The Busy World Is Hushed

So this was an interesting play. We saw the first preview of this one, which Lydia doesn't enjoy, but I really do. I think it's a pretty special thing to be the first audience to ever see a play shown to the public, and while some of it might still be a little rough, I think if you enjoy it at that point, it's much more telling about the play. And I really rather enjoyed this play.

Again, it was first preview, and Jill Clayburgh stumbled about her lines a bit, but I thought it was still pretty solid. There were some stretches that were a bit cheesy and awkward that could have been cut, but there was also an audience post-show discussion with the playwright, the director, and the artistic director that really put some of the more jarring or interesting lines into perspective.

The play basically featured Jill Clayburgh as a widowed minister who has turned to God after the death of her husband and raises a son who is a free spirit. The son has hit the age of his father when he died, and is trying to learn more about him. Hamish Linklater comes in to work for Jill Clayburgh in writing a new book about a newly discovered Gospel. The play progresses and shows the impact that each character has on the relationship between the other two, and it is really quite interesting.

I really enjoyed the play. Again it had some points that were cheesy and sappy and a little excessive, some dialogue that was a little preachy and forced that could be cut, but I'm sure it will work itself out. But I think it did say some interesting things about religion, homosexuality, and family relationships. There was an interesting interplay between the characters, and the power they had over each other despite the weaknesses of each individual character.

The acting was good, the characters were all likable in a way. As the director described them, they were all completely right and completely wrong. I thought the characters were pretty endearing, and the writing definitely had many moments that made me laugh out loud. It was both funny and moving, I thought, and I was pretty captivated throughout the show.

So I liked it, but I think Lydia has some other opinions, so I'll let her share those if she'd like...