The House of Blue Leaves
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Cititour.com Review
A painfully misguided production, the revival of John Guare’s black comedy "House of Blues Leaves," sadly strains under director David Cromer’s concept - simply, that the surreal elements of the play take a backseat to the naturalistic ones. The result is Archie Bunker meets Looney Tunes. The show never finds a way to balance the characters’ human frailties with the frenetic energy needed to give the play its power.
Set in Sunnyside, Queens, in the Vietnam era, on the day the Pope is scheduled to visit, a hopelessly miscast Ben Stiller plays zoo keeper, Artie Shaughnessy who dreams of becoming a composer. It seems reasonable enough, since his childhood pal, Billy, is a successful Hollywood director. But he’s burdened with a severe lack of talent, a wife suffering from mental illness, and an AWOL son.
Stiller seems unable to manage more than an element of frustration in every action he takes. This is especially true in his scenes with wife, Bananas (Edie Falco), where clearly a great love story existed prior to her breakdown. His flat line readings, and expressionless face, do nothing to let us glimpse any of his inner turmoil. Falco is aptly depressed and sedated as Artie forces tranquilizers down her throat. Jennifer Jason Leigh, as Artie’s girlfriend, Bunny, seems thrown by the airheaded girl she’s supposed to portray.
The supporting cast is stronger including a visibly stricken Thomas Sadoski, as Billy, a wonderfully kooky Alison Pill as a deaf actress, and a take-no-prisoners nun, Mary Beth Hurt.
Guare’s elements of the ways that fame and fortune impact a life, the reality of wanting vs. having, and emotional pain on multi-levels is all evident, but unfortunately this revival of "House of Blue Leaves" is a woefully misguided attempt to impose naturalism onto a complex play painted with elements of absurdism and good old fashioned farce. The pacing is off and, as a result, most of the humorous aspects of the play fail to land.
By Lesley Alexander
Visit the Site
http://www.houseofblueleaves.com/flash.php?version=standard
Cast
Ben Stiller, Edie Falco, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Thomas Sadoski, Alison Pill, Mary Beth Hurt, Christopher Abbott, Halley Feiffer, Susan Bennett, Jimmy Davis, Tally Sessions
Open/Close Dates
Opening 4/4/2011
Closing 7/23/2011
Box Office
212-239-6200
Theatre Info
Walter Kerr Theatre
219 West 48th Street
New York, NY 10036
Map
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