Heisenberg
Tickets from $75 Buy Tickets
Cititour.com Review
Madness and mania seem to suit Mary-Louise Parker. Her finest performances, Catherine in “Proof,” Harper in “Angels in America,” and Nancy in “Weeds,” have all been ladies who have some trouble handling reality. In “Heisenberg,” Simon Stephens’ enchanting two-hander at Manhattan Theatre Club, Stage II, Parker adds another indelible portrait to her gallery of wacky women.
Or has she? Actually, part of Stephens’ genius is that we can’t be quite sure at the end of these 80 minutes whether Georgie Burns (Parker) is eccentric, deeply bipolar, or actually completely calculating. Yes, she has seemingly randomly kissed total stranger Alex Priest (Denis Arndt), a lonely septuagenarian, at a London train station. But as the play unfolds, we change our minds this way and that about why Georgie did what she did that day – and does what she does, and says what she says.
What isn’t surprising is how the unpredictable (to say the least) 40something Georgie, an American living abroad, awakens something in Alex, a lifelong bachelor and now less-than-successful butcher, and forces him to reconsider how he’s been living his life. Perhaps it’s the right thing for this lone wolf to hook up, whether permanently or even for one night, with this creature who screams for no reason, sneaks off in the night, and changes the details of her life story than remain alone. She’s certainly never boring, even though she’s sometimes maddening.
Georgie is the kind of role that suits Parker to a tee, a woman with inner strength mixed with a distinct vulnerability that catches you off guard. And this award-winning actress has found the perfect partner in the lesser-known Arndt (a veteran of almost every regional theater in the U.S.), who gives Alex gruffness and tenderness in equal measure, and knows how to give as good as he gets.
Director Mark Brokaw and scenic designer Mark Wendland have brilliantly reconfigured this space, creating a tennis court-like central area with the audience seated on either side and practically on top of the actors, lending the proceedings a delightful level of intimacy. Two benches and chairs make up the only set pieces, while Michael Krass has given each actor one casual outfit to wear throughout the whole play. It’s anti-spectacle, while still being spectacular.
Oh, by the way, the title has nothing to do with “Breaking Bad.” I gather it’s related to the Heisenberg Principle, but I’m a drama critic not a physicist. So all I know is that while the principle has to do with uncertainty, the play and these actors’ sterling work are certainly not to be missed.
By Brian Scott Lipton
Visit the Site
http://www.manhattantheatreclub.com/heisenberg
Cast
Denis Arndt, Mary-Louise Parker
Open/Close Dates
Opening 5/19/2015
Closing 7/18/2015
Box Office
212-581-1212
Theatre Info
Manhattan Theatre Club
131 West 55th Street
New York, NY 10019
Map
Comments
Sign up for our newsletter !