One of the great things about Off-Off-Broadway is the new and experimental
plays that can only be done Off-Off-Broadway. Another great thing is that, if
you miss the big Broadway hit this year, you'll be able to catch it Off-Off-Broadway
in a few years. Such is the case with Ground Up Productions’ revival of David
Auburn’s Proof. Proof was a Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winner during its
Broadway run three years ago, and was adapted into an Oscar-nominated film last
year (hitting DVD right about … now!).
Ground up Productions gave Proof its first NYC revival, and
a great revival it was. The play (for those not in the know) is about Catherine
(Kate Middleton), the young daughter
of a brilliant mathematician, Robert (Stuart
Marshall). Catherine has inherited her father's talent with numbers, but
also might have inherited the mental illness that destroyed his mind. As the
play begins, the audience learns that Robert has died recently, and Catherine
is just about the same age her father was when he started losing his marbles,
and she has begun to show signs of what might be the same mental instability. Her
saner sister, Claire (Amy Heidt),
shows up for the funeral and can’t seem to help noticing Catherine’s odd
behavior.
Hal (Guy Olivieri), a former student of
Robert’s, enters the picture, as a possible love interest for Catherine, but
the plot thickens when Hal finds a brilliant mathematical proof amidst Robert’s
cluttered, nonsensical notes. Catherine claims to have written the work herself,
but she lacks … well … proof.
The young cast handled the rich story very well. Of course
comparisons to the recent film, or the Tony Award-winning Broadway cast, might
be made, but Ground Up assembled as good a cast as is likely to be seen in such
a tiny venue. Auburn’s script has an excellent balance of the comedic mixed in
with a tale of death and loss, so it was quite the challenge for the cast, and
they did an admirable job with it.
Production values were surprisingly high. There was not much in
the form of flashy costumes, or high-tech lighting and sound, but the set must
be mentioned. The show takes place on the back porch of Robert's house, and the
set (uncredited) was absolutely top notch for an Off-Off-Broadway production. The
stage looked just like the weatherworn back porch of a run-down house, and even
had backyard clutter subtly scattered around, like dried leaves, or a garden
hose coiled in the corner.
Adam Gerdts’s direction presented the play in a very naturalistic
tone. A couple of scenes are dreams/hallucinations, and a director might be
tempted to monkey around with them, but Gerdts was obviously devoted to making
the characters as real as possible.
This production of Proof
was one of those little gems of the New York City theatrical scene. Theatre
lovers who missed the Broadway run should keep an eye out, in case Ground Up
produces another run of this show.
Writing: 2
Directing: 1
Acting: 1
Set: 2
Costumes: 1
Lighting/Sound: 1
Copyright 2006 Charles Battersby