Lessons from Act One

I was in New York for three days last week and could only see one Broadway show. For me, there was only one choice: James Lapine's stage adaptation of Moss Hart's memoir Act One. Moss Hart wrote Act One at the end of his career, from the perspective of a successful, worldly man of the theatre looking back at his early life. The book is funny, poignant, and infused with a love of theatre that struck a chord with me, a stagestruck young boy in Brooklyn some sixty years after the events described in the book. James Lapine and the producers at Lincoln Center must share my love for Act One, because they adapted the book faithfully and spent a lot of money on a revolving set and large cast of actors Lapine faced many challenges adapting the piece. Act One covers over 20 years in Hart's early life, with many characters and locations. He also faced the tough challenge of recreating some of the stage shows as a play within his play to demonstrate Moss' love of theatre. The second act, which largely tells the story of how Moss worked with the great playwright George S. Kaufman on their first play, "Once in a Lifetime," suffers from this difficulty. It's tough to dramatize the writing process on stage. Lapine and the designers met the challenge of multiple locations by staging scenes on a multi-level revolve that stood in for many locations, and playing other scenes on the thrust stage at the Beaumont theater. Even though they had a large cast, every actor played multiple parts. Tony Shaloub played three parts: older Moss Hart, Hart's father, and George S. Kaufman. Andrea Martin played three parts, too. That device works much better in theatre than on film or television. In this case, too, having actors playing multiple roles fit the material, which was a play about a boy who grew up loving theatre and finally found his place in it. As the young Moss says at the end of the play, in a line taken verbatim from the book, "not a bad curtain for a first act." Everyone involved with Act One did a credible, professional job of bringing the book to life. Since I loved the book I enjoyed the stage production. Even with the elaborate sets and costumes, charismatic performances from the actors, and great source material, it was no more than what we call a gentle, pleasant, evening in the theatre. I hope Tony Shaloub wins a Tony, but suspect that he won't since it was a strong year for actors on Broadway. If you're thinking of adapting a famous work to create your content, make sure you've chosen the right format for it. Does it enhance the piece if it's a play or a television series? Let your imagination soar. I heard of one young composer who created a very successful 15 minute accapella musical based on Sophocles' Oedipus. Before you start writing, think about what the material demands. Act One was made into a movie in the 1960s, in what is still considered one of the worst movies made by a Hollywood Studio. Clearly, it made more sense to tell this story in the theatre. Make sure you have the proper resources to realize your vision. Although Act One is technically a Broadway show and eligible for Tony Awards, only a non-profit like Lincoln Center Theatre Company could afford to mount a play with such a large cast and set. A commercial producer would probably not have done it. If you don't have large resources make your adaptation fit the resources you have. If you love the theatre and/or loved the book Act One I would recommend you go before its current run is over. I can't imagine smaller theater companies around the country staging such an ambitious, expensive adaptation.