Friday 5: Two-Handers We Loved, Appreciated or Hated

The opening this week of Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York) got me to thinking about other shows with just two characters. Some are legendary, others not so much. Some we appreciate, some we hated, others we loved. Here they are!

Two-Handers We Loved,

Appreciated or Hated

Mary Martin and Robert Preston in I Do! I Do!

Appreciated: I Do! I Do!

I've never actually seen this show, but it is the stuff of Broadway legend. Based on the play The Fourposter, the musical by Schmidt and Jones (of The Fantastiks fame) was directed by Gower Champion and starred two greats of the Golden Age of Broadway musicals, Robert Preston and Mary Martin. It played 560 performances between 1966 - 1968. It spawned the standard, "My Cup Runneth Over." Fun facts: It was supposed to be a movie starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, and Carol Burnett and Rock Hudson did the National Tour!

Adam Kantor and Betsy Wolfe in The Last Five Years

Hated: The Last Five Years

I will never understand the appeal of this one. It is the victim of its own gimmick, and the two characters are not likable at any point. As much as it is allegedly beloved, it has never had a hit professional production. Not even two of my favorite performers, Betsy Wolfe and Adam Kantor, backed and conducted by Jason Robert Brown himself could make the off-Broadway production interesting...and don't get me started on the film version, which starred two more if my favorites, Jeremy Jordan and Anna Kendrick. Yikes!

Jason Robards and Colleen Dewhurst in Love Letters

Loved: Love Letters

What an interesting play by A.R. Gurney! Two actors sit at a table and read the love letters their characters wrote to each other from childhood through old age. I've seen it twice, both times with the late, great Jason Robards, and once with the late, great Colleen Dewhurst, and the other time with the late, great Elaine Stritch. With talent of that caliber, it probably couldn't fail. Most interestingly, it was fun to see how Robards adjusted his performance to fit with each co-star. And how great to see the depth of possibility in interpreting the same letters.

Malcolm Gets and Will Chase in The Story of My Life

Loved: The Story of My Life

Short-run shows can still have an impact, and I consider myself very fortunate to have caught this charming and moving musical. Starring Will Chase and Malcolm Gets, it lasts just five performances at the Booth Theatre in 2009. Fun fact: The song "The Butterfly" was made into a children's picture book. I laughed and cried, and loved every single minute of it!

Hugh Dancy and Nina Arianda in Venus in Fur

Loved: Venus in Fur

The play by David Ives concerns a director-playwright auditioning actresses for a role in his play based on the novel that (in real life) coined the term "masochism." It is taught, compelling study of power, sexual dynamics and domination/submission. Soon, the line is blurred between the audition and what is actually happening. Both stars, Hugh Dancy and Nina Arianda, were very sexy and it felt more dangerous than sexual. The tension was palpable in the theater. Ms. Arianda was awarded the Tony for her efforts.