MARK AUERBACH
Jonathan Tolins’ very-funny Off-Broadway hit, Buyer and Cellar, starts the New Year at Hartford’s TheaterWorks, and it’s a well-written, well-performed, and well-staged comedy that exceeds the accolades that have followed it, since it opened in New York in 2013 (starring Ugly Betty’s Michael Urie in a break-out performance.) Tolins is the accomplished playwright of The Twilight of the Golds, and a contributor of additional material to last season’s Broadway hit On The Town (which originated at Barrington Stage). He’s contributed materials to The Academy Awards, The Tony Awards, and he (with husband Robert Cary), have written the adaptation of the musical Grease to be performed live on Fox later this month.
Tom Lenk in Buyer and Cellar at TheaterWorks, Hartford. (Photo by Lanny Nagler)
With solid direction by Rob Ruggiero, and a quintet of fine performances by Tom Lenk (Buffy The Vampire Slayer), Buyer and Cellar turns an improbable plot into a laugh-a-minute highly entertaining evening of theatre.
In Tolins’ scriipt, full of one-liners and name-dropping zingers, a gay, out-of-work actor named Alex gets a job working as the caretaker of Barbra Streisand’s cellar mall of shops, as described in detail in her coffee table book, My Passion for Design. He shares many of his workplace experiences with boyfriend Barry. He interacts with Mrs. Brolin’s estate manager, Mr. Brolin, and eventually the diva herself.
Tom Lenk in Buyer and Cellar at TheaterWorks, Hartford. (Photo by Lanny Nagler)
To director’s and actor’s credit, Lenk doesn’t imitate the onstage/onscreen Streisand, but rather the homeowner, who has collected numerous tchochkes, and stored them by type in a series of shops. Despite the laughs and zingers, there are some poignant moments, in which Alex’s employer reveals her need to be accepted as pretty–an aspiration most of us have at one point or another.
Luke Hegel-Canterella’s set is a simple playing area, enhanced by Rob Denton’s lighting and projection design (which includes some great portraitures of Streisand in her movie hits from Funny Girl to The Way We Were. Zachary Moore’s sound design is great.
With this kind of material, it could be so easy to ramp up the camp quotient, but the production is so well-balanced, that the character of Alex really shines, and although Miss Streisand might not like second billing, she really is secondary to Alex’s story.
The opening scene of Buyer and Cellar is a disclaimer of sorts–what you’re seeing is a work of fiction. The playwright, in his program notes, talks of meeting Streisand once. Were she to see Buyer and Cellar, and the TheaterWorks production in particular, I suspect she’d give it a thumbs-up.
TheaterWorks presents “Buyer and Cellar” by Jonathan Tolins. Starring Tom Lenk. Directed by Rob Ruggiero. Scenic design by Luke Hegel-Cantarella. Lighting and projection design by Rob Denton. Sound design by Zachary Moore. Through February 14. . TheaterWorks, 233 Pearl Street, Hartford, CT.. For tickets: 860-527-7838 or www.theaterworkshartford.org
Mark G. Auerbach studied theatre at American University and the Yale School of Drama. He’s worked for arts organizations and reported on theatre for newspapers and radio.
