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| EVEN BETTER THIS 'TIME': (left to right) Laura Linney, Brian D'Arcy James, Eric Bogosian, Christina Ricci in 'Time Stands Still'. Photo: Joan Marcus |
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Theater
Review
Tony-nominated drama even better the second 'Time' around
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By Scott Harrah
Relationships and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East are two thought-provoking themes in Pulitzer Prize-winner Donald Margulies’ Tony-nominated drama, Time Stands Still, which just re-opened after a successful run last spring. The story of angst-ridden New Yorkers is actually even better and more powerful the second time around. Laura Linney brilliantly portrays war photojournalist Sarah Goodwin as a high-strung woman who is torn between her nearly nine-year relationship with boyfriend James Dodd (Brian D’Arcy James) and returning to her dangerous job after nearly being killed by a suicide bomber in the Middle East.
Linney injects her character with a whiny sensibility that doesn’t always make her sympathetic to audiences, but that’s obviously the playwright's intent. However, Linney has really grown into the role since the play debuted earlier this year, and her performance is incandescent throughout the show. Sarah thinks she’s altruistic, but her career motives appear hollow and selfish.
Christina Ricci, taking over the role originated by Alicia Silverstone, is electrifying as event planner Mandy Bloom, the girlfriend of Sarah’s editor, Richard Erhlich (Eric Bogosian). Although Ms. Ricci doesn't have the natural naïveté of Ms. Silverstone, she's still thoroughly convincing, and makes the part her own. When Sarah first meets Mandy, she says the woman is “embryonic.” Sarah thinks Mandy is too young and vapid for the intellectual Richard. As the tale progresses, however, Ms. Ricci's Mandi displays a wide range of maturity and emotions that prove she’s hardly some airhead. Ms. Ricci's intricate execution of Mandy’s character arc is always engrossing. In early scenes, she politely puts up with Sarah’s digs at her, but Ms. Ricci shows what a great actor she is when she breaks down and lashes back.
On the surface, Sarah and James seem to have a great relationship. James is a freelance writer who’s content to nurse Sarah back to health and hopes she won’t return to her career so the two of them can have a normal life together in Brooklyn. Richard and Mandy look mismatched because of their age differences, but we learn that there’s genuine love between them, while Sarah and James’ partnership is becoming strained. It is remarkable how the men interact with the needs of the women in their lives here. Brian D’Arcy James gives a first-rate portrait of James as a caring man who only wants the best for Sarah. Eric Bogosian is in equal good form as Richard, who is doing everything to make things with Mandy work.
Time Stands Still could have been another prosaic drama about bickering couples, but Daniel Sullivan deftly directs the outstanding cast, making it well worth a second look.
Published October 7, 2010
Reviewed at Press Preview Performance on October 4, 2010
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| 'STILL' WORTH A LOOK: Christina Ricca (top) & Eric Bogosian in 'Time Stands Still'. Photo: Joan Marcus |
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TIME STANDS STILL
It is great to have Time Stands Still return to Broadway. Seeing it for the second time made me appreciate this American play and the performances much more. It closed by the time the Tony nominations came out earlier this year, but it deserved its nominations for Best Play and Best Actress for Laura Linney.
Sarah Goodwin (Laura Linney) photographer, and James Dodd (Brian d'Arcy James) journalist, cover the atrocities that take place anywhere in the world, be it the Middle East or Africa. James has just brought back Sarah to America from a German hospital where she was put back together after being blown up in a raid in the Middle East. James has had enough of traveling and wants to marry Sarah, settle down and start a family after seeing his editor, Richard Ehrlich (Eric Bogosian) and his new wispy girlfriend Mandy Bloom (Christina Ricci), and the happiness they share together. This is not about a couple reaching a midlife crisis; this is about what propels you to keep going in your life. Although Sarah feels she is an intruder on people's lives and photographing their miseries, she has to go back to it. The question is: Is she really covering news and getting the story out, or is she getting her adrenaline rush by covering people's miseries and misfortunes?
The theatre has always had wonderful actresses that make a season brighter with their appearance. I grew up on Maureen Stapleton, Margaret Leighton, Zoe Caldwell, Rosemary Harris and Colleen Dewhurst. Their appearances on the stage meant you were guaranteed a memorable performance. The new generation is fortunate enough to have Laura Linney. She has joined this elite group of ladies in delivering such fine performances. With her talent and beauty, it would be very easy for her to be a Hollywood actress, but her devotion to the stage thankfully brings her back to Broadway frequently, and new audiences get to enjoy this terrific actress who has honed her craft and grows with every role. Christine Ricci, the new member in this foursome, is charming and sincere in her performance as Mandy. She has replaced Alicia Silverstone. Ms. Silverstone had this built-in ditz factor that made her believable as a party planner. I question if Ms. Ricci would ever contemplate such a profession. Brian d'Arcy James as the writer, and Eric Bogosian as the editor, have settled into their roles admirably and deliver riveting performances. Director Daniel Sullivan has tightened the pacing, helping the cast deliver crisp performances.
CORT THEATRE, 138 West 48th Street. (212-239-6200).
www.timestandsstillonbroadway.com
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