One of the main reasons I went to see "Grace", in previews last week on Broadway, was to see Paul Rudd in a new and complex role.
Even with his long and varied career, like many I had mostly seen his humorous and likable characters. Paul's portrayal of Steve, the God loving, well meaning hotel owner struggling with life's mix of heaven and hell, was intriguing. Seeing him in this role was like getting to know a whole other side of a longtime friend.
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| Paul Rudd, Kate Arrington, "Grace" Photo courtesy of O & M Public Relations, New York. |
Paul, Michael, Ed, and Kate, all live their characters, they don't "play" them. To me, that's the difference between acting and performing. As Stella Adler always said, "The play is not in the words, it's in you."
Michael Shannon as Sam, oozes pain out of every pore while going through his own personal hell hiding away in his "too sunny" Florida condo. Sam is caught in the abyss of grief, while wondering if he will or should, ever recover.
Ed Asner "the legend" was nowhere to be seen. Meant as a compliment because to me he was just Karl, the exterminator, an old man who is invisible until you ask him just one question. Like a character who jumps from the pages of a novel, Karl has a story. For him, his ghosts from the past are carried by him every day, like the spray tank on his back. He lives with them because he has to. Older people know this truth. The rest of us learn it....slowly and painfully.
Kate Arrington embodies Sara, the Midwestern wife whose support of her husband is a given. Sara is kind, supportive and thoughtful. She is not just a "wife," she is a woman who is also a wife. There is a difference.
"Grace" is defined as a play that asks "Are we in control of our lives?" To me the defining lines spoken by a struggling character in the production are ...
"I didn't do anything wrong. I did everything right. Why is this happening to me?!"
For me, my real life experiences with such emotions inspired my poem, To Be Human. Whether life makes sense to us or not, we are all "in it", the tragedy, and the grace, of living.
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| Kate Arrington, Michael Shannon, Ed Asner and Paul Rudd, "Grace" on Broadway. Currently in previews...opens in October, runs through January 16. Historic Cort Theatre. Photo courtesy of O & M Public Relations, New York.
"Grace"
Strictly limited Broadway engagement ends Jan. 16 2013 Historic Cort Theatre 138 W 48th Street www.graceonbroadway.com Cast Paul Rudd............Steve Michael Shannon....Sam Ed Asner..............Karl Kate Arrington.......Sara Understudies Danny McCarthy.....Steve/Sam Jessica Love..........Kate Jack Davidson........Karl Playwright............Craig Wright Director...............Dexter Bullard Set Design............Beowulf Boritt Costume Design......Tif Bullard Lighting Design.......David Weiner Sound Design.........Darron L. West Make-Up Design......Nan Zabriskie Fight Director .......J. David Brimmer Casting................Caparelliotis Casting General Management...101 Productions, Ltd. Producer....Debbie Bisno Producer....Fox Theatricals Producer....Paula Wagner Producer....Jessica Genick Producer....Jed Bernstein Producer....Christian Chadd Taylor Producer....Miles Marek Producer....Peter May Producer....Bruce Bendell Producer....Scott Prisand Producer....William Berlind Producer....Amanda Dubois Producer....Alex Diclaudio Producer....Stella La Rue Producer....Dr. Ron Noy Associate Producer....Dr. Judith Page Publicity....O & M Co. www.oandmco.com The Cort Theatre's early non-musical hits gave it the reputation of being a "lucky" house. The first initial production was "Peg O' My Heart" in 1912. The Shuberts acquired the theatre in 1927. The Shubert Organization, Cort Theatre Playbill Copyright 2012 Anna Wendt
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