{"id":433828,"date":"2022-04-19T00:05:39","date_gmt":"2022-04-18T21:05:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/broadway-play-is-better-than-its-ending\/"},"modified":"2022-04-19T00:05:39","modified_gmt":"2022-04-18T21:05:39","slug":"broadway-play-is-better-than-its-ending","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/broadway-play-is-better-than-its-ending\/","title":{"rendered":"#Broadway play is better than its ending"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2ae668e115e\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2ae668e115e\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/broadway-play-is-better-than-its-ending\/#%E2%80%9CBroadway_play_is_better_than_its_ending%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;Broadway play is better than its ending&#8221;<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CBroadway_play_is_better_than_its_ending%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;Broadway play is better than its ending&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n<p>At its best, Tracy Letts\u2019 new play \u201cThe Minutes\u201d goes down like an old episode of \u201cThe Twilight Zone.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In a town hall meeting room, the lights turn off at meaningful moments and thunder booms dramatically outside. Every so often, a casually tossed-off remark will raise brows \u2014 suggesting that perhaps the utterer isn\u2019t who he says he is. We nervously expect Rod Serling to tell us that we\u2019re in \u201cthe middle ground between light and shadow, between <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/sciencee\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"5\" title=\"Science\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">science<\/a> and superstition.\u201d Or even just Connecticut \u2014 but no such luck.<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-module inline-module--review alignleft\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n        <span class=\"inline-module--review__eyebrow widget-heading-semi__label\"><br \/>\n            Theater review      <\/span><\/p>\n<p>        Ninety minutes with no intermission. At Studio 54, 254 W. 54th St.\n    <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Our theories of what\u2019s actually going on at this city council meeting in the town of Big Cherry run the gamut: murder, aliens, cult worship, or just an old fashioned Broadway comedy. The long-lasting uncertainty of what genre \u201cThe Minutes\u201d is makes Letts\u2019 work, which opened Sunday night at Studio 54, a supremely clever piece of writing.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Our high wears off, however, once we get our answer near the end of the play. And the truth is more obvious than we had hoped. While the conclusion admirably indicts the behavior of tony, solid-blue suburbs, it concerns an issue that America has gr<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>led with for centuries.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Adding to the old-hat vibe, the controversial final moment (one queasy woman ran out of the theater) believes that it\u2019s bolder and more thought-provoking than it really is.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Nonetheless the journey there is a mighty enjoyable one, filled with crackling dialogue, strong-willed Steppenwolf Theater performances and Letts\u2019 compelling argument: that even the most minuscule of historical accounts, like say a meeting\u2019s minutes, are essential to understanding what happened in the past.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/the-minutes-broadway-play-1.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Mayor Superba (Tracy Letts, center) leads the city council meeting, alongside Mr. Assalone (Jeff Still, left) and Mr. Breeding (Cliff Chamberlain). \" class=\"wp-image-21945084\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/the-minutes-broadway-play-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/the-minutes-broadway-play-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/the-minutes-broadway-play-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Mayor Superba (Tracy Letts, center) leads the city council meeting, alongside Mr. Assalone (Jeff Still, left) and Mr. Breeding (Cliff Chamberlain). <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Jeremy Daniel<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Letts \u2014 who\u2019s America\u2019s finest playwright\/actor combo since Sam Shepard \u2014 appears in his play as the strict, rule-obsessed Mayor Superba. (Nothing is scarier than the ferocious Letts calling a meeting to order.) He and nine others sit behind microphones airing petty grievances that spiral into seriousness.<\/p>\n<p>Tony-award winner Jessie Mueller is the stoic clerk; K. Todd Freeman is Mr. Blake, who has a hilarious plan to bring money to the city; the always excellent Blair Brown is the vindictive Ms. Innes; Cliff Chamberlain is dumb Mr. Breeding; Jeff Still is the chronically mispronounced Mr. Assalone; the germaphobe who\u2019s probably a cat lady, Ms. Matz, is played by Sally Murphy; and Danny McCarthy as schlub-next-door Mr. Hanratty.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Funniest of all is Austin Pendleton, whose Mr. Oldfield can barely hear and harps on his need for a better parking place. The hilarious actor\u2019s outbursts and erratic pacing are perfection.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/the-minutes-broadway-play-2.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"The cast of &quot;The Minutes&quot; on Broadway\" class=\"wp-image-21945162\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/the-minutes-broadway-play-2.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/the-minutes-broadway-play-2.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/the-minutes-broadway-play-2.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>The cast of \u201cThe Minutes\u201d on Broadway.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Jeremy Daniel<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>And Noah Reid of \u201cSchitt\u2019s Creek\u201d (who replaced Armie Hammer) sticks in everybody\u2019s craw as a doe-eyed, but not-so-gullible new member of the council, who was absent from the last meeting and keeps demanding to see the minutes. But they\u2019re nowhere to be found.<\/p>\n<p>The secret of that document, we quickly learn, lies with Mr. Carp (Ian Barford), whose chair mysteriously sits empty for much of the hour and a half.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Minutes,\u201d directed by Anna D. Shapiro, is a more pointedly political play from Letts than usual. \u201cAugust: Osage County,\u201d \u201cBug\u201d and \u201cLinda Vista\u201d all flirted with issues, but didn\u2019t go there like his latest does. I\u2019m glad the playwright tries something new here, even if the fireworks don\u2019t go off as planned.<\/p>\n<p>I only wish the twist was aliens.\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/04\/18\/the-minutes-review-broadway-play-is-better-than-its-ending\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Broadway play is better than its ending&#8221; At its best, Tracy Letts\u2019 new play \u201cThe Minutes\u201d goes down like an old episode of \u201cThe Twilight Zone.\u201d\u00a0 In a town hall meeting room, the lights turn off at meaningful moments and thunder booms dramatically outside. Every so often, a casually tossed-off remark will raise brows \u2014&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":433829,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/the-minutes-broadway-play-3.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[128146,29467,70731,75751],"class_list":["post-433828","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-4-18-22","tag-broadway","tag-theater-reviews","tag-tracy-letts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/433828","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=433828"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/433828\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/433829"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=433828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=433828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=433828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}