Last weekend, Special K and I went to see David Mamet's new play, "November", on Broadway. Concerned that the performance would feature only understudies (since we went on the Sunday afternoon of the Tony Awards), we popped by the theater box office to to make sure the original cast would be performing. We were assured they would and as we turned to head back to TKTS to get tickets, a woman asked us if we needed two seats -- she had three tickets, but her two friends had been unable to come at the last minute. She gave us the two orchestra level seats for $50 each and the deal was done.November was an absolute treat, as most David Mamet productions tend to be. The script was clever and witty, the audience punctuating the performance often with belly laughs. Nathan Lane was impeccable as a mostly clueless, but ironically shrewd, President Charles Smith whose biggest concern is why he's not going to have a library named after him (and how he's going to explain THAT to the First Lady). Both Laurie Metcalf and Dylan Baker were also excellent in their roles, portraying top level staffers with quirky personalities of their own.
We thoroughly enjoyed the performance and would highly recommend it. Such a refreshing theater experience after Grease the weekend before.
PS (I am finally off the phone with the cell phone company after 44 minutes of trying to solve a billing issue while intermittently being put on hold... with really bad Muzak.)
3 comments:
I've heard nothing but iffy things about November, which I've been generally inclined to believe since I'm not much of a Mamet fan (though I did enjoy his On Acting, concurring with much of his take on acting (my goal in life always was to be an actor...despite the study of history and current job). :) Anyway, glad you enjoyed it. I miss a lot of things about New York, but I miss the theatre most. God, I loved being able to see a play whenever I wanted to. Did you get a chance to see Sweeney Todd or any of The Coast of Utopia a couple years ago? (I'm such a huge theatre nerd.)
Unfortunately, did not get to see Todd or Utopia... I am a big Tom Stoppard fan, so I was disappointed to have missed Utopia. It got rave reviews. But I do have a stack of Playbills half as tall as me, so I have definitely been trying to soak up the theatre when I can.
I didn't know about the acting goals! That's cool -- nothing but respect for people who put themselves out there like that. :)
Utopia was flawed but the scope and feeling and (most of) the performances pretty much made up for its flaws. I saw all three parts from the fourth row and it really was special. Sweeney Todd was just super-terrific. I saw it four times during its run. :)
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