Beauty of the Father

First - yes, Rabbit Hole was total crap - I don't know what Ben Brantley is talking about and why he is recommending it - but if you want to sit through 2+ hours of a boring, stagnant, un-directed mess, by all means, go for it!

Second - we saw Beauty of the Father at MTC this Saturday, a new play by Nilo Cruz, of Anna in the Tropics fame (which I didn't see, but have heard great things about). It's hard to begin to tell the story - because as I look back at this show - it's difficult to know what the playwright hopes for his audience to take away. The setting is on the coast of Spain, at the house of Emiliano, a painter, father, lover, etc etc. The story wraps around a love triangle between several people: Marina, Emiliano's daughter, has just come to visit him after more than a decade. She meets Karim, Emiliano's Moroccan house-guest, and they immediately begin a fling. Paquita, the housekeeper, is also in love with Emiliano. And get this, Emiliano and Karim have once been lovers.

Did you catch all of that? Well, the story goes back and forth - Marina wants her father to be happy so she breaks off relations with Karim - and things end in what we think will be death (but thankfully isn't). I have to say that the set was pretty fantastic in terms of the limited room that the designer had to work with. I found myself at times really feeling like I were on the coast of Spain, instead of a small theatre in mid-town Manhattan. That to me is what theatre is supposed to be about - it should transport you to another place - so that you forget that you are an audience member - and begin to really be entrenched in the story being unfolded.

All in all, not a remarkable show - it could use some work and might be able to be buttoned up for a future run - but try it out if you get the chance.