HARVEY Previews- Page 2

[nasty_khakis]

Posted: 5/20/12 at 6:19pm

I for the life of me will never understand the Hecht love. She is always acting. She affects her voice, adopts insane mannerisms, and plays schtick while managing never to be in the moment. People seem to love her and eat her up, but I've never gotten it. He voice grated on my brain in "View From the Bridge" but I will say her style was better suited to "Harvey" but I found myself wanting her to either play it more naturally or go even further with the craziness.

Parsons is charming and carries it well, but is sassy southern charm like he always uses. It works fine for Elwood but he does come off a touch "simple" in moments instead of just bon vivant charmer.

It was one of the best non-imported Roundabout shows I've seen in years. The piece is doughnuts for dinner fluff, but still a nice way to spend the afternoon.

[robin105]

Posted: 5/20/12 at 7:22pm

I'm so excited to see this show. I'm seeing it in July. One question I have is where is Jim coming out to sign autographs? From the pictures I've seen it looks like the back of Roseland Ballroom. I'm going on Tuesday to try and meet him. I'm really excited.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 5/20/12 at 8:22pm

I was there this afternoon and I certainly enjoyed it, but I actually liked the first act better than the second. It felt a bit long, but it's a trifle that's easy to swallow, and it's the perfect matinee show. Light, enjoyable, and well-acted. I'm not a big Jim Parsons fan, but he's pretty great in this. He carries the show effortlessly. Jessica Hecht is good, but I don't think she's worthy of the raves on here. It's well-designed, as well; the sets and costumes are lovely.

Whizzer put it perfectly by saying "By Roundabout standards this production is a brilliant masterpiece- overall it was fine." It's not gonna be for everyone, but I liked it enough.

[Marianne2]

Posted: 5/20/12 at 11:14pm

The stage door for Studio 54 is on 53rd street. Yes, it is across from the rear entrance of the Roseland Ballroom.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 5/20/12 at 11:46pm

This play seems to be rather dated which would be helped by musicalization. Unfortuneatly the musical "Say Hello To Harvey" did not make it to Broadway.

[Patash]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 8:49am

I'm so looking forward to seeing this production. Over the years I've probably seen at lest a dozen stage productions of Harvey in addition to the film. Sometimes Elwood is played too old -- and the play takes on a sort of "Alzheimer's" possibility and all the humor immediately goes out the window. I've also seen Elwood played as a drunk which just makes it lose its entire point. So the blankly dry Parsons at his age can certainly bypass those two possible "mistakes".

I was thinking about this show yesterday when seeing Nice Work If You Can Get It, and I couldn't help but notice that same character that Broderick uses in it would also be perfect as Elwood P. Dowd. It's that kind of role, and no doubt one of the reasons Parsons was chosen is because his Sheldon is so much "right" for the character of Dowd, so I can see why people would see Sheldon in the role.

And two summers ago I saw a PERFECT production of Harvey at the Shaw Festival. I was surprised that it seemed so fresh and played so well. Dated? Well it takes place in a previous time period if that's what you mean, but I saw nothing about it that seemed "dated" other than the time period it was played in. That's sort of like saying "I saw a play about Adam and Eve -- it was so dated".



Updated On: 5/21/12 at 08:49 AM

[nasty_khakis]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 9:21am

When I say dated I mean not that it takes place in another era but that the play's overall structure, tone, andd style are of the time it was written. Dated doesn't necessarily mean a bad thing, just that plays today aren't really written in the manner Harvey is. Heck, South Pacific is dated in it's structure but that doesn't make it a wonderful show.

[broadway_show_fan]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 10:11am

I had never seen a production of HARVEY (or the movie) until last night, and overall thought it was a really enjoyable show - nothing earth-shattering but a great 2 hours and 20 minutes.

Particularly loved:
• most of Parsons' interpretation, but I absolutely adore him on "Big Bang" as well as his smallish part in NORMAL HEART. As the play went on, I thought more and more that he seemed like Sheldon playing Elwood, but I thought he was wonderful.
• The set! When the curtain came up I was just in love with it, and then when it rotated to go from the library to the sanitarium, I was blown away with it.
• Some small details, like the portrait of Elwood and Harvey.
• The effect that the Harvey special effects had. Everyone around me seem to be tickled pink with them.

Enjoyed:
• Hecht, though she was a little overdone for my tastes, and she was so jittery and spastic at times that I understand how the mix-up at Chumley's Rest happens.
• Kimbrough. Thought he was a little rough at first but charming and settled in a bit. Anyone know if he has trouble walking? He seemed stiff and I felt bad for him as he had to scamper across the stage a bit.
• Kane, who was great in her little part.
• The rest of the cast on the whole. I've never seen Sommer in anything but his recent "Law & Order: SVU" episode, but he seemed a little schtick-y and kept reminding me of a younger Richard Kind. I didn't love Chimo as "Myrtle Mae" because she seemed whiny to me, but not so bad.

I thought the first act was wonderfully polished, especially considering it was the 5th preview. The pacing was wonderful and I couldn't believe it was already time for intermission when the lights came up. I got up at intermission with a bounce from the fluffy fun on stage. However, I felt that the second act was a little slow, with the last scene being particular slow and long. It seemed like it was going to end several times but kept going, and I was longing for the same pacing and feel of the first act. I'm sure it will get even tighter as they go along, and I'd like to go back later in the run.

[WestVillage]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 10:29am

A big bore, including Parsons, who was fine in Normal Heart, but here is a TV star trying to carry a Broadway play. He's no Jimmy Stewart. And Hecht is no Helen Hayes. Didn't like it at all.

[macnyc]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 12:17pm

Also, I think the photo of Jim Parsons used in the ad is a strange choice. It shows him in a Mad Men-era suit, carrying his jacket over his shoulder. Any opinions as to why that shot was chosen? It doesn't seem Elwood-ish at all. Maybe that was the intention?

[Overkill]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 1:50pm

Jim is not just a television star, he's been a working actor for many years, and he's definitely no stranger to theatre. Do you not realize that a sitcom is more or less a one act short play with cameras? Seriously. Live audience, staging and all. It's fine to not like and even have an opinion someone's performance, but to write him off in his performance just because he's a tv star is just unfair.

Updated On: 5/21/12 at 01:50 PM

[Owen22]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 4:17pm

Seems this board has somewhat turned against Jessica. So in her defense I will say I will remember her "Oh, Harvey..." at the end of the last scene forever.

[WestVillage]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 5:09pm

Overkill .. Parsons is doing the same character in Harvey as he does in his sitcom. I have no issue with TV stars doing Broadway, but please create a different character. I don't care how much stage experience he has, his performance is not at all interesting enough to carry the lead in a Broadway comedy. He bored me to tears.

[nyny10001]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 5:41pm

To each their own. I saw it last night and I loved it. I thought Jim Parsons was absolutely delightful and charming. His Elwood is sweet and lovable. His interactions with "Harvey" will only get better with time. I think he is perfect in the role.

[Almira]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 6:58pm

I used to think HARVEY was a dated play till I saw the 1994 La Jolla playhouse/Seattle Rep production.

It was a revelation, and I don't use that word lightly.

This production had levels and resonances I never saw in the film or read in the text. It is one of my most treasured theatrical experiences. It was truly truly magical.

Here is the reviews, though I don't think the reviewers fully appreciated how special this production was.:

http://articles.latimes.com/1994-05-30/entertainment/ca-63768_1_la-jolla-playhouse

http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117902826

Updated On: 5/21/12 at 06:58 PM

[Playbilly]

Posted: 5/21/12 at 8:28pm

"Do you not realize that a sitcom is more or less a one act short play with cameras? Seriously."

That comment is flawed on so many levels, that I needed tequila just to repost it.

[uncageg]

Posted: 5/23/12 at 11:00pm

Just saw it tonight and reay enjoyed it. Parsons was wonderful. I don't think he is playing this partthe same as he does his role on tv, however there are hints of it and it works. Loved Harvey's "appearences". Wish Carol Kane had more stage time but the role doesn't call for it. She was wonderful. Charles Kimbrough flubbed some lines but was very good otherwise.

[darquegk]

Posted: 5/23/12 at 11:34pm

The mannerisms and character he plays on Big Bang is not so much a character/caricature as it is his natural style of delivery and performance.

He's a character actor who happens to have found the TV role of a lifetime.

[siny]

Posted: 5/24/12 at 11:06am

I saw it last night and thought that Jim Parsons made the show. Without him, it would not even be worth reviving. Everyone else was very good too and the sets were very nice.

But, man, did that second act drag on and on and on ! All those long speeches... Was there any point to the Dr. Chumley's monologue ? They could have cut out 20 minutes and it would be a vast improvement.

This was my first time seeing "Harvey" in any reincarnation so I had nothing to compare it to.

Overall, it was entertaining, often funny and worth seeing just for Jim Parsons alone.

[newintown]

Posted: 5/24/12 at 11:18am

"He's a character actor who happens to have found the TV role of a lifetime."

That's the most common misuse of the term "character actor." A character actor is not one who develops one character and plays it constantly; a character actor is one who transforms from role to role, playing varied and specific characters (rather than a generic everyman, a la Harrison Ford).

The trap in television has always involved talented actors playing one specific role for so long, they seem to lose the ability to play anything else (Kelsey Grammar is always Frasier). I think Parsons appears to have already become stuck in his Big Bang character, but then, he's probably encouraged to, given that's what most of Harvey's audience will want to see.

[willep]

Posted: 5/24/12 at 11:44am

Gary Oldman is a good example of a character actor.

Side note re: Kelsey Grammer: I would argue that with his new show he has finally broken out of Frasier.

[macnyc]

Posted: 5/24/12 at 12:53pm

He says he's never seen any stage productions of Harvey nor the Jimmy Stewart movie!

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/27/theater/jim-parsons-prepares-for-his-lead-role-in-harvey.html?smid=pl-share

[darquegk]

Posted: 5/24/12 at 2:17pm

I've rarely if ever seen "character actor" used in that sense, Newintown. You're probably right. But I've always seen it bandied about as I guess what you'd rather call a stock-type actor.

Regarding the original definition of "Character actor" I had always heard that either referred to with terms like "chameleon" or as simply "actor" or "great actor."

[willep]

Posted: 5/24/12 at 3:13pm

...which is exactly what newintown said a character actor is...

[hairspraydude1962]

Posted: 5/30/12 at 1:23am

Parsons' mannerisms are very similar to Sheldon's. So, there's always going to be a hint of Sheldon in any role he ever plays. Tommy Boatwright in The Normal Heart was very "Sheldon" at times. His roles before The Big Bang Theory were very "Sheldon," before the character even existed.

I'm a huge fan of Parsons. I love watching him in anything he does. There's just so much delight that he puts forth in his roles, and I'm looking forward to catching this production.