{"id":243914,"date":"2010-10-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2010-10-01T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/brighton-beach-sparkles-at-old-globe\/"},"modified":"2010-10-01T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2010-10-01T07:00:00","slug":"brighton-beach-sparkles-at-old-globe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/brighton-beach-sparkles-at-old-globe\/","title":{"rendered":"Brighton Beach’ sparkles at Old Globe"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Brighton<\/a>Por Patricia Morris Buckley<\/strong>\/SDUN Theatre Critic<\/p>\n

\u201cBrighton Beach Memoirs\u201d
\nWhen: Through Nov. 7
\nWhere: Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park
\nTickets: $29-$85
\nInfo: (619) 23-GLOBE
\nWeb: www.TheOldGlobe.org<\/strong><\/p>\n

When something works, it\u2019s always tempting to try it again. Sometimes, it works once more and other times it crashes and burns. In the case of the Old Globe Theatre\u2019s production of \u201cBrighton Beach Memoirs,\u201d the former is true.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, the Old Globe opened its new Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre with a finely tuned and engaging production of Neil Simon\u2019s Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy, \u201cLost in Yonkers.\u201d That, most likely, explains why the company decided to mount two more of Simon\u2019s works, using the same director.<\/p>\n

Probably Simon\u2019s most produced works (and that\u2019s saying something for this very popular playwright), his \u201cBB\u201d trilogy is extremely autobiographical. \u201cBrighton Beach Memoirs\u201d is the story of his early teen years as America is about to enter World War II and Simon was about to enter adulthood. \u201cBiloxi Blues\u201d chronicles his time in the Army during the war to end all wars. \u201cBroadway Bound\u201d follows Simon and his brother as they break into show business as comedy writers in the early \u201950s.<\/p>\n

The Old Globe is producing \u201cBrighton Beach\u201d and \u201cBroadway Bound\u201d in repertory. This makes sense because the two share the same set and many of the same characters (although there is an age difference to the two brothers). Scott Schwartz, who directs both productions, sets this up nicely by beginning \u201cBrighton Beach\u201d with the adult brothers leaving home.<\/p>\n

Then in walks the teen Eugene Morris Jerome, a witty kid who can\u2019t decide if he\u2019s going to play for the Yankees or become a writer. Perhaps it\u2019s because we know Eugene is really Simon or because the actor playing the role, Austyn Myers, can\u2019t pitch\u2014but it\u2019s obvious which way this is going to go.<\/p>\n

Almost every member of the family is at a crossroads. Eugene\u2019s parents, Jack and Kate, are struggling financially because they are supporting Kate\u2019s sister, Blanche, and her two daughters. Jack has just been laid off from his second job. Their oldest son, Stanley, is working fulltime, but is considering leaving that job. Blanche\u2019s oldest girl wants to drop out of school to be a showgirl.<\/p>\n

And Eugene? He just wants to see a girl naked. Or stay out of trouble. Either is fine.<\/p>\n

The secret to any production of \u201cBrighton Beach\u201d is casting the right actor as Eugene. A young Matthew Broderick won a Tony Award for the role on Broadway. Myers doesn\u2019t have Broderick\u2019s razor sharp comic timing, but he\u2019s quite funny and shows plenty of heart. Sloan Grenz\u2019 Stanley is a little too frenetic and lacks the same depth, while Julia Vanderwiel is believable as the youngest cousin. But Allie Trimm\u2014while doing an excellent job\u2014seems miscast as the older cousin, coming across as more peevish and petulant than a girl verging on womanhood showing her emerging independence.<\/p>\n

The performances that really stand out are the three parents. David Brisbane\u2019s world-weary Jack is a work of art, while Karen Ziemba\u2019s Kate is made of iron and lace. Bonnie Black shows great fragility and compassion as Blanche, a character who finally takes on the responsibilities of adulthood by the play\u2019s end.<\/p>\n

The play requires a straightforward, two-story set, but designer Ralph Funicello adds a nice touch with an outside wall that levitates to reveal the second story. Alejo Vietti\u2019s costumes not only capture the period in a nostalgic way, but also tell us much about this Long Island family. Schwartz isn\u2019t a showy director, which is a good thing. He merely gives the play room to breath, trusts his actors and keeps the action moving.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrighton Beach Memoirs\u201d starts as a funny and rosy-eyed look at America just before WWII, but by the play\u2019s end, those glasses are ripped from our eyes. The result is what\u2019s made it such a lasting classic. The Globe has done well by this beloved comedy and audiences are the ones to reap the benefit.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Patricia Morris Buckley\/SDUN Theatre Critic \u201cBrighton Beach Memoirs\u201d When: Through Nov. 7 Where: Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park Tickets: $29-$85 Info: (619) 23-GLOBE Web: www.TheOldGlobe.org When something works, it\u2019s always tempting to try it again. Sometimes, it works once more and other times it crashes and burns. In the case of the Old […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":243915,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11555","_seopress_titles_title":"Brighton Beach' sparkles at Old Globe","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11549,11551,11555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-243914","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-entertainment","category-news","category-uptown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243914","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=243914"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243914\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/243915"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=243914"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=243914"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=243914"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}