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Neil Simon’s Lost in Yonkers has a lot of hype to live up to — the show has, after all, accumulated four Tony Awards, four Drama Desk Awards and the Pulitzer Prize. But as its opening night proved, the Plays and Players cast was up to the task of filling some dauntingly big shoes.
The story revolves around brothers Arty (Gavin Beckor) and Jay (Jordan Mottram), who go on a 10-month sojourn to their Jewish German immigrant grandmother’s (Helen McCrane) Yonkers home while their father, Eddie (Jim Ludovici), attempts to piece together their lives after some serious mixups with loan sharks. While Eddie combs the South for money to pay back loans he used on his wife’s surgery, the young brothers learn the hard knocks of life and love through their over-the-top relatives.
The roles of Eddie, his two sons and Uncle Louie (Ryan Ruggles) were performed with tremendous conviction; the brothers’ witty banter helped ease the tension of Yonkers’ often solemn and intense dialogue. Aunt Gert (Catherine Moroney),who emerges later in the play, musters up a few memorable moments.
There were a couple of awkward moments, and occasionally jokes fell flat, but this production’s shortcomings were few and far between; for the most part, Young’s classic was a spectacle to behold, pleasantly plump with humor.
Overall, there were many positives to take away from this play. It was lengthy, but was jam-packed with action and laughs from beginning to end. The actors, especially the grandma (McCrane) and Aunt Bella (Angela Carolfi), were stellar. And the plot, even with all of its complex layers of family drama, still managed to convey an overriding message of faith in family, even when your family’s dysfunctional.
Plays and Players’ rendition may not be perfect, but, as Lost in Yonkers emphasizes, nothing quite is.
Lost in Yonkers runs through June 25 (extended run) at Plays and Players Theatre.
See Also: City Paper's Performing Arts listings
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