BWW Review: Don Bluth Front Row Theatre Presents HARVEY Lee Cooley Glows As Elwood P. Dowd
by Herbert Paine
- Jan 15, 2018
The Chase is on at Don Bluth Front Row Theatre. That is, Mary Chase's comedy, HARVEY, that (beyond her other plays and children's stories) made her famous (a Pulitzer Prize) and gave James Stewart one of his truly classic roles. Lee Cooley, with an impeccable sense of character and comic timing, endows Elwood P. Dowd with an irresistible likability. He captures the mannerisms, even the tongue in cheek, of a gentleman drinker who knows more than he may let on and plays his counterparts to the hilt. The show runs through February 24th.
BWW Interview: HARVEY Is Coming To the Valley of the Sun
by Herbert Paine
- Jan 7, 2018
HARVEY, Mary Chase's 1945 Pulitzer Prize winning comedy, is slated to hop into the Don Bluth Front Row Theatre in Scottsdale from January 12th through February 24th. In its multiple adaptations, most notably the 1950 film with Jimmy Stewart, the tale of Elwood P. Dowd and his imaginary pooka has always been a source of amusement and inspiration. In advance of the opening, Herb Paine sat down with Lee Cooley, who plays the role of Elwood, to get a rabbit's-eye view of the show and some perspective on the actor himself.
BWW Review: Make Room For A BENCH IN THE SUN ~ It Radiates With Humor and Insight
by Herbert Paine
- Jul 14, 2017
An entirely delightful gem of a production of Ron Clark's A BENCH IN THE SUN has opened at Don Bluth Front Row Theatre, and the chemistry between its two leads is a sight to behold. Lee Cooley (revealing an impeccable sense of comic timing and caricature) and Jim Coates (an ideal foil to his benchmate's bon mots and taunts) are polar opposites, Harold and Burt, residents of Valley View Gardens, joined at their arthritic hips by the bonds of time ~ past, present, and the inevitable future. Donna Kaufman adds spice to the mix as a still starry-eyed veteran of filmdom who catches the boys' eyes.
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