| To Kill a Mockingbird and My Fair Lady yesterday | |
| Posted by: BillEadie 02:13 pm EST 02/17/19 | |
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| Yesterday was spent seeing two familiar stories in new forms. Aaron Sorkin’s adaptation of Harper Lee’s well-known, well-loved, novel doesn’t stint on the racist language of its period, language that is difficult to hear in the present day. It also doesn’t stint on distinguishing good people from evil people in the story. There’s not a lot of gray here. That said, the play is utterly engaging, and while it may not slavishly follow Ms. Lee’s novel it certainly includes all of the melodramatic moments that make it a crowd favorite (and, the crowds are certainly flocking to see it). The most substantial departure, in my memory, is how the character of Dill is portrayed. Not only is Dill’s story changed, but he’s portrayed, very deliberately, I think, by Gideon Glick. Mr. Glick’s eggagerated southern quirkiness makes him stand out from the others, and given scenes featuring Dill late in the play, I think that it was Mr. Sorkin’s intention that have him played this way. Mr. Glick is one of three young adult actors playing the children, and each does so quite credibly, in my estimation. Jeff Daniels does a nice job of making Atticus Finch bland enough to make the bromides he spouts seem less like cliches. My friend pointed out that Celia Keenan-Bolger, as Scout, quoted Thomas Merton at the end, which may be a clue to where this precocious girl might have been heading in her life. So much as been said recently about the cast replacements in Lincoln Center Theater’s production of My Fair Lady that there’s not much for me to add. It is a sumptuous production that runs like the Italian trains did during World War II, and everything falls into place quite nicely. Laura Benanti and Harry Hadden-Paton-Paton were evenly matched, as they should be, Danny Burstein was a bundle of energy as Alfred P. Doolittle, without giving way to shtick, as so easily happens in this role. Linda Muggleston as Mrs. Pearce and Allan Corduner as Colonel Pickering gracefully provided necessary balance in the Higgins household. And Rosemary Harris was delightfully sly as Mrs. Higgins. With the replacements, this production feels fresh and new. I hope it runs a long time. Bill, looking forward to two more shows before returning to San Diego |
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