Familial Turbulence Rocks Boat in 'Harbor'

Kevin (Randy Harrison), Ted (Paul Anthony Stewart) and Donna (Erin Cummings) form an odd triangle in "Harbor." Photos by Carol Rosegg.

BY TAMARA BECK

FOR some, family is more a punch in the gut then a loving tap on the shoulder.

In other words, kinship can be a scary thing, as it is in Chad Beguelin’s “Harbor.” The play is in a Primary Stages production at 59E59 Theaters through 8 Sept.

When she drops in on her brother Kevin (Randy Harrison), Donna Adams (Erin Cummings) disrupts the nicely ordered life he has established with his husband, Ted (Paul Anthony Stewart).

Along with her teen daughter, Lottie (Alexis Molnar), Donna brings some “brick(s) of truth” – a favored expression for unwelcome tidings – into Ted and Kevin’s home. Donna is a force of destruction, shattering their Sag Harbor idyll.

CB has written a heartbreakingly poignant comedy, full of mordant humor and some of those moments where reality meets consequences. He has peopled “Harbor” with characters whose flawed humanity is sketched in intimate and loving detail. “Harbor” defies pigeonholing but could be called a dramedy for simplicity’s sake.

Lottie (Alexis Molnar) and Donna (Erin Cummings) are on a truth-seeking journey in "Harbor."

The exceptional script is buoyed by an excellent ensemble. All four actors, under Mark Lamos’ direction, give sensational, multifaceted performances.

The gorgeous set by Andrew Jackness makes a perfect backdrop for “Harbor.” The exterior of the immaculate home shows up on the wallpaper of its interiors. The design is a picture of order, onto which Donna can work her powers of disarray, and Lottie can get a sense of stillness and peace.

Visit http://www.primarystages.org/harbor to learn more about “Harbor.”

'Rx' Isn't a Placebo. It'll Result in Genuine Laughter.

Meena (Marin Hinkle) and Paul(Stephen Kunken) are in search of the right prescription for happiness in "Rx." Photos by James Leynse.

BY TAMARA BECK

HATE your job? There’s a pill for that.

In Kate Fodor’s new comedy, “Rx,” it appears that Big Pharma has a prescription for all of life’s tribulations. The Primary Stages production is at 59E59 Theaters through 3 March.

Meena Pierotti (Marin Hinkle), a published poet, is miserable being Managing Editor at “Piggeries, American Cattle & Swine Magazine.” She is the perfect candidate for a clinical trial of a drug being developed by the pharmaceutical company, Schmidt Pharma. The drug is designed to relieve work-related depression.

Just ask Meena's boyfriend, Dr. Phil Gray (Stephen Kunken), who doubles as the drug’s target consumer and a Schmidt researcher. He earns upward of $65,000 and has health coverage, he informs her.

Phil’s boss, Allison (Elizabeth Rich), is thrilled with her job and the rich market potential job dissatisfaction presents. Could Frances (Marylouise Burke), a cheerful widow Meena meets in the old ladies’ underwear section of a department store be a part of the clinical trial? To Meena’s surprise, Frances discloses that she really missed her menial factory job when she got married.

Frances (Marylouise Burke) shares her worldview with Meena (Marin Hinkle) in "Rx."

The cast under Ethan McSweeny’s excellent direction gives KF’s witty and entertaining script its due. To help keep up the comic pace, Lee Savage cleverly uses modular variations on the Murphy bed in the fluid set design.

Giving the satire in “Rx” a little extra bite are MH and SK, both Tony nominated for “Enron.” They give affecting naturalistic performances as the romantic leads. In one of two roles, Paul Niebanck, gives a broad, almost slapstick turn as Morgan, a bumbling research doctor in Schmidt’s lab.

In “Rx,” KF writes a prescription for entertaining and earnest humor.

Visit http://www.primarystages.org/ for more information about “Rx.”

Not in Their Back Yard in 'Neighbourhood Watch'

Martin (Matthew Cottle) and company push back against hooliganism in "Neighbourhood Watch." Photos by Karl Andre Photography.

BY TAMARA BECK

LISTENING to the shrill noise of fear-mongering can make vigilantes of even the most mild mannered.

In “Neighbourhood Watch,” a Brits Off Broadway production at 59E59 Theaters through 1 Jan., it’s the pacifist Martin (Matthew Cottle) who has turned activist.

Matthew has just moved to The Bluebell Hill Development with his sister, Hilda (Alexandra Mathie), who mobilizes his neighbors against the threats of lawlessness from the nearby housing project, or “estate” as the British more grandly call it.

Martin, egged on by Rod (Terence Booth) who is a “retired security bloke,” organizes a crime watch with his neighbors. “It’s either a fence or a dozen yobbos coming up the hill,” Rod says, “intent on vandalizing the place.”

Fueled by this paranoia, the newcomers overreact, setting up committees for self-defense. They also issue identity cards to the tenants and have industrial fencing installed about the perimeter. Martin and Hilda even put Gareth (Richard Derrington), an out of work engineer, to work building stocks and other deterrents to bad behavior.

In “Neighbourhood Watch,” the acting is universally intelligent and understated. Frances Grey as the resident tart, Amy, is a cheerfully welcome complement to the bachelors and loners in the cast of characters.

The play moves a bit slowly in the first act through what seems like endless committee meetings. Perhaps, though, this is playwright and director Alan Ayckbourn’s way of demonstrating the tedium of such proceedings.

Alexandra Mathie as Hilda and Frances Grey as Amy in "Neighbourhood Watch."

By the way, the headline in this commentary could be that this is AA’s 75th play since 1959 when he started writing at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in North Yorkshire. He was also the theater's artistic director until his retirement in 2009. At the age of 72, the Knight and recipient of both the British Olivier and American Tony Awards for Special Lifetime Achievement, has not lost his touch at very British humor.

As “Neighbourhood Watch” progresses, it comes as no surprise that Martin’s plan to defend life and property falls apart, creating more mayhem than it foils. The way that everything unravels in the play is hilariously pulled together so that in the end it earns its standing as bittersweet farce in the AA canon.

To learn more about “Neighbourhood Watch” visit http://http://www.britsoffbroadway.com/ or http://www.59e59.org/.

Bountiful Laughs in 'Olive and the Bitter Herbs'

David Garrison as Robert, Dan Butler as Trey, Marcia Jean Kurtz as Olive, Richard Masur as Sylvan and Julie Halston as Wendy in "Olive and the Bitter Herbs." Photos by James Leynse.

BY TAMARA BECK

SOMETIMES it seems as if playwright Charles Busch has been outrageously funny forever, so it is no surprise that his latest work, “Olive and the Bitter Herbs,” elicits hearty guffaws.

CB revisits some familiar tropes with “Olive and the Bitter Herbs.” It is in a premiere run at 59E59 Theaters’ Primary Stages through 3 Sept. As often happens in a CB comedy, there are eccentrics whose stories overlap and intersect to hilarious effect.

In “Olive and the Bitter Herbs,” the ghost in Olive Fisher’s (Marcia Jean Kurtz) mirror is one of the few things she welcomes into her life.

Despite her relative good fortune, Olive remains a curmudgeon, bristling at minor slights and quarrelling happily with everyone. Her neighbors, Robert (David Garrison) and Trey (Dan Butler), are particularly irksome to her. Her selfless friend Wendy (Julie Halston) stages a truce, inviting Trey and Robert for cocktails at Olive’s.

During this visit the ghost also becomes a person of interest for each of her guests. That particular visitor is probably (or improbably) the reason that Robert and Trey continue to hang around. In another unlikely twist and out of the blue Olive is asked and agrees to host a Seder, explaining the title of the play and offering an occasion for gags.

Wendy (Julie Halston) is a good friend to temperamental Olive (Marcia Jean Kurtz) in "Olive and the Bitter Herbs."

Rounding out the little horde at Olive’s door is Sylvan (Richard Masur), the widowed father of the co-op’s president (like the ghost, unseen on stage.) He comes by to apologize for an altercation Olive started with his daughter in the building’s newly renovated lobby.

MJK is very funny as Olive, a mildly successful actress whose claim to fame was a starring role in one of those viral commercials some time back.

CB’s stock characters – angry and unpleasant New Yorkers, a bickering gay couple, a helpful handmaiden single woman and a mellowed-out retiree – are anything but stick figures as brought to life by a fine cast under the direction of Mark Brokaw.

Visit http://www.primarystages.org/ to learn more about “Olive and the Bitter Herbs.”

A Tale Straight Outta Brooklyn in 'Brownsville Bred'

Elaine Del Valle uses song, dance and humor to help tell her story in "Brownsville Bred." Photos by Ron Marotta.

BY TAMARA BECK

ELAINE Del Valle, a kind of female John Leguizamo, tells her personal history with sincerity and gusto.

The Latina from Brownsville, Brooklyn doesn’t have JL’s edge or anger, but she matches his captivating energy and exuberant charisma. In “Brownsville Bred,” at 59E59 Theaters through 31 July, EDV generously shares her life in a frank and moving narrative. As she recounts the disquieting story of her childhood in the 1980s in one of New York’s notoriously dangerous neighborhoods, EDV presents a portrait of a girl full of savvy innocence and wonder.

“Brownsville Bred” was developed by EDV with Wynn Handman, artistic director of The American Place Theatre, as part of the One Act Festival in NYC. It grew out of EDV's solo show at the Nuyorican Poets Café and expanded into a full evening program when it played in Los Angeles. It moved from L.A. to Westchester’s The Schoolhouse Theater under the direction of Pamela Moller Kareman who brings it to its off-Broadway run.

Elaine Del Valle grew up in tough circumstances but maintained an optimistic outlook about which she reminisces in "Brownsville Bred."

Her mother, EDV says, “always found ways to be happy” and it seems that that good nature passed on to her daughter. EDV relates some very distressing incidents without asking for sympathy, although her stories might elicit a few tears. Because she can see the bright side of things, “Brownsville Bred” is unexpectedly funny and entertaining.

EDV raps, sings, dances and impersonates the characters in her lifestory. There are tragedies in the telling, but also plenty of inspiration and fun. Her warmth, wit and intelligence are as fetching as her looks.

Elaine Del Valle takes a breathtaking journey down memory lane in "Brownsville Bred."

The performer emerged from poverty and family tragedy to act in films, including “Donnie Brasco,” “Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight” and “Undercover Dora” from the “Dora the Explorer” series. Brownsville may have bred her, but EDV is an impressively self-made star doing a turn in a gutsy, compelling and original must-see show.

Visit http://www.59e59.org/ to learn more about “Brownsville Bred.”

Elaine Del Valle & Friends Post-Mortem

TALK-BACKS offers a chance to join rising star Elaine Del Valle for a discussion after the final two Sunday performances of “Brownsville Bred” at 59E59 Theaters. After tomorrow’s performance of her one-woman show, EDV and playwright Candido Tirado (“Celia: The Life and Music of Celia Cruz” will lead the conversation. On Sunday, 31 July, she and Daniel Gallant, executive director of Nuyorican Poets Café, will offer an after-performance perspective on “Brownsville Bred.”

'The Play About My Dad' Operates on Two Planes

Tracey Gilbert as Sallye Killebrew, Anna Greenfield as Boo Killebrew and Jay Potter as Larry Killebrew in "The Play About My Dad. Photos by Chantel C. Lucier.

BY TAMARA BECK

SIX years after it hit New Orleans and the surrounding area, Hurricane Katrina has become emblematic of government mismanagement and citizen tenacity.

“The Play About My Dad,” at 59E59 Theaters as part of “Americas Off Broadway” through 2 July, is also symbolic of stalled and uprooted relationships, and not surprisingly, heartache.

When Boo Killebrew’s (Anna Greenfield) play begins, Larry Killebrew (Jay Potter) introduces himself as the playwright’s father, a doctor who is preparing for a day at the office. He will be telling his stories about Katrina and he is a good storyteller. Larry is also the subject and narrator of "The Play About My Father, setting up storylines and playing them out. Boo acts as a kind of stage manager, running lights and fidgeting about with the crates that serve as scenery for the play.

“The Play About My Dad” tells its story as a play within a play – using “magical realism,” Boo says, “and (we’ll) make the whole thing sort of like a tapestry” – so it unfolds on many levels and in various timeframes.

Annie Henk, Juan Francisco Villa, David Rosenblatt, TJ Witham, Jordan Mahome and Geany Masai in "The Play About My Dad."

The “side stories” that unfold in “The Play About My Dad include that of the Thomas family, Jay (Juan Francisco Villa), Rena (Annie Henk) and their 5-year-old son, Michael (David Rosenblatt). (DR is an adult actor whose portrayal of a scared little boy is simply spot on). The Thomases have chosen not to evacuate to Georgia, instead waiting out the storm with a “hurricane party.”

Before going to the hospital Larry gets food for friends and colleagues and stops by to see Essie Watson (Geany Masai) to try to convince her to wait out Katrina at the hospital with him. Miss Essie, Larry’s nanny for many years, alone and old, refuses to budge. Larry boards up her windows and goes to work.

Despite its unusual structure, there is a naturalism to “The Play About My Dad” that gives it its wit, wisdom and heart.

Visit http://www.59e59.org/ to learn more about “The Play About My Dad.”

‘WTC View’ a Lucid Window on a Still-Fresh Tragedy

Eric (Nick Lewis) and Alex (Patrick Edward O’Brien) sorting things out in “WTC View.” Photos by Carol Rosegg.

BY TAMARA BECK

CONVENTIONAL wisdom has it that traumatic events require distance in the retelling.

“WTC View” disproves this notion. With the perspective of just a few years, Brian Sloan created a simple, compelling memorial to 9/11. As “WTC View” illustrates, it is not too soon, even before the 10th anniversary, to look back at the days surrounding that tragic day.

The filmmaker has reworked “WTC View,” part of Americas Off Broadway at 59E59 Theaters through Sunday (hurry!), since it premiered at the New York International Fringe Festival in 2003. In 2006, BS adapted “WTC View,” his first play, into a movie featuring Michael Urie. (See video of the film at http://www.imdb.com/video/wab/vi2557411353/)

The play is beautiful and moving, focusing on Eric (Nick Lewis ) who was close enough in his SoHo flat to watch the Towers fall. Eric had placed an ad, just days before that infamous September morning, for a roommate.

Eric (Nick Lewis) is looking for a roommate amid trouble in “WTC View.”

NL is very appealing, mastering a demanding role that keeps him centerstage for most of two intermissionless hours. He is subtle in revealing the feelings under Eric’s glib banter.

Loss and pain resonate in “WTC View” as each character adds his own story to the telling.

Among those responding to Eric’s ad is Kevin (Michael Carlsen), a wisecracking trucker who can’t go back to his Battery Park apartment. MC is exhilarating as the adorably punchy Kevin.

Despite the tinge of stereotyping of the characters who inhabit the play, some of them just voices on Eric’s answering machine, “WTC View” rises above cliché.

Josie (Leah Curney) is Eric's (Nick Lewis) Uptown friend in “WTC View.”

Eric’s best friend, Josie (Leah Curney ), for instance, is a bit of a type. The Upper East Sider took him shopping before 9/11 at Century 21 and brings him cupcakes from Magnolia Bakery. Max (Martin Edward Cohen ), a student from NYU, delivers a rant about the lack of respect for students, despite the many ways in which they have helped change the world. Will (a voice role for Jay Gaussoin ) is Eric’s concerned and protective ex-lover from Brooklyn who calls him “Honey.”

"WTC View” unfolds gracefully and naturally. BS’s artistry makes the story both personal and general. It is raw, intimate and emotional without being the least bit maudlin.

"WTC View" is a New Yorker's story about an event that belongs as much to the rest of the country as it does the locals who experienced it firsthand.

Visit http://www.59e59.org/ to learn more about "WTC View."