Two Class Acts NYC Reviews and Tickets
Member Reviews (43)
See it if you love Gurney & intimate, clever staging (esp. Squash) for few, gung ho actors & are intrigued by edgy, unexpected interpersonal dynamics.
Don't see it if looking for elaborate staging, larger cast & middle-of-the-road, traditional two-part play & are queasy about risque dynamics in raw spaces.
See it if Squash only (didn't see Ajax) - excellent light-hearted, well acted and energetic (somewhat) comedy that keeps you glued to your seat
Don't see it if you're looking for something deep in a very heavy-handed way - there aren't many negatives; I guess if the mere mention of gays scares you. Read more
See it if Stafford Arima directs this two one acts with bridging themes to great effect. Dan Amboyer was a stand out. Ajax was also very good.
Don't see it if you don't like one acts
See it if you enjoy the actors and/or this playwright. The performances range from capable to quite good, working with flawed but enjoyable plays.
Don't see it if you want something irreverent or tremendously original. The staging is unique, but the works themselves don't break new ground.
See it if You have ever been a college student or adjunct professor and thought about the balance of academia vs the "real" world.
Don't see it if You like plays with lots of action.
See it if You are a Gurney fan and like one act plays. Ajax is the weaker of the two, but Squash holds your attention as a relevant story.
Don't see it if Brief nudity and sexuality in both plays would disturb you. Read more
See it if you know/like classic theater and want to see contemporary riffs on literary classics.
Don't see it if You want gripping, moving drama. These plays are intimate, thoughtful character studies.
See it if Very original one acts acted well and written by one of the most prolific American playwrights alive today.
Don't see it if you don't want to move from one theater to another to watch the two shows on the same night.
Critic Reviews (12)
"Imbued with a giddy openness to change that seems to be as much a part of Mr. Gurney’s DNA as his anthropological dedication to a vanishing class of patricians...'Ajax' is best perceived as a happy fantasy, one that bubbles with the belief that borders of all sorts were meant to be leapt over. 'Squash,' also directed by Mr. Arima (and warmly designed by Jason Sherwood), emanates a similarly optimistic glow, but it is a more fully integrated play."
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"Perhaps because of their brief running times, they are less substantial than usual; for once, this most inventive of playwrights touches on his favorite themes without having much new to say about them...'Ajax': His editorializing doesn't always mesh well with the Meg-Adam romance, which has a breezy, screwball quality. Still, under Stafford Arima's direction, it all goes down easy...'Squash': Arima directed again, and he keeps the tone light and bright, eliciting totally solid performances."
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“Whether you see one or both of ‘Two Class Acts’, these are
provocative plays of ideas on topics of the day. The playwright continues to
demonstrate that he has a wise and discerning view of the human condition.
Director Stafford Arima has done a beautiful job of obtaining all of the nuances
and humor out of the two sharp and intelligent situations. The casting for
both plays could not be improved as the actors make their roles their own.
The Flea leaves White Street on a high note.”
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"Sometimes, all the right elements come together to make a production that’s just delightful...The artistic elements that come together here: visceral acting, transporting, detail-oriented design, Stafford Arima’s masterful staging, and A.R. Gurney’s buoyant yet dynamic new plays...Aside from a few telegraphic moments in the dialogue to keep the plot going in these two micro-plays, Gurney’s writing is delightful."
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"I found Gurney’s 'Ajax' offensive, not because it spread the same old lies about Jews but because it was artificial and jerky. I think it needs to be rethought and turned into a longer play with more depth and less superficial characters. I presume it’s a comedy, but the humor didn’t come through to me...'Squash:' I found very little feeling in this play as well. It was a clever idea but not quite clever enough. Laughter was sparse. The characters were too superficial to be funny."
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"'Ajax:' While the boy-meets-girl conceit is hardly original, Gurney's treatment of it is, though it does require you to suspend your disbelief about the typical professor-student relationship...As directed by Arima, 'Ajax' nicely straddles the ancient Greek and modern American world....'Squash:' Gurney really scores by investigating human sexuality through the dual lens of hetero and homosexual relationships...The play can certainly expand your consciousness on sexuality, love, and sports."
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“I recommend these plays more because they’re your last chance to see a Flea offering at this 20-year-old venue (in a 99-year-old building) than for either's intrinsic quality...While each is entertaining, neither is up to the standards of Gurney’s best work...All the creative contributions help bolster the plays, but Gurney's’ characters and situations, for all their potential, are too artificial to generate belief.”
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"'Squash:' The cast are all seasoned actors who do well, the problem is the material comes off saying everybody is a repressed homosexual and I don’t think that’s the case...'Ajax:' Here the acting was done by the Bats, but it came off as amateurish. Again, the piece is offensive and not well written with holes in it wider than the rift between the Palestinians and the Israelis...Stafford Arima's direction was interesting and moved these plays in unique ways."
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