What I liked
Everything about this show sang. The cast seemingly take turns nearly walking off with the show. Aaron Capinigro brilliantly brings Brooks’ boundless energy to life, and beautifully flips through Brooks’ many channels as loving husband, serious filmmaker, and Hollywood class clown. Bill Chott is stunning as Hitchcock; his mannerisms, physical and vocal, are spot on, and he brings a gravitas to the role that can only be described as Hitchcockian. Lindsay Seim as Maia Joblonsky carves out a strong presence on stage to keep the two inimitable men in check, and ably embodies a fulcrum to balance the two larger than life personas she’s sharing the stage with.
The writing is sharp, incisive, and draws on what is obviously a great deal of love and research into two of cinema’s titanic icons. David Neipris fashions a fascinating push and pull between two film leviathans, and ably spotlights Jablonsky in the process. And Matt Ritchey’s seamless direction ties everything together.
Perhaps the most spectacular accomplishment of the show is the subtle shift in balance and power over the course of the show, particularly around Chott’s Hitchcock. When the lights go up, he is a powerful, mythic figure, not to be trifled with. But inevitably Seim’s Jablonsky and Capnigro’s Brooks find their footing with him as equals over the course of the show, and the subtlety and patience with which this happens is so finely crafted that it’s almost shocking to the viewer when they realize it.
What I didn't like
Not a damn thing—unless someone can find away I can watch this again for the first time. I’d do so once a week.
My overall impression
Riveting theatre about two of the most influential directors of the 20th Century. The acting is superb, the directing keeps the show clean, moving, and engaging, and the script is incredible. This is an absolute must-see this Fringe!
