By Amy Herzog
Directed by Daniel Aukin
Off-Broadway at Lincoln Center Theater
Summary:
Leo (Gabriel Ebert) shows up on the doorstep of his 91-year-old grandmother's Greenwich Village home at the end of a cross-country bike trip and ends up staying a while. He insists that Vera (Mary Louise Wilson) not let his mother know he's there. Vera agrees to keep the secret from her daughter and offers a temporary home and some cash to the dirty, tired and troubled young man. They discover a friendship and a mutual admiration for Karl Marx. The household is disrupted by visits from Leo's old flame, Bec (Zoe Winters) and Amanda (Greta) Lee, a one-night stand who reminds Leo of the adopted Chinese sister for whom he discovered he had romantic feelings. Acting on those feelings and grief over losing his best friend during the cross-country journey are the source for his sometimes scary mood swings.
Highlights:
Strong performances, particularly from Wilson as the gentle-humored, understanding grandmother and from Lee as the ditsy party girl. Also, the night I attended, the audience roared after Vera said she didn't her her grandson because she didn't have her hearing aid turned on. The line is funny, but even more humorous was a very loud, "What did she say?" from someone in the audience -- who apparently didn't have her hearing aid turned up.
Lowlights:
Long pauses and meandering dialogue make the play slow going in places. The ending is too abrupt.
Other information:
The show has been extended at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, 150 west 60th St., NYC, through June 17. For tickets, visit www.lct.org. The play had its original production at LCT3.
Christians might also like to know:
-- Sexual activity
-- Language
-- Sexual dialogue
-- Drug usage
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