We spent last weekend in New York, in a whirlwind of plays and restaurants and taxis. We managed to see God of Carnage, August, Osage County, and Blithe Spirit--all excellent productions, though I lean most heavily toward Osage County, which is truly a tour de force. It is almost impossible to find anything wrong with the production. It is mind-bendingly, wrenchingly true to life, and the actors wring every last drop of meaning from it. As for the others, any opportunity to see Angela Lansbury at her ditzy best is worth the price, and Jeff Daniels and his fellow cast-members give lessons in everything from nuance to murderous frenzy in Carnage.
Add to that the Washington scene: Legacy of Light at Arena in Crystal City and (my favorite play) Arcadia at Folger, not to mention Heroes at MetroStage. These constitute a mini-Stoppard-fest right here in town. While Legacy has no Stoppard connection, it might as well have. Playing at the same time as Arcadia, it is a prime target for comparison, with its time shifts and its questions of science and philosophy. It stands up surprisingly well as a companion piece.
A side-note to the NY trip: in a bookstore we visited, I bought a signed first edition of Billy Collins' Sailing Alone Around The Room, and am now revisiting those wonderful poems...
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