SubscribePortraying Thurgood Marshall: Tonys bait for Fishburne?
Playing decades older Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall in the one man show "Thurgood" could well win Laurence Fishburne his second Tony Award. The Oscar-nominated actor ("What's Love Got to Do With It?") has already picked up nominations for his solo turn from both the Outer Critics Circle and the Drama Desk and he is one of 69 actors competing for the Drama League distinguished performance prize.
Playing solo has proved to be great Tony bait with seven wins so far: Jefferson Mays ("I Am My Own Wife," 2004); Christopher Plummer ("Barrymore," 1997); Robert Morse ("Tru," 1990); Pauline Collins ("Shirley Valentine," 1989); Lily Tomlin ("The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe," 1986); Julie Harris ("The Belle of Amherst," 1976); and Hal Holbrook ("Mark Twain Tonight," 1966). Backed by his solid reviews, Fishburne could find himself the front-runner in the Tony race for best actor this year.
Michael Kuchwara of the AP was certainly impressed, noting that, "in first-time playwright George Stevens Jr.'s straightforward creation, we are offered a one-man show that is part biography, part history lesson and part inspirational sermon. Fishburne has the theatrical, larger-than-life demeanor of an old-fashioned preacher, including the necessary pizazz to keep an audience's attention for an intermissionless 90 minutes. Dressed in a natty blue suit for much of the evening (until he dons a Supreme Court robe), the actor more than adequately fills the stage as he portrays the man who was to become the first black justice on the nation's highest court."
Joe Dziemianowicz of the New York Daily News opened his rave review by proclaiming, "there ought to be a law -- all bio-dramas should be as vivid and entertaining as 'Thurgood.'" He was a fan of Fishburne finding him to be "a strong and natural presence onstage. He captures the justice's drive and everyday essence as well as his wry -- if sometimes crass -- wit. 'Thurgood' doesn't break a lot of new ground, but it is a worthwhile story rich in history, humanity and humor."
Charles Isherwood in the New York Times found the show to be, "a no-frills documentary in the first person, essentially an opportunity to watch a movie star deliver a history lecture. But since Mr. Fishburne is an effortlessly compelling actor, and the history in question is charged with a moral urgency that still resonates today, 'Thurgood' is surprisingly absorbing, at times even stirring. The role does not allow Mr. Fishburne to draw deeply on his rich resources as an actor, even if it requires significant stamina. (The play clocks in at 90 minutes.) The smoldering gravity he brought to his roles in movies like 'What’s Love Got to Do With It' and the 'Matrix' trilogy is replaced by a more genial variety. Mr. Fishburne also brings a subtle physical dynamism and a sly humor to the role, which gives the material a useful buoyancy."
For Linda Winer of Newsday, " Laurence Fishburne tells the life story of the first black Supreme Court justice, in more-or-less Thurgood Marshall's own folksy words. If this sounds less like a drama than an educational TV special for Black History Month, you grasp the major limitations and the good intentions in the solo biography. Fishburne, always a welcome onstage force, dotters out on a cane, then grows more youthful as Marshall recollects the facts and lessons of his journey. He wears a serious suit, a rep tie and a wicked smile. He talks amiably at us, apparently delivering a speech to the Howard University Law School in a formal room with a long, dark-wood table and a stucco backdrop of the flag. "
Finally, Clive Barnes of the New York Post had praise for the performer if not the play: "As written by Stevens and played with a twinkling, self-deprecating good nature by Fishburne, Marshall -- with his armory of jokes and anecdotes -- must have been one helluva good after-dinner speaker. Most of what he has to tell is admirable yet predictable -- a hardscrabble childhood, parental sacrifice, a fierce unyielding ambition, a splendid intellect and a natural legal mind, all of it essential for the journey from the back streets of Baltimore to Washington's corridors of power. The problem of the evening -- an intermissionless 100 minutes -- is that, while it's undoubtedly a triumph for Fishburne, there is only one character, one tone, and neither tension nor climax. Stevens comes from the world of movies, but he doesn't seem to know much about editing. Quite simply, a little less might have meant a lot more."
(Photo: Booth Theatre)
Excellent, it was amazing seeing come on stage an old man in his last years with a cane then as he tells his life story become young vibrant and puts the cane down but as it comes full circle, you see him transform back into this old brillant man with the need of the cane and you leaving feeling that you too had a chance to see and feel that you had a chance to participate in a significant history being made that affects us still today. 100 stars.
Posted by: Cmarsh | May 01, 2008 at 08:38 PM