On Sunday, May 28th, 2023, I saw the 2pm performance of the play "Grey House" at the Lyceum Theatre in New York City. "Grey House" was written by Levi Holloway, who presented the World Premiere of this play in 2019 at A Red Orchid Theatre in Chicago, IL, with Shade Murray as director. The Red Orchid production ran from October 10th through December 1st of that year. I was living in Chicago at the time, but was completely unaware that the show was running. Also, I had no idea of the favorable reviews it received. When it opened for previews on Broadway this year, with a new cast and director, I wanted badly to see it. I entered the ticket lottery for "Grey House," not winning until the May 28th performance of Memorial Day Weekend. Not only that, but my ticket was front row, and nearly center.
While "Grey House" is without a doubt a brilliant play, it could have used an intermission. Then again, I really only began to get sore during the last twenty minutes of the show. The play had such startling moments, along with the tension as well as the building anticipation between those moments. I was sort of disappointed that the image on the playbill cover wasn't recreated within the play. Then again, I probably wouldn't have been able to see a ghostly reflection on the stage surface from the front row. Did I mention I had a front row seat? I suppose I was also expecting the scenery to move during scene changes. While lights went out to imply new scenes, the entire play took place in one room of the house. That's not exactly new for Broadway.
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| The marquee of the Lyceum Theatre on the afternoon I saw "Grey House" (I took this photo) |
The Broadway Production of "Grey House," which officially opens May 30th, is directed by Joe Mantello. He has directed many plays and musicals. I'm pretty sure the only show of his I've seen is "Wicked," which I've seen five times (beginning with the Original Broadway Cast in 2003). That is probably why I was expecting more transitory scenery in "Grey House." Don't get me wrong, there was definitely clever stagecraft in this production of "Grey House." But that wasn't thanks to Mantello's direction. Scott Pask (scenic design), Natasha Katz (lighting design), and Tom Gibbons (sound design) deserve the credit where the stage craft is concerned. I think.
On the afternoon I saw "Grey House," the cast included Laurie Metcalf (Raleigh), Claire Karpen (Max), Paul Sparks (Henry), Sophia Anne Caruso (Marlow), Millicent Simmonds (Bernie), Colby Kipnes (Squirrel), Alyssa Emily Marvin (A1656), Eamon Patrick O'Connell (The Boy), and Cyndi Coyne (The Ancient). The cast worked really well together, and stood out essentially on their own. Very little about this play, if anything, is normal. The cast in their own way deliver that theme to its fullest. Yet their reactions to the bizarre and at times terrifying situation have a relatable quality to them, and are almost normal themselves.
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| My POV photo from my front row seat. The view was much better than this photo suggests. |
This play wasn't only frightening. There were some funny moments. Also, there were some emotional and heartbreaking scenes. I didn't detect my heart being broken, but I was nearly moved to tears once or twice. My eyes finally welled up towards the end when one of the characters theorized that ghosts are our future selves telling us to stop, and "if only we could hear them" said another character... or maybe the same character said that. I already forgot. During sad scenes in most musicals and plays, I usually just feel sorry for myself.
Something odd that I now remember about the theatre-going experience is that there was no announcement telling the audience to turn their cell phones off. That might be because the play takes place in the late '70s. A cell phone announcement might have taken away from the setting, or something. I highly doubt that though. Not a single phone rang during the show though, so I guess everything worked out.
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| Sophia Anne Caruso as Marlow and Laurie Metcalf as Raleigh (photo by Sara Krulwich). |
There is one scene in "Grey House" where one of the characters seems to disappear into the couch. I thought that scene was one of the neatest parts of the play. Also, the refrigerator would contain shelves of food at one point, and shelves of moonshine the next. Before I continue mentioning one spoiler after another, I should mention that "Grey House" features fog as well as smoking on stage. It didn't bother me, especially because the fog was toward the end of the show. There is a warning about the smoke and fog in the playbill, and I was getting sort of impatient for the play to end. So when the fog finally came wafting up the cellar stairs (that are part of the scenic design), I just knew I almost lasted through all of "Grey House." Before long, the play ended and I felt like I accomplished something. It's fascinating how we lie to ourselves sometimes, isn't it?
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For the ticket, I have my parents to thank. While I was a winner of the ticket lottery, there was still a price. Plus, I usually see one show per month. Unless I'm mistaken, I've seen three shows this month, all of which my parents paid for. They were excited for me to see "Grey House." When the conclusion of the play rolled around, I thought of my cat Junior, and I was overjoyed and suddenly filled with gratitude I had him to go home to after the show. Of course, I was glad I got to go home to my mom too. But Junior has such an animated reaction when I return home after being away only a few hours. That might also have been why my eyes filled with tears. Maybe, in another life, I was an actor. I heard somewhere when crying is called for in a scene, you are supposed to think of something sad. Perhaps that is how Laurie Metcalf cried so convincingly in the last scene. Not only that, but it felt like she was looking right at me as she began to cry. Talk about the magic of the theatre! Would I go back to see "Grey House" again? In a heartbeat.
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