Review: 'Frost/Nixon' at The Brookfield Theatre for the Arts

“2 men seek to reclaim glory--only 1 can win”

Brookfield, CT - The Brookfield Theatre for the Arts (tbta) continues their 60th season with ‘Frost/Nixon,’ a play by Peter Morgan. The piece is a fictionalization of the famous interviews that David Frost conducted with disgraced ex-president Richard Nixon in 1977, as a part of Nixon's efforts to improve his image.

The tbta production was directed by Dana O’Neal and when the play officially opened on Friday evening, it marked 43 years since the exact date that Richard Nixon was granted a full pardon by President Gerald Ford. Lou Okell, tbta president, writes “With insights into the people and politics of the era as well as general insights about the nature of public opinion and the connection between politics and entertainment, the themes of ‘Frost/Nixon’ resonate today.” The director, a military veteran, felt a connection to the play and hoped that “we as Americans can use our history to make our country a more unified and caring place.”

I barely remembered the original airing of the David Frost interview with Nixon, and I have never seen the movie version of ‘Frost/Nixon’ directed by Ron Howard. The script of the play tells the story of how the interview came to be from the point of view of the individuals that surround both Nixon and Frost and it was quite effectively done.

I agree with Ms. Okell that this piece was honest, and both entertaining and thought provoking, although for many of the senior citizens in the preview audience, it was also very nostalgic. I myself got swept up in the era during which I was a teen; I loved the videos of the iconic tv commercials of the time, the awfully loud clothing that we wore in the seventies and the reference to the debut of ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ that all brought us back. Mr. O’Neal himself took a photo of the theater in London premiering ‘JCS’ that appears in the production. Some of the props were probably not true to the period of the seventies; I found this a bit distracting, but the costumes by Helen Adams were spot on.

The director added “six ensemble to the script to enhance the era and a great amount of technical qualities so that everyone can live the period.” The use of the ensemble was great, especially since I somehow had it in my mind that this would be a two-person play. The performances of the supporting performers varied, perhaps due to the fact that the senior citizen preview was their first performance in front of an audience. Unfortunately, some of the technical aspects misfired at the preview, especially the video aspects. I am hopeful that the crew works out the kinks for future performances.

The performance of Artistic Director Will Jeffries as the disgraced Richard Nixon was most impressive. The retired professional actor who has played Nixon twice before in two other productions made it all look easy. He had just enough of the voice and movements to strongly suggest the ex-president without being a caricature. Because he had to act for both the audience and the video feed during the interview sections of the production, he definitely was in the hot seat for much of the performance. Kevin Sosbe tackled the role of television host David Frost and held his own opposite his seasoned cast mate, although his video feed of the interview was distracting.

Fred Rueck gave a polished performance as post-resignation chief of staff James “Jack” Brennan, Rick Haylon was historian James “Jim” Reston, Jr., and Nick Kaye (‘Bent’) played television executive John Birt. The lovely Leigh Carusone Katz made her Brookfield debut as Frost recent girlfriend Caroline Cushing and Ron Malyszka was great as agent Irving “Swifty” Lazar. Al Bhatt did well as journalist Bob Zelnick, Roberto Perez played loyal Nixon valet Manolo Sanchez and Michele Leigh appeared as Evonne Goolagong (remember her?)

That ensemble included Amy Soderquist, Jose Roman, Ian Arbues, Rachel Adams, Paul Landman and Adam Landona playing hippies, television studio employees, and more.

Jean Jackson and Becky Venable (Lenny McGrath in ‘Crimes of the Heart’ at Phoenix Stage Company) served as producers. The frequently changed set was designed by Kevin Pelkey with the ensemble members as running crew. From the back row, I wished that the side monitors were a bit larger and the sound a bit better, but I loved that the television stage manager stood close by me for many of his lines and the house photographer Stephen Cihanek worked nearby.

I met a youngish senior who remarked that she felt that tbta had been choosing too many “kid” productions (i.e. ‘Godspell,’ ‘Bare.’) (She commented that if she wanted to see young performers, she would head to a high school.) She admitted that she missed ‘Bare’ and ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,’ two productions I could easily recall that forcefully balanced the seasons. As someone who looks forward to reviewing high school productions, I respectfully disagreed with her. I also shared that Newtown High School welcomes seniors to their preview performance of the spring musical and that she would not be disappointed.

‘Frost/Nixon’ is presented without intermission and runs almost two hours, so be prepared. In the lobby gallery are the photographs of four artist and a film. Up next at tbta will be the wonderfully funny ‘Noises Off!’

David Frost (Kevin Sosbe) remains upbeat after a late night strategy session while John Birt (Nick Kaye), Bob Zelnick (A.m. Bhatt), and James Reston Jr. (Rick Haylon) air their concerns in FROST/NIXON directed by Dana ONeal opened Friday at Brookfield Theatre for the Arts - tickets: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2696610 (photo by Mark Ashbolt)