Sweet Storm

Grade: B+



By Scott Hudson. Directed by Padraic Lillis. Produced by the Alchemy Theatre Company of Manhattan in association with LAByrinth Theatre Company. At the Kirk Theatre at Theatre Row through Aug. 16.

Are you the kind of jaded New Yorker who wouldn't mind being transported to the Southern U.S., circa 1960, for a brief taste of slower times and pre-sexual-revolution romance? Or are you the kind of jaded New Yorker who can only enjoy the South with a double-plated fourth wall to keep the hick characters at an antiseptic remove? Most reviewers find Scott Hudson's debut play promising, at the very least, and tenderly well-proportioned as a seventy-five minute two-hander about honeymooner expectations in rural Florida. And most applaud Lillis's direction of Jamie Dunn and Eric T. Miller. But this tree-house romance doesn't harmonize well for Alexis Soloski. And Matthew Murray of Talkin' Broadway simply hates the whole thing -- though his review is pinched with such insistent scorn that I can't quite read it as an F grade. In brief: check your bile before you buy a ticket or Sweet Storm may leave you sour.

CurtainUp A
(Elizabeth Ahlfors) Unpretentious honesty sums up every element of this 75-minute drama—writing, direction and performances. Effective sound and lighting heighten the drama, as does Lea Umberger's set with its buckets of gardenias and gloomy Spanish moss overhead; also her story illuminating costumes. Sweet Storm is somewhat reminiscent of the light romance in William Inge's Bus Stop and is shaded with the playwright's dedication "to my mother and father whose love for one another has stood the tests of time." But it's left to the audience to decide if Ruthie and Bo's love will stand the test of time.

Nytheatre.com A
(Judith Jarosz) Playwright Scott Hudson does a nice job of keeping us interested by capturing a more innocent time, with characters whose heartfelt struggles speak straight to the heart. I keep coming back to that word "charming," but really, when is the last time you heard people in a jaded New York audience sigh "awww" all together under their breath...and mean it! It is the subtle shifts in this script with occasional outbursts that keeps slyly propelling us forward. It is a sweet evening of theater.

The New York Times A
(Andy Webster) Like the best country music, Scott Hudson’s “Sweet Storm” benefits from restraint. A gentle wisp of a love story in Florida in 1960, this two-person one-act at the Kirk Theater blends a fantastical setting with a longing for spiritual and carnal rapture, and by not straining to do too much, accomplishes more than it deserves to ... The players are well matched, neither eclipsing the other, with Mr. Miller’s spirited optimism a fine counterpoint to Ms. Dunn’s flinty hauteur ... The play, a collaboration between the Alchemy Theater Company of Manhattan and the Labyrinth Theater Company, directed by Padraic Lillis, ends on a stirring note. For a narrative so slight, “Sweet Storm” stays with you like the freshness following a summer cloudburst.

Light and Sound America A
(David Barbour) Sweet Storm is a brief play, and it isn't filled with lots of action or major plot twists. Bo's plans for a romantic wedding night go awry -- harsh words are spoken, prayers are said, and buried pains are revealed. But Hudson's treatment of this situation is so honest and tender that you find yourself caring very much about this troubled pair of lovers ... The script is a delicate, fragile thing, and it needs exactly the kind of special handling it gets in Padraic Lillis' sensitive production, which introduces us to a pair of exceptionally talented young actors.

Backstage A-
(Ron Cohen) [T]he production offers an engrossing 75 minutes or so, thanks to Hudson's deft way with colloquial dialogue, the acting, and the sensitive direction of Padraic Lillis. The script also bubbles with easy humor, as when Bo describes his physical state when he first realized he was in love with Ruthie or how he bought new underwear for the honeymoon ... Program credits tell us Sweet Storm is the "first written play" by Hudson, an actor and acting coach, and it's a promising debut. For a full-bodied work, the writing could probably use somewhat more storm. But the sweetness is never overdone and highly appealing.

Theatre Mania B+
(Adam R. Perlman) Hudson plays a game of brinksmanship both with his characters and his situation. He keeps pushing them onto the verge of cliche -- for example, Bo's a preacher and Ruthie doubts her faith -- but all is redeemed through the specifics of the writing and playing. In particular, Miller's southern gentleman is a marvel; he's utterly good and yet so much more than a boring romantic fantasy. True, there are moments when the slight script seems stretched a bit thin -- and the play could probably do without the last bit of mild melodrama -- but Hudson sees this relationship with remarkably clear eyes and makes it felt with remarkably clear force. Aided by Padraic Lillis' lovely, transparent direction, he has pulled off a decidedly tricky balancing act with aplomb.

Variety B
(Sam Thielman) There's not much else in New York that looks and talks like "Sweet Storm." Debuting playwright Scott Hudson's tiny, tight two-hander feels like nothing so much as a staged Flannery O'Connor short story, with the play's deeply religious newlyweds trying to iron out marriage's inconveniences in a treehouse somewhere in central Florida. The script is remarkably controlled without feeling slick, and Jamie Dunn and Eric T. Miller give refreshing, uncynical perfs as a young couple troubled as much by love as by suffering. Padraic Lillis directs the subdued action to a T ... Hudson, an actor with co-producer LAByrinth Theater Company, has set himself a difficult task with the two-character, single-scene drama, and he's acquitted himself admirably. The play doesn't shine, but it frequently sparkles, and the character arcs are well-reasoned and subtle. "Sweet Storm" is utterly strange and unexpected, but it also feels reassuringly solid.

The Village Voice C
(Alexis Soloski) An odd blend of naturalism and absurdism, the play opens as young preacher Bo (Eric T. Miller) lugs his paraplegic bride, Ruthie (Jamie Dunn), into the treehouse he's built for their honeymoon, while she cries, "I gotta wee! I'm gonna wet myself!" So Bo whips out a bedpan and box of tissues. Ah, romance. Really, this couple seems ill-suited for nuptial bliss: Bo is a man of the cloth; Ruthie has lost her faith. Ruthie tries to maintain her independence; Bo coddles her and calls her "sugar doll." The actors also do not seem to communicate much mutual delight.

Talkin' Broadway F
(Matthew Murray) Neither Dunn, with her vacant stares and one-note whiny voice, and Miller, whose entire portrayal emanates from the dumb-hick drawl he employs, evince much in the way of personality or creativity. And their utter lack of chemistry together would extinguish any fire in the writing, assuming there were any smoldering in the first place. But none of this matters much, given all that Hudson hasn’t bothered to include: If he didn’t claim in that program note he wanted to salute his family’s own Southern roots, Sweet Storm would feel even more like an evisceration of everyone on the opposite side of the Mason-Dixon Line. As it is, it constantly teeters on the edge of parody, with Bo and Ruthie both so clueless about life and each other that they may as well be traipsing through a Saturday Night Live skit during an election year.

CurtainUp A 13; Nytheatre.com A 13; New York Times A 13; Light and Sound America A 13; Backstage A- 12; TheatreMania B+ 11; Variety B 10; Village Voice C 7; Talkin' Broadway D 4; Total = 96/9 = 10.67 = B+

Read On »

Knives and Other Sharp Objects

GRADE: B

By Raúl Castillo. Directed by Felix Solis. LAByrinth Theatre at the Public Theatre. (CLOSED)

Most critics admire this sprawling comedy/drama by Raúl Castillo, though all of them note that in limning the complicated cross-border culture clashes between two Latino families in Texas and Mexico, Castillo bites off more than he can dramaturgically chew. But while many critics indulge the play's flaws, given its stated work-in-progress status and its low Public LAB ticket price ($10), and most highlight the performance of Joselyn Reyes as a feisty teen, a few (Talkin' Broadway's Matthew Murray, the Times' Jason Zinoman, That Sounds Cool's Aaron Riccio) are far less forgiving.

Backstage A
(Andy Propst) Castillo's play, in which colloquialism and lyricism blend deftly, culminates in a dinner party involving all of these characters. It's an amusing and touching climax, and it's also a testament to his writing that nine people can credibly wind up in the same room. Director Felix Solis' staging is rock-solid yet sensitive, and although Knives and Other Sharp Objects, perhaps overly ambitious in story and themes, sometimes sprawls, it's a work of great promise from a new theatrical voice.

Theatermania A
(Sandy MacDonald) It takes the whole play to get the full story. Castillo teases it out in short, punchy scenes, the language rich with Latino rhythms. Especially masterful is a split-stage scene in which the haughty Lydia -- her anger pathologically displaced -- lectures delinquent Lucy on the finer points of how to arrange silverware, as Alex must dress down Beatrice in the kitchen as they prepare dinner for their grudging hosts. But even as plenty of intriguing questions remain, the one certainty is that Castillo knows how to create catchy dialogue and build dramatic momentum.

New York Post A-
(Frank Scheck) A work of uncommon richness. Perhaps too much richness. Castillo has loaded his play with so many themes and subplots that at times it has an aimless feel. But in this era of simplistic dramas, better too much than too little...The playwright constantly keeps us guessing while skillfully traversing the line between poignant drama and farcical comedy. The dialogue is sharp and funny, the characterizations ever surprising, and the ensemble--under the skillful direction of Felix Solis--delivers wonderfully engaging performances.

Nytheatre.com A-
(Heather Lee Rogers) Feels like a beautiful road trip—it's all about the journey. The play passes through territories of family, love, and the concept of "home," but it doesn't stop for long anywhere along the way. Playwright Raúl Castillo doesn't seem interested in resolving the conflicts he presents. The plot takes a backseat to character exploration with dialogue riding shotgun. What we get is a wonderful tour through great lines, outrageous humor, and beautifully performed moments. Fittingly the play both begins and ends on the road...At over two hours could stand some trimming. However if, like me, you mostly seek great dialogue and great acting at the theater, you should get a ticket for this ride.

CurtainUp A-
(Elyse sommer) Raúl Castillo has stuffed his Knives and Other Sharp Objects with enough characters for several dramas; in fact, too much so to do full justice to the powerful Mexican-American family saga at its heart...Though director Felix Solis keeps the additional plot strands from turning into too much of a tangle, they do tend to detract from the more powerful and primary family drama.

Bloomberg News B+
(Jeremy Gerard) Produced on a shoestring, the show has minimal scenery but a fine cast, headed by Joselin Reyes and Noemi Del Rio as Alex and Beatrice, respectively, and Michael Ray Escamilla as Manuel. Felix Solis’s exemplary staging reveals Castillo’s keen ear and occasionally subversive wit. (It can’t mask a newcomer’s uncertain grasp of dramatic structure and control of tension.) He focuses on a family from a part of the country that for many non-Latino New Yorkers might as well be Mars. Don’t think of it as educational. Think of it as a brief, exotic trip.

Variety B
(Sam Thielman) There's enough material for a full-length play in any one of the four warring plotlines that make up "Knives and Other Sharp Objects." As it is, Raul Castillo's heartfelt Texas drama is considerably less than the sum of its parts, with too many characters and more locations than a James Bond movie. Still, it's hard to begrudge the play its vast scope when its subject matter -- old-money families in south Texas, life in a border town -- mines such a rich, seldom-explored seam of experience, however briefly...Castillo has clearly learned his storytelling craft from the movies, and his settings, many of which confine the dialogue to chairs and car seats, suck a lot of energy out of the performances. Happily, most of the performers have energy to spare. Reyes and Del Rio, in particular, play their roles with utter conviction and keep at bay much of the incredulity that Castillo's gangster subplot might otherwise inspire.

That Sounds Cool C+
(Aaron Riccio) Perhaps in three acts, all those threads would lead somewhere sharp, but considering how forgettable Castillo's characters are, Knives and Other Sharp Objects could use some cuts instead. When things are restricted just to the family dynamics, director Felix Solis is able to play up the tension, using the long wooden width of Peter Ksander's set as if it were a chessboard--full of posturing, sure, but enough in advance that you don't see it coming. The cast tends to overact through the melodrama, but these focused moments give way to some nice work...However, by avoiding specific consequences and sticking only to broad actions, Castillo barely scratches the surface.

New York Times C-
(Jason Zinoman) This sprawling, 10-character play is the first New York production by Mr. Castillo, who was born in South Texas. It’s an ambitious, multigenerational portrait that concludes with the kind of embarrassing family dinner in which shocking announcements, escalating fights and stalking away are always on the menu...Then there’s the real whopper, which I won’t spoil, when a sweet romantic moment, involving an Iraq war veteran (still wearing fatigues), turns strangely ugly, making you wonder if the whole melodramatic production, staged by Felix Solis, shouldn’t have been played as a sloppy, tasteless romp.

Talkin' Broadway D
(Matthew Murray) Just because one story tells you something about a place or a culture doesn't mean that 10 automatically tell you more. In fact, Raúl Castillo is proving that isn't at all the case with his new play at The Public Theater, Knives and Other Sharp Objects: The more plots, characters, and details he piles on, the less secure his potentially fascinating play becomes...Everything about this production, which has been directed by Felix Solis, is muted to the point of petrification. And its glut of ideas is the 300-pound Gorgon in the room...Castillo...is so determined to tell every possible story about these people that he ends up telling none of them well...Solis has staged all this as clearly as possible on Peter Ksander's vaugely Southwestern almost-ballroom set, but he never gives you the tools to perceive how all the scattered elements combine. Nor do the actors - practically everyone brings overly weighty sitcom-style histrionics to their portrayals rather than vibrant theatrical undestatement.

Backstage A 13; Theatermania A 13; New York Post A- 12; Nytheatre.com A- 12; CurtainUp A- 12; Bloomberg News B+ 11; Variety B 10; That Sounds Cool C+ 8; NYTimes C- 6; Talkin' Broadway D 4; 101/10=10.1 (B)

Read On »