Last week I sat in a dark theater, watching a show that caused me to have a smile on my face the entire time. As soon as the curtain rose at “Act One”, and Tony Shalboub came on stage, portraying Moss Hart, the famous real-life playwright who penned several Broadway classics, including “Merrily We Roll Along” in 1934 and “You Can’t Take It With You” in 1936, for which he won a Pulitzer Prize, a smile graced my face and never left. This is truly a show for theater lovers, and I, of course, am one.
Act One
Written and directed by James Lapine, “Act One” follows the life of Hart and the set conveys his history, from uptown hovel to midtown office to townhouse. He was born into a poor family in the Bronx and introduced to theater by his aunt (played by the fabulous Andrea Martin). In the first act, we watch his challenging childhood and follow him to adulthood where he falls into a job working for a famous theater producer, writes a play and teams up Broadway legend George S. Kaufman which changes his life.
Santino Fontana and Shalhoub play the younger and older Hart with such vigor and bring this fascinating tale to life on stage. Their performances are gripping, and when Shalhoub rotates between playing Hart’s father to Kaufman, it’s hard to even notice it’s the same actor. Fontana has the earnestness it takes to play Hart and he’s also very convincing in the role.
The play’s second act focuses on Hart and Kaufman’s 1930 “Once in a Lifetime” which had a rocky road to Broadway, saved just days before its premiere in NYC. It’s entertaining, stressful but true to the book it was based on and a solid depiction of how tough it really is to take a play to the stage. If it was hard back then, imagine how much harder it is today.
“Act One” is a love letter to the theatre and to the fascinating people who made Broadway what it is today. It also speaks to everyone who loves theater – to the people who work in for very little money but dream of their big break and to the people who sit in the seats staring down at the actors who transport them into another world (that would be me). Once again, I am grateful to Lincoln Center for this wonderful, solid production.
Disclosure: I was not given tickets to this play.
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