She Loves Me
Official Blurb: She Loves Me follows Amalia and Georg, two parfumerie clerks who aren’t quite the best of friends. Constantly bumping heads while on the job, the sparring coworkers can’t seem to find common ground. But little do they know the anonymous pen pals they have both been falling for happen to be each other! Will love continue to blossom once their identities are finally revealed? In celebration of Roundabout Theatre Company’s 50th anniversary, She Loves Me returns to Broadway for the first time since it triumphantly launched Roundabout’s musical theatre initiative over 20 years ago. Based on the same story that inspired the hit movie You’ve Got Mail, She Loves Me stars Tony® winner Laura Benanti (Gypsy, “Nashville”), Zachary Levi (“Heroes Reborn,” “Chuck”), Tony nominee Gavin Creel (Hair), Byron Jennings (You Can’t Take It With You) and Tony winner Michael McGrath (Nice Work If You Can Get It) and Tony winner and Emmy® nominee Jane Krakowski (Nine, “30 Rock”).
My Take: Such a delightful show. Here it really is not about the music, because I think I forgot every song by a couple of minutes out of the theater. However the story is super charming and the performances are spectacular. The combination of Laura Benanti, Zachary Levi, Jane Krakowski and Gavin Creel is superb and a treat to witness as an audience. Specially great is Laura Benanti. Her voice is not the type to be my favorite, but here it just soared, the music was perfect for her. I especially loved her Ice cream song. Jane Krakowski does her usual shtick of sexy sidekick but it’s still quite good to watch. The set is another character in the show and its beautiful. Like one of those toy houses that you could open up when you were little, its quirky and charming, just like the show.
My only qualm – I hated the scenes with the waiter of the cafe, and especially hated *spoiler* alert that a dramatic shot scene was followed with the stupid scene that is Romantic atmosphere. I really enjoyed everything else about this!!
I also should note that the Box Office people at Roundabout are super nice! they were very accommodating in changing my tickets from a performance when Jane Krakoswki was out to another show – I appreciate the good service!
Media from the website:
The Father
Official Blurb: Three-time Tony Award winner Frank Langella returns to the stage in The Father, an all-new Broadway production of the play which captivated Paris and London. Winner of the Molière Award, France’s most prestigious honor for a new work of theater, and The Guardian’s pick for “Best Play of the Year.” Now nominated for two 2016 Tony Awards, including Best Play and Best Actor, Frank Langella.Critics from London’s Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph, Times, The Guardian, The Mail on Sunday, The Observer, The Daily Mail, The Sunday Telegraph, Evening Standard, and The Financial Times all gave the play five stars. The Guardiancalled Zeller’s work “an astonishingly unguarded play about the cruelties of love and the limits of patience.” The Evening Standard called The Father “perfectly measured and quietly devastating.” Now 80 years old, André (Frank Langella) was once a tap dancer. He lives with his daughter Anne (Kathryn Erbe) and her husband Antoine. Or was he an engineer whose daughter Anne lives in London with her new lover, Pierre? The thing is, he is still wearing his pajamas, and he can’t find his watch. He is starting to wonder if he’s losing control.
My Take: Lets be honest this is not a play about the story but about the performance, and based on that it was a great night at the theater. The story is absolutely confusing, which is part of the charm of the show I guess, as you are meant to be seeing the events from the viewpoint of the main character that has dementia, therefore nothing should be making sense and you as an audience are as confused as him. THe amazing thing is seeing Frank Langella in a 90 minutes tour de force performance. His depth of emotion and breath of variation in what he has to do is just very very good and as an acting lesson its worth the price of admission. the lighting design is something quite interesting too and very important in getting you into the modo of the play. I wasnt fully convinced with Kathryn Erbe as the daughter, her voice was a bit grating, but then again she is a side show to what you really come to see. Overall: a Decent play which is a vehicle for an extraordinary performance
Tati's Tidbits 