MacBeth at Lincoln Center Theatre

There is a bounty of Shakespeare on and off-Broadway this New York theater season. Unfortunately Jack O'Brien's production of MacBeth does little to recommend it over the vastly superior productions of Twelfth Night and Richard III being performed a little ways down the Great White Way. The Lincoln Center Theatre production is a classic example of what happens when a director has an specific concept through which he interprets Shakespeare's text that ends up being detrimental to the proceedings.

A director having a strong vision is not necessarily a bad thing. A few seasons ago in a regional theater production that performed in New Jersey and Washington DC Aaron Posner and Teller brought a marvelous mysticism to MacBeth by incorporating actual magic to the proceedings. Alan Cummings' one-man performance on Broadway this past spring was a masterful distillation of the essence of the play highlighting the power and the madness in the story. The problem here is that the audience gets a lot of sound and fury, wrapped in a dark, gothic bow that surrounds a center with very little substance.

Jack O'Brien is not the first director to focus MacBeth on the supernatural elements. Nor is he the first to have said witches portray various background characters to suggest that fate is always manipulating the outcome of the story. The witches, vibrantly portrayed by Byron Jennings, John Glover and Malcolm Gets, are delightful in their wickedness. Aided by Francesca Faridany as the seldom included Hecate, the witches give hope from the start that this will be a passionate, bloody evening of theater. It would be except that the central characters of MacBeth and his Lady seem neutered by stripping away their own raw ambition for power.

Ethan Hawke's MacBeth gives us little reason to understand why this loyal Scottish general turns into an ambitious and paranoid murderer. It does not help that his diction is lacking. Racing through crucial speeches in the text, meaning and nuance get lost. Mr Hawke is stronger in the second half of the story once he starts to struggle to secure his throne. However the change comes too late in the evening to salvage his performance.

Anne Marie Duff is an icy Lady MacBeth. Seemingly directed to not be the driving force behind ensuring that MacBeth murders King Duncan that decision lessens the impact of her performance. Her sleepwalking scene is riveting, another example of showing the audience too late the potential of what her performance could have been.

The ensemble that supports them is filled with a mixed bag of performances. It is clear who has classical training and who does not. The standouts include Bianca Amato in her one scene as the doomed Lady MacDuff, Daniel Sunjata as a passionate and angry MacDuff (someone consider having him play the title role sometime soon) and Brian d'Arcy James as the loyal Banquo who shows great nuance as he witnesses his friend's ambitious rise to power then falls victim to it.

The design elements are interesting. The set is dominated by a replica of "The Seal of God's Truth" a medieval mandala showing God and his angels, well executed by designer Scott Pask. Catherine Zuber's costumes are of no particular period seeming a dark mashup of leather and couture. Mark Bennett's sound and original music is quite bombastic, in many ways overpowering the actors.

In the end Jack O'Brien and his company of actors deliver a most unsatisfying evening of theater. The witches and Hecate will entertain you, but it is not enough to save this bloodless production of Shakespeare's Scottish tragedy.

Lincoln Center Theater at the Vivian Beaumont presents Shakespeare's MacBeth with tickets currently available through January 12, 2014. For tickets and other performance information please visit lct.org.

Shakespeare's Globe on Broadway: Twelfth Night and Richard III at the Belasco Theatre

Oh, for a Shakespeare Production that firmly believes that the text should dictate the performance rather than a director's misguided vision that the Bard desperately needs updating.  What's that you say? There are two, count them two such productions on Broadway this Fall season. Three hearty huzzahs for London's Shakespeare's Globe Productions of Twelfe Night, or What You Will and The Tragedie of King Richard III now in repertory. What gimmicks there are is in the service to promoting original staging practices, including using an all-male cast. There is an American Shakespeare company that is also devoted to original staging practices (the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Virginia), but Shakespeare's Globe takes us two steps further. The first is in using the aforementioned entirely male cast. The second is deciding to use authentically hand-sewn costumes, which the actors don in front of the audience.

Designer Jenny Tiramani was director of theatre design at Shakespeare's Globe from 1997-2005, and her meticulous research has paid off with stunning costumes that clearly aid the actors in developing their characters. From shirt or chemise and hose, to ornate doublets for the aristocratic gentleman and stunning gowns for ladies, the costumes truly serve to enhance the performances.  Be sure to arrive early as the actors get dressed on stage before the performance. Lighting Designer Stan Pressner uses a few stage lights to augment the beeswax candles that light the stage. The audience finds itself lit as well as the house lights remain on for these shows. Along with the decision to place several audience members in tiered box seats on the stage this permits an easy rapport between actor and audience. When Richard III or Viola confides in the the audience there is a genuine connection to that audience that gets lost in the darkness of modern theatrical practices.

Music, all period pieces adapted by Claire van Kampen is played on Renaissance instruments. This particularly enhances Twelfth Night, one of Shakespeare's most musical plays.

Richard III is the more difficult production to get tickets for as it is only being performed twice a week. Shakespeare's gleeful deformed villain is given an unusual interpretation by Mark Rylance. His Richard appears to be a slow-witted buffoon, and his victims seem to embrace him as a genuine ally never seeing the betrayal coming until it is far too late. Mr. Rylance perhaps takes this characterization too far as several times the outright mugging for laughs from the audience detracts from the horror of Richard's monstrosity. It is to Mr. Rylance's credit that he does not shy away from his decision to play Richard so over the top.

Highlighted performances from Richard III include Liam Brennan as the devastated Duke of Clarence and Peter Hamilton Dyer as Catesby, never wavering in his loyalty to Richard.  Angus Wright is a proud Buckingham and Joseph Timms a sweet, melancholic Lady Anne. Kurt Egyiawan doubles as the contemptuous Duchess of York and the saintly savior of the future Tudor dynasty, Richmond.

Samuel Barnett is a revelation as Queen Elizabeth. Nemesis of Richard and his allies, Mr. Barnett makes Elizabeth a tower of strength. Written to not be swayed by Richard's tricks, Mr. Barnett gives a commanding performance as this maligned Queen consort who turns to steel once her sons are dead.

Richard III is a bit of a jarring production, mostly due to the decision to overplay the macabre glee of Richard's villainy. The more satisfying production is that of Twelfth Night. It is here that the conceit of a woman pretending to be a man being subsequently mistaken for her identical twin brother genuinely works.

For Twelfth Night's comedic tale of two women, Viola the shipwrecked maiden trying to survive disguised as a boy and Olivia, the newly empowered Countess forswearing the company of men whilst in deepest mourning for her brother. The choice to use an all-male cast provides true revelation in the in the performance.

Mr. Rylance portrays Olivia with the character's emotions bare to all. At first reserved and steady in her grief, it is a riotous joy to see Olivia just let go with giddy joy when she falls in love with the disguised Viola.  Here the over-the-top nature of Olivia in love works as a natural part of the romantic comedy.

This is perhaps one of the few productions of Twelfth Night in which the mistaken twins, one male the other a disguised female actually works. It helps that Joseph Timms is as close to a twin to Samuel Barnett as possible thanks to a physical resemblance aided by costuming and makeup. One cannot forget that there are men playing the women, but Mr. Barnett makes the audience look past it. His Viola is a genuine sweet lady deeply distressed by her circumstances, in love with her employer, Duke Orsino, yet forced to woo on his behalf the lady Olivia who has in turn fallen in love with her. One hopes Mr. Barnett is not overlooked come awards season.

Twelfth Night is filled with many excellent supporting performances. Stephen Fry is practically bursting with pomposity as the haughty steward Malvolio. We will pity his gulling, but Paul Chahidi's Maria lets you understand why she orchestrates Malvolio's comeuppance. Colin Hurley makes for a bawdy drunk Sir Toby and Angus Wright a wonderfully dense Sir Andrew Aguecheek. Peter Hamilton Dyer is the wry melodious fool, Feste, who, while acknowledging his own professional tomfoolery, delights in pointing out that the rest of the cast is just as delightfully foolish as well.

Twelfth Night is a marvelous good time for an evening of theater. Richard III, despite some shortcomings,  is equally welcome this Broadway season. The other productions of Shakespeare proliferating this season could learn a thing or two from Shakespeare's Globe. The best productions do not necessarily require fancy sets or strange directorial interpretations. The best Shakespeare productions let the text speak for itself.

William Shakespeare's Twelfe Night, or What You Will and The Tragedie of King Richard III are being performed in repertory at the Belasco Theatre in New York City through February 2, 2014.  For tickets and other performance information please visit shakespearebroadway.com.

Betrayal at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre

Director Mike Nichols has assembled an "A" list cast for his revival of Harold Pinter's Olivier-award winning 1978 drama, Betrayal. Betrayal is well known both for its reverse chronological structure and for being inspired by the playwright's own years-long extramarital affair. With an economy of words, Betrayal relies on its cast giving the audience their characters' motivations for their rather despicable behavior through the actors own emotional responses. Deciding to cast real life husband and wife Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz as the married Robert and Emma does not necessarily add any particular insight to the playwright's intentions. Betrayal is a solid production of a play that was considered groundbreaking in the 70's but for a 21st century audience lays bare the shortcomings of the text.

Betrayal begins to unspiral its tale in 1977 with the end of the affair between Emma and Jerry (Rafe Spall), who tells us multiple times that he is the cuckolded Robert's longest friend and best man at his wedding. From there we weave backwards to 1968 until we glimpse the start of the affair as the play ends. During two pivotal years, 1977 the year of the break-up and 1973 the year that Robert finds out about the affair, the story fleshes out with additional scenes that move the drama forward.  In the end the audience is left unsatisfied. We do not really understand the nature of Robert and Emma's marriage, or why Jerry is compelled to initiate the affair. Pinter leaves us wanting answers that he chooses not to give.

Given its limitations the fine trio of actors must work hard to enlighten us as to why they constantly "betray" each other. Daniel Craig gives a nonchalant matter-of-factness to Robert. At one point he casually mentions to Jerry that he has hit Emma, a violent act that is not dramatized and is disturbingly laughed off by the two male characters. Rachel Weisz' Emma is reserved and seemingly composed when interacting with both men yet she has an appealing vulnerability hiding beneath the surface that hints at the raw unhappiness of her life. Rafe Spall has the more histrionic character, Jerry.  Jerry in his hands does not hide his emotions and anxieties freely keeping them on the surface.  Yet, all three characters are ultimately unlikeable human beings. It is difficult for the audience to engage or root for any of them.

Special note must be made of the rather elaborate scenic design by Ian MacNeil. Pinter's nine scenes all take place in different locales requiring multiple scene changes. Mr. MacNeil has devised a system of sliding platforms and flying walls that smoothly glide into place. Along with the rather hypnotic original score by James Murphy it makes the scene changes as interesting to watch as the rest of the performance.

Betrayal is a good production of a play that shows its age. The production features good acting and excellent direction. Yet, without characters that have any redeeming qualities it is difficult for the audience to genuinely care about the reasons for the perfidy. In the end you may feel that this trio has gotten everything they deserve.

Betrayal is being performed at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre in New York City through January 5, 2014.  For tickets and other performance information please visit betrayalbroadway.com.

Troilus and Cressida at the American Shakespeare Center

The American Shakespeare Center has returned to its staging roots for its 25th Anniversary Season production of William Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida.  This play, so rarely performed, receives a revelatory mounting at the Blackfriars' Playhouse. The American Shakespeare Center has long embraced the original staging practices of Early Modern Theatre. They famously "do it with the lights on." The audience has the opportunity to sit both on the stage and above it. They use only a few props and furnishings to evoke time and place. Yet, when the American Shakespeare Center began 25 seasons ago as the touring company Shenandoah Shakespeare Express, they faced additional challenges. By honoring those early conditions, Troilus and Cressida comes alive with an exuberant production that will leave you pondering the mess that is love and loss in a long and futile war.

As Artistic Director Jim Warren states in his director's notes, he informed the actors that they would be producing Troilus and Cressida as if they did not have the luxury of a discovery space or a backstage area. The actors when they are not on stage stay seated around the stage watching the action, requiring costume changes to be made in full view of the audience. The aisles and walls surrounding the stage are utilized as additional entrances and exits thereby truly immersing the audience in the action. Costume Designer Victoria Depew clads the actors in basic grey tunics and cut-off pants (Cressida wears a skirt). The actors don minimal additional costume pieces, forest green for the Greeks and rustic red for the Trojans, those pieces instantly imposing the characters status, whether the regal general Agamemnon or the elderly warrior, Nestor.

These choices free the actors to even more embrace Shakespeare's text. Troilus and Cressida is a famously messy play. It takes place in the seventh year of the Trojan War, yet focuses more on the relationships of the various characters rather than on mighty battle scenes. The play itself is rife with raucous humor, most of it balancing the tightrope between PG-13 and R. Yet, the tragic elements are equally raucous. This is a story filled with deep emotional passion, whether it is the shy and gentle love story that anchors the first half of the play or the wounds of loss and betrayal when that love is torn asunder by the realities of war.

The characters of Troilus and Cressida simply anchor the tale. They compete with the drama going on in both the Greek and Trojan war camps. At the center of that drama is the character of Achilles. Benjamin Curns evokes the pride and ego of Greece's greatest warrior who has decided that he has had enough of war and will fight no longer. When finally goaded into battle by the death of his close companion, Patroclus, Mr. Curns' great warrior first presents himself as the chivalric hero of legend, then shatters that persona as he fights the Trojans' noble Prince Hector.

Chris Johnston's Prince Hector carries himself with a noble bearing. One step across the stage and the audience knows that here is a warrior that is the embodiment of knightly courtesy, whose word is golden. Equally noble is the brave Aeneas, yet, Tim Sailer barely keeps his contempt of the Greeks in check. Josh Innerst's Agamemnon never lets you forget that he is a King. Rene Thornton, Jr. was absent from this performance. In his stead, veteran company member Daniel Kennedy took on the role of Ulysses with script in hand, managing to still create the wise and wily warrior who will eventually win the war and suffer the consequences on his long journey home. Dylan Paul is both the cowardly, indolent Paris who started this mess and then,  with the addition of a cane and head cloth,completely transforms into the elderly firebrand Nestor.

John Harrell is the brash blowhard Greek warrior Ajax, naively accepting the challenge to battle Prince Hector not knowing that he is being used to shame Achilles into action. Mr. Harrell also practically steals the production in the famous role of Pandarus, Uncle to Cressida, who lasciviously arranges his niece's love affair with Prince Troilus. Mr. Harrell does not shy away from the rather naughty remarks that Pandarus teases the young couple with both before and after they consummate their union.

Three of the four ladies in the acting company have been given the opportunity to portray three vital male characters. Emily Brown is the proud young companion of Achilles, Patroclus, deftly ignoring the snide remarks that hint that this relationship is rather more than boon companions. Tracie Thomason is given the noble Greek Diomedes who becomes the protector and seducer of Cressida when she is traded to the Greek camp. There is no unease from the audience at this rather intimate portrayal which is a testament to Ms.Thomason's full commitment to the character's story.

Allison Glenzer explodes with energy every time she takes the stage as the Greek commentator, Thersites. Thersites is the clown character, but is no ordinary fool. A man of honest and biting wit, Thersites does not hold back whether telling Achilles off for ignoring his duties on the battlefield or helping to lift the veil from the lovestruck Troilus' eyes.

Cressida may have the smallest number of lines of any of the title characters in Shakespeare's plays. Yet, Lee Fitzpatrick creates a true enigma. Her stage time is brief. Cressida must go from a shy and awkward young woman who deeply loves her Prince, yet foreshadowing her own betrayal of that love in heartrending honesty. When traded to the Greeks, Cressida becomes almost a new character. It is a testament to both Ms. Fitzpatrick and her director that they do not try to justify this abrupt change in Cressida's nature simply allowing the text to dictate the character's behavior. Ms. Fitzpatrick benefits by the decision to have the actors sit upon the stage when not performing. Whether being praised or condemned particularly by the man she loves, Ms. Fitzpatrick openly wears her character's emotional responses bravely.

Gregory Jon Phelps must also travel a complex path as Troilus. Another warrior who eschews the battlefield, Mr. Phelps is dealt a character who is young, naive and awkward in wooing and then devastated by the betrayal of his false Cressida.  Mr. Phelps then makes Troilus' change into bloodthirsty avenger justified. His Troilus is a brash young man dictated by his passions whether the passions of love or the brimstone of war.

Is Troilus and Cressida a history? A tragedy? A great satire of war? In truth it is a hot mess. There is no clean resolution to any part of the story. The audience is left with an abrupt ending that feels unsatisfactory. We want confrontation between the sundered lovers. We want revenge for noble Hector's death. We want catharsis. We are given unanswered questions. What is the greatest gift of this production is Artistic Director's Jim Warren decision to simply allow the text to speak for itself. The audience is responsible for seeking out their own interpretation of what has transpired in this two and a half hour's traffic upon the Blackfriars' stage.

William Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida is being performed at The American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Virginia in repertory with Romeo and Juliet, Alls Well That Ends Well, Oliver Goldsmith's She Stoops To Conquer and Bob Carlton's Return to the Forbidden Planet through November 30, 2013. For tickets and other performance information please visit www.americanshakespearecenter.com.

Romeo and Juliet at the Richard Rodgers Theatre

William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is one of the most produced of Shakespeare's plays. There are many professional productions being produced in any given theatrical season. So why would anyone be compelled to pay Broadway prices to see a show that is readily available at much cheaper prices? The short answer in the case of the current Broadway production is the chance to see well-known film heartthrob Orlando Bloom portray Romeo and two-time Tony Award nominee Condola Rashad portray Juliet. Whether the production itself justifies making that a reason to see Romeo and Juliet on Broadway is another tale.

If anyone is going to complain that a review of Romeo and Juliet is filled with spoilers the simple response is this. The chorus that begins the show gives away the ending. Directors shape Shakespeare's text to suit their vision of the play. Verse is cut, characters may not get the death that Shakespeare wrote. The question becomes how a director's vision for the production enhances or hinders the audience's enjoyment of the production. Unfortunately David Leveaux makes some choices that are bizarre and rather heavy handed in their symbolism. The actors, for the most part, overcome these disastrous decisions. Therefore if you choose to see Romeo and Juliet on Broadway pay attention to William Shakespeare's words in the steady hands of a fine ensemble of actors and ignore the trappings those words are wrapped within.

Jesse Poleshuck's scenic design creates a Verona that is beyond its glory days. A faded mural of Renaissance Saints is plastered in graffiti. These walls shift to create chambers and walls. Unfortunately layered upon this simple and effective set are flames clearly meant to symbolize the conflict between the warring families. It's very heavy handed as is the presence of an alarm bell that raises and lowers throughout the show providing no real purpose to the proceedings as it is rung exactly twice. It only serves as a hinderance to the actors who must sidestep the lengthy rope that gets in the way of their movement at points in the play.  The less said about the completely unnecessary brief appearance of a motorcycle the better.

The costumes by Fabio Toblini are contemporary and rather grungy. It makes it very strange to hear Lord Capulet refer to Romeo as a well-thought of youth when he crashes the Capulet ball in faded and torn jeans and a hoodie. The colors are gray, black and earth tones perhaps welcome to anyone who sees productions of Romeo and Juliet that attach a color scheme to the Montagues and the Capulets so that the audience can tell quickly which characters belong to which families.

The saving grace of this production is the supporting acting ensemble. All speak Shakespeare's verse clearly and interpret his words so that a novice in the audience will easily be able to understand the story and the characters. Amongst the supporting players Conrad Kemp is a loyal and honest Benvolio and Chuck Cooper a loving father as Lord Capulet yet a wrathful force when his daughter disobeys his spontaneous wish that she marry. Justin Guarini is a pleasant enough Paris, but without the character's actual fate from the text, the role is simply that of a nice, pleasant guy. Christian Camargo makes his Mercutio a sharp wit although some of the jokes inherent in the famous Queen Mab's speech do not get the humorous response that is in Shakespeare's text.

Condola Rashad takes a while to find Juliet's soul. She really doesn't embody a young girl's hopes and dreams of a romantic future with her true love until she is married and awaiting the arrival of her wedding night. It is at the turning point of tragedy that Ms. Rashad makes an impact as her dissembling with her parents as she plots her desperate escape shows a Juliet with a steely resolve that creates a heartbreaking ending for our heroine. Yet, throughout her performance she lacks Juliet's urgency that leads her to agree to marry her family's enemy less than 24 hours after they meet. Her Romeo also lacks deep passion.

Orlando Bloom's Romeo is a lover not a fighter.  Mr. Bloom speaks the verse quite well and makes some very interesting line readings during the balcony scene that speak to Romeo's possible disbelief that this girl, unlike his unrequited Rosaline, returns his love. Yet, the brash impulsive nature that leads Romeo to avenge a friend's death lacks any fire. Without that part of Romeo's nature, coupled with the director's decision to eliminate a sequence which reinforces that unpleasant part of his character, we are left unsatisfied. The ladies in the audience will still swoon and Mr. Bloom is charming and Ms Rashad beautiful but without the passion that the flames on stage promise the tragedy in the story is lost.

Romeo and Juliet is being performed at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on Broadway through January 12, 2014.  For tickets please visit ticketmaster.com.

Miss Saigon at Signature Theatre Virginia

Let's get the big question out of the way. How is the Fall of Saigon without a full-sized helicopter landing on the stage? Answer: awesome.

Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer is becoming quite the specialist in taking the large musicals of the 1980's and 1990's and reinterpreting them in the intimate space of the Max Theatre. Here he tackles one of the most challenging shows, Claude-Michel Schonberg, Richard Maltby, Jr. and Alain Boublil's Miss Saigon. From its beginnings this sung-through musical which takes the premise of Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly and sets in in the desperate final days of the Vietnam War has not been without its controversies.  The original London production was faulted for casting Jonathan Pryce in the lead role of the French and Vietnamese Engineer and having him wear eye makeup that was offensive. Currently in Minnesota there are protests and heated discussions over the depiction of the Asian women in the show as submissive and sexualized objects.  http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2013/09/05/artists-to-protest-miss-saigon
While there may be moments in the script that justify the criticism audiences should make an effort to see Signature Theatre's production as at the heart of this show is a young woman's performance that shows that the leading lady is not just a love-struck, passive Asian stereotype. She's a survivor of war and a woman who fights to protect her son.

As in Madame Butterfly this is the story of a love affair between a young Asian woman and an American who leaves her behind. It is April 1975 on the eve of the end of the Vietnam War. Chris, a Marine nearing the end of his second tour of duty is weary of war. Goaded into going to the Dreamland Bar by his friend John, he meets Kim.  Kim who has fled the destruction of her village has no choice but to become the newest prostitute for the club owner, the Engineer. John buys Kim for Chris for the night and the two fall in love. They decide to spend two weeks together, Kim considering it a real marriage. Three years later, Chris has gone home to America and married Ellen, suffering nightmares about the fall of Saigon. The Engineer has spent three year in reeducation camps. Kim is surviving on the streets of the renamed Ho Chi Minh City guarding a secret. Kim commits murder to protect that secret, that she has a half American son, Tam. The Engineer always scheming to find his way to America uses Kim and her son as his ticket out of Vietnam.  It all comes to a head in Thailand and no one completely gets their dream.

The strength of the Miss Saigon script is in its descriptions of the brutality of war. Stripping the spectacle away allows the lyrics to have emotional resonance. This is enhanced by the environmental set and sound design. As you enter the Max Theatre you immediately see the trappings of the military. As you scurry to your seat take the time to stop and look at the antechamber display. The dismantled airplane and the video screen showing rice paddies and villages being bombed help to put the play into context.  Entering the theater proper you will see tattered parachutes and hear the sounds of planes and helicopters flying overhead. It is brilliant design work by scenic designer Adam Koch and sound designer Matt Rowe.  Their work is complemented by the spot on lighting design by Chris Lee and the understated costume designs of Frank Labovitz.  The entire production palette eschews glitz and spectacle for a more realistic depiction of a war torn country. The 15-piece orchestra under the expert direction of Gabriel Mangiante does Claude-Michel Schonberg's score justice without overpowering either the small performance space or the singers. Choreographer Karma Camp has very little actual dancing to choreograph but she provides inspired choreography to illustrate the change of the regimes in The Morning of the Dragon.

Eric Schaffer has cast a wonderful ensemble of actors to bring this tale to life. No matter the size of the role each performance is well-thought out even if some of the characters suffer from a lack of real character development. This is the case for the part of Ellen, the American wife who discovers the source of her husband Chris' nightmares creating a nightmare reality for herself. Erin Driscoll does what she can with the role and with the new song written for Ellen, Maybe, a less harsh version of  Ellen's original song Now That I've Seen Her covers the same dilemma as the original song, that of a wife learning the hard way about her husband's war-time romance.

Chris Sizemore handles the awkward duality of John, the best friend who buys him a girl in a bar to cheer him up and then makes a 180 to become the advocate for the half Vietnamese half American Bui Doi children. Christopher Mueller has the intensity of a fanatic as Thuy the villager turned Viet Cong loyalist. Cheryl Daro sings her solo in The Movie in My Mind with pathos really showing that the prostitutes of Miss Saigon are more than just objects of Marine lust.

Just prior to the opening of the production the original actor cast as Chris, James Michael Evans suffered a vocal injury that forced him to leave the show. His understudy, Gannon O'Brien took over the role with little rehearsal. Mr. O'Brien has a strong voice and he does a good job with the weariness of Chris of war and Vietnam itself. He still needs to find the deep passion for Kim that leads Chris to commit the mistakes his character makes.

Thom Sesma as The Engineer is the audience's gateway into the seedy world of Saigon's nightlife. The character is a train wreck, you want to be repulsed by his opportunism yet you can't help being somewhat charmed by his reptilian way of clawing his way to success. When he sings The American Dream you smile and cheer him on, even though you know his world is about to crash around him for the upteenth time.

The heart and soul of Miss Saigon is Diana Huey's Kim. Diana Huey is outstanding. Her Kim is no meek and mild lovestruck girl. Listen to the bite of her words as she strips the romance from Chris' eyes describing the destruction of her village and the graphic deaths of her parents. She is a woman who finds a way to survive living for her son and always holding on to her dream that one day Chris will return and grant her little family a happily ever after. Her decision as to how to ensure her son's future causes a lot of criticism, but Ms. Huey shows in her performance that Kim genuinely does what she does out of a belief that it is the only way to ensure her son's happiness.

Miss Saigon is being performed in the Max Theatre at Signature Theatre in Arlington Virginia and has been extended until October 6, 2013. For tickets and other performance information please visit
www.signature-theatre.org

First Date at the Longacre Theatre

The songwriting team of Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner have been friends and colleagues for a very long time. Their best known work has been the Disney Cruise Line musical Twice Charmed, a twist on Cinderella. Teaming up with book writer Austin Winsberg they bring to Broadway the new musical First Date. Pretty much the synopsis is summed up in the title of the show. This is a blind date between uptight Aaron and the edgy and artistic Casey. Just like with any normal blind date these characters are hounded by an ensemble that portrays the well-meaning and occasionally destructive voices in their heads. It should resonate with a lot of theatregoers.

First Date may be too small a show to have a long run on Broadway. It is entertaining and fun, but it does have a number of flaws. The songs that express each character's doubts early in the evening come off as superficial, going for the easy sitcom laugh. This includes such material as Bailout Song (versions 1, 2 and 3) with the stereotypical gay bestie and the song The Girl For You which occurs when it slips out that Casey is not Jewish and hilarity ensues with a comic sledgehammer as everyone bursts into a disapproving family attempt at a showstopper. 

Yet, there are some truly terrific moments in this brisk 90 minute show. Krista Rodriguez's hard-edged Casey gets a deeply satisfying emotional moment in the Safer where she confesses her characters fears and genuine vulnerabilities. Zachary Levi equally gets a similar moment when Aaron relates a heartbreaking moment from his youth, dueting with Sara Chase as Aaron's mother on The Things I Never Said.  It is these little gems that almost stop First Date from simply hitting all the requisite notes of the standard romantic comedy. The audience is laughing and cheering these characters on, but in the end there just isn't a real satisfaction in the end of the date. 

This is a very tight ensemble. The five actors who portray multiple roles, each a part of the main characters' lives, embrace those roles with a great deal of enthusiasm. The real standouts and the best fleshed out of these characters are Sara Chase as Casey's pushy suburban sister Lauren and Bryce Ryness as Aaron's lascivious best friend Gabe. Although Kate Loprest deserves a nod for portraying the ex-girlfriend from H-E-double-LL Allison. 

Krista Rodriguez and Zachary Levi are well matched as the wary daters. Each has great comedic skills and excellent voices.  As Mr. Levi plays the more uptight character he gets the larger growth arc in the play. Let's just say that when he lets loose in In Love With You, it's a major highlight of the evening.

First Date is an intimate romantic comedy that seems too small for Broadway. It is not the greatest show and it it is not the worst. It simply is what it is. First Date is  a fun, quick evening of musical comedy featuring a cast that delivers a charming, but flawed blind date.

First Date is being performed at the Longacre Theater on Broadway in New York City. For tickets and other performance information please contact firstdatethemusical.com or telecharge.com.