The Stone Witch

See it if Editor assigns young charge to cabin to coax eccentric author's delayed final book. Great set/ forest visual create maximum atmospherics.

Don't see it if Thin plot and underdeveloped characters force a tedious one-act 90 min. evening.

See it if A Lauria fan, you're a would-be writer (I guess), like stories about creative journey (but you might be disappointed.) Lots of trying hard

Don't see it if Want plot 2 have some kind of story arc that's not obvious from the getgo, are hoping for character development. Some scenery chewing here.

Also Oh boy, did I have high expectations on this one. Sadly, even though I was initially enchanted with the look of the set when I first walked in and the first two projections and scene transitions, the rest of the incessant projections all seemed to be from different designers and never cohered, there were very visible stagehands constantly moving furniture and props on and off the stage (highly distracting and clumsy,) and the story never goes anywhere.

Character motivations are very muddy and surprisingly, the actors don't display much range within each of their roles.

Disappointing.

Saw this at the Westside Theatre, end of March 2018.... Read more Read less

See it if You want a great set with lots to look at. Dan Laurie always excellent.

Don't see it if You are tired of age old story: young protege and older wiser man at odds, then form close relationship, then young one grows

Also And becomes the wise accomplished one.

See it if You are a Shel Silverstein fan. There are quite a few nods to him. You want to see a play that is both haunting and beautiful.

Don't see it if You want something "family friendly." Despite its themes, it is not really a show aimed at young audiences. Although kids can enjoy it too.

Also I hope that this show continues to develop, because it's not difficult to see that there's something really great here.

Unfortunately, its greatness is obscured by, well, obscurity. There are some plot elements added to the story that simply refuse to add up, leaving you more confused in the last stretch of the show than the first.

The ending is also unsatisfactory, and feels a bit like a parody of horror film endings. A hand coming up from the grave so to speak. Although in the context of the play, it makes little sense.

The set design was the real standout. I don't think I've seen such a beautiful set in an off-broadway house in quite a while. There's so much set dressing that clearly has been put there by someone who has put a lot of thought into it.

The actors were great, though clearly it's Dan Lauria who steals the show as his character should. Unfortunately his best moments are all loaded early on.

With another round of edits, I really think this could be great.... Read more Read less

See it if you love Dan Lauria or you like shows about writers.

Don't see it if you don't want to see Dan Lauria in a completely different kind of role or you are not interested in show abou writers.

See it if ...you're a big fan of Dan Lauria. He gets to chew the scenery. Good set. Good projections. Story is an adaptation of Ira Levin's DEATHTRAP

Don't see it if Characters are thinly drawn, with minimal development or backstory. Slow-moving.

See it if ...well, the show's already closed, so you can't.

Don't see it if ... the show recently closed.

Also the staging was great, and the acting was good. it was nice to see a couple of familiar actors on stage. however, the story line, while a good premise, just seemed to miss the mark.... Read more Read less

See it if Very nice set. You like one of the actors.

Don't see it if You want a great story. It was slow.

See it if Good acting talent, but the lead went overboard. Attempt to pin the lead's writer's block on the Holocaust was less than believable.

Don't see it if If you are uncomfortable with irrational outbursts, lack of control, and unmotivated behavior.

See it if I enjoyed the set. The story and the main character gave me a headache.

Don't see it if You don't like the element of science fiction

See it if You are interested in the story of a young man who is sent to try help author get over his writers block a bit of supernatural. Interesting

Don't see it if You want to hear a lot of talking that could have been cut down to make the script more approachable.

See it if A Dan Lauria fan, like small Off-Broadway shows in a nice intimate theatre. You're into a night of twisted intense theatre.

Don't see it if You want to laugh or you want to see a light musical. You can't sit through a show without an intermission.

See it if you like beautiful & creative staging with sets that help tell the story an an ingenious way. If you enjoy seeing wonderful Dan Lauria

Don't see it if you don't like angst-driven central characters with schizophrenic traits (example: I like you, I hate you, I like you...now I hate you)

Also The stage set and the actors were enough to keep me interested in this 1.5 hour performance.
As far as story, however, halfway through it took a turn where I became must less engaged.and started relying more heavily on the visual set.... Read more Read less

See it if Excellent design (esp projections) & three hard working (very hard!) actors can't manuever around all the pot (plot) holes in the script

Don't see it if Bitterman's drama about a lionized author's writers block starts out strong but quickly sinks into soap opera & it's a quick sinking 'stone'

See it if Best thing about this show is the set/lighting/projections. Very creative & unique. Never seen this technique before.

Don't see it if The acting was fine but the play was not. Very predictable, not that interesting or entertaining.

Also So almost every detail is from the life of Maurice Sendak including the very similar drawings on the walls. But certain details were not correct -- there is no indication that Sendak acted in such bizarre and extreme ways. So it really does a disservice to him. Enough is real that it might mislead people into thinking that he had some of the terrible qualities of the character in this play.... Read more Read less

See it if You're a fan of Dan Laurie. He works hard to elevate the script.

Don't see it if You're not a fan of Dan Laurie.

See it if you like plays about writers and the writing process, aging issues, dealing with irrational people and superb set set design and graphics.

Don't see it if you dislike shows with themes (older irascible writers and their mentors) that have been done many times before and, often better.

See it if You enjoy cliched dramas about artists who are assholes (but maybe have hearts of gold...but probably not).

Don't see it if You think people ought to be admired for being kind and generous, not because they make art that someone thinks is good.

See it if You don't mind long scene changes that disrupt the action.

Don't see it if You want a main actor who can handle the dense, rambling script.

See it if You're up for a well-meaning, obviously plotted clichéd script about Age, Art, Mentors, Youth & Ambition dressed in slick, too-cool effects.

Don't see it if You expect realistic dialogue or any sort of dramatic tension; it oddly sets up and passes by many plot devices, but ultimately goes nowhere

Also Lots of love & attention went into this project, so much that it seems no one stepped back to see the main problem: that all the very expensive, pretty, obvious visual effects & set details can’t hide the fact that the play is poorly constructed, unfocussed & clichéd. The jarring Disney-like soundtrack, the most obvious of character names (Grindberg, Chandler & Forlorni) plus stagehands moving props in the dark so often they should get cast credit also don't help.

It's not often a play sets up so many dramatic possibilities & passes on all of them—violence, seduction, theft; like the discharged gunshot that does no harm, all the untapped dramas at the end are happily resolved offstage. Talk about telling not showing.

McCormick shines, looks terrific per Mimi Maxmen’s costumes; Ginn is callow & studied as the callow young illustrator; Lauria chews the scenery well if not too loudly, though he plays his emotions as if going through a checklist: very pro, but in the end, facile.... Read more Read less

See it if you'd like to see another show about why a torturned genius is alowed to be awful

Don't see it if you don't like two-hour straight through shows.

See it if you'd enjoy the charming visuals, sound design, and set design, all of which promise to enhance this dramatically unfulfilling play.

Don't see it if you're expecting a cohesive story or resolution, or engaging, dimensional characters. Premise intrigues but unfolds as cliched and trite.

See it if A pretty picture book with a half baked story. Plot sacrificed for a bunch of speechifying. What was the point?

Don't see it if No tension but lots of false starts that go nowhere. Characters don't change - unless you think dementia counts.

Also First you think - oh, this is about artistic integrity - nope. Then you think - oh, this is about a fading star betraying the fresh new talent - nope. The relationship with the editor? The lessons learned by the young writer? Some mysterious back story? Nope, nope, nope. Kept trying to grasp something but there was nothing there.... Read more Read less

See it if You like lead characters that are curmudgeons for no really defined reason.

Don't see it if You expect everything laid out in the story (holocaust, maybe invisible daughters) to relate and make sense in the end.

See it if you'd like a fable of the great blocked artist & young acolyte who teaches and is taught by his idol. You're interested in Sendak or kid lit

Don't see it if you expect canny script structure or convincing performances (Lauria has moments but he is lumbered by the writing)

Also It's mystifying why the story-within-the-play of the Stone Witch doesn't get fleshed out: surely here was an opportunity to use art to refract life in a more interesting way than the scenes that made it onstage. The set-up for the tale has archetypal resonance that might have illuminated the situation.
As it is, we're left to fill in much with our memories of Maurice Sendak (some of whose biography is borrowed for the character of Simon, and whose drawing style is referenced in the illustrations that decorate the pediments of his writing cabin.)
In fact, the evocative set and illustration design by Yael Pardess tell us so much more than the thin backstory in the text. Kudos also to Brad Peterson's novel and magical projection designs, which effectively conjur the dark & haunting aspects of the best children's literature, as well as its delights.... Read more Read less