Monday, October 17, 2011

Theater Review: Man and Boy

Langella's Fascinating to Watch, but Another Title Might Be 'Man, Oh Boy'
By Lauren Yarger
When talented Frank Langella plays bad, he's good, even when he's in a play that isn't all that great. That's true of his latest appearance on Broadway as a sleasy, uncaring financier in Roundabout Theatre Company's production of Terence Rattigan's Man and Boy.

Langella is Gregor Antonescu, the man credited with saving Europe after World War I, who now is avoiding the press seeking details about a failed merger that could lead to his collapse and a crash of the stock market. He decides to hide out at the basement Greenwich Village home of his estranged anti-capitalist, socialist son Basil (Adam Driver).

Basil inexplicably lets his father meet with his cronies: trusted right hand Sven Johnson (Michael Siberry), accountant David Beeston (Brian Hutchinson), who has found discrepancies in the merger figures, and Mark Herries (Zach Grenier), head of American Electric, part of the merger. Also dropping by is Gregor's wife, the Countess Antonescu (Francesca Faridany), from whose foundation he embezzles funds. During most of this, Basil takes a nap in the bedroom, which is cut away stage left next to the living area of the apartment ( Derek McLane, set design). Eventually, a couple of other people nap in the bedroom too, though why we need to see this isn't clear.

Langella, directed by Maria Aitken, creates a pretty unlikable character who thinks nothing of disrupting his son's life, then shows disdain for Basil's career as a piano player in a club, for his choice in liquor and in women, stopping only to rearrange the furniture to suit his own purpose. We come to understand why Basil washed his hands of his father and changed his last name following his coming of age party back in the old country. Before it's all over, there is some question as to who really is the "man" and who is the "boy."

With the current  economy in a mess and some fearful politicians and people blaming Wall Street for an uncertain future, the play's topic is just as timely now as it was in 1934 when it is set (on Saturday when I attended, the noise of protesters occupying Times Square and sirens indicative of more than 100 arrests made that day could be heard outside the theater during the performance, providing an obvious current application.)

But, man, oh, boy, the play feels more like a draft than a finished piece. The character of Basil's girlfriend, Carol Penn (Virginia Kull), doesn't seem to contribute much to the action except for giving us a gratuitous nude scene to open the play. She never returns after she leaves fairly early in act one. Basil, whose loathing of his father we come to understand, suddenly cares about him and is all concerned about helping him. Why? We don't know. Sven, asked to perform a ridiculous favor for Gregor, inexplicably does. The Countess, asked to do a favor, inexplicably doesn't. And beyond these plot questions, the dialogue can be rather dry and tedious at times, making us wish we could join the nappers up there on the bed. Resist the temptation, though, because it is worth watching Langella in action, He snarls with such panache that he makes us feel sorry for the cigarette Gregor holds in his sleasy hand.

Man and Boy plays through Nov. 27 at American Airlines Theatre, 227 W. 42nd St, NYC. Tickets: 212-719-1300 or www.roundabouttheatre.org.

Christians might also like to know:
Nudity
Lord's name taken in vain
Suicide storyline

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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.

Copyright

All material is copyright 2008- 2024 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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