Thursday, October 25, 2007
Review: 'Twelve Angry Men' powerful, relevant and well-acted drama
Post Gazette: "How good is this tour of 'Twelve Angry Men'? This good: for the final 15 minutes, you really could have heard a pin or a program drop in Heinz Hall, if anyone had been inattentive enough to drop one. The play is that mesmerizing as it builds cumulatively to its satisfying conclusion."
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4 comments:
I had the pleasure of seeing this production on Broadway just a few years back. The same 15 minutes of silence that Chris Rawson mentions, I remember experiencing.
But part of that experience was a level of intimiacy with the production and venue. Seeing this show from the top of the balcony in the Benedum is not the way to go. Though there may be some full stage automation, but probably not used in a space with such a wide procenium, the enjoyment of this play is looking at the actors faces. And you just cant experience that in most of that venue.
I love the movie "Twelve Angry Men" and it sounds like the stage version is even better. But as Rico said, this is not a play meant for a huge venue. Maybe something like Heinz Hall would work for a musical tour, but the emotional depth of Twelve Angry Men doesn't seem like it would come across too well.
This is a play that I think that has not been taken as seriously as it should be. Granted I have just seen the movie, but just from that taste of it I want more of it to get the full grasp of what this jury of twelve is thinking. This play is so simple in it's plot. It's about something that probably happens everyday in America, but something that no one thinks about. Reginald Rose takes this room of everyday men and a simple plot into a beautiful play that grips all those who watch.
I've had to read the play probably 10 imes through out school and while it can get a bit tiring after 10 times I still quite enjoy it. I wish I would have been able to see it, I think a stage version would have been very powerful. I also think that the writing lends it self to be always relevant.
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