Theater Online - New York Theater Reviews

Editor's Note: Was it TS Elliot who once said, "Any play I fully understood on first viewing I probably wouldn't like, and I certainly wouldn't recommend it to a friend."

The review was submitted by a Steve McCasland,  a new reviewer, who subsequently decided that reviewing was not for him. Here is a reader comments that may have merit.

As a fan of the play and of this particular version (I have seen 4 versions in all, this being among the best of them) I could not help but send you an email to address a few glaring misteps in your critique. It was clear to me from your review that you are completely unfamiliar with Mike Leigh. I would like to let you know that indeed, "little" does happen in the play, you are right about that - but that is the entire POINT. You also stated that Mr. McCluskey's accent as Mick was "glaringly inconsistent" compared to the other actors -again, indeed it was, but that because he is IRISH, not English. There are actually FOUR accents in the show: a London accent from Val and Roy, a Linconshire accent from Len, a Kilburn accent from Dawn and Jean, and a Cork accent for Mick, all of which were spot on and all of which can be derived from the text.

Below Steve McCasland's Original Review

Black Door Theatre Company's production of Mike Leigh's 1979 London-set drama ECSTASY, presented in association with Horse Trade Theater Group, is certainly an odd evening at the theater. Upon entering the narrow, claustrophobic theater, you immediately are thrown into the world of the play: a small flat, inhabited by Jean (played here by Mary Monahan). The apartment is indeed lived in: dirty laundry in piles, broken furniture and an intimidating collecton of records. It is a mess, much like the life of Jean, whom we try desperately to understand but never seem to.

Throughout the course of Leigh's bizarre drama, we are introduced to the people in Jean's life: a married man, Roy (played by a thrilling Josh Marcantel), she is sleeping with who is a tad abusive, the old friends Dawn and Mick (Gina LeMoine and Brandon McCluskey, respectively) who can't ever seem to put down their beer and an awkward but well-intentioned Len (Stephen Heskett) who is back in town from a long time away. In the course of Jean's day, the frightening Roy is paid a visit at Jean's apartment from his wife, an event that results in an apartment-destroying argument: broken furniture, including Jean's bed. To numb the shock, she drinks. Her very long evening is spent sharing laughs, having a "sing-song" and tossing back far too many pints with her friends (who, truth be told, don't really seem to understand her). Eventually, she is faced with the reality of being alone with her thoughts; the unhappiness she faces in life is too painful to stand. In desperation - and perhaps a moment of change in her life - she asks Len to stay. He does.

Mary Monahan as Jean delivers a finely detailed performance: possibly the only fully realized portrayal of a character in the production (directed by Sara Laudonia). We experience with Jean her deep emotions of shame and grief for a wasted life. Matching Monahan's beautiful performance is Josh Marcantel as the violent, cheating Roy. A friend who attended the production put it best with this simple reflection: "He scared me." Frighteningly real, you couldn't help but feel that you were a part of Jean as he yelled and fought to have his way. While the other castmates, including Lore Davis as Roy's angry wife, Val, do not reach the heights of Monahan and Marcantel, there is strong ensemble work here. One can't help but wonder if the extreme and over-the-top nature of LeMoine and McCluskey's performances have only the actors to blame, Laudonia's direction or Leigh's dreary writing. These portrayals are so extreme you may even find yourself wishing that they'd stop talking about leaving Jean's flat and actually do it. All of these characters are so unlikeable, so self-destructive, racist and opinionated in their nature, you can't really muster up any kind of care for any of them.

Leigh's play is a bleak one. With rapid-fire pacing and skilled accents (save McCluskey's, which is blaringly inconsistent), the cast tries to make the best out of the drama. The best way to describe Leigh's play is to sit in the apartment of a complete stranger and watch her interact with her friends. Once Jean begins to drink, the play shifts to nothingness. Nothing happens for about an hour. A conversation about toilet paper takes place, along with a sing-a-long and shared memories. But Jean's, and the play's, deep issues are never addressed until the final moments of the play. You hold your breath as you wait for a climax that never comes.

While Laudonia has done her best with the small space and her hard-working ensemble, the two-hour, intermissionless play is one of the longest evenings you'll spend in a theater. Those two hours feel like a day as you eagerly wait for ANYTHING to happen. The set design (by Damon Pelletier) is a fine one: she has brought Jean's apartment to life. The flat is so lived in that you almost feel like you are sitting on a couch having a pint with the lady of the house. However, a minor flaw must be pointed out: there sits on a pile of books a biography of Marilyn Monroe that was published after 1979. Along with the scenic design is Paul Howle's strong lighting design. His work here is subtle and, with the use of a tiny lamp, often beautifully lit.

If you are interested in a character study, ECSTASY is worth exploring. However, with more weak performances than good ones and a plot that really isn't a plot at all, it might be best to save your $18 for a pint of your own (and a memory to recall in your own apartment someday). Because, truth be told, if you're looking for anything that feels even remotely like ecstasy, you're in the wrong place.

Black Door Theatre Company and Horse Trade Theater Group present Mike Leigh's ECSTASY at The Red Room at 85 E 4th St. It runs throguh January 25, Thursday-Saturday 8pm and Sunday 3pm. Tickets are $18.