THE HANGOVER REPORT – Keen Company comes up with a lovingly wistful TRAVELS WITH MY AUNT

IMG_4588Under Jonathan Silverstein’s guidance, Keen Company has become one of those smallish Off-Broadway theater companies in the city that consistently stage solid, if at times safe, productions. Its fall entry at the Clurman in Theatre Row, Giles Havergal’s charming stage adaptation of Graham Green’s novel Travels with My Aunt, is no exception. The plot revolves around Henry Pulling, a recent retiree, and his globe-spanning, intrigue-filled travels with his worldly, seductively mysterious Aunt Augusta. Along the way, we meet a wide array of colorful characters, all of which are wittily and carefully brought to life by a quartet of excellent actors (a la the hit stage version of The 39 Steps) that include Thomas Jay Ryan, Jay Russell, Daniel Jenkins, and Rory Kulz.

Keen’s artistic director, Mr. Silverstein, carefully and lovingly directs Travels with a sure hand, resulting in an experience that wistfully basks in every detail of Henry’s improbable journey. Although at times I would have preferred for there to be more urgency in the storytelling, I applaud the attention to nuance and clarity that Mr. Silverstein and his fine cast – particularly the very fine Thomas Jay Ryan, who also plays Aunt Augusta – commit to. I also applaud the design team (Steven Kemp did the sets; Jen Paar did the costumes), which has set out to create a Magritte-inspired world, and succeeded beautifully.

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TRAVELS WITH MY AUNT
Off-Broadway, Play
Keen Company at the Clurman Theatre (in Theatre Row)
2 hours (with one intermission)
Through November 14

Categories: Off-Broadway, Theater

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