As delicate as glass

One might think that
it  would be tiresome to see a play over and over again. One would be wrong if that play were from Tennessee Williams' greatest hits. They are so subject to reinterpretation that just the anticipation of a new production fires the imagination.

"The Glass Menagerie," at the Booth through January 5th, rewards the patience of its audiences.

Cherry Jones as Amanda Wingfield and Celia Keenan-Bolger as Laura in "The Glass Menagerie" at the Booth.
Photo (c) Michael J. Lutch

As always in "The Glass Menagerie," Laura's (Celia Keenan-Bolger) familiar collection of glass figurines are a reminder of how frangible life and memory are.  We know that "The Glass Menagerie" is a memory play because her brother, Tom Wingfield (Zachary Quinto), tells us so as he introduces his narration. We also know that memory can play tricks. Tom illuminates a past he will ultimately leave behind him.

Brian J. Smith as Jim, the Gentlemen Caller coming home for dinner with Zachary Quinto's Tom.
Photo (c) Michael J. Lutch  

Zachary Quinto wears his "touch of the poet" magnificently. At times he is taken air-borne as the poesy in Williams' play takes flight. Celia Keenan-Bolger's understated fragility gives Laura the delicacy of one of her glass pieces. Like her favorite little glass unicorn, she doesn't fit in. While her unicorn is comfortable with the others in her collection, she is always ill-at-ease. Even the amiable Gentlemen Caller (Brian J. Smith) puts Laura at sixes-and-sevens.  Laura's mother, Amanda (Cherry Jones) wants to provide a future for Laura who is crippled as much by her inability to connect with others as by her physical disability.

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Tom (Zachary Quinto), Amanda (Cherry Jones) and Jim (Brian J. Smith) at the table, and Laura (Celia Keenan-Bolger) on the coach in "The Glass Menagerie." Photo (c) Michael J. Lutch

"The Glass Menagerie" is an often revived work out of Tennessee Williams' oeuvre. This is probably at least in part due to its fluidity of style. The blend of sublime melancholy with a sincere naturalism gives the play its many levels.

In "The Glass Menagerie," Amanda lives in a world of her own imagining. She lives in a glamorous past, before she married the telephone man "who fell in love with long distance."  Amanda masks her strength under a cloak of Southern gentility. Cherry Jones does this well, despite the plummy accent that makes some of her bon mots unintelligible.

Celia Keenan-Bolger as Laura with Brian J. Smith as Jim, the Gentlemen Caller in "The Glass Menagerie" at the Booth.  Photo (c) Michael J. Lutch. The production has extended to February 23, 2014.

Tom suffers his remembrances as if they were lashes on his flesh. Tom transcends the world of imagination and reality. He recalls and edits where he has been so he is free to travel on to new adventures and move on with his life.  It is Jim, the Gentleman Caller, who embodies a healthy sensibility. He brings a reality to the Wingfields' home. Brian J. Smith's affability as Jim is a pleasant is a stark contrast to the family's insularity.

Natasha Katz's lighting is a fifth character in "The Glass Menagerie," moody and intense. The well-designed costumes, and capriciously off-kilter sets by Bob Crowley are a perfect fit for this production.
John Tiffany's languid pacing in the first act, suggesting a dream-like unreality could be benefit from a little tightening. This is just a niggling issue with this transcendent "The Glass Menagerie."   It is a noble addition to the author's grand and eloquent legacy. (See also the review by Tamara Beck on VP at http://www.vevlynspen.com/2013/11/the-glass-menagerie-worthy-tribute-to.html)

For more information on "The Glass Menagerie," visit http://theglassmenageriebroadway.com

2 Characters in Search of

Brad Dourif as Felice and Amanda Plummer as Clare in Tennessee Williams "The Two Character Play" at New World  Stages. Photo by Carol Rosegg.

Is it possible that Tennessee Williams was not the best judge of his own work?

Photo by Carol Rosegg. Amanda Plummer as Clare and Brad Dourif as  Felice in  Tennessee Williams' "The Two Character Play" playing at New World Stages.

"The Two Character Play," in an open run at New World Stages, for instance, was his favorite, and Williams drew it in comparison to "The Glass Menagerie." In fact, it is a muddle not unlike "The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore," a play which appeals mostly for its phantasmagorical title.

"The Two Character Play" is confusing and befuddling. It's a combination of a "let's put on a show" story and "The Madwoman of Chaillot." The madwoman here is Clare (Amanda Plummer), Felice's  (Brad Dourif) sister-actor, who unravels rather easily. And makes perfect sense while doing it. Felice, the playwright and stage manager, fusses to make everything perfect for her, for them.

Brad Dourif and Amanda Plummer are clearly having a good time doing "The Two Character Play." Photo  by Carol Rosegg.

"The Two Character Play" is about two unmoored actors, putting on a play without their company to back and support them. Despite this odd premise, it is a bit funny and not as bleak as it might be. Alas, my personal reaction sounds like this: "Is this brilliant? and I don't get it. Is this dreadful? and I still don't get it." 

There are mysteries aplenty in "The Two Character Play," other than this reviewer's state of mind, of course. There's symbolism aplenty too. Revelling in his words is one of the pleasures in witnessing a Tennessee Williams drama. That experience is as true of the lyrical opening of the above-mentioned "The Glass Menagerie" as it is in the lovely narrative of "La Vieux Carre" The beauty and terror of his language even shines through the film version of "Suddenly Last Summer."

In "The Two Character Play"Tennessee the poet-- and he was definitely that-- is at work. Just not his best work, no matter what he had to say about it.

For more information about "The Two Character Play," please visit http://thetwocharacterplay.com/