after they are dead. Channing’s already solid portrayal gets bonus points when Polly becomes agitated and slips into a Texas drawl that the society-conscious woman otherwise manages to mask, along with hers and Silda’s Jewish roots.

What’s so wonderful about this engaging play is that we absolutely don’t like, then come to like, or vice versa, each of these characters (even the rather selfish and unpleasant Brooke who wins us over in the end with a stunning emotional piece of acting from Marvel). The love they feel for each other despite past hurts and differences in political ideology is evident and keeps the Wyeths from slipping into the “dysfunctional family” template that has everyone screaming with the hatred we so often have to endure on stage.

It doesn’t even feel as though the stuffy, hypocritical Wyeths are necessarily supposed to be a stereotype of every Republican. They just are who they are. Will they be able to weather this crisis and maintain the family relationships? In the end, they’ll need to figure out what matters most and be judged by how well they have loved, Trip tells them.

The play is infused with some really funny dialogue and terrific writing that make you want to high-five the author and say,” Well done!” Mantello creates a natural feel to the family relationships with good-natured horseplay between the siblings, an intimate look between husband and wife, etc., which adds to the feel that these folks are real, not just stereotypes. This also is fueled by Baitz’ well-written play, devoid of much exposition, but full of pregnant pauses and lines dropped suddenly in the crisp dialogue that tell us what we need to know.

Enhancing the production are John Lee Beatty’s fabulous set, which with its neutral tones and soft curves, does conjure the image of a desert, and David Zinn’s costumes which immediately tell us volumes about the characters wearing them.

Other Desert Cities quenches a thirst for good plays this theater season and is the best I have seen so far. It plays through Feb. 27 at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre, 150 West 65th St., Lincoln Center, NYC. For tickets call 212-239-6200 or 800-432-7250 outside New York.

Chrstians might also like to know:
Drug use
Language
Lord’s name used in vain

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Our reviews are professional reviews written without a religious bias. At the end of them, you can find a listing of language, content or theological issues that Christians might want to know about when deciding which shows to see.

** Mature indicates that the show has posted an advisory because of content. Usually this means I would recommend no one under the age of 16 attend.

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

My Bio

Lauren Yarger has written, directed and produced numerous shows and special events for both secular and Christian audiences. She co-wrote a Christian musical version of “A Christmas Carol” which played to sold-out audiences of over 3,000 in Vermont and was awarded the Vermont Bessie (theater and film awards) for “People’s Choice for Theatre.” She also has written two other dinner theaters, sketches for church services and devotions for Christian artists. Her play concept, "From Reel to Real: The Jennifer O'Neill Story" was presented as part of the League of professional Theatre Women's Julia's reading Room Series in New York. Shifting from reviewing to producing, Yarger owns Gracewell Productions, which produced the Table Reading Series at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT. She trained for three years in the Broadway League’s Producer Development Program, completed the Commercial Theater Institute's Producing Intensive and other training and produced a one-woman musical about Mary Magdalene that toured nationally and closed with an off-Broadway run. She was a Fellow at the National Critics Institute at the O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, CT. She wrote reviews of Broadway and Off-Broadway theater (the only ones you can find in the US with an added Christian perspective) at http://reflectionsinthelight.blogspot.com/.

She is editor of The Connecticut Arts Connection (http://ctarts.blogspot.com), an award-winning website featuring theater and arts news for the state. She was a contributing editor for BroadwayWorld.com. She previously served as theater reviewer for the Manchester Journal-Inquirer, Connecticut theater editor for CurtainUp.com and as Connecticut and New York reviewer for American Theater Web.

She is a Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter of the League of Professional Theatre Women. She is a former vice president and voting member of The Drama Desk.

She is a freelance writer and playwright (member Dramatists Guild of America). She is a member if the The Outer Critics Circle (producer of the annual awards ceremony) and a member of The League of Professional Theatre Women, serving as Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter. Yarger was a book reviewer for Publishers Weekly A former newspaper editor and graduate of the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism, Yarger also worked in arts management for the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra and served for nine years as the Executive Director of Masterwork Productions, Inc. She lives with her husband in West Granby, CT. They have two adult children.

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All material is copyright 2008- 2022 by Lauren Yarger. Reviews and articles may not be reprinted without permission. Contact reflectionsinthelight@gmail.com

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Key to Content Notes:

God's name taken in vain -- means God or Jesus is used in dialogue without speaking directly to or about them.

Language -- means some curse words are used. "Minor" usually means the words are not too strong or that it only occurs once or twice throughout the show.

Strong Language -- means some of the more heavy duty curse words are used.

Nudity -- means a man or woman's backside, a man's lower front or a woman's front are revealed.

Scantily clad -- means actors' private areas are technically covered, but I can see a lot of them.

Sexual Language -- means the dialogue contains sexually explicit language but there's no action.

Sexual Activity -- means a man and woman are performing sexual acts.

Adultery -- Means a married man or woman is involved sexually with someone besides their spouse. If this is depicted with sexual acts on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Sex Outside of Marriage -- means a man and woman are involved sexually without being married. If this is depicted sexually on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Homosexuality -- means this is in the show, but not physically depicted.

Homosexual activity -- means two persons of the same sex are embracing/kissing. If they do more than that, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Cross Dresser -- Means someone is dressing as the opposite sex. If they do more than that on stage the listing would include the corresponding "sexual activity" and/or "homosexual activity" as well.

Cross Gender -- A man is playing a female part or a woman is playing a man's part.

Suggestive Dancing -- means dancing contains sexually suggestive moves.

Derogatory (category added Fall 2012) Language or circumstances where women or people of a certain race are referred to or treated in a negative and demeaning manner.

Other content matters such as torture, suicide, or rape will be noted, with details revealed only as necessary in the review itself.

The term "throughout" added to any of the above means it happens many times throughout the show.

Reviewing Policy

I receive free seats to Broadway and Off-Broadway shows made available to all voting members of the Outer Critics Circle. Journalistically, I provide an unbiased review and am under no obligation to make positive statements. Sometimes shows do not make tickets available to reviewers. If these are shows my readers want to know about I will purchase a ticket. If a personal friend is involved in a production, I'll let you know, but it won't influence a review. If I feel there is a conflict, I won't review their portion of the production.

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