The Front Page is Good News
Williamstown Theatre Festival Revives Ben Hecht and Charles Macarthur Classic
By: Charles Giuliano - Jul 06, 2007
The Front Page
By Ben Hecht and Charles Macarthur. Directed by Ron Daniels. Sets by Riccardo Hernandez. Costumes by Linda Cho. Lights by Charles Foster. Sound by Nick Borisjuk. Production Stage Manager, Adam Grosswirth. Production manager, Michael Wade. Casting, Tara Rubin Casting. Cast: Tom Bloom, Michael Braun, John Cariani, Amanda Leigh Cobb, Bill Cwikowski, Gary Donaldson, Jason Butler Harner, Greg Hildreth, Butch Hutchinson, Richard Kind, Wayne Knight, Ted Koch, Patrick James Lynch, Kathy McCafferty, Rod McLachlan, Anne O'Sullivan, Joe Plummer, Matthew Rauch, Sean Patrick Reilly, Robert Stanton, Wayne Walbye. Williamstown Theatre Festival, July 4 through July 15.
Getting up for the second act intermission a woman seated a couple of rows in front of us was catching her breath and wiping back tears from laughing in stitches. While there was a lot of exposition and plot setting in the first of three acts of "The Front Page" by Ben Hecht and Charles Macarthur the farcical circumstances of a news room of reporters in the vigil for a 7 AM hanging was just hysterical. Talk about gallows humor.
It was a particularly festive evening that officially launched the main stage season of the Williamstown Theatre Festival. Artistic Director, Roger Rees, now in his third full season came on stage during curtain calls and asked the cast to assist in cutting an enormous cake. He then invited the audience to a champagne reception in the lobby where the cast eventually mingled. We looked for the cake but apparently there really was none. It went back to the prop room to get wheeled out next year. But we made do with trays of small tarts.
Having several years of actual news room experience under my belt, at the old Herald Traveler, seeing the goings on of the raucous reporters and their shenanigans, each bent on scooping and bantering with each other, was particularly poignant and insightful. The play was set in Chicago during the days of Prohibition. So it was interesting to recall a time when a roomful of reporters covering the execution represented as many daily papers. Through a combination of factors from economics, the expansion of other media from television through the internet, today there are all too few print journalists plying their trade. So there was a dinosaur aspect to this play which may be difficult for a younger audience to relate to.
At the beginning of each act young news hawkers placed in the aisles and balconies called out the headlines of the day. "Extra, Extra, read all about it." As a kid that often prompted me to fork over a nickel for the Daily Record. Sometimes I bought several editions during the same day only to realize that they just replated the Front Page. Now there is just one daily edition if any so that is a subtle point. One reporter, a health and germ fanatic who reminded me of Howard Hughes, is trying to convince the Sheriff (Wayne Knight) to move the execution up to five AM so they can make the first edition. The other reporters complain of yet another nightly vigil away from family and friends.
The banter of the newsies surrounds the surprising resignation of star reporter, Hildy Johnson (Jason Butler Harner) who is just checking in out of old habit but has tickets and cash to leave that night with his fiancé and her mother to get married and settle down in the advertising business in New York. He has a love hate relationship with the abusive publisher Walter Burns (Richard Kind). The press room has several phones one a direct line to the Examiner. During the initial phone exchanges Burns is seen through a scrim in his office.
Outside the window there is an occasional thud as Sheriff Hartman drops sand bags to test the gallows. The reporters yell and toss things at him, Led by the rebellious Johnson. The condemned man, Earl Williams (Bill Cwikowski) is labeled a Bolshevik but prefers to be known as an anarchist. There is a difference. He is loved by a tart Mollie Malloy (Kathy McCafferty) whose presence causes havoc in the news room. Add to the mix Peggy Grant (Amanda Leigh Cobb) the fiancé who wants to pull Johnson away from such a sordid and reckless life.
There are lots of plot twists too complex to run down here. Somehow Williams shoots his way out of jail only to show up in the newsroom where he surrenders to Johnson. With such a scoop in the making it is increasingly obvious that journalism will prevail over love. When Burns shows up to manage the scoop and confront Johnson there is the absurd idea of hiding Williams in a roll top desk. And to keep him concealed from a roomful of cops, politicians and reporters looking for the escaped convict.
By the third act the energy level soared. Particularly the sharp exchanges between Johnson and Butler. They were both superb in their roles. Overall it was a great cast and the action was wonderfully paced by Ron Daniels. So the WTF is on sound footing for a strong season. Front Page will be a hard act to follow.
During the after party we caught up with Wayne Knight who is remembered as the character Newman from Seinfeld. Since his first love is theater it is appropriate to see him in this context. We were surprised to learn that it has been ten years since Seinfeld. It was unavoidable to ask how he felt about portraying Newman such an unpleasant character. After all, I suggested, that has to come from some part of his own character and personality. "Yeah, my worst fears and apprehensions," was the answer. And yes, there is life after Seinfeld. But being so labeled for so long can work for and against an actor. There was another series "Third Rock from the Sun." But he wasn't surprised that I didn't remember it. "Nobody does," he said. And does the Seinfeld crew keep in touch? Not really, been there, done that, but "Jason and I keep in touch and do some projects together." Hey, yaddahyaddahyaddha.