Sometimes the stars do align and good things happen to make good plays transcend the narrow sphere of a limited run showcase to reach the larger audience it deserves. Case in point: The Temperamentals by Jon Marans which has just opened for an open-ended run at New World Stages.

Simon Saltzman was one of many reviewers who admired Mr. Marans' ability to forge a fascinating fact-based drama about the Mattachine Society, a gay rights organization that was eclipsed by the Stonewall rebellions. Mr. Marans has used the interim between last year's run and the move uptown to fine tune and streamline his script, so that it is now not just, as Simon put it, "informative and mainly engrossing" but engrossing every single minute. (See Original Review).

The plot remains intact. The focus is still on the two leading characters: Political activist Harry Hay and innovative fashion designer Rudi Gernreich. They are passionate about each other and about freeing homosexuals from their despised and persecuted minority status. The minor but beneficial changes involved trimming some elements from the terrifically effective construct of writing a number of interesting peripheral roles for three additional actors (and very occasionally, Rudi) to slip in and out of. While Marans has apparently downsized a few of these roles, the story is still invigorated by plenty of fascinating "Extras." Consequently, there's no loss other than about twenty minutes of the total running time.

Most important in terms of the stars to felicitously align themselves is that all but one of the original cast members were available to reprise their roles. Thomas Jay Ryan is brilliant as the big ego, driven Harry Hay who likens himself to the gigantic ship, the Titanic ("I was born on Easter Sunday. The Titanic went down the following Thursday. And why? Two Titanics can't exist in the world at one time! When one shows up, the other has to go down!"). Michael Urie best known for the TV show Ugly Betty, is equally riveting to watch as Rudi Gernreich the Viennese refugee and fashion designer whose topless bathing suit is part of the Metropolitan Museum's costume collection. He's a scintillating mix of charm, ambition and devotion to Harry and the Mattachine cause. The difference between the men — Harry is initially a macho style homosexual, uncomfortable about being openly warm and romantic while Rudi is warmer and more out in the open — adds sizzle as well as poignancy to their relationship.

The one new addition to the trio of multi-taskers is Arnie Burton — an excellent casting choice since Burton has been changing personalities on a dime during the entire Broadway run of The 39 Steps, also moving the New World Stages complex). Burton brings distinctive nuance to the quite different characters in The Temperamentals. He's especially memorable as movie director Vincente Minnelli. The priceless Minnelli-Gernreich-Hay party scene also sparks Rudi and Harry's hilarious take on Minelli's wife Judy Garland.

While Ryan's Hay is the cynosure, the versatile ensemble provides the richness that makes The Temperamentals a play rather than a staged history lesson. Michael Urie's Rudi is hardly a second banana. His somewhat odd yet authentic and consistent Austrian accent enhances his charm. When he explains the reason for his bigger than ever before used hound's tooth checks to Harry we see how his belief in "making bold fashion statements" dovetails with Harry's more political vision and clarifies the compatibility of what at first seems an incompatible relationship.

The Stage 5 theater is one of the complex's smaller venues so that, except for a balcony, this is still an intimate production. Scenic designer Clint Ramos has remained true to the playwright's stage direction which asks for the designers to evoke the many different locales with atmosphere rather than anything realistic. Josh Bradford's lighting supplies a more than generous dose of the atmosphere sought by Mr. Marans.

Audiences who missed The Temperamentals the first time around will be as glad as I was to have a chance to play catchup. This informative and entertaining play is not just one more addition to a season awash in old and new gay themed stories but as Simon Saltzman so aptly summed it up last year: It is as earnestly simple in its presentation as it is irrevocably splendid in its purpose.

Current Production Notes
The Temperamentals by Jon Marans
Directed by Jonathan Silverstein

Cast: Thomas Jay Ryan (Harry Hay), Michael Urie (Rudi Gernreich), Arnie Burton (Chuck Rowland and others), Matthew Schneck (Bob Hull and others), Sam Breslin Wright (Dale Jennings and others)
  Set & Costume Design: Clint Ramos
  Lighting Design: Josh Bradford
  Sound Design: Daniel Kluger
  Running Time: 2 hours 10 minutes including one intermission
  New World Stages 340 West 50th Street(212) 239-6200 www.thetemperamentals.com
From 2/18/10; opening 2/28/10; closing 5/30/10.
Monday 8:00 pm; Thursday 8:00pm; Friday 8:00 pm; Saturday at 2:00pm & 8:00 pm and on Sunday at 3:00 pm & 7:00 pm.
Ticket prices are: $65;student tickets for $25 in the mezzanine.
  Re-reviewed by Elyse Sommer February 25th press performance