The Heidi Chronicles
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Cititour.com Review
Twenty-six years after winning the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, The Heidi Chronicles remains a quietly powerful masterpiece. Wendy Wasserstein’s look at a woman’s struggle for fulfillment throughout the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s is as timeless as it is firmly rooted in its era. And Mad Men star Elisabeth Moss delivers a beautifully gutsy performance as Heidi Holland, who tries to stay true to her youthful idealism amid decades of change.
The Heidi Chronicles is as much a play about the baby boom generation as it is the story of its title character, whose consciousness is awakened by the women’s movement when she’s a student. Heidi becomes an art historian devoted to rediscovering history’s forgotten female artists, but keeping her personal relationships on course proves the greater challenge. Longtime friend Susan (Ali Ahn) goes from women’s-commune lesbian to Hollywood power broker. Peter (Bryce Pinkham), a potential boyfriend, comes out to her. And Scoop (Jason Biggs), her on-again, off-again lover, chooses a less ambitious woman over her. “You ‘quality time’ girls are going to be one generation of disappointed women,” he tells Heidi. “The ones who open doors usually are.”
Pam MacKinnon’s stirring production gains momentum as Heidi’s disenchantment grows throughout the ’80s-set Act II. Marriage eludes her, in part because of career ambitions, as the model for liberation becomes the “having it all” superwoman. But Wasserstein, like Heidi, can cast a critical eye on her characters and their choices without turning to bitterness or remorse.
It helps that it’s not a love story with a traditional happily ever after. Heidi’s journey is about learning to love herself and those around her. As she feels increasingly out of touch with her fellow females, Moss imbues Heidi with a hopefulness that fits the playwright’s vision, and her scenes with Pinkham are a nice blend of warmth and sarcasm. Biggs, playing a charismatic asshole, doesn’t entirely reach beyond that surface descriptor, but the vibrant Tracee Chimo leads the strong ensemble, playing a quartet of colorful gals, including a boisterous lesbian and cheery morning-show host.
At a time when feminism has again become a controversial topic, The Heidi Chronicles carries a tinge of nostalgia amid a plethora of still-relevant ideas and themes. I was a 19-year-old college student when I saw the original Broadway incarnation (with a cast that included Brooke Adams, Tony Shalhoub and David Hyde Pierce), and the years haven’t made it any less provocative.
By Diane Snyder
Visit the Site
http://www.theheidichroniclesonbroadway.com
Cast
Elisabeth Moss, Jason Biggs, Bryce Pinkham, Tracee Chimo, Ali Ahn, Leighton Bryan, Elise Kibler, Andy Truschinski
Open/Close Dates
Opening 3/19/2015
Closing 5/3/2015
Preview Open/ Preview Close Dates
Preview Opening 2/23/2015
Closing Open-ended
Box Office
212-239-6200
Theatre Info
Music Box Theatre
239 West 45th Street
New York, NY 10036
Map
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