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Posted by Lorna on 5/18/2007, 5:33 pm, in reply to "Re: I found this!!!!" --Previous Message--
Well done Merce on finding another review of "The Constant Wife"..but we won't worry if they don't truly appreciate how brilliant Stephen really is!!
: Well, he didnt seem too happy with Steve, but
: thought Megan Gallagher was all that. To
: each his own.. Maire
:
: --Previous Message--
: FROM THE DAILYNEWS.COM
:
: This 'Constant Wife' does not fail to
: delight
: By Evan Henerson, Theater Critic
: Article Last Updated: 05/17/2007 04:46:19 PM
: PDT
:
: It's not exactly on par with that climactic
: door slam of "A Doll's House," but
: all the same ... You go, Constance!
:
: Our props are for Constance Middleton, the
: ever-practical and quick-thinking heroine of
: W. Somerset Maugham's "The Constant
: Wife." This is a lady who — were she
: not stuck in a 1926 comedy of manners —
: might have drawn quite a few more gasps over
: the years. Followed by cheers.
:
: Strutting purposefully through Art Manke's
: production at Pasadena Playhouse, Megan
: Gallagher should earn both. She's quite
: marvelous, and the production Manke has
: built around her plays to her talents. While
: the jaws of her inner-circle members are
: collectively dropping, Gallagher's Constance
: barely shrugs. She's cool, but not — we will
: come to learn — without feeling.
:
: Blinders in place
:
: Constance is the much-admired wife of a
: successful doctor (played by Stephen
: Caffrey) whose philandering sets the play in
: motion. Her friends and family (most notably
: her mother, Mrs. Culver, and sister, Martha)
: figure that steady Constance is oblivious to
: her husband's latest dalliance with
: Marie-Louise Durham (Libby West),
: Constance's best friend.
:
: Not quite. When the affair is brought
: Advertisement
: to light, Constance turns the tables in a
: manner most unexpected for 1920s England.
: She ...
:
: No, I've probably already revealed too much.
: "The Constant Wife" remains a
: much-
:
: produced, much-revived work (its most recent
: Broadway revival in 2005 featured Kate
: Burton and Lynn Redgrave), but for those who
: don't know the play, suspense is best.
:
: If Constance's heart was ever shattered by
: the turns her life has taken, Gallagher has
: buried that particular hurt years ago. Or
: else she's mastered the public face. The
: reappearance of an ardent admirer from her
: past (Kaleo Griffith) doesn't so much
: reignite a dormant burner in Constance as it
: offers an interesting set of opportunities.
: And, as played by West, best friend
: Marie-Louise is too much of a bubble-head
: for that side of the John/Marie-Louise
: assignation to rankle.
:
: Constance is in several ways a tricky role.
: We first meet her just as the crisis is
: brewing, meaning any simmering
: dissatisfaction is forced into the open
: practically before we ever see the
: "public" Constance. Director
: Manke's program notes about the character's
: quest for freedom are borne out,
: particularly in a final image that has
: Constance celebrating her liberation.
:
: Manke and the production team have certainly
: got the world down correctly. Set and
: costume designer Angela Balogh Calin has
: created a high-ceilinged drawing room,
: immaculately maintained by — presumably —
: unseen servants.
:
: Wittily Wilde-ian
:
: "The Constant Wife" may be billed
: as a comedy, but in Pasadena, it's not
: played with much lightheartedness. Carolyn
: Seymour archly aims her dowager zingers that
: seem like they've come straight from the
: lips of Oscar Wilde. ("Decency died
: with Queen Victoria"). Monette McGrath
: and Ann Marie Lee score as Constance's
: sister, Martha, and would-be business
: partner, Barbara. Truly, this play is lousy
: with strong women's roles.
:
: Ultimately, it's a nice pas de deux shared
: by Gallagher and Caffrey as the husband who
: comes to learn the consequences of marital
: indifference. In Caffrey's hands, John is
: reduced to outraged blithering, but he's not
: necessarily an outright cad, either.
:
: Regardless, it's Constance's play.
: Gallagher's take is consistently — and
: constantly — worth watching.
:
: THE CONSTANT WIFE
: Our rating: Where: Pasadena Playhouse, 39 S.
: El Molino Ave., Pasadena.
: When: 8 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 4 and 8
: p.m. Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday; through
: June 10.
: Tickets: $31 to $60. (626) 356-7529.
: In a nutshell: Maugham's comedy nonetheless
: contains a lot of bite.
:
:
:
: Responses:
: --Previous Message--
: his 'Constant Wife' does not fail to delight
: By Evan Henerson, Theater Critic
: Article Last Updated: 05/17/2007 04:46:19 PM
: PDT
:
: It's not exactly on par with that climactic
: door slam of "A Doll's House," but
: all the same ... You go, Constance!
:
: Our props are for Constance Middleton, the
: ever-practical and quick-thinking heroine of
: W. Somerset Maugham's "The Constant
: Wife." This is a lady who — were she
: not stuck in a 1926 comedy of manners —
: might have drawn quite a few more gasps over
: the years. Followed by cheers.
:
: Strutting purposefully through Art Manke's
: production at Pasadena Playhouse, Megan
: Gallagher should earn both. She's quite
: marvelous, and the production Manke has
: built around her plays to her talents. While
: the jaws of her inner-circle members are
: collectively dropping, Gallagher's Constance
: barely shrugs. She's cool, but not — we will
: come to learn — without feeling.
:
: Blinders in place
:
: Constance is the much-admired wife of a
: successful doctor (played by Stephen
: Caffrey) whose philandering sets the play in
: motion. Her friends and family (most notably
: her mother, Mrs. Culver, and sister, Martha)
: figure that steady Constance is oblivious to
: her husband's latest dalliance with
: Marie-Louise Durham (Libby West),
: Constance's best friend.
:
: Not quite. When the affair is brought
: Advertisement
: to light, Constance turns the tables in a
: manner most unexpected for 1920s England.
: She ...
:
: No, I've probably already revealed too much.
: "The Constant Wife" remains a
: much-
:
: produced, much-revived work (its most recent
: Broadway revival in 2005 featured Kate
: Burton and Lynn Redgrave), but for those who
: don't know the play, suspense is best.
:
: If Constance's heart was ever shattered by
: the turns her life has taken, Gallagher has
: buried that particular hurt years ago. Or
: else she's mastered the public face. The
: reappearance of an ardent admirer from her
: past (Kaleo Griffith) doesn't so much
: reignite a dormant burner in Constance as it
: offers an interesting set of opportunities.
: And, as played by West, best friend
: Marie-Louise is too much of a bubble-head
: for that side of the John/Marie-Louise
: assignation to rankle.
:
: Constance is in several ways a tricky role.
: We first meet her just as the crisis is
: brewing, meaning any simmering
: dissatisfaction is forced into the open
: practically before we ever see the
: "public" Constance. Director
: Manke's program notes about the character's
: quest for freedom are borne out,
: particularly in a final image that has
: Constance celebrating her liberation.
:
: Manke and the production team have certainly
: got the world down correctly. Set and
: costume designer Angela Balogh Calin has
: created a high-ceilinged drawing room,
: immaculately maintained by — presumably —
: unseen servants.
:
: Wittily Wilde-ian
:
: "The Constant Wife" may be billed
: as a comedy, but in Pasadena, it's not
: played with much lightheartedness. Carolyn
: Seymour archly aims her dowager zingers that
: seem like they've come straight from the
: lips of Oscar Wilde. ("Decency died
: with Queen Victoria"). Monette McGrath
: and Ann Marie Lee score as Constance's
: sister, Martha, and would-be business
: partner, Barbara. Truly, this play is lousy
: with strong women's roles.
:
: Ultimately, it's a nice pas de deux shared
: by Gallagher and Caffrey as the husband who
: comes to learn the consequences of marital
: indifference. In Caffrey's hands, John is
: reduced to outraged blithering, but he's not
: necessarily an outright cad, either.
:
: Regardless, it's Constance's play.
: Gallagher's take is consistently — and
: constantly — worth watching.
:
: THE CONSTANT WIFE
: Our rating: Where: Pasadena Playhouse, 39 S.
: El Molino Ave., Pasadena.
: When: 8 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 4 and 8
: p.m. Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday; through
: June 10.
: Tickets: $31 to $60. (626) 356-7529.
: In a nutshell: Maugham's comedy nonetheless
: contains a lot of bite.
:
:
:
:
:
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