BATON ROUGE THEATER
REVIEWER GETS HIS STRIDE

You may or may not recall my trashing the local daily's theater critic here in Baton Rouge last semester. He actually gave us some pretty positive write-ups, butI've had some big problems with his writing, which struck me as incoherent at best, and horrible at worst. Well, it looks like he finally understands how to write a theater review.

From the Baton Rouge Advocate:

Play powerfully presents some of Williams’ best works

When Tennessee Williams died in 1983, the New York Times obituary noted that the playwright would be remembered for his “deep sympathy and expansive humor about outcasts in our society.”

Thanks to Hurricane Katrina, thousands of New Orleanians were cast out of the city that Williams not only loved, but where he set some of his most famous works.

Which is precisely what makes Swine Palace’s latest production, “Tennessee Williams in Quarter Time,” so deeply personal and hauntingly evocative to anyone affected by the disaster. The scenes from his various plays, some taking place in New Orleans, stand as bold testament to the place’s rich history and its profound impact on American literature and culture.

Director John Dennis is to be commended for conceiving of and bringing to the Reilly’s stage, in such a short amount of time, a production that serves as a powerful reminder of just what’s at stake should New Orleans be forgotten.

That Dennis packaged the work so expertly is one of the chief strengths of “Quarter Time.” The play is like a perfectly wrapped gift, opened gingerly out of respect for its marvelous presentation.

Click here for the rest.

You have to understand that my problems with this guy have little to do with whether or not he liked the play; rather, I've railed away on his work because he seems to have known little about the theater as an artistic medium, and because he seemed unwilling to do any homework before seeing a show. This is not the case here. The reviewer deftly fills in the background on the show, and offers some well supported analysis as to why he thinks it works--a little bird told me that he recently attended a theater critics' seminar in California, and it shows. There are no cheap shots here, no brainless self-indulgent musing, just a simple and straightforward essay on the show's value and how successful it was, in his opinion.

Of course, it doesn't hurt that he liked it.

Anyway, check it out. I think this guy's figured out what he's doing.


Cristine McMurdo-Wallis, foreground, portrays Amanda in Tennessee Williams’ ‘The Glass Menagerie.’ Fellow cast members Anna Richardson and Mark Jaynes appear in the background. (photo courtesy of the Advocate)

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