Set in Lebanon, Mo., on July 4, 1944, Landon Wilson’s “Talley’s Folly” tells the story of Matt Friedman, a German-Jewish accountant from St. Louis who has just returned to Lebanon for the Fourth of July to court his former lover, Sally Talley, a 31-year-old spinster.
For its production, McCarter hired many members of the production team from the play’s 1980 Broadway debut, including director Marshall Mason, set designer John Lee Beatty, costume designer Jennifer von Mayrhauser and sound designer Chuck London. The foundations of McCarter’s production are an almost exact reproduction of the original.
The production’s most distinctive element is the jaw-dropping set. Beatty, a Tony and Drama Desk award winner, has created a boathouse onstage that could almost be real. The set is a skeleton of a gazebo, battered and broken down, but highly ornamental, romantic and almost magical. Vines creep around the wood, weeping willows hang in the background, and cattails poke up from the water at the edge of the stage. As the sun sets over the course of the play, fireflies begin to glow from the shrubbery, and stars twinkle in the sky. Beatty’s set and the technical elements that support it are hypnotizing.
Unfortunately, the rest of the production hardly lives up to the quality of the set. The experienced touch of Mason’s direction is apparent: His staging is detailed and precise, as true to the play as it was nearly 30 years ago. As a result, though, the show feels methodical and slow. Rather than getting caught up in the magic and rhythm of a summer night, the show plods along.
The problem with this show is simple: In any love story, the audience wants to like the two lovers and the actors who portray them. In this production, we don’t. Richard Schiff, who plays Matt, and Margot White, who plays Sally, just don’t measure up.
At the opening of the play, Matt addresses the audience members, reminding them that what they are watching is theater, not real life. He says the play should feel like a waltz.
Wilson’s play is indeed a waltz: lilting, romantic, nuanced and moving. Rather than playing into the rhythm of the language Wilson creates, however, the actors play against it.
White’s portrayal of Sally is puzzling. While Sally is supposed to be seen as a fiery, strong woman on the outside, the audience also needs to be able to see beyond her shell to sympathize with her. All we receive for most of the play, however, is Sally’s hard and biting exterior, and by the end, we’ve lost interest.
Schiff, on the other hand, creates a romantic leading male who is simpering, clingy and weak. His performance is just plain shaky. He drifts through the story, sometimes even forgetting his lines. One wonders why he would even want to pursue the cold, angry Sally in the first place and how Sally could ever find Matt appealing.
A general rule in theater: If you can’t make your audience care, you’re — pardon my French — screwed. Even with the beautiful technical elements of the production, nothing can make up for failing the heart of Wilson’s story: the relationship between Matt and Sally. If that’s not there, the show falls apart.
“Talley’s Folly” is worth watching, if only to gawk at the extraordinary set and marvel at this technically exquisite production. Whether it’s satisfying to sit through a monotonous 97-minute show about two unsympathetic characters, however, is debatable.
Talley’s Folly
McCarter Theatre
By Lanford Wilson
Directed by Marshall Mason
Oct. 12 – Nov. 2
Tues. – Thurs., 7:30 p.m.
Fri., 8 p.m.
Sat., 3 p.m., 8 p.m.
Sun., 2 p.m., 7 p.m.
Student Events Eligible
Pros: Flawless technical editing, unparalleled set.
Cons: Weak acting.
Read More
Lawsuits filed against University after cybersecurity incidents
Shaun KaraniMultiple lawsuits have been filed against Princeton in the wake of a widespread cybersecurity breach.
Multiple lawsuits have been filed against Princeton in the wake of a widespread cybersecurity breach.
Israeli consulate visits Princeton to discuss experience of Jewish students, follows Tsurkov release
Luke GrippoFor the first time since the 2024 “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” at Princeton, Yuval Donio Gideon, head of the Public Policy Department of the Consulate General of Israel in New York, met with University administrators and campus rabbis to discuss the experience of Israeli and Jewish students on campus.
For the first time since the 2024 “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” at Princeton, Yuval Donio Gideon, head of the Public Policy Department of the Consulate General of Israel in New York, met with University administrators and campus rabbis to discuss the experience of Israeli and Jewish students on campus.
Trump administration announces new travel, visa restrictions in last days of semester
Luke GrippoNew travel restrictions announced by the Trump administration could impact international students returning to campus after break.
New travel restrictions announced by the Trump administration could impact international students returning to campus after break.