JITNEY Previews- Page 2
JITNEY Previews
#25JITNEY Previews
Posted: 1/4/17 at 8:13pm
HBBrock said: "Whizzer - I've always loved reading your first and early preview reviews and just purchased two tickets because of your comments."
Agreed. I find myself reading and re-reading Whizzer, before and after seeing those both on my list and not.
I was in NY last week and fortunate enough to land an excellent seat at the last minute through TodayTix. So very, very glad that I saw this and had the opportunity to shake hands and say thank you to R S-H for an outstanding production.
This is absolutely a must-see. I look forward to attending again at the end of the run.
Matt Rogers
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/4/04
#26JITNEY Previews
Posted: 1/5/17 at 11:43am
I agree with the other reviews. This is an excellent production of a very good play. However, i do have one major problem with it, and I'll discuss that below:
SPOILER IN
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There is a famous old dramatic principle often referred to as "Chekhov's gun", and it goes something like this: If you show a gun in Act One, you'd better damned well make sure that it goes off in Act Two. Obviously, that doesn't happen here, and I'm really not sure why. A whole impending sense of dread is set up by the confrontation with the gun in Act One and I was certain that was going to lead to some sort of tragedy (with the gun) in Act Two, but that is basically abandoned in favor of the son/father conflict.
Maybe it's a matter of just so much drama being jammed into one play, but I just thought it was all a bit odd.
Still, it's a relatively minor quibble in a production that is so well acted and directed that it really makes you forget the outside world for two and a half hours.
A must see.
#27JITNEY Previews
Posted: 1/5/17 at 12:06pm
I saw the show Sunday night and was seated in the fourth row of the mezzanine, a bit on the side but not that far over, via TDF. The view was excellent, and it's a great vantage point to take in the wonderful set and the backdrop behind it, which evokes Pittsburgh so evocatively (my kid went to college there, so I was a frequent visitor to that city).
I think the mezzanine at the Friedman is less good for sound, as someone else had mentioned. I don't know if it's just me, but I had trouble understanding Anthony Chisholm, who is an experienced August Wilson hand and plays the alcoholic Fielding to perfection. He slurred his words because the character is drinking during the play, and I think that was my main problem. He was excellent, though, as all the actors are. It's a really marvelous ensemble, and it's always a joy to see John Douglas Thompson in particular.
As far as the play itself goes, I am an August Wilson newbie, pretty much. But Jitney didn't move me as much as the recent Piano Lesson at Signature. That play, with its layers of meaning that the family's history brings to bear, was astounding. I totally enjoyed Jitney, but it didn't hit me emotionally.
I'm really glad I saw it, though, and I recommend it highly. I hope to be able to see all the August Wilson plays at some point. My theater partner recommended I try to catch Joe Turner's Come and Gone, so I'll keep a lookout for that.
#28JITNEY Previews
Posted: 1/6/17 at 10:36pm
Does anyone know if today tix charges a service fee for the digital rush?
#29JITNEY Previews
Posted: 1/8/17 at 8:41pm
This is definitely an early career work by an artist who was still finding his voice. There are issues in the writing--abrupt tonal shifts, occasionally tin-eared dialogue--that were largely tightened up in later Wilson works. And even some of the central characters (like Youngblood) feel underdeveloped. That said, there is a lot to enjoy and admire here, and I'm glad this is on Broadway in a terrific production from Ruben Santiago-Hudson. For my money, Brandon J. Dirden is the best interpreter of this repertory around, so I was glad to see him turn in a smoldering performance in the central role. He and John Douglas Thompson, as his father, are absolutely riveting in the final scene of Act 1, which echoes the father-son dynamic Wilson would come to explore in Fences. The supporting cast is largely strong as well; in particular, Michael Potts is a delight as the busybody Turnbo. I wasn't taken with Carra Patterson's Rena, but that is largely because the character is flat (a recurring problem throughout Wilson's oeuvre--a rather hollow understanding of, or interest in, the female experience). Despite my reservations, this is definitely a production to see.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
#31JITNEY Previews
Posted: 1/9/17 at 5:55am
It's 2.5 hours, give or take. Yesterday's matinee began a few minutes after 2 and finished at 4:30 sharp. Act 1 was around 1:15 and Act 2 was a little under an hour.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
#32JITNEY Previews
Posted: 1/9/17 at 7:29am
BroadwayLuv2 said: "Does anyone know if today tix charges a service fee for the digital rush?
"
Yes! they do, it's 7.5$ per ticket. They don't mention this when you order it, of course.
10086sunset
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/8/16
#33JITNEY Previews
Posted: 1/11/17 at 11:45pm
What a beautifully acted play...Wilson is truly one of the best playwrights of the 20th century...
Really liked Andre Holland's Young Blood...
The end of the first act is some of the best acting I've seen all season...
It's just a pleasure to watch this show...Kudos to the cast and Santiago-Hudson...
MTC has been knocking it out of the park this season...
#34JITNEY Previews
Posted: 1/12/17 at 11:52am
I was fortunate to score rush tickets through today tix and I have to agree with everyone- this play was a amazing.
#35JITNEY Previews
Posted: 2/25/17 at 11:57pm
Was there tonight and greatly enjoyed it! It's certainly a flawed play- the ending sorta comes out of nowhere, and a subplot could probably be trimmed here or there, but even so it's a lovely and very enjoyable play.
It's always a treat to see John Douglas Thompson in a show, and he again does wonderful work here. Michael Potts and Keith Randolph Smith are also excellent. Sadly, Andre Holland was out, but Stephen Tyrone Williams made a fine Youngblood (even though it's an oddly underwritten part).
Ruben Santiago-Hudson's direction is pitch-perfect, and all the technically elements are spot-on. I was very happy to see that the audience looked packed, and I encourage everyone to see it before the run ends. Just a totally satisfying night of theatre.
I am a firm believer in serendipity- all the random pieces coming together in one wonderful moment, when suddenly you see what their purpose was all along.
C4b2a3b
Stand-by Joined: 8/13/08
#36JITNEY Previews
Posted: 2/26/17 at 12:07am
I also caught this Friday night and loved it. The Act 1 finale knocked me off my feet, and I hope John Douglas Thomas earns at least a Tony nomination for this. After seeing some other takes on Becker on YouTube after the show, I am even more in awe of Thomas' ability to create such a complexly sympathetic and tragic character.
Question for those who have seen it, what is your interpretation of the company's play with the spotlight after Boomer punches Doub?
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