All Entries Tagged With: "Robert Clohessy"
Roberty Clohessy Cast in Revival of “That Championship Season”
Robert Clohessy, John Doman, Lou Liberatore, Tom Nelis and Skipp Sudduth have been cast in the Westport Country Playhouse revival of Jason Miller’s That Championship Season. The production, staged by the theater’s artistic director Mark Lamos, will run August 25 -September 12.
Clohessy’s recent Broadway appearances include Pal Joey and Twelve Angry Men. Doman played Deputy Police Commissioner William Rawls on the The Wire from 2002 to 2008. Sudduth’s Broadway credits include South Pacific, The Iceman Cometh and Twelfth Night, and was a series regular on television’s Third Watch. Liberatore received multiple award nominations for his performance in Burn This on Broadway and Nelis received an Obie for his work in The Medium.
That Championship Season which previously won a Pulitzer Prize, a Tony Award and a New York Drama Critics Circle Award, tells the story of four high-school basketball players and their coach who, twenty years ago, brought home the state championship. Now the five men convene for their annual reunion. But the evening’s revelry turns dark as secrets are revealed, loyalties tested, and dreams diminished in this searing, knockout drama. That Championship Season brings savage humor and heart-rending compassion to its insightful exploration of a corrupted American dream.
For more information, click here to visit the Westport Country Playhouse website.
Robert Clohessy on ABC’s “The Unusuals”
Imagine my delight last night when my husband called out to me, while watching TV, “Hey, that’s the guy from Pal Joey“. I knew immediately who he was talking about, because he was watching a new show on ABC called “The Unusuals”, which is a kind of gritty New York type of show. Who else could it be but Robert Clohessy (Pal Joey’s Mike), who is, to me, the quintessential gritty New Yorker?
Clohessy had a guest starring role as Mike Boorland, the head of a New York crime family that, after being quiet for years, has suddenly gone on a daylong crime spree. Clohessy played the part perfectly - wise-ass tough guy who has no respect for the police. He was great, and it was great to see him on television again. My husband and I really enjoyed him on the short-lived Fox drama “New Amsterdam”, on which he played Detective Tony Santori. Here’s hoping he gets picked up on another drama soon!
To watch the April 15 episode, Boorland Day, click here.
Jimmy Merrill Interviews Steven Skybell, Robert Clohessy and Daniel Marcus
In our fifth and final installment of interviews from the Opening Night Celebration, contributing correspondent Jimmy Merrill talks with the featured actors of Pal Joey — Steven Skybell (Ernest, Joey’s tailor), Robert Clohessy (nightclub manager Mike) and Daniel Marcus (Chez Joey tenor Ludlow Lowell).
Pal Joey’s Official Opening Night, December 18th
I’m just back from a fantastic trip to New York for the “official” opening night of Pal Joey at the Roundabout Theatre Company’s Studio 54. In case you’re wondering, the difference between the show on December 11th, which was the original opening night, and December 18th, the “official” opening night is that now the press is allowed to write reviews. That’s right, all that stuff you’ve read in the press the last month wasn’t “reviews”, but just “opinions” - officially.
I am not by any means, a Broadway critic. So the thoughts you are about to read are just that - my random thoughts as I watched the show. And as always, I invite, even encourage you to share your thoughts.
This was not my first visit to Studio 54, but it certainly wasn’t the same place I remembered. Well, it was 25 years ago and a very different venue! The theatre is gorgeous, with old ornate woodwork and a very intimate feel to it. The orchestra was located in balconies on either side of the stage and sounded beautiful. I don’t imagine there was a bad seat in the house.
I forced myself to put all thoughts of Christian Hoff out of my mind…no comparisons, no what-could-have-beens…just watch the show and enjoy. I thought it would be hard to do, but when Joey (Matthew Risch) entered (or was thrown onto) the stage, I was captivated by him. He’s good looking, sexy, and he could really dance. I noticed I had a huge smile on my face at the end of “Chicago”. Off to a good start. I even found myself believing he was falling for Linda (Jenny Fellner), and really enjoyed their duet of “I Could Write A Book”. Jenny’s voice is flawless, and I could sense the innocence, as well as the desperation, in her character.
Stockard Channing’s portryal of Vera Simpson was harder for me to categorize. Yes, Vera is supposed to by cynical and hard, but I couldn’t decide if Ms. Channing was playing the part to perfection, or was just a little bored with the whole thing. Either way, the audience loved her, and Joey’s first encounter with Vera in the nightclub was quite entertaining. I didn’t totally buy into her passion for Joey, but her rendition of “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” gave the audience a glimpse into her “troubled soul”. The talk-singing I had heard so much about fit beautifully with her voice and her character, and I thouroughly enjoyed it.
The audience favorite, by far, was Gladys Bumps, played superbly by Martha Plimpton. Her sultry, smoky voice and great comedic timing made for a terrific “Zip”. I only wish we could have had more Martha, as the second Act dragged a little bit for me. My husband was very entertained by the “chorus girls”, who I suspect were his favorite part of the show. And we both enjoyed the voice of Daniel Marcus (as Ludlow Lowell). Wish we could have had more Daniel Marcus. Besides “Zip”, my favorite song of the second act was “Take Him”, performed beautifully by Fellner and Channing.
The costumes by William Ivey Long were perfection. Linda English was suitable dowdy, the chorus girls were just tacky enough, Joey was smashingly handsome in his well tailored suits, and Vera’s gowns and pant suits were beautifully rich without going overboard.
The stage was dark and smoky, which I suppose was appropriate for the gritty Chicago setting, but was a bit disctracting to me. And I thought the cast managed the stairways with great agility - not an easy feat. And Chez Joey was just tacky enough!
The show is helped along by a very strong supporting cast. Robert Clohessy and Steven Skybell (Mike and Ernest, respectively) could have handled parts with a little more meat to them, but both actors got the most out of their characters, and gave terrific performances.
I give Matthew Risch a great deal of credit for coming as far as he has in such a short time. He wasn’t quite the “leading man” this show needed, but I can certainly see it in his future. I found myself singing several of the songs in my head the next day, which is a good sign. I suspect that Pal Joey will have a great run, despite (or perhaps because of) all the drama surrounding it.
Share Your Pal Joey Experience
One of our blog readers made a second visit to see Pal Joey, and here are her observations:
** The choreography may have been tweeked a bit…although I cannot say all the dancing was spectacular, it was quite enjoyable - especially dancing on the stairs. (Although I feel Christian Hoff was better on the stairs!)
** Costume glitches were all taken care of.
** The major improvement I was keenly seeking was the chemistry between ‘Vera’ and ‘Joey’…I felt that Stockard Channing did not feel comfortable with Christian…if Vera is supposed to be infatuated with this young song and dance man, I want to see that exhibited throughout the show…now seeing Matthew Risch & Stockard was a completely different FEEL..Stockard seemed to sincerely enjoy touching, embracing and kissing ‘Joey’…my personal thought was that Stockard feels much more in control with a very young protege, sort of a boy-toy!
** Matt’s dancing in the beginning was right on, but he does sweat profusely. The singing was much the same for ‘Vera’ and ‘Joey’.
** Martha Plimpton’s performance throughout the show is still very enticing…and Jenny Fellner still mezmerizing. They are both key characters to the success of this run of Pal Joey.
** Daniel Marcus’s (Ludlow) solo in the second act was a shining star.
** Matthew has clearly captured the “JERK” attitude that ‘Joey” is supposed to exhibit.
** I must say that the whole cast was more than gracious to pose for photos and sign autographs after the show.
The Pal Joey Blog invites you to share your Pal Joey experience! Leave a comment and let us know how you enjoyed the show. If you have pictures you want to share, send them to admin at paljoeyblog.com, and include captions if you like.
A big thank you to Charly O’Clarit. She combined her pictures with those of Lucy Rochetti and Lori Leone to create this great slide show. Thank you, ladies!
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Fan Shawna Blake with Stockard Channing
Shawna, a self-proclaimed Stockard enthusiast, shared this photo from her fabulous evening at Pal Joey. See comments below to read about Shawna’s experience.
Pal Joey is back!!!
Although previews for Roundabout Theatre Company’s fall presentation of Rodgers and Hart’s Pal Joey aren’t set to begin until Friday, November 14th (at Studio 54 on Broadway), I can’t wait to start talking about it. With an all-star cast including Tony Award winner Christian Hoff as Joey Evans, Tony Award winner Stockard Channing as Vera Simpson, and Tony Award nominee Martha Plimpton as Gladys Bumps, this limited run engagement is certain to be a smash hit!
