New Play by Gay Author: The Whipping Boy

[uwsman2]

"The Whipping Boy," a new play by gay author Matthew Lopez, opens on February 1 at Manhattan Theater Club. I saw a preview performance this afternoon. It is really, really, really terrific. My intense attention was held through-out by this drama of the end of the Civil War. 3-man cast, perfectly realizing their roles. A Jewish Confederate officer staggers home from the war, wounded, to find the wrecked Richmond mansion of his family inhabited by two of his former slaves. Together they work through their strange new relationship and all kinds of family secrets come out of hiding. This is very serious theater, but there is plenty of humor as well, and the acting is just incredible. I predict this will become a hot ticket. The Times ran a feature about the author on Friday morning.

[Diverdan]

Thanks for sharing. Do you know if the play is published and available for sale? Or if it is based on a book by the same author or someone else?

Thanks...

[uwsman2]

Although it has received a few productions by local theater companies around the country, this Manhattan Theatre Club production is its first major professional production. I doubt it is published yet. The author has a website, so you could check it out there by googling his name. There is no book. The author made up the story based on his research on the Civil War period and the role of Jews in the Confederacy, and they called in a historical consultant to help him be as authentic as possible. I hope it will be published and receive lots of productions. Three really meaty roles for good actors.

[uwsman2]

I spoke too soon... should have followed my own advice. I justed visited Matthew Lopez's website and discovered that The Whipping Boy has been published by Samuel French. Evidently the good reviews for the local theater productions around the country justified a publication. You can actually buy a copy through a link on his website in the "news" category.

[Diverdan]

Thanks very much uwsman2. I will check it out and probably buy a copy. I appreciate the research very much. Wish I could get to NYC to see the production.

[leigh.bess.toad]

As someone in Richmond, I wish it would play here.

[uwsman2]

Actually, I've got the title wrong - it's The Whipping Man. The boy gets whipped, the man does the whipping (not on-stage).

[skynyc]

SPOILERS ALERT:

I am seeing this next week, and it opens tonight. Word of mouth is VERY good, and I suspect that tickets will become tough.

Now I have a very low tolerance for blood on stage...yes, even reeeeeallly fake blood like in Sweeney Todd...and I give this warning:

I have been advised that there is a VERY graphic leg amputation in the first act. Apparently VERY well done.

Otherwise I understand the play is smart and interesting and excellently performed. I will review when I see this.

[uwsman2]

It's not really a spoiler alert - the NY Times review this morning mentioned the amputation, which comes early on and is done in a manner that won't gross anyone out - not graphic like the amputation in "127 Hours" where people in the audience are wincing and groaning (even though everybody except Bruce Vilanch knows that it's fake ) ). The Times raved, and deservedly so. It will be a hot ticket. It's been extended through almost the end of March from the original short run due to the demand. Beg, buy or steal a ticket, but see it.

[jackcali]

I saw The Whipping Man this week. WOW!!! It's a terrific play and the performances are stellar. Andre Braugher, who I've been a fan of since his Homicide days (I mean his acting, you dirty-minded guys), is extraordinary. He's aging into a James Earl Jones equivalent, I think, in terms of presence and intensity. I hope he does more theater and gets away from that dumb Ray Romano TV show.

 

Note to the squeamish: The amputation scene is quite tame visually, so as long as the idea of amputation isn't enough to give you the vapors, what you see shouldn't bother you too much.