HOME PAGE
SITE GUIDE
SEARCH
ADVERTISING AT CURTAINUP
REVIEWS
FEATURES
NEWS
Etcetera and
Short Term Listings
LISTINGS
Broadway
Off-Broadway
NYC Restaurants
BOOKS and CDs
OTHER PLACES
Berkshires
London
California
New Jersey
Philadelphia
Elsewhere
QUOTES
TKTS
PLAYWRIGHTS' ALBUMS
LETTERS TO EDITOR
FILM
LINKS
MISCELLANEOUS
Free Updates
Masthead
Writing for Us
A CurtainUp Los Angeles Review
The Escort
| Gentlemen who can afford to go to the theatre also have the means to visit someone like me. — Charlotte, a high-end call girl.
|
Polly Draper in The Escort
(Photo: Michael Lamont) |
Thirteen-year-old Lewis's avid pursuit of sex on the internet and his attempts to hide it from his worried parents are the pivot around which this sly and zany comedy swings. More than just surface yuks, playwright Jane Anderson brings up buried or ignored feelings from the adults, from Rhona more than Howard, as well as avid curiosity. The play, a commissioned premiere from The Geffen Theatre, delves into sex-for-money from the viewpoint of Charlotte and her male counterpart, Matthew, also played by Gabriel Sunday. When Rhona and Howard pour over Charlotte's resume on the internet, one no-no they encounter is kissing on the lips, the seal of intimacy in our culture. That should have given them their first clue.
But it's really the saga of Rhona, whose concern for Lewis leads her to confide in Charlotte and eventually to admit her loneliness and agree to try sex-for-money with Matthew.
She shouldn't have been surprised that he's a beautiful young man, accent on the young, and in one of the play's strongest scenes, she goads him to near-violence. And she shouldn't be so gullible about Charlotte's self-serving whitewash; it's almost the end of the play before she stops believing everything Charlotte says.
Lisa Peterson directs with a bright brisk pace. She takes the sex-for-money theme, analyzes it and, after thoroughly exploring the byways, plunks down with the righteous, .
Polly Draper stands out in a carefully chosen cast, so natural you forget she's acting, with Gabriel Sunday running a close second in the dual roles of the adolescent Lewis and the bland smug young Matthew. The role of Howard seems to be written as a cold conventional man, not giving Eckhouse much wriggle room. Fortunately he had two other small cameo roles which witness his range. The role of Charlotte, the Escort, with her carefully composed English, is mask-like to the end. It doesn't work somehow.
Richard Hoover designed the stunning set, a circle of doors behind which emerge the props for each scene. Costumes, courtesy of Laura Bauer, are numerous, beginning with the simulated nude costumes which are designed to highlight the erogenous zones.
The Escort is carefully researched with Anderson's signature flair for comedy. The frightened withdrawal at the end and the ironic status quo that are Charlotte's final words are a comment on our society. Or not.
|
The Escort Playwright: Jane Anderson Director: Lisa Peterson Cast: Charlotte (Maggie Siff), Matthew/Lewis (Gabriel Sunday), Rhona (Polly Draper), Howard & Others (James Eckhouse). Set Design: Richard Hoover Costume Design: Laura Bauer Lighting Design: Rand Ryan Composer & Sound Design: Paul James Prendergast Where: The Geffen Playhouse, 10886 LeConte, Los Angeles. Reservations: (310) 208-5454. When: April 6-May 8, 2011. Reviewed by Laura Hitchcock on April 6. |
|
Subscribe to our FREE email updates with a note from editor Elyse Sommer about additions to the website -- with main page hot links to the latest features posted at our numerous locations. To subscribe,
E-mail:  esommer@curtainup.comesommer@curtainup.comput SUBSCRIBE CURTAINUP EMAIL UPDATE in the subject line and your full name and email address in the body of the message -- if you can spare a minute, tell us how you came to CurtainUp and from what part of the country. Visit Curtainup's Blog Annex For a feed to reviews and features as they are posted add http://curtainupnewlinks.blogspot.com to your reader Curtainup at Facebook . . . Curtainup at Twitter REVIEW FEEDBACK Highlight one of the responses below and click "copy" or"CTRL+C"
Paste the highlighted text into the subject line (CTRL+ V): Feel free to add detailed comments in the body of the email. . .also the names and emails of any friends to whom you'd like us to forward a copy of this review. |
In the Heights
