I Went to Broadway and All I Got Was This Lousy Show

Kevin: What have you seen in the regional theatre lately? Not "from," but "in." Get some perspective, man,; at least Wendy and Dominic did so.

Nothing like a dated novel, grab your Henty books lads.....

Or, maybe the Governor of Alaska would prefer Sax Rohmer.....

Sort of--the Buchan novel by way of the 1935 Hitchcock film.

I'm assuming this is a rehash of the Buchan Novel, which, as every English schoolboy knows is tedious and best forgotten....

Minimalism wasn't the issue, it's that they could have made better use of the little they had. Big budget extravaganzas, while they have their place, aren't what turn my head. it's inventiveness and the unexpected that win out every time. Unfortunately, I thought 39 Steps was weak in both areas.

As for the regions, it's true that producing nonprofits pepper their seasons with second run Broadway successes, but these days there are even less of them to choose from. Plenty of excellent American plays and playwrights (and plenty of New York playwrights too) make their way onto regional stages and see regional success, only to be clobbered by the same lame revivals you can find at Christmastime in any major city. I mean, do we really need another Guys and Dolls already? Or Shrek, for that matter? Come on.

If that's the extent of the theater she provides and the culture she nurtures, she won't be turning heads for much longer.

Couldn't disagree more about The 39 Steps which I saw two weeks ago. It is inventive and fun and I laughed through the entire performance. If you want sets and costumes you should have seen another show, the minimalist quality of The 39 Steps is what makes it so much fun. And people from the regional theatre are always talking about the vitality of the regions compared to Broadway, which, btw, is only a small portion of the New York theatre scene, but then if regional theatre is so galdarn potent then why are your seasons continually the hollow echo of shows that have appeared on Broadway first? This isn't to say that from time to time the regions don't bring forth an amazing piece of work (like August) - but more than likely even those pieces are vetted early for a run at the Rialto. It is too easy to just run down NYC and the theatre that she provides and our culture that she nurtures.