Susan Granger’s review of “A Man of No Importance” (Off-Broadway: Classic Stage Company)
Since this small-scaler Off-Broadway revival is based on one of my favorite Albert Finney movies, I was curious to see what Jim Parsons – after his successful 12-season run as Sheldon Cooper on the popular sitcom “The Big Bang Theory” – would bring to the role of Alfie Byrne, the closeted Dublin bus conductor.
It’s set in 1964, when homosexuality was repressed in Ireland, so fey, middle-aged Alfie seeks creative satisfaction by staging amateur theatricals and sharing his favorite literature with anyone who will listen. What’s endearing is how the regular passengers on Alfie’s route eagerly await his daily readings, particularly from the writings of Oscar Wilde.
Since Aflie’s job is to collect tickets, he leaves the bus driving to heterosexual Robbie Faye (A.J. Shively), whose rendition of “The Streets of Dublin” is outstanding.
After work, Alfie goes to the home he shares with his spinster sister Lillian (Mare Winningham), who is blissfully unware of her brother’s sexual preference and seems determined to help him find “the right girl.”
Problems arise, however, when Alfie – having decided to mount a production of Wilde’s oft-banned play “Salome” in the Social Hall in the basement of St. Imelda Church – encounters opposition from the traditional Roman Catholic parish.
“Wilde had no life aside from art. Remember that,” Alfie intones. “He lived in the realm of the aesthetic. He never descended into the sewer.”
And Alfie’s urged on by Wilde’s ghost (Thom Sesma).
With songs by composer Stephen Flaherty and lyricist Lynn Ahrens and book by Terence McNally – best known for creating the musical “Ragtime” which ran for two years on Broadway in the late 1990s – the premiere of “A Man of No Importance” occurred in 2002.
Unfortunately, Jim Parsons flounders a bit too much, oozing earnestness yet never achieving the necessary audience rapport. Plus he doesn’t have a strong voice and his Irish accent wavers. So it’s left to the rest of the cast – Shereen Ahmed, Mary Beth Peil – under the resourceful direction of John Doyle – to propel the production.
Doyle’s aptly aided by Ann Hould-Ward’s costumes, Adam Honoree’s lighting, and Sun Hee Kit’s sound.
-“A Man of No Importance” plays at the Classic Stage Company through Sunday, December 18th.