One of my friends has a crush on Alan Tudyk. So, as a last gasp of freedom before she gives birth, she decided to come into New York, husband in tow, and dragged the wife and I to see Prelude to a Kiss, which stars Tudyk in the lead.
So, how was it? Well...
The play is a story of a young woman who is kissed by an older man at her wedding. They end up switching places, much to the bemusement of the husband. The husband spends the rest of the play trying to reunite his wife's spirit with her body.
The concept is pretty out there. It takes a good writer to pull it off. Craig Lucas just barely does.
In some spots, the writing is very good. In others, it is lacking. The characters speak like they are Rhodes Scholars in Poetry and Political Theory when they are bartenders and microfiche operators. I would have seen a more believe scene between Peter and Rita in the beginning. They have a "Meet Cute" (actually a "meet awkward") with nothing in the dialogue to indicate the connection was made. But the next scene they are in, it is obvious that, for the characters, it was love at first sight.
It was excellently acted. I am a fan of Tudyk from his work in Firefly and he did well in the tough role of Peter. It also starred John Mahoney from Frasier. Fans of that show know he's a great actor and he did well in a very tough part. When he is possessed by Rita, he plays up the feminiity with out being campy. And Annie Parisse, who was an assistant DA on Law and Order, did good too. The character was different than her L&O part, and she excelled in it.
The best part of the play was afterwards when the lead actors came out to record a talkback for XM radio. They were interviewed for about 20 minutes and then took audience questions. My friend got to ask them a question, which made their weekend.
Bill
I LOVE this movie (love the concept/message of recognizing & loving the person, not the body) but imagine watching it as a play would be painful.
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