The Farnsworth Invention
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Cititour.com Review
The next time you want to dramatize an encyclopedia article get Aaron Sorkin (A Few Good Men and TV’s The West Wing) and the story will explode off the page. That's what the playwright has just done with his new show, The Farnsworth Invention. It's a look at the birth of television, and there’s enough science and case-law to make your head spin. But Sorkin knows how to move a story along, and the zigs and zags of patent office disputes make for an engaging evening.
Des McAnuff directs as this cast of 19 portray dozens of characters over the course of more than 50 years in the lives of inventor Philo T. Farnsworth (Jimmi Simpson) and television pioneer David Sarnoff (Hank Azaria) as they battle over the ownership of the monumental creation. Simpson plays Farnsworth as unassuming, with an air of fragility, yet determined in his quest to bring his concepts to life. Azaria is brash and dynamic, every bit the showman one imagines the innovative Sarnoff to be. Together they form a natural-looking David and Goliath.
The supporting cast is superb playing multiple roles, including Spencer Moses as an investor and Alexandra Wilson as Farnsworth’s wife.
Klara Zieglerova's scenic design, with its open bi-level platforms, provides an appropriate scientific yet corporate feel.
The arguments expressed in the play, those of ownership and vision, are well conceived and fascinating when it comes to a debate over the reality of television as we know it — is it the "hardware" or "software," so to speak? Sorkin's script masters that magic place in the theatre when the intellectual drama of lofty goals collides with incisive wit. The result: The Farnsworth Invention is an evening which is both literate and entertaining.
By Lesley Alexander
Visit the Site
http://www.farnsworthonbroadway.com
Cast
Hank Azaria, Jimmi Simpson, Nadia Bowers, Kyle Fabel, Maurice Godin, Adam Grupper, Christian McCarthy Johansen , Aaron Krohn, Kate MacCluggage, Bruce McKenzie, Malcom Morano, Spencer Moses, Michael Mulheren, Jim Ortlieb, Michael Pemberton, Javier Picayo, Katharine Powell, Steve Rosen, James Sutorius, Margot White, Alexandra Wilson, William Youmans
Open/Close Dates
Opening 10/15/2007
Closing 3/2/2008
Group Sales
(212) 239-6262
Box Office
(212) 239-6200
Theatre Info
Music Box Theatre
239 West 45th Street
New York, NY 10036
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