Hollywood2020 blogger Joyce Schwarz was on location at a preview of the Broadway Play the ODD COUPLE on Broadway...and what an evening it was....5th row stage left Orchestra seat to what is basically a sold out show.
ODD COUPLE BROADWAY POSTER Starring as the classic pair this time is Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick in Neil Simon's timeless tale. See the poster at left-- the poster is just fabulous -- Hollywood2020 blogger Joyce SchwarzI wishes the play was as stunning as the artistic depiction.
BEST ACTOR IN THE PLAY --
Our bet for best actor in the ODD COUPLE is Lee Wilkof, a longtime stage performer with numerous credits to his name, but best known for originating the roles of Seymour Krelbourne in the original production of Little Shop of Horrors and Sam Byck in the original production of Assassins. Click on thumbnail and you'll see Wilkof is on the right of Nathan Lane in the cast photo, he plays a plucky henpecked oldster and walks across the stage with such aplomb to welcome Broderick into the apartment for the first time that he deserves his own round of applause.
This ODD COUPLE rendition is the same story with new characters -one sloppy (rather surprisingly Nathan Lane) and one neat (Broderick)--who according to Broadway.com are arguably the most memorable pair of characters that the successful playwright has ever written. It debuted on Broadway in 1965 and spawned an extremely successful 1968 movie and sitcom that ran for five seasons. BACKSTAGE does a better job than we could ever do -- with an interview with both of the leads-- here's the link for those of you hungry for an insider view: Lane, Broderick, and Mantello Talk About Everything
ODD COUPLE RUN SOLD OUT IN ADVANCE: The run was sold out before opening night, taking in roughly $7 million the day the box office opened and ultimately racking up $21 million in advance sales according the the BACKSTAGE reports.
FINANCIAL TIMES REVIEW -- I have to agree with this reviewer the laughs are there-- they just don't come off..."While theatregoers will probably leave the Brooks Atkinson happy, anyone hoping for a high-octane evening is likely to be disappointed. Neil Simon’s story, which takes place in 1965, with the newly separated Felix Unger moving into divorced Oscar Madison’s eight-room flat on Manhattan’s Riverside Drive, is as surefire as ever. All the laughs are there; only occasionally are they detonated."
ODD COUPLE SET -- amazingly great and the quick change from slob city to neatnik pad -- is TRULY AWESOME.....but you leave feeling something is missing....is it the casting? Is it the direction? We'll let those other Broadway critics ring in with their opinions as the reviews come in when the play really starts on December 1-- it's just in previews now...
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