Table 17 (MCC Theater)

By Harry Forbes

Former partners Jada (Kara Young) and Dallas (Biko Eisen-Martin) meet at a restaurant for a reunion under the sardonic eye of the supercilious maitre d/waiter River (Michael Rishawn) in Douglas Lyons amusing and ultimately touching comedy.

Smartly and resourcefully directed by Zhailkon Levingston on Jason Sherwood’s chicly adaptable set configured like the Bianca’s eatery at which the action transpires (the first rows of the theater have been replaced by tables for audience members), the play is a solid showcase for three very appealing performances. (A porgram insert, incidentally, is cutely designed as a menu in keeping with the show’s setting.)

Young follows up her brilliant work as Lutiebelle in last season’s “Purlie Victorious” with another bravura performance. Her brash Jada conceals a vulnerable creature hurt by the past events we learn as the evening transpires. She gets the laughs where appropriate but also shows us the touching heartbreak beneath the bravado. Eisen-Martin’s aspiring music producer Dallas matches her sensitivity beautifully, and their scenes together play out with convincing naturalness, by turn awkward, bitter, and tender in their interactions. Rishawn impresses in his multiple roles demonstrating easy versatility as he morphs from campy waiter to Jada’s former coworker and other roles. 

The play is punctuated by several flashbacks which fill in the backstory, as well as brief audience asides where these characters express their inner thoughts a bit reminiscent of O’Neill’s “Strange Interlude.” A pivotal Christmas episode, an airport mixup, and a breakup confrontation are particularly well done.

All the production elements are fine including Devario D. Simmons’ costumes, Ben Stanton’s lighting, and Christopher Darbassie’s clear sound design. 

We’ve seen this general story before, and occasional stretches of dialogue are a tad conventional, but overall, Lyons’ comic voice is distinctive, as was clear with his Broadway debut play, “Chicken and Biscuits,” and there are, in any case, a couple of unexpected twists in the narrative which keep things even more interesting. 

(MCC Theater’s Susan & Ronald Frankel Theater,  511 W 52nd Street; mcctheater.org/tix/; hrough September 29)

Photo by Daniel J Vasquez: (l.-r.) Biko Eisen-Martin, Kara Young

Once Upon a Mattress (Hudson Theatre)

By Harry Forbes

The delights of director Lear deBessonet’s “Once Upon a Mattress” at Encores this past spring remain undimmed in its Broadway transfer. Indeed, in some ways, they’re actually heightened in its Great White Way retooling.

The show is, of course, composer Mary Rodgers’ comic comic spin on Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Princess and the Pea.” (The very funny book by lyricist Marshall Barer, Jay Thompson, and Dean Fuller, has been smartly adapted by Amy Sherman-Palladino who penned star Sutton Foster’s TV series “Bunheads.”) 

“Mattress” was famously the show that launched Carol Burnett’s meteoric career back in 1959. A 1996 Broadway revival with Sarah Jessica Parker was, frankly, merely adequate, as its leading lady didn’t play Princess Winnifred as broadly comic as the zany part truly demands.

But here, as at Encores, Foster makes the part gloriously her own and for long stretches, even makes you forget Burnett. She’s wonderfully matched by Michael Urie’s touchingly innocent Prince Dauntless and his impeccable comic timing is a joy throughout. Together, Foster and Urie have ribtickling comic chemistry.

There are some changes in the cast but all the newbies fit their parts as beautifully as their Encores counterparts. Ana Gasteyer is now Queen Aggravain putting obstacles in the path of every eligible maiden for the hand of her son. Daniel Breaker is the jester who serves as the show’s narrator, impressing with his smooth vocals right from the opening number, “Many Moons Ago.” And Will Chase is now the clueless Sir Harry who can’t marry Lady Larken until Dauntless walks down the aisle. 

Larken is once again played most delightfully by the gorgeous voiced and appealing Nikki Renée Daniels, and David Patrick Kelly is back as the mute King Sextimus the Silent endearing throughout largely with skillful pantomime. Brooks Ashmanskas again delights as the Queen's partner-in-scheming Wizard.

Lorin Latarro’s ingenious choreography -- last season on impressive display in “The Who’s Tommy” and “The Heart of Rock and Roll” -- confirms her stature as one of the very best in that field. 

As at Encores, the orchestra is positioned upstage under the assured  baton of Mary-Mitchell Campbell. 

David Zinn’s scenic design and Andrea Hood’s costumes are fractured fairy tale perfect. Kai Harada’s sound design is ideally balanced.

The audience at my performance had a ball and I think it’s a safe bet that you will too. 

(Hudson Theatre, 141 West 44th Street; OnceUponAMattessNYC.com)

Photo by Joan Marcus: l.-r. Michael Urie, Sutton Foster, and cast