The Normal Heart

[skynyc]

When this was announced a couple months ago, I wondered if I needed to sit through it again. It's not an easy play, or an easy topic.

 

Larry Kramer's tale of the outrages and frustrations of the folks who founded GMHC at the beginning of the AIDS crisis is still provocative and shocking. The play infuriates and devastates equally as we relive the denial and abuse that the gay community endured during the early 80s, much of it from within. And after the very well done revival with Raul Esparza done at the Public about five years ago I thought...I will skip it this time.

 

But when they started announcing the cast, I knew I had to see it again. Joe Montello who was nominated for a Tony in Angels in America before stepping away from acting to direct...(Assassins, Wicked, LVC), was returning to the stage to play Ned, (originally played by Brad Davis). He was going to be joined by Jim Parsons, (Sheldon from Big Bang Theory; Ellen Barkin in her Broadway debut; John Benjamin Hickey, (LVC); Luke McFarlane, (Brothers and Sisters); Patrick Breen, (Next Fall); and the clincher: (bestill my heart) Lee Pace (from Pushing Daisies and Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day.)

 

Well, the play is still devastating. This quiet, simple staging uses projections on a very effective walled in box to underplay the light sets and scenery. As the play progresses, the actors not in a scene stand and sit around and watch the action, omniscient viewers of what was happening that no one wanted to talk about.

 

Each performer is given their moment of fury and outrage, and each does their part marvelously and differently, in keeping with each character.

 

And yes, it still devastates and infuriates.

 

As the statistics of this disease continue to rise, once again we are facing complacency from government and within our community. Mr. Kramer and others were outside the theater handing out a letter after the show detailing the facts about AIDS in 2011, and displaying that, thankfully, Mr. Kramer is still angry.

 

I was sitting next to a young woman, here in NY for a college visit, and we bonded over our "admiration" of Mr. Pace...(who's so tall that I was swooning in my seat.) She and her mother both adored the show, and gave me hope that the younger generation can feel the same anger that will be needed in the future to address some of the issues that are pretty easy to ignore.

 

I was in college at the beginning of the AIDS crisis, and arrived in NY in 1985 when it in full force. In the following decade lost over a hundred friends and acquaintances, a small number compared to many, but still devastating. And now that the drug companies have been able to soft-peddle the symptoms, the disease has again taken a backseat to other "more important" things... But I have recently listened to several younger acquaintances admit that they have become HIV positive..."but it's okay, because we have drugs for it now."

 

It is for this reason that I am glad that this outstanding production of this ground-breaking show is back on stage and I hope many people will go and see it and get angry again.

[uwsman2]

Recently bought a ticket. I'm on Larry's email list and I've seen a copy of the letter he is distributing outside the theater. I lost a ton of friends and acquaintances to AIDS and know people who are HIV+ and living with these incredible meds but experiencing nasty side effects. Something's got to be done to wake the government back up on this.

[uwsman2]

So I saw it tonight and I totally agree with skynyc... This remains one of the most powerful theater experiences. The cast is truly excellent, the bare-bones production stark but totally effective. And the scariest thing is that it remains timely - there is much more attention on HIV/AIDS from governments now, but still far short of the scale needed to do a proper job of dealing with this plague.

[edjames]

Saw this on Thursday night. A fantastic production and cast! If it didn't dredge up so many bad memories of AIDS in the early days and the friends who have past, a lover who is gone, hospitals, doctors and all the rest, I'd probably see it again. A highly emotional evening. I had to go out for a few drinks to take the edge off. Ran into a friend at the theater during intermission and he looked like he was shell shocked and mentioned that watching this show was hard.

Still, I highly recommend it.

ED