The House of Blue Leaves

          John Guares The House of Blue Leave is an excellent play about how celebrity has completely engulfed our culture and tainted those of us who do not have it into believing that we are entitled to it. The production currently on display over at The Walter Kerr theater does not do well in conveying this or any other theme of the play.

       The production starts awkwardly, with struggling songwriter and Zoo keeper Artie Shaugnessy (Ben Stiller) playing the piano at an amateur night. Director David Cromer chose to stage the first ten minutes with Stiller having his back to the audience. There is nothing wrong with this in theory, but Stiller is not commanding enough onstage to pull this off.

      There are wonderfully written pages of dialogue in this script, and the characters are comedic gold. Most of the cast unfortunately never gets past what lies beneath the surface. Jennifer Jason Leigh is fine as Bunny Flingus, (Artie's mistress and neighbor) and nails all the jokes convincingly, but you can't help but feel that there is more to be had from that performance.

   The brightest spot on the stage is Edie Falco as Artie's wife, Bananas Shaughnessy. You see not a single trace of Edie Falco, Carmella Soprano, or Nurse Jackie on that stage. Through all her success as a television actress, we have forgotten that Edie Falco is a New York actor who trained for, and starred in the theater before she was plucked up by Hollywood. She still has the acting chops that she first displayed in the original 1998 production of Side Man.

     As Artie's Schizophrenic and mildly Agoraphobic wife she hits more emotional notes than the New York Philharmonic. It's very easy to play crazy as crazy, but Ms. Falco comes from a place of genuine specificity. You never doubt that what you are seeing comes from a truly grounded place. You are watching a masterful performance by a true artist.

    Ben Stiller is disappointing from beginning to end. If Edie Falco is a symphony, Ben Stiller is Hot Crossed Buns. There is very little depth to his performance. And because of his casting, and the way he has chosen to deliver certain moments, the audience is laughing when they aught to be listening.

    The set design by Scott Pask, costumes by Tom Watson, and the lighting and wig design are spot on. The tepid performances and bland direction make this rich, and satisfying entree merely an appetizer.