"'The Liar' is, throughout, an effervescent delight. Mr. Ives’s lyric and comic invention never falters as he blends, in capering, cascading verse, both the cultivated language and decorous rhythms of classical comedy and cheeky, up-to-the-minute slang...Michael Kahn, the longtime artistic director of the Shakespeare Theater in Washington, unsurprisingly proves supremely adept at guiding his actors through the verse, so that there’s no daylight between character and language."
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"As in Ives’s superb 'The Heir Apparent,' much of the 'The Liar’s' pleasure stems from a continual flow of clever verbiage trippingly delivered by a vibrant cast that includes Carson Elrod and Kelly Hutchinson. As lies flood our news feeds daily, the play’s subject might not seem so funny anymore. But high-level theatrical escapism of this nature makes a strong argument for itself."
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"A sparkling if sometimes overbright comedy...Mercilessly allegro and dense with enjoyments, it can sometimes feel a bit exhausting on the receiving end...At the breakneck tempo set by director Michael Kahn, some of the actors seem to strain to get every joke to land with a thump...Still, the troupe is mostly expert, and in the case of Carson Elrod, better than that...In any case, to laugh heartily in the theater again, after what seems like 400 years, is worth any quibbles."
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"Written in verse, the script showcases Ives's near-peerless way with wordplay and wit, gleeful anachronisms and inside jokes. Still, the exposition-heavy first half isn’t quite as breezy or fizzy as one might hope. And director Michael Kahn’s cast might crank the volume down to 10 — Classic Stage Company is a small house, so why shout? After intermission, the plot untangles. So does the production — and everything clicks."
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"Ives takes what should be a tough sell for modern audiences and turns it into an awful lot of fun...The production...doesn’t always live up to the writing’s sparkle. Most of the ensemble lack the necessary comic flair for the piece, and Kahn’s staging, for all its fast pacing, tends toward the one-note. Thankfully, there are exceptions...It’s these performers, and Ives’ script, that give the evening its buoyancy and its genuine comic pleasures of both the slapstick and sophisticated variety."
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"Though the madcap first act flies by, the second feels a bit slower, at least until the action ramps back up to its inevitable conclusion. Ives has written a clever script—the decision to stick with verse could have been an annoying conceit, but in his capable hands, it’s an ingenious way to tweak the source material… From the rapid-fire dialogue and the mistaken-identity shenanigans to one sublimely silly duel, Ives’s 'Liar' is a treat—and that’s the truth."
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"The text, which is made up of rhymed couplets, combines sly wit and old-fashioned romantic rituals with coarse humor, a modern point of view and countless anachronisms...Staged with speedy comedic flow by Michael Kahn, 'The Liar' is a lighthearted, light-as-a-feather delight. The small cast, wearing deluxe period attire, delivers the rhymed banter and physical gags (such as repeated slapping and mimed swordplay) with youthful, hyperactive vigor."
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"Even if the play isn't the laugh-out-loud comedy of the year, it comes as a welcome respite from our postmodern age of words without meaning...Ives' adaptation is slow to get off the ground...It never culminates in the tear-producing belly laugh we truly crave. Director Kahn makes up some of the difference with a caffeinated staging that keeps the ornate plot churning along...A diverting, visually sumptuous, but only mildly funny evening at the theater."
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