“Beyond its melodramatic — and, by now, over-familiar — story, there are some super-charged, gripping performances, particularly in the case of the title character,” this column declared in its review. “Under the surgically precise direction of Martin Benson, ‘The Heiress’ breaks the bonds of vintage play revival and offers some keen insight into the upper class New York life of 1850.”
Ranking a close second — and in a vastly contrasting format — is what this column dubbed the “outlandishly hilarious production of Alan Ayckbourn’s madcap melange ‘Taking Steps,’ “which was “thrust back into the 1970s by director Art Manke, complete with a go-go dancer, a leisure suit and the wildest disco-powered curtain call you’re ever likely to see from the show’s super-charged six-member cast.”
Another golden oldie was Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest,” which ranks third and was labeled “a banquet for admirers of the well-spoken word,” to which was added, “Wilde’s words currently are being particularly well spoken.”
Fourth was a more recent effort, Sarah Ruhl’s Twilight Zonish comedy “Dead Man’s Cell Phone,” directed by Bart DeLorenzo. No. 5 was a rare repertory musical, “An Italian Straw Hat,” staged by Stefan Novinski.
Rounding out the field were the productions of “What They Have,” “A Feminine Ending,” “Culture Clash in America” and “The Injured Party,” the latter a rare misstep from prolific playwright and repertory contributor Richard Greenberg.
