Wednesday, November 5, 2014

"Love Letters" (Brooks Atkinson West 47th Street )




Love Letters

Brian Dennehy & Mia Farrow (Photo: Carol Rosegg) 



No one could have predicted that this "sort of a play," as it was described by its author A.R. Gurney when it premiered Off Broadway in 1989 would have achieved world-wide fame and success (a 1990 Pulitzer Prize finalist) in the ensuing years. In it, two actors simply sit next to each other at a table, never face each other and read their parts - love letters written to each other over a course of fifty years. Intentionally, the letters are not memorized. Five pairs of recognized stars have signed on for a few weeks each giving audiences an opportunity to pick which of the pair they might enjoy the most.

I had the pleasure of seeing an extraordinarily touching  Mia Farrow and the always splendid Brian Dennehy bring out all of the poignancy, wit, humor and tender emotions that define their characters Melissa Gardner and Andrew Makepeace Ladd III. As I probably won't get the opportunity to see how well-matched Dennehy is with Carol Burnett (10/11/14-11/08/14,  or Alan Alda and Candice Bergen 11/9/14-12/05/14, or Stacy Keach and Diana Rigg 12/06/14/ 1/09/15, or Anjelica Huston and Martin Sheen 1/10/15-2/01/15, you should grab this rare opportunity to experience what I believe to be one of the more enduring and endearing of Gurney's plays.

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