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| "Kings" Today (Minor Spoilers) | |
| Posted by: student_rush 03:40 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
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| Not a terrible play, but made worse by spotty direction, poor design, and a miscast central character. Gillian Jacobs is a true detriment to this production. Clearly uncomfortable on stage, she fails at her first task (simple exposition in the opening scene) and continues to make every scene she's in actively worse than it should be. Not a spark of chemistry between her and the other young woman. Ugly design and ugly lighting and lazy stage tricks to keep us entertained and attentive. The less said about those laughable miniature turntables, the better. I think Kail is a gifted musical director, elevating the material to be the star of the show and shying away from overt and heavy directorial touches. His "Grease Live!" was exceptional in navigating the unique format in which it was being presented, and ranks among the best of the LIVE! productions. But his straight-play work seems much more all over the place. Today's matinee was about a third empty, which surprised me given Kail's pedigree and Jacobs' fame among millennials. |
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| Very well said... | |
| Last Edit: Pashacar 04:14 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
| Posted by: Pashacar 04:10 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
| In reply to: "Kings" Today (Minor Spoilers) - student_rush 03:40 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
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| Surprised to see a misfire on so many levels, considering the venue and pedigree of those involved. A couple other observations, for what they're worth: I was also surprised and disappointed to see that Aya Cash, an experienced stage actor, tended to match Jacobs' style and seeming discomfort on stage, bringing down many of her scenes in a similar way to what you described. The scenes with the two of them together felt embarrassingly amateurish, like they were reciting lines for the first time from a script they'd never read before. Eisa Davis, on the other hand, was radiant and engaging for every second she was on stage. I found that she rose far above the lackluster material and creative choices, and I very much enjoyed watching her, at least. The mixed bag of this particular production aside, I found the play itself pretty inert. What was the message? Money in politics is......bad? Do any audience members in 2018 not know and feel that already? If the aim was to be less of an issue play and more of an examination of the two lobbyists, their journeys, and their inner lives, a lot needs to be rewritten (and whoever casts the next production needs to make some dramatically different decisions, too). |
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| re: Very well said... | |
| Posted by: davei2000 09:25 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
| In reply to: Very well said... - Pashacar 04:10 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
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| I won't disagree about the acting, and I wasn't impressed when the tables started rotating in the last third, but the play seems to be conceived as a procedural, how corruption works day to day. And why it wins. That much of it I found useful. | |
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| re: Very well said... | |
| Posted by: teka21 04:33 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
| In reply to: Very well said... - Pashacar 04:10 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
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| Bingo! | |
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| re: Very well said... | |
| Posted by: TheatreGuy 08:59 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
| In reply to: re: Very well said... - teka21 04:33 pm EDT 03/31/18 | |
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| As soon as I walked in to the theatre and realized that it was the same writer who wrote Dry Powder, I knew we were in trouble. I thought that play was torture and only made better by a couple of strong performances (and weakened by one very poor performance). I felt the same here. Why is this playwright being produced at The Public? She is out of her league. | |
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