Rachel Leigh

Well said
Thank you for the article.

LittleღMermaid

Glad someone called him out on that

tranquility

More should.

Title ideas? Something positive from one of the reviews?

varietyofwords

My review of the play:

Chris O’Dowd, who played Lennie, steals the show. I worried that Lennie would be too childish, too cartoon-ish, but Chris had the voice and the mannerisms down perfectly. He became his character; so much so that seeing him on “The View” the next morning was a bit of a jolt — like, oh yes, he is an actor. I thought his chemistry with James Franco, who played George, was perfect. Although although Chris stole every scene he was in, it really felt like George and Lennie had known each other for years.

I can see why other reviewers said James Franco’s accent was too Yosemite Sam. His accent, in my opinion, was better suited for a story taking place in Texas or Colorado rather than one in California. Obviously, he didn’t need to be a “surfer dude” for this role, but it felt fake to me. Like, I could not get past it being an accent for the role. And, as someone sitting in the balcony, I also thought he needed to do a better job of tipping his face so everyone can see his facial expressions. I felt like I spent a good portion of the show looking at the top of his head whereas even Lennie with the head rolling and looking down still managed to make it so I could see his expressions.

As for Leighton, I thought she did an amazing job. Chris steals the show so much, though, that it’s easy to focus on him during the big one-on-one scenes between Lennie and George and between Lennie and Curley’s wife. However, she still holds her own, particularly during her final scene with Lennie, and her eavesdropping and then bursting into the bunkhouse in a huff over George calling her a tart was perfect. Just the right note of anger and desperation.

I thought Leighton’s accent was good, and I loved how much compassion and depth the brought to the character. I remember finishing the book and being angry at Curley’s wife for ruining Lennie and George’s dream, but Leighton brought so much more to the role that my sadness was more equitable. Curley’s wife talking about her dreams and her memories with her daddy brought tears to my eyes, and I really bought into the innocence of her looking for a friend, for someone to talk to rather than viewing it as a desire to step out on her husband and cause trouble.

My only quibble was the order of her costumes. She wears this rather demure green dress in the first scene (and then later with a yellow sweater) so it is hard to believe that George took one look at her and decided she was a tart. Even with the long slit, she shows no leg or cleavage or anything that would make me think she was ****ty or giving the ranch hands “the eye”. I kept trying to see a particular look on Leighton’s face that would constitute “the eye” but she did a great job of making sure I could always see her facial expressions from the balcony so I don’t think I missed it. Personally, I liked that her “tartiness” wasn’t forced upon you, that you could see her as a real person, but I would have switched the red dress she wears in the second act with the green one in the first in order to make it more believable that George saw her as a tart. Not for her characterization or for the story but for George’s characterization. A man who loves and accepts Lennie but is so quick to condemn Curley’s wife yet doesn’t condemn her when she dies leaves this weird dichotomy between his characterization that is never addresses and kind of tints the final scene.

I should also say that I loved Jim Norton, who played Candy, and Jim Parrack, who played Slim. Candy is the only character to blame Curley’s wife for ruining the dream of owning a piece of land with rabbits that Lennie takes care of and that was kind of hard to hear given how well Leighton sold Curley’s wife as a woman just desperate for a friend with her own dreams. But I could also understand his desperation to leave the ranch, and you could tell Jim is a veteran of the stage — he never forgot where his audience was.

Overall, I loved the play and thought it was well-directed and well-acted. The sets are amazing; one of my favorites I have ever seen on Broadway. The transition from one scene to the next is flawlessly done, particularly after Curley’s wife died and they carried her off stage rather than having Leighton get up and walk off, and the set for the bunkhouse feels incredibly real.

I also shared my experience meeting her (she's so lovely ) in the Lei thread on my board, but this one of the better pictures I took of her. (I was shaking so hard that I mucked most of them up. )

tranquility

Thanks, Christina! It sounds amazing

Rachel Leigh

Such an awesome read thank you for sharing your review and story

coconut5

Great review!

tranquility

Drama League Awards 2014 - nominations, from Variety:

SMILA

Thanks so much, Christina! read your review and experience of meeting Lei, and it sounds so amazing =) I feel almost like I was there too =)

tranquility

I really want them to release the play on DVD!

Leighton tweeted a link to Daisy Eagan's blog post a couple of minutes ago.

clair carlyle

Daisy Egan is so courageous for sharing that. I'm glad Leighton read it and agreed.

The way critics emphasized the lack of sexuality and remarked on Leighton's body in their reviews was disturbing.

LittleღMermaid

I'm so glad she come online to retweet

They were focusing on the wrong things

coconut5

I thought Daisy Egan's article was completely over the top. I mean, I get her point and it's terrible that she suffered so many awful things in her past, but I don't think I wake up every morning with terrible anxiety about clothes sending off 'the wrong message'. Or maybe that's because I am overweight, so I don't need to worry too much. But I think it's sad that she feels that way.

Hmm. I think generally theatre is more on-the-nose than TV/film. You can't afford to be as subtle in theatre. If you're playing an overtly sexual character, that should be portrayed in some way, but I think it comes down more to the performance, as the costume can only do so much.

I am looking forward to seeing the show and deciding for myself.

tranquility

Today's the cut off date for the Tony Awards. Nominations will be announced on Tuesday.

varietyofwords

You're welcome everyone. It was my pleasure to share, and I'm so glad the show (and Chris, especially) was nominated by the Drama League.

Hopefully we'll also get some good news about the Tonys.

I thought Daisy Egan made some great points, and I'm pleased that Leighton saw it and tweeted it.