BWW Reviews: YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU (But You Can Go Back and See It Again)

Anna Chlumsky and Richard Thomas have been added to the top-flight ensemble of director Scott Ellis' sparkling revival of You Can't Take It With You; still one of the most charming and funny evenings Broadway has to offer.

Kaufman and Hart's 1937 Pulitzer-winner is a classic treatment of the comical chestnut about a meet-up between an eccentric family of non-conformists and a more conservative one when young lovers nervously announce their intentions.

Set in the stately New York home owned by family patriarch Martin Vanderhof, the proper exterior the audience sees as they enter revolves to reveal the cuckoo's nest inside and the hearty laughs and endearing sentiment don't stop until the final curtain call.

Headliner James Earl Jones recently celebrated his 84th birthday on a 2-performance Saturday as Vanderhof, a sunny dispositioned grandfather who gave up a successful business career so he could enjoy living. The seasoned actor twinkles with light-footed charm and philosophical zest.

Kristine Nielsen is all sweet and jittery fun as his daughter, Penny, an aspiring playwright who spends her days working on several unfinished dramas. Richard Thomas brings warm sincerity, stepping into the role of her husband, Paul, who makes fireworks in the basement with the help of his assistant, Mr. DePinna (deadpan Patrick Kerr).

Annaleigh Ashford offers the production's funniest performance and literally dances off with the evening as Penny and Paul's daughter, Essie, who's always seen prancing around the living room in her toe shoes. Reg Rogers is great fun as her wildly artistic Russian dance instructor.

Chlumsky steps into the role of Penny and Paul's more conventional daughter, Alice, a Wall Street secretary who has been dating an executive's son, Tony (Fran Kranz). When Tony proposes, Alice is afraid that a meeting between their two families would be a disaster and Chlumsky is both funny and touching as Penny balances her deep affection for her family with her failing nerves at the prospect of losing her shot at true love.

Byron Jennings and Johanna Day are perfect foils as Tony's conservative, well-off parents, who are not only flustered by the antics of their hosts, but allow a party game to let some uncomfortable relationship issues surface.

Other visitors include Elizabeth Ashley as a grandly regal deposed Russian noble who escaped the homeland during the revolution and is now a waitress at Childs' and Julie Halston as a drunken actress Penny recruits for one of her plays.

Underneath it all is the simple message of enjoying what life has to offer instead of continually trying to earn more money. After all, as the title says...

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