Sam doesn’t get out much. Actually, he doesn’t get out at all, opting instead for the safety of his house in the company of his things—his many, many things. But when a notice from the government arrives alerting Sam that he must clean up his property or face eviction, he’s forced to reckon with what’s trash, what’s treasure, and whether we can ever know the difference between the two.
Danny DeVito returns to Roundabout Theatre Company in I Need That, starring alongside his daughter, Lucy DeVito, and Ray Anthony Thomas in a deeply human new comedy from playwright Theresa Rebeck and director Moritz von Stuelpnagel, the team behind Bernhardt/Hamlet.
Given the play’s underdeveloped feel, it’s no wonder the cast seems to flounder. Granted, the reviewed performance was early in the string of shows available to critics, and the actors’ tenuous grasp of the script – jumping lines, circling back, apparent improvisational word-grabs – might well have already tightened up (along with a tech issue that had the revolving set stubbornly refusing to move; other tech credits were fine despite some weird, Twilight Zone-ish sounds meant to signify that TV set’s age). More rehearsal time might have helped, along with a tougher hand by director von Stuelpnagel and some serious fine-tuning of Rebeck’s word-salad dialogue.
Directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel—who helmed Rebeck’s 2018 backstage drama Bernhardt/Hamlet, also at the Roundabout—I Need That runs only 100 intermission-free minutes, but somehow feels padded. Perhaps in an effort to avoid turning the play into The Danny DeVito Show, Rebeck gives Foster and Amelia a few crises and obstacles, most of which feel contrived. Foster going to Cleveland to live right near his son and grandkids, however, does make sense, and it gives rise to Sam’s brilliant one-liner: “Ohio is the source of all disappointment and grief in America.” (If that had been on a T-shirt in the lobby, I would have bought three of them.) There’s so much substance on stage, literally—Alexander Dodge’s set is a brilliant testament to the pure emotional power of material goods; less so in the script. Sorry!
Digital Rush
Price: $48
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When: 9am on the day of the performance
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Information: Subject to availability.
2023 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2024 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance | Danny DeVito |
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