Hello and welcome to Cinema Wellman. Today we’re going to do something completely different because I’m going to be writing about a play!
I am, by no means, a theater goer, but I have been fortunate enough to see some excellent live performances over the years. I’ve seen Hair, Le Misérables, Wait Until Dark, The Diary of Anne Frank (with then 16-year-old Natalie Portman in the title role), Mamma Mia!, Beauty and the Beast, and Hello Dolly!
Since Dakota and Hannah were part of the Drama Clubs at school after we moved to New Jersey, I’ve attended many shows at that level as well including The King and I, Cats, Chicago, Grease, and the wonderful Aladdin Jr. (great genie in that!).
It’s been an awful long time since I attended live theater. As a matter of fact, my ticket database tells me that my last show was March 23, 2013, when I saw City of Angels at Eastern High School.
That long drought ended last weekend when Dakota took me on a great adventure into New York City. We went to the Golden Theatre on W 45th Street to see The Shark is Broken.
You may have noticed when I was reeling off the list of plays and musicals I’ve seen that almost all of them have a movie counterpart. So, it’s no surprise that The Shark is Broken is about a notoriously troubled movie shoot.
That movie happens to be one of Cinema Wellman’s favorites, JAWS.
The Shark is Broken is a first-hand account, of sorts, of what it was like to be part of the making of one of the greatest thrillers of all time. The play is co-written by Joseph Nixon and Ian Shaw. Shaw is the son of Robert Shaw, who played Quint in JAWS.
Ian Shaw stars as his father, two-time Tony Award nominee Alex Brightman plays Richard Dreyfuss, and Colin Donnell plays Roy Scheider.
It’s a three man show in a one set play, and it kept me immersed for the entire 95 minutes. No intermission, but Dakota and I agreed we prefer it that way.
If you’re a regular here at Cinema Wellman, you are aware of our JAWS love. You may also remember that Dakota took me to an outdoor screening of the film with the music provided by a live symphony orchestra. That remains one of my favorite movie memories.
When she called me several months ago and asked if I had heard of this show, my response was, “Yes. When are we going?”
I was very thankful that Lucas drove us to Hoboken, NJ, and I was also thankful that Dakota knew her way around all of the trains and walking navigation to get us back and forth. I’m not good with any of that stuff. I leave that to the kids who know.
After briefly waiting in a line to get in, we entered the John Golden Theatre. Originally named The Theatre Masque, it opened in 1927 with the show Puppets of Passion. The name was later changed from The Theatre Masque to the Masque Theater before becoming the Golden in 1937. Both its facade and auditorium interior are designated as “New York City Landmarks.” Deservedly so, I’d say, as both are stunning.
Our seats were in the balcony, so as we emerged from the stairs and could see the stage, I was a bit surprised to see the set. I was expecting a curtain for some reason but was pleased to see a large cutaway of Quint’s boat, the “Orca.”
Behind the boat was a projection of an ocean sky complete with squawking seagulls along with the horizon. The stage surrounding the Orca looked like ocean water, giving the illusion of the boat being afloat somewhere out in the Atlantic.
At one point during the play, Dreyfuss has had it with Shaw’s drinking and grabs his bottle, tossing it overboard. A few seconds later we see it floating offstage in the projected ocean. The effects were absolutely perfect and added to the overall experience.
As I sat mesmerized by the ocean and sky that weren’t really there, Dakota and I were approached by an usher who asked us if we’d like a seat upgrade. The usher had already asked a group of women near us who declined for unknown reasons. Dakota thinks the women didn’t quite understand what the usher was offering. Frankly, neither did I. So happy that D was there to explain things to me.
Not a gigantic upgrade, not a Kaz and I at the old Giants Stadium to see the Dead (with Jerry) upgrade, but a nice upgrade, nonetheless. The new seats gave us an even better look at the set. We were sitting stage left, and that gave us a good look at one of the props - one of the yellow barrels from the original film!
I loved that there was a 1975 playlist playing before the play started, including “The Night Chicago Died.” I was a captive audience and could not press skip.
Dakota and I quickly debated whether or not we’d see a shark of any kind. We got our answer right away when the ominously familiar theme began, and we saw a fin in the “water.”
The theme then came to a slogging halt as the fin smoked and sank beneath the surface. I loved this play before I even saw one of the actors take the stage!
When they did take the stage, I was hypnotized. I love movies, but there’s really nothing like seeing a live performance. It’s an entirely different experience. Since this live performance was about one of my favorite movies, you can understand how I became pleasantly lost in what I was seeing happen in front of me.
Colin Donnell was excellent as Roy Scheider. As I’ve mentioned many times, Roy Scheider has always reminded me of my dad. And if my dad was on that boat with Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss, I’m sure he’d try to do what Scheider tried to do. It’s what I’d try to do if I found myself in a confined space with two volatile personalities, and that's to try to keep the peace.
That must have been an absolute nightmare for Scheider!
I’ve read books about the making of this movie, so nothing I saw in the play was a big surprise. That took nothing away from my experience. I was kind of proud of myself for getting the inside jokes about screenwriter Carl Gottlieb, uncredited screenwriter John Milius, all of the mechanical issues with “Bruce,” Spielberg’s issues with being a green director, and Shaw’s tax issues.
Alex Brightman was tremendous as Richard Dreyfuss. I was not familiar with his work, but Dakota knew that he was Tony nominated for playing Beetlejuice in Beetlejuice the Musical and for playing Dewey Finn in School of Rock.
Brightman perfectly captured how I perceived Dreyfuss at this point in his career! Suffering from low self-esteem and substance abuse, Brightman’s Dreyfuss is always a minute away from a meltdown, but he usually rescues himself from that by using his wit and sense of humor as a coping mechanism.
This is both a funny and gut-wrenching performance.
Ian Shaw looks and sounds so much like his late father, that in scenes in which he was alone and speaking in monologue, I actually felt like I was watching Robert onstage.
This is a very brave project for Ian since he had to read his father’s drinking journals to get a better perspective and insight into what his dad was going through at the time. That couldn’t have been easy reading for Ian, but the final result is absolutely brilliant.
I got a kick out of how the script was peppered with dialogue that becomes very funny when taken in today’s context.
My favorite example of that was when the trio was discussing the legacy of the film they were currently not working on. Dreyfuss asks if anyone thinks it’ll be good enough to get a sequel. Scheider scoffs. Paraphrasing here, “A sequel? How can there be a sequel? What happens? Another shark shows up at this same guy’s beach? That’s ridiculous. I'll tell you one thing. If there’s a sequel, I’m not going to be in it!”
Roy Scheider was in Jaws 2 three years later.
They also talk about the fact that there will never be a more corrupt or immoral president than Richard Nixon.
And Shaw goes on and on about how, in the future, every movie is going to be a sequel. Or a remake. Or a sequel to a remake. Or a remake OF a sequel. Sucks to be so prescient.
It was amazing to hear them discuss the film they were making as they were making it. As a film fan I’ve often wondered if the cast and crew “know” that they’re making magic, or if they have no idea.
I worked on one movie for two and a half months. And it has yet to be released. I have no clue.
My favorite discussion revolves around what they each think the movie is “really about.” That was fun to watch even though I knew what Shaw’s “punchline” answer was.
I was so happy that Shaw’s “Indianapolis Speech” was prominently featured. Ian included a scene in which his father is frustrated with the script and its length. When given permission to rewrite it, Shaw does. He then convinces Spielberg he can do it drunk. Spielberg allows this, and it’s a disaster.
The play ends with a “sober” and apologetic Shaw delivering one of the best monologues in film history before the “film” on the horizon runs out and the lights dim.
But not before we see that shooting star darting across the sky.
This was an amazing experience, and I’m so thankful that I’m able to add it to my JAWS file.
An obvious shoutout to Dakota for seeing the issues her father has with this movie, understanding them, and continuing to chum the waters for new JAWS experiences for us to explore.
JAWS turns 50 six hundred and three (603) days from today. Dakota and I have already planned to see it together on the big screen for that golden or silver or whatever it is anniversary.
I will be smuggling in Narragansetts! That is for sure.
Well, that’s a wrap for Cinema Wellman’s brief switch from screen to stage! I loved it and was reminded of how magical live theater is. Looking forward to more shows in the future. Seek out live theater wherever you live and patronize the arts!
On the film side, join us next week as we recap the month of October. It’s the end of the month, so it’s time for Cinema Wellman’s “Best and Worst!”
We hope you join us for that.
And until then, take care.
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