Theater Review: Riotous Rylance in "Jerusalem"

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Parent Category: Film and the Arts

Category: Reviews

Published on Monday, 25 April 2011 15:00

Written by Kevin Filipski

Jerusalem
Written by Jez Butterworth
Starring Mark Rylance, Mackenzie Crook, John Gallagher, Jr., Max Baker, Geraldine Hughes, Molly Ranson, Alan David, Aimeé-Ffion Edwards, Danny Kirrane, Charlotte Mills, Sarah Moyle, Harvey Robinson, Barry Sloane, Aiden Eyrick, Mark Page
Directed by Ian Rickson

William Blake’s 18th century poem Jerusalem, beloved by the English as a patriotic hymn since Hubert Parry set it to music during World War I, extols the eternal beauties of the mother country. Jez Butterworth’sJerusalem ironically references that heavenly hymn in its satirical portrait of a 21st century England filled with disaffected souls not interested in a long-past bucolic era.

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CFQ Black Hole Ultra Lounge: Confirmed Film Genius & Video on D-Box

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Parent Category: Film and the Arts

Category: Reviews

Published on Sunday, 24 April 2011 20:48

Written by Daniel Persons

It's time for another trip into the depths of the Black Hole -- the Black Hole Ultra Lounge Podcast, that is, this time brought to you with all the excitement of D-Box motion simulation. So strap yourself in and get ready for a bumpy ride as Dan Persons, Lawrence French, and Steve Biodrowski ruminate on the philosophical questions plaguing sophisticated aficionados of horror, fantasy, and science fiction cinema.

To wit: How high a batting average does a genre filmmaker need to maintain in order to be considered a power hitter? Are the twin titanic terrors of of type-casting and sequels to blame for career slumps of otherwise stellar talents?

Is the D-Box motion-simulator chair the only way to truly enjoy Inception? Does the premise of J.J. Abrams' Super 8 (kids filming a movie encounter real-life monsters) suggest a pint-sized version of George A. Romero's Diary of the Dead?

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Theater Review: "The Divine Sister" is vintage Busch satire, a critical delight

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Parent Category: Film and the Arts

Category: Reviews

Published on Sunday, 24 April 2011 05:00

Written by Lucy Komisar

The Divine Sister
Written by Charles Busch
Directed by Carl Andress
Starring Charles Busch, Marcy McGuigan, Julie Halston, Amy Rutberg, Jennifer Van Dyck, Jonathan Walker

Charles Busch’s very funny campy satire of Catholic nuns hits all the bases, extending to a stereotypical Jewish philanthropist, a Da Vinci Code-style mystery with a German faux-nun and a brown-robed monk, and even a detour back to 1930s movies about diligent good-guy reporters.

You know when you see most Busch oeuvres that they will be over the top. (The Allergist‛s Wife was an exception.) So suspend disbelief here, don’t look for high art, and you will enjoy every minute -- thanks in equal measure to director Carl Andress, who knows how to play with fantasy.

A school run by Mother Superior (Charles Busch) is in financial troubles. Who else to turn to but Margaret Levinson (Jennifer Van Dyck), a philanthropic Philadelphia Jew? But she is an atheist! She thinks God is a fairy tale.

Van Dyck is rigidly "upper," snatched from the new Wall Street Journal society pages which would appreciate her love of designer clothes. On safari in Crete, she wore a Bill Blass jacket. When there are remarks about her being born in a stetl, she retorts that her father was presented at the British court.

In the background are goings-on involving Sister Walburga (Alison Fraser) and Brother Venerius (Jonathan Walker), another mysterious German. (Aren’t they always?)

And there is also the young postulate Agnes (Amy Rutberg), who lays on hands and makes medical miracles, and also belts out a pretty good soprano. She has visions inspired by the urine on a pair of underpants she has obtained, and her hands bleed from stigmata, although that turns out to be the juice of crushed cherries.

Into this weird collection comes Jeremy Walker (who steps out of the era), a former reporter now working for a film company that wants to sign young miracle-making Agnes.

But the plot thickens. It seems that Sister Acacius (Jule Halston), a Brooklyn-accented nun, and Jeremy were once reporters together. Mother Superior will deal with that.

I loved this wonderful over-the-top camp, with lines like, "We are living in a time of great social change. We have to stop it!" Of course, the Messiah was a woman, and the ensemble cast presides elegantly over such tongue-in-cheek revelations.

This play joins the canon of Charles Busch’s hysterically funny satires. Definitely worth a trip to Soho.

The Divine Sister
Soho Playhouse
15 Vandam Street
New York City
212-352-3101
Opened Sept 22, 2010; closes May 1, 2011

For more by Lucy Komisar, visit thekomisarscoop.com.