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‘Cat’ on a shaky roof; Kodjoe goes on tonight
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The audacity of James Earl Jones!
Not showing up for “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”!
This was the Saturday matinee of the sold-out, news-making Broadway production featuring an all-black cast, and the only time I could catch the show during a personal visit to New York over the weekend. To my disappointment, Jones’ understudy, Count Stovall, stepped in to play Big Daddy for the iconic star.
I hope Jones’ presence makes a difference, although I’m not sure anyone can single-handedly overcome the flaws of Debbie Allen’s long, rambling and kind of sloppy production. Stovall did a credible job, though he’s probably a bit young to play the ailing, megalomaniacal, 65-year-old patriarch, who has a soft, sensitive spot for his younger son, Brick.
It will be interesting to see how Atlanta actor Boris Kodjoe fares as Brick, when he replaces film actor Terrence Howard tonight through May 4. Howard, who is leaving to promote his new film, “Iron Man,” is darn good - possibly the best thing about this show, although Phylicia Rashad is fascinating as the bouncy and bejeweled Big Mama.
Rashad starts her performance with such outsize mannerisms that it’s hard to turn it up much higher. But she’s a mesmerizing figure, and I couldn’t stop watching her - the husky roar, the constant fanning with a handkerchief, the object of Big Daddy’s scorn and Brick’s indifference.
Anika Noni Rose makes for a memorable Maggie the Cat; there may not be much sexual chemistry between Maggie and Brick, but they create plenty of individual sizzle: he wrapped in a white bathrobe; she taking forever to put on her nylons— lying on a four-poster bed the size of a Mardi Gras float with her legs up in the air, trying to seduce Brick. No wonder Big Daddy is partial to the beautiful Brick and Maggie. It’s hard to say who has better legs.
But what’s up with Lisa Arrindell Anderson’s ridiculous, over-the-top Southern accent? As Mae, she mucks up every scene she’s in, and though Williams’ classic holds up just fine with the unorthodox casting, Allen’s direction feels unruly and undisciplined. I hate to rain on anyone’s parade. But I do hope Kodjoe and Jones can get this screeching, misbehaving “Cat” back in control.
Are you planning to see “Cat” in New York? If so, let us know what you think. Log back on and write your review.
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