Review: Harbor Stage Serves Up a Tasty MY DINNER WITH ANDRÉ

For many, the art-house film “My Dinner with André” is a delicacy. For others, however, it’s an acquired taste like rich food.

Written by and starring comedic actor and playwright Wallace Shawn and avant garde theater director André Gregory, and based on their lives, the 1981 film is the story of two old friends who share dinner at a New York bistro while revisiting their ongoing debate about the life of an artist and the art of making a living.

Last summer, Wellfleet's Harbor Stage Company presented the first-ever U.S. stage production based on the original screenplay, adapted for the stage, directed by, and starring two of the company’s co-founders, Jonathan Fielding and the company’s artistic director Robert Kropf. That production is now being reprised at the Plaza Black Box Theatre at the Boston Center for the Arts through March 30, with the multi-talented Fielding and Kropf once again stepping into the roles made famous by Shawn and Gregory.

This stage adaptation is a well-crafted look at two very different men, what they do and don’t have in common, and what continues to draw them together. While bringing Shawn’s innate quirks to vivid life, Fielding also manages to make this onstage Wally his own. As the writer stuck in a career rut, Fielding has not one false moment, and uses an array of facial expressions and jerky mannerisms to full advantage.

Fielding is also the perfect foil for Kropf’s esoteric André and his ponderous musings on everything from his world travels to the bold-faced names he’s met along the way. André all but mesmerizes Wally, who listens to his friend’s every word even when his mind seems to be wandering to the dessert course.

When a play gets too talky, it risks losing the audience’s attention. With Fielding and Kropf deftly handling the dense dialogue, however, and aided by the devotion many still have for the film version, that is all but avoided here.

For this production, the Plaza Black Box spare has been configured to convey intimacy and allow the audience to lean in, as if eavesdropping on the conversation happening at the corner table. Scenic designer Evan Farley’s leather tufted banquettes, white linen table cloths, and sconces, effectively used by lighting designer John Malinowski, complete the production’s look.

To post a comment, you must register and login.