Some things are worth $137. A nice TV. A great pair of boots. A dinner at Lower.
The ultimate question: Is seeing Harry Potter naked worth it?
Last weekend, the first Broadway revival of the Tony Award-winning play Equus opened at the Broadhurst Theatre on 44th Street in New York. This provocative dark drama is about a teenage boy who commits an extremely violent crime and his psychiatrist who strives to understand him. The boy, Alan Strong, is played by Daniel Radcliffe, star of the Harry Potter films, and Richard Griffiths plays the psychiatrist Martin Dysart. Griffiths, an incredibly talented Tony Award-wining London actor, is sadly better known as the doddering Uncle Vernon in the Potter films.
Now, I love the Harry Potter books. I've (religiously) done the midnight releases and the midnight movie showings. But I am a theatergoer and theater-lover as well. When I go to Broadway, I hope to see performances that go above and beyond the call of duty.
So back to my original question: Does Radcliffe have what it takes to be a Broadway star? The producers of Katie Holmes' Broadway debut of Arthur Miller's All My Sons would say so. Apparently, being Tom Cruise's wife is good enough for them, even if you were dumped by the Dark Knight. Her name sells tickets.
Broadway has been littered in the past with Hollywood stars looking to try real acting. Even Madonna has been on Broadway. Some of them have been incredibly successful; actors like John Malkovich, Patrick Stewart, Jeremy Piven, and countless others do fantastic theatrical work. But it is a different world and requires different chops to really be deemed a success.
So, does the (barely legal) "Boy Who Lived" have it? London critics lauded the show when it opened there in 2007. New York critics seem to be following suit. Ben Brantley opened his New York Times review of the show with the phrase, "The young wizard has chosen wisely." The overall reaction to stage Radcliffe was not just positive, but praising.
Japheth Aurello
posted 10/08/08 @ 7:40 AM EST
it is so really good