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MR. & MRS. FITCH Reviews
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Pick your one-liners and laugh, laugh, laugh Review by: Diract 66, Mar 22, 2010 |
| Take Nick and Nora Charles, bring them into this century, yet let them keep their quick witted repartee, their stylish dressing gown and tuxedo, and their penchant for Cole Porter and 'ballin' the jack', and you have John Lithglow and Jennifer Ehle(nee William Powell and Myrna Loy)in this comedy Mr. and Mrs. Fitch. The cast was really trying to capture this feeling with the dialogue of one-liners that surely pleased the audience. I could almost ... read more see Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell delivering these lines and us likeing them more. There were two long speeches by each character that added almost nothing to the play and could have been cut and still made their points! These two gossip critics seem out of step with the current times because of there manner not because of their computers and our now fast communication age. The set of the Manhattan apt. was very impressive and when seen on this stage has a WOW factor. The bookcase is to die for. I knew the end of this play after the first ten minutes, but still it was a very enjoyable experience. The references made to authors and famous people is only for the well read or learned in the audience. I know the reason for the "Moliere's maid" line, but do you? I laughed, but not many others.This play was filled with this 'intelligent' humor. The observations these characters make on the modern world seem a little unbelievable from them. In spite of all the reservations I have about this play, the actors timing and performances were excellent. See it on discounts for an OK evening. Listen for the real Mr. and Mrs. Fitch,courteously provided by Mr. Lithglow. |
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My recommendation:
Go see if you get a chance
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Recommended for:
Seniors, Adults
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| 2 |
A Good Old Fashion Comedy Review by: Mr. C, Mar 22, 2010 |
John Lithgow and Jenifer Ehle were excellent The stage set was outstanding. The play was only 1 hour and 45 minutes that included a 15 minute intermission. This play could have been expanded by adding some of the characters that they continuously talked about including their boss and his assistant who came to the door (we never saw her) but never went into the apartment.
This play has the potential of being successful on broadway.
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My recommendation:
Make an effort to see
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I saw this show with:
Spouse/Partner
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Recommended for:
Romantic Date, Business Assoc., Seniors
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| 3 |
From Third Rock to Cole Porter Review by: Beth M, Feb 25, 2010 |
| Two terrific Tony Award winning actors, John Lithgow and Jennifer Ehle, as Mr. and Mrs. Fitch, in Douglas Carter Beane’s new play of the same title, find themselves in a highly urbane, sophisticated, rarefied, and almost make believe world as a husband and wife team writing a daily tabloid gossip column. They have an extraordinary night life and meet up with just about anyone who is anyone, which is the meat of these columns. ... read more One night their editor phones and threatens that if they do not come up with something exceptionally exciting that evening, they will no longer be employed. To tell you what they decide to do and the surprisingly comic ramifications of this would be giving away much too much. I will say that there are some fun turns of fate, which has to do with this newspaper column writers’ encounter with the Internet age, and the havoc that ensues. There is a greatly deal of literary banter across the room, which, in addition to the column, seems to be at the heart of their relationship. I found some quite amusing and clever dialog, much of it in the form one (or two) liners being sent back and forth like ping pong balls across a table. They talk and move fast and sometimes act in a slapstick mode. Mr. and Mrs. Fitch, while they sometimes use foul language in regard to the other, they are a perfect couple in many ways. There is the occasional in depth conversation that gives one some sense of their inner lives, and I wish there had been more of this. Their humanity gets rather lost in all of the cleverness, though I did find the play to be a great deal of fun. I also felt that the acting was superb, at least to my taste. I should add that John Lithgow is my favorite actor so it is always an enormous delight to see him perform. John Lithgow’s style in parts of the play are a bit on the “manic” side and made me think of him as the High Commander on “Third Rock from the Sun,” one of my favorite TV shows. And Jennifer Ehle is quite a fine actress. Mr. Lithgow has the opportunity to play the piano and sing a Cole Porter tune, also called “Mr. and Mrs. Fitch,” which served as an inspiration for this play. I think that audiences most likely to experience the greatest degree of pleasure from this play are those with a special enjoyment of literary quips, those who have a fascination with gossip columnists (and how in our contemporary age, the speed of the Internet can make or break what one writes), those interested in intriguing and unusual marriages, and those are fans of John Lithgow. |
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My recommendation:
Go see if you get a chance
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Alone
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| 4 |
See it for the performances Review by: Brenda, Feb 17, 2010 |
Mr. & Mrs. Fitch at the Second Stage
Theatre is a rollicking good time and should be treated as such. John
Lithgow and Jenifer Ehle, in the title roles are directed by Scott Ellis
to absolute symphonic perfection. They are utterly delicious to watch
on an astounding set by Allen Moyer. This new play by Douglas Carter
Beane (Little Doug Laughed) is going to be an audience favorite despite
its deep flaws. ... read more The dialogue is witty and faced paced and at times
quite clever. No critique, mine or others changes that fact. But oh,
the flaws.
Mr. & Mrs. Fitch live in a 2,000 square foot duplex loft in a desirable
section of Manhattan. Presumably they do so on Mr. Fitch's salary as a
gossip columnist. The play takes place today; twitter, blogging and
prominent MacBooks confirm this fact. Yet, the costumes are out of a
Noel Coward play. They are gorgeous, but as incongruent as the scathing
epitaphs Mr. Fitch hurls at Mrs. Fitch, seemingly out of the blue. This
appears to be an homage to Albee's Virginia Woolf, but they are just
disturbing coming from the mouth of an otherwise pleasing fellow. This
fellow, we are told, prefers men, yet Mrs. Fitch makes scathing
witticisms about bisexuals (bi now, gay later) and not to offend her
husband. Mr. Fitch's boss, presumably a newspaper editor, calls him in
the middle of the night and leaves the most outrageous message on his
answering machine. It is difficult to believe that someone in the news
business would be so obtuse as to leave a permanent record of berating
homosexual slurs slung at an employee.
Mr. Fitch has a novel within him and disdain for his day job. Mr. &
Mrs. Fitch go to parties with people they hate and scurry back home to
type out a column in five minutes. The plot, as it were, then centers
around the fact that they create a celebrity, a la A Face in the Crowd.
Why they do this and what they hope to gain from it, is not entirely
clear, but it makes for interesting comments.
We discover that Mrs. Fitch, the more fast paced witty raconteur, is
from New Jersey and attended public school. Apparently, this is code
for "wrong side of the tracks." There are moments when this word smith
is turned into Judy Holliday in Born Yesterday. She attributes fine
chocolates, watches and neutrality to the Swedes, and makes obvious
errors about Edgar Lee Masters. What's even more appalling, is the
scene (written for laughs) in which she uses the Joy of Cooking to
figure out how to crack an egg, and must find the printed instructions
for the stove? Who IS this woman? She was raised in New Jersey,
clearly not with a silver spoon, does not work, has no household help
(we know this because there is clutter in the house) but can not crack
an egg? Weren't we subjected to this display in Adam's Rib?
The incongruity spills into the dialogue too as Mr. Beane seems
uncomfortable trusting the audience. He is most comfortable with witty
reparte or turns of phrase, and most uncomfortable putting voice to
intellectualism. There are clumsy redundant explanatory lines such as
"He was with his excruciatingly young Nabokovian lover" that are cringe
inducing. There is a rather desperate Sarah Palin joke as well (why not
stamp an expiration date on the play?)
Both acts are interrupted by travel monologues, first she, then he.
They move nothing in the story, and bring the real strength of the play
(their tennis match of words) to a screeching halt. The set, though
ravishing and a decorator's dream of balance and color, left a few
questions in my mind. Would the Fitchs who have nothing but disdain for
the common, really have Wally Lamb books? Would there be a copy of the
Yiddish Policemen's Union on the table? I found the fact that I had the
same books and ideas as the Fitchs mildly disconcerting. Mr. Beane
should have tried harder to align the characters he was creating with
what he knew to be true.
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My recommendation:
Make an effort to see
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| Acting: |
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I saw this show with:
Spouse/Partner
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Recommended for:
Anyone
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| 5 |
A real gem, well acted Review by: Rob, Feb 14, 2010 |
| A smart, well acted comedy. Sharp dialog delivered effortlessly. Heard every word and we did not have great seats. Also, an interesting commentary on the current state of pop culture. |
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My recommendation:
Make an effort to see
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| Acting: |
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| Story: |
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I saw this show with:
Spouse/Partner
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Recommended for:
Adults
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| 6 |
Review by: dancer, Jan 27, 2010 |
Had to leave during interval.Characters spoke much too fast to absorb any poigniancy, and delivery was at times inaudible and repetitious.Delivery lacked sensitvity, especially with the Pompeii dialogue.
Fluidty in the script was lacking. |
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My recommendation:
Don't go
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I saw this show with:
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| * Review is an opinion of a BroadwayBox user and not that of BroadwayBox.com and BroadwayBox, Inc. |
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