ScheckOnTheater

Watching Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia is bound to make you feel smarter.

This 1993 play, a career highlight for the playwright, is a complex interweaving of past and present, of intellect and emotion, of science, history and art. It’s a dense, challenging work, but also an infinitely entertaining one that offers vast rewards.

Its classical elegance is well displayed in the sterling new Broadway revival that was previously seen in London’s West End a couple of seasons back.

Set in a stately home in Derbyshire, the play’s action alternates between 1809 and the present day. In the scenes set in the 19th century, the characters are striving to make scientific advances, while in the ones set in the present they are looking to uncover the secrets of the past.

We are thus privy to extended conversations about such topics as landscape gardening, Fermat’s Last Theorem and the intricacies of Newtonian physics and chaos theory.

If it all sounds dauntingly challenging, then you underestimate the playwright’s gift for rendering intellectual concepts in wonderfully entertaining fashion.

It certainly helps that the play contains some of Stoppard’s most colorful and memorable characters, including Thomasina Coverly (Bel Powley), a teenage math prodigy; Septimus Hodge (Tom Riley), her dreamboat tutor; Hannah Jarvis (Lia Williams), a no-nonsense academic researcher; and Bernard Nightingale (Billy Crudup), a hilariously enthusiastic historian who is determined to prove his theory that Lord Byron, who briefly stayed in the house in 1809, fled the country after killing a rival poet in a duel over an adulterous affair.

Director David Leveaux has provided a production that is simultaneously stately and breezy, one that conveys both the poetic poignancy and playful humor of the work. He’s also assembled a terrific ensemble, including three holdovers from the London production--Powley (who has an unfortunate tendency to swallow her words), Riley and Williams.

Crudup is endlessly amusing as the historian; Raul Esparza is terrifically droll as the family scion with a particular fondness for both mathematics and his pet turtle; and Grace Gummer, Meryl Streep’s daughter, demonstrates that she’s inherited both her mother’s stunning beauty and talent. The cast is further rounded out by such reliable theater veterans as Margaret Colin and Bryon Jennings in smaller roles.

Ethel Barrymore Theatre, 243 W. 47th St. 212-239-6200. www.Telecharge.com.

After two movie adaptations and an Off-Broadway production a decade ago, there would seem to be no compelling reason to revive Jason Miller’s That Championship Season. But, ah yes, there is, as this old-fashioned drama provides a perfect opportunity for the sort of limited engagement star casting that has become a winning recipe for Broadway success.

The good news is that the star-studded ensemble does very well by their by now familiar characters. The bad news is that this 1972 Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning drama--about the reunion of former high school basketball players celebrating the 20th anniversary of their biggest victory-- hasn’t aged particularly well.

Gregory Mosher, who staged a revelatory revival of Arthur Miller’s A View From the Bridge last season, has failed to work similar magic here. But he has assembled a terrific cast that has already proven catnip at the box-office.

It includes Brian Cox as the coach who none too subtly reveals his racism; Jason Patric as the alcoholic Tom; Jim Gaffigan as George, the small-town mayor struggling for re-election; Chris Noth as Phil, the successful businessman whose support George desperately needs; and Kiefer Sutherland as James, the frustrated junior high principal who hopes to improve his lot in life by successfully managing George’s campaign.

The play follows a fairly predictable template. As the evening wears on and the characters become increasingly drunk, secrets and betrayals rise to the surface, with dramatic revelations and violent confrontations arriving on a fairly constant basis.  

Nearly forty years after its premiere, it feels stodgy and predictable now. But the play still works to some degree, thanks to its frequent doses of acerbic humor and effective tapping into the classic theme of dashed hopes.

It comes as no surprise that theater veteran Cox walks away with the evening with his forceful performance as the coach. On the other hand, who would have guessed that Patric (the playwright’s son, by the way) would display such formidable comic chops with his consistently funny turn, especially after his disappointing work as the similarly boozy Brick in the ill-fated Broadway revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

Also fine are Gaffigan, perfectly cast as the uncharismatic mayor, and Chris Noth, in familiar territory as the slick and sleazy businessman. Sutherland is less convincing as the milquetoast James, but one has to admire the actor’s desire to play against type and meld into the ensemble rather than exploit the macho persona he honed to perfection over so many seasons of 24.

But all the actors’ efforts are not enough to overcome the mechanistic nature of the play itself, which has entered middle-age no more gracefully than its misbegotten characters.

Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, 242 W. 45th St. 212-239-6200. www.Telecharge.com.

Playwright David Lindsay-Abaire, who won the Tony and Pulitzer for Rabbit Hole, has expertly tapped into the zeitgeist with his newest work, Good People. This hard-edged comedy about class differences is bound to strike a chord in a modern economic climate that is resulting in an ever growing disparity between the haves and the have-nots.

Set in South Boston, the play primarily concerns the charged interactions between Margie (Oscar winner Frances McDormand), who has just been let go from her job as a cashier in a dollar store, and Mike (Tate Donovan), the old flame turned prosperous physician who she turns to for help.

Single mom Margie has lost her job due to the constant tardiness caused by her having to care for her mentally impaired young daughter. Desperately concerned about her ability to make ends meet, she eagerly grasps at her old friend Jean’s (Becky Ann Baker) suggestion to look up “Dr. Mike” and ask him for a job.

But when she shows up at his well-appointed office, it quickly becomes apparent that Mike, although sympathetic to his old high school flame’s plight, has little interest in helping. He does, however, throw her a bone in the form on an invitation to the birthday party he and his significantly younger, African-American wife Kate (Renee Elise Goldsberry) are throwing for their young daughter.

Shortly before the event, he calls to cancel, explaining that the birthday girl is sick. But Margie, suspecting that he’s merely had second thoughts about inviting her, decides to attend anyway.

When she shows up unexpectedly at his upscale neighborhood home with a gift of a tacky rabbit doll crafted by her eccentric landlady (Estelle Parsons), Margie discovers that he was telling the truth. The resulting confrontation between her and the couple, who are obviously experiencing marital difficulties, sharply exposes the different paths that their lives have taken.

Although not a major work, the play succeeds because of its incisively drawn characters and sharp, witty dialogue. The interactions between the characters feel vividly real, from Mike’s increasing registers of annoyance to Margie’s edgy sarcasm to Kate’s genuine attempts at civility. Even Steve (Patrick Carroll), the dollar shop manager who fires Margie, is revealed to have unexpected depths in the bingo playing scenes that amusingly riff on the lower class characters’ financial desperation.

Under the pitch-perfect direction of Daniel Sullivan, the cast delivers superb performances. It’s no surprise that the ever reliable McDormand is excellent, but here she delivers a multi-faceted portrayal, complete with a perfect Southie accent, that rivals her Oscar winning turn in Fargo. She’s well matched by Donovan, who subtly but expertly conveys Mike’s barely disguised contempt; Goldsberry, suggesting hidden depths in the sympathetic Kate, and the rest of the ensemble. 

Adding to the production’s effect are John Lee Beatty’s beautifully crafted sets, which vividly convey the characters’ wildly different financial circumstances.

Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, 261 W. 47th St. 212-239-6200. www.telecharge.com.

Imagine Frankie Valli stepping in on vocals for Jersey Boys. Or Ringo Starr manning the drum kit for the Beatles tribute Rain. Such is the electrifying effect of the presence of Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong as the drug dealing St. Jimmy in American Idiot, the Broadway musical inspired by the best-selling pop-punk band’s Grammy winning 2004 concept album.

Armstrong has been involved with the show from the start, developing it and co-writing the book with director Michael Mayer. He also stepped into the show for a brief one-week run last September, which inevitably resulted in a massive hike in ticket sales.

Now, in an effort to boost box-office during the traditionally slow winter months, he’s in the midst of a sporadic 50 performance run. He played the role through January 30 and will return for a two-week engagement, running February 10-27.

His guest turn brings even more energy to a show that already suffers from no shortage of it. Despite his rock stardom and hugely charismatic stage presence, he melds seamlessly into an ensemble whose performances have only gotten stronger since the show opened last April.

The 95-minute musical incorporates all of the music from the titular album, as well as selections from the band’s 21st Century Breakdown and several other songs. The storyline concerns three disaffected suburban youth and the disparate paths on which they embark.

Johnny (John Gallagher, Jr.) heads to the big city, where he falls in love with Whatsername (Rebecca Naomi Jones) even while falling prey to drug addition at the hands of St. Jimmy. Tunny (Stark Sands) enlists in the army and is sent to Iraq, where he is gravely wounded. And Will (Michael Esper) finds himself stuck in suburbia, struggling to support his wife (Jeanna de Waal) and baby.

While the thinly drawn story and characters never become truly involving, Mayer’s propulsive staging smashingly overcomes the material’s flaws. Tom Kitt’s arrangements effectively theatricalize the hard-rocking and frequently melodic songs while diluting none of their original power. And Stephen Hoggett’s relentlessly energetic choreography is superbly performed by the youthful ensemble.

Far from being an example of stunt casting, Armstrong delivers a knockout turn, providing a devilishly antic spin to the character that is consistently mesmerizing. And, needless to say, he’s in utter command of the music. When he performs the hit song “Time of Your Life” at the encore, it’s sheer nirvana for the blissed-out Green Day fans.

Rock fans take note: Melissa Etheridge will be stepping into the role from Feb. 1-6. Is this the start of a series of guest stars ala the revival of Chicago?

St. James Theatre, 246 W. 44th St. 212-239-6200. www.telecharge.com.  

It’s safe to say that there hasn’t been a Lady Bracknell quite as haughtily imperious as Brian Bedford’s in the pitch-perfect new production of The Importance of Being Earnest. Playing the grand dame who looks at her daughter Gwendolyn’s prospective suitor in frighteningly disapproving manner, this estimable classical actor demonstrates that the correct gender is absolutely not required to play this formidable dowager.

Bedford, who previously essayed the role in an acclaimed Stratford Shakespeare Festival production two years, not only steals the show, but has also expertly staged this pitch-perfect Broadway production of Oscar Wilde’s 1895 classic being presented by the Roundabout Theatre Company.

He’s aided by a sterling supporting cast, including the amusing Santino Fontana and David Furr as Algernon and John, the two young men who learn the titular lesson in their romantic pursuits; the charming Sara Topham and Charlotte Parry as Gwendolen and Cecily, their respective beloveds; and seasoned veterans Dana Ivey and Paxton Whitehead as Cecily’s prim governess Miss Prism and the starchy Rev. Chasuble.

Performing on Desmond Heeley’s sumptuous sets (and clad in his elegant costumes as well), the ensemble deliver Wilde’s subversively witty comedy of manners in grand style, thankfully avoiding the excessive campiness that permeates so many mediocre productions.

For regular theatergoers, Wilde’s play is by now all too familiar. But although one can nearly recite its dialogue by heart, it’s always a pleasure to hear his classic bon mots delivered with impeccable drollness and comic timing.

One priceless example: “To lose one parent, Mr. Worthing, may be regarded as a misfortune,” Bedford’s Lady Bracknell pronounces. “To lose both looks like carelessness.”  

But clearly the raison d’etre of this production is to showcase Bedford’s star turn, and he doesn’t disappoint. The actor underplays beautifully, never bothering to appear particularly feminine and delivering every witticism in the driest manner possible. He can score more laughs with a simple raised eyebrow or disapproving glance than most actors manage with reams of dialogue. Making a far too rare appearance on Broadway—he has spent the last 27 years regularly performing up in Canada—his performance alone makes attendance mandatory.

American Airlines Theatre, 227 W. 42nd St. 212-719-1300. www.roundabouttheatre.org.