A Day at the Theater

We trooped into Manhattan to see two plays, one matinee and one evening. I enjoyed both with reservations, although not everyone did.

"Mouth to Mouth" by Kevin Elyot and directed by Mark Brokaw is a disturbing yet intriguing play, skillfully crafted, albeit with flaws, about, what else: a dysfunctional family. It's English, at least, and not American. It's playing at The New Group through December 27th. Here's what was good about the play: its structure made the revelations of each character surprising, sometimes believable, sometimes a bit contrived. I can't tell you much about the plot, because of how everything is buried into the structure of the play. However, there are two performances to watch. David Cale plays Frank, an ailing friend of the family, whose face and features are quite mesmerizing, making the opening scene where he gives a long and indecipherable monologue to his woman friend who doesn't speak, seductive and engaging. And then there is Christopher Abbott, an actor on the move, who plays the young boy Phillip, whose age, sexual orientation, and motivations remain ambiguous throughout.

What's wrong with the play? It needs editing. There is a dreadfully long and rather boring scene towards the middle of the play that goes well beyond where it needed to go in establishing characters. And there is some tedious overacting by Lisa Emery who didn't need to incorporate a stutter into her later scenes. Her face is so transparent that her sorrow was quite evident. My husband found the play too slow, too ponderous, and like a chef who doesn't quite know what is wrong with a recipe, just throws more butter in, he found the playwright to have done the same with red herrings and loose ends. Stu and I liked the play the best; Ginger and Jordan were luke warm, although Ginger was more intrigued by the structure than Jordan was.

"Boy's Life" by Howard Korder, directed by Michael Greif, is at Second Stage. First premiered in 1988, it still has a lot to say about young men, their desperation to get laid, their inability to connect with each other, and the cruelty that too often accompanies close relationships among heterosexual men. The staging was inventive, with modules of scenery moved by cast members. The writing was authentic and the acting, well, the acting was superb. Rhys Coiro, who played the crazy director of "Queens Boulevard" and "Medellin" on "Entourage" plays Jack, the "kingpin" of the threesome, with a sharp sarcastic wit and demands of loyalty that certainly appeared familiar to all of us. He is the withholding, judgmental, underachiever who makes everyone's life miserable. Peter Scanavino is Don whose vulnerability is both endearing and pathetic. And Jason Biggs plays Phil, the neurotic worrier.

Entertaining, authentic, a very honest play about young men who have been raised just to be boys, this play provides insight into men that we often don't see in theater.