Theater Review: A Minister's Wife

The Condensed Version of Candida with some Music to Boot
By Lauren Yarger
For some reason George Bernard Shaw’s play Candida, about a minister’s wife whose husband’s feelings for her are awakened when another suitor declares his love, continues to be produced by theater companies year after year.

The long story is rather boring in my opinion, but every time a theater season is announced, there it is. The latest is a musical version, A Minister’s Wife, playing at Lincoln Center, and this might be my favorite yet.

It’s still not a great show. There’s only so much you can do to improve the original material, but for this one, writer Austin Pendleton eliminates characters and scenes, heightens some romantic tension and increases James’ socialistic leanings in a welcome 90-minute timeframe. The story is married to an elegant, if sometimes a little too lengthy, musical score by Joshua Schmidt with lyrics by Jan Levy Tranen. It doesn’t hurt, either, that this version stars Mark Kudisch as the Rev. James Morell (who comes off a little darker and less pleasant than usual) and Bobby Steggert, very funny, as poet Eugene Marchbanks, who falls for his wife Candida (Kate Fry).

Conceived and directed by Michael Halberstam, the show also features strong performances by Drew Gehling as James’ curate Alexander and Liz Baltes, giving nice layers and some humor to James’ besotted secretary Prosperine Garnett.

Timothy Splain conducts the four-piece orchestra housed behind a scrim of wallpaper doubling as the backdrop for Allen Moyer’s plush-but-tattered minister’s study. David Zinn designs the late 19th-century costumes.

In short, because I like abbreviated when it comes to Candida, I liked it more than I expected to. A Minister’s Wife plays through June 12, 2011 at the Mitzi Newhouse Theatre, 150 West 65th St., NYC. Tickets are available by calling 212-239-6200 or 800- 432-7250.

Christians also might like to know:

• No notes. Enjoy!