Past Reviews

Regional Reviews: New Jersey

... I Made Spaghetti Likeable, Low Key Comedy
George Street Playhouse

Also see Bob's review of Nickel and Dimed


Antoinette LaVecchia
Not much happens in the solo show I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti which Jacques Lamarre has adapted from the memoir by Giulia Melucci. Still, it is sweet and likeable, and Antoinette LaVecchia's Giulia is totally delightful and endearing.

The play is described as being set in Giulia's kitchen in Brooklyn. Here, Giulia concocts a three course meal consisting of antipasto, salad and spaghetti Bolognese. And, as Giulia talks directly to the audience, she serves her meal (accompanied by wine) to four couples each seated at one of four small café tables located on either side of the small center stage kitchen). Thus, clearly ... Spaghetti actually takes place on the stage of the George Street Playhouse where Giulia Melucci is giving a lecture and cooking demonstration. And, if you are so inclined, you may purchase stage seats, and mangia.

The fortyish and single Giulia begins by telling us that she has a "compulsion to cook" and that "the kitchen is the heart of the home." More pointedly, she adds that "I haven't managed the art of love, but I've mastered maximum taste with minimum fuss".

As a teenager, Giulia was a moral, down to earth, Brooklyn (Bay Ridge) girl who attended an all-girls parochial school. She majored in Art History at Sarah Lawrence College, and returning to Brooklyn, where she embarked on a career in publishing. Giulia travels in literary circles. Still, early on, Giulia lapses now and again into a Brooklyn Italian accent and some mildly earthy language which at least is ingratiating and flavorful.

Despite her accomplishments, the romances in Giulia's life have all ended disastrously. And herein lies the rub. The bulk of the text consists of Giulia's recounting of her relationships with men over a period of over twenty years. At their best, Giulia's accounts are clever, witty and involving. None are without interest. However, as there is little in the way of change or growth in Giulia throughout the years, the play largely simmers languidly without coming to a boil.

Antoinette LaVecchia is something else. She is to the pensione born. She imbues the words of Giulia Melucci's memoir and Jacques Lamarre's adaptation with an energy, warmth, passion and desire to please, which is irresistible. As her Giulia is telling us the story of her memoir (with recipes) after she has successfully published it and she is ready to pursue romance with more zest and confidence than she has had in the past, it's just fine that the Giulia Melucci with whom we have spent the evening is a cinch in the romance department.

Director Rob Ruggiero has directed with a light, deft touch. John Coyne's set provides uncluttered, open playing space, and Alejo Vietti's dresses for LaVecchia are appropriate and quite lovely.

One of the evening's highlights was observing the making of fresh pasta. It has always seemed to me to be a daunting task. However, watching LaVecchia employing a small pasta maker to produce long strings of pasta which nestled safely and securely over her open hand, I decided that I will make some fresh pasta just as soon as I lose a few pounds.

I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti continues performances (Evenings: Tuesday - Saturday 8 pm / Matinees.: Thursday, Saturday and Sunday 2 pm through April 6, 2014, at the George Street Playhouse, 9 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick, N.J. 08901; Box Office: 732-246-7717; Online: www.GSPonline.org.

I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti adapted by Jacques Lamarre from the memoir by Giulia Melucci; directed by Rob Ruggiero

Cast
Giulia……………Antoinette LaVecchia


- Bob Rendell