Seminar

Seminar, the play by Theresa Rebeck, that I finally went to see---is trite but well acted and funny at times.

It is both a screed against the vanity of writers and a celebration of their spirit.

There is not much going on in this play. But I do like the use of language.

A choice was made to not hear any of the writing being talked about. Too bad. So much could have been written on the written-but-never-read pages that would have revealed character.

I think this play wants to be profound. However, it has the soul of a sitcom.

On the other hand, it is intelligent enough to be better than a lot of other things we are forced to sit through in midtown.

Jeff Goldblum is good. So are Jerry O’Connell, Justin Long, Zoe Lister-Jones and Hettienne Park.

Sam Gold directs it very clearly and very well.

Scene transitions were weak. Not dark enough and the actors were not still enough for the comic quick lights up bumps to work.

In the end, there is a happy ending.  Too bad. It gets so soft, one realizes there was nothing hard there to begin with, even though it pretended to be so.

A bunny in tarantula’s clothing.

Of course, I’m jealous. But isn’t the root of all criticism competition?

I want to sauerkraut wrestle with Theresa Rebeck. But I’d let her win. Because she’s a girl.  (I think she’d get this joke…)