By MARK BLANKENSHIP | September 14, 2006
“In one poignant scene, Theophilus discusses science with a teacher he
has just rescued from a bad relationship. They talk about catalysts,
those agents that provoke change among other elements, and the
teacher remarks how catalysts never change. “They form no permanent
bonds,” he says. And from the flicker of pain across Litt’s face, we see
exactly what Theophilus fears.
In his New York debut, Litt gives a perf as rich as the material. He’s often
exuberant, his plump face beaming with some new adventure. But the
actor also succumbs to bravado, taking pleasure in his sarcasm and
ability to shock wealthy prudes. These acid touches make the character
seem human, preparing us for the darker moments of his loneliness.”
By ELYSE SOMMER
With the endearing young Giorgio Litt as Theophilus and under the keen
direction of the aprtly named Keen company’s founder and artistic
director Carl Forsman, this works very well indeed.
Sentimental? Sure. A bit too drawn out? Probably. But, in this harsh and
cynical world we live in, it’s nice to spend time with this impetuous young
man who manages to travel far within himself even though he never
ventures far from his own backyard.
By DAVID COTE | Time Out New York / Issue 573 : Sep 21–26, 2006
“The tale is rich in dry humor, and in Wilder’s folsky philosophy that the
cosmic permeates the quotation. Litt and his able fellow actors handle
the material with delicate affection, under the tight stewardship of Carl
Forsman, upon Beowulf Boritt’s wood-plank and antique-lamp set.
Gently funny, spryly wise and unabashedly old-fashioned, Theophilus
North is full of local colors—sepia, to be exact.”
By JOY GOODWIN | September 15, 2006
“As played by Giorgio Litt (in his New York debut), the 30-year-old
Theophilus is as quaint and set in his ways as an old man. A
bespectacled nerd in a mediocre suit, he’s utterly preoccupied with the
ghosts of history and literature.Theophilus has little use for the physical
world. (Hired to teach the kids tennis, he learns it from a library book.)
His speech, littered with grandiose allusions and quotations, makes him
a kind of parlor oddity. “You’re like a dictionary come to life,” one local
fellow marvels.
It’s a tribute to Wilder’s writing (and Mr. Litt’s acting) that this strange,
uptight little man is so compelling. Our curiosity is aroused; we want to
know what made him this way. The clues come in a second-act subplot,
in which Theophilus is hired by a rich girl’s father to stop her from
eloping with a local substitute teacher. This poignant sequence (well-
played by Virginia Kull and Brian Hutchison) has a more grown-up
resonance, for though Theophilus succeeds in breaking up the
mismatched couple, he’s tormented by his actions. “Strange,” the girl
says to him. “I don’t know you, but because of four hours with you, my life
will be different.”
As the substitute teacher points out (supplying an unabashedly onthe-
nose metaphor), a catalyst can affect everything around it without
changing its own fundamental nature. No matter how many times he
makes his circuit through Newport, stopping off at a mansion, a rooming
house, a tennis court, Theophilus seems unchanged.The spectacles
and the suit are almost a uniform, keeping him at a remove from human
contact.
Theophilus North earns high marks for imagination, but remains in the
end a kind of timeworn paean to a bygone way of looking at the world. In
this, it is true to Wilder. Even in his own time, there were those who
thought Wilder sentimental, and Theophilus North is undoubtedly tinged
with old-time nostalgia.
But there are muscles rippling under the play’s rose-scented skin. Right
through his last moment on stage, Theophilus is a contrary character,
too shrewd to settle for fine poetry, too full of romantic yearning to make
peace with mere ordinary life.”
“While his character is static, Giorgio Litt always manages to make
North compelling, especially when his mask of objectivity drops, as
when Theophilus “rescues” a runaway heiress from an unsuitable
marriage, saving her suitor as well. The play is skillfully directed by Carl
Forsman with a minimum of fuss and furniture, and the actors are spiffily
dressed by Theresa Squire. The production’s greatest strength is its
cast of seven, six of whom play a number of roles, including people,
places, and the occasional thing, like Theophilus’ jalopy.”
“Here, in no particular order, are my “Noh-ccalades” for the top 10 live
performances of 2006:
Theophilus North Matthew Burnett’s adaptation of Thorton Wilder’ novel,
stunningly populated by a luminous cast, headed by Giorgio Litt who, in
his New York stage debut, gave my single favorite performance of the
year.”
By BARBARA AND SCOTT SIEGEL | October 5, 2006
“Further kudos go to every member of this extraordinary ensemble.
Giorgio Litt, who is splendid playing the title character with a unique form
of educated innocence, is the only actor playing one role; everyone else
essays multiple roles. And they do so with distinction. They deserve at
least this much recognition: Virginia Kull, Geddeth Smith, Margaret Daly,
Joe Delafield, Regan Thompson, and Brian Hutchison.”
By: DAVID FINKLE | September 15, 2006
“Wilder would also have liked the scholarly aspect of Giorgio Litt, who
plays Theophilus, whom Wilder based not only on himself but on the
fantasy of a twin brother who died at birth. (The twin was to have been
called Theophilus; moreover, it’s probably no coincidence that North is
an anagram of Thorn, further giving rise to the work’s autobiographical
nature.) The round-faced, bespectacled, and earnest Litt couldn’t be
better at the sometimes tentative behavior Burnett and Forsman ask of
him.”
By DAVID NG | September 20, 2006
“Nuanced acting all around imparts some depth to the play’s predictable
life lessons. In an inventive comic touch, the ensemble takes turn
personifying Newport’s various buildings and historic landmarks.
Theophilus North is no Our Town, but the production’s affection for its
flawed characters and their big dreams never feels less than genuine.”
October 3, 2006
“It would be unfair to single out anyone, but I will; a real standout is
Giorgio Litt (in the title role), making his New York debut, who is never off
stage for the entire show. The only disappointment in the evening was
that the theater was less than 50% occupied tonight. What a shame.”
By ELISABETH VINCENTELLI | September 21, 2006
“Keen artistic director Carl Forsman and actor Giorgio Litt, in the title
role, do a great job of suggesting that Theophilus’ intrusions in the lives
of his new neighbors often come burdened with an unspoken sense of
superiority, but the character remains likable because he always means
well—and this is the kind of motivation you hardly ever seem to
encounter in art these days.”
“In one poignant scene, Theophilus discusses science with a teacher he
has just rescued from a bad relationship. They talk about catalysts,
those agents that provoke change among other elements, and the
teacher remarks how catalysts never change. “They form no permanent
bonds,” he says. And from the flicker of pain across Litt’s face, we see
exactly what Theophilus fears.
In his New York debut, Litt gives a perf as rich as the material. He’s often
exuberant, his plump face beaming with some new adventure. But the
actor also succumbs to bravado, taking pleasure in his sarcasm and
ability to shock wealthy prudes. These acid touches make the character
seem human, preparing us for the darker moments of his loneliness.”
By ELYSE SOMMER
With the endearing young Giorgio Litt as Theophilus and under the keen
direction of the aprtly named Keen company’s founder and artistic
director Carl Forsman, this works very well indeed.
Sentimental? Sure. A bit too drawn out? Probably. But, in this harsh and
cynical world we live in, it’s nice to spend time with this impetuous young
man who manages to travel far within himself even though he never
ventures far from his own backyard.
By DAVID COTE | Time Out New York / Issue 573 : Sep 21–26, 2006
“The tale is rich in dry humor, and in Wilder’s folsky philosophy that the
cosmic permeates the quotation. Litt and his able fellow actors handle
the material with delicate affection, under the tight stewardship of Carl
Forsman, upon Beowulf Boritt’s wood-plank and antique-lamp set.
Gently funny, spryly wise and unabashedly old-fashioned, Theophilus
North is full of local colors—sepia, to be exact.”
By JOY GOODWIN | September 15, 2006
“As played by Giorgio Litt (in his New York debut), the 30-year-old
Theophilus is as quaint and set in his ways as an old man. A
bespectacled nerd in a mediocre suit, he’s utterly preoccupied with the
ghosts of history and literature.Theophilus has little use for the physical
world. (Hired to teach the kids tennis, he learns it from a library book.)
His speech, littered with grandiose allusions and quotations, makes him
a kind of parlor oddity. “You’re like a dictionary come to life,” one local
fellow marvels.
It’s a tribute to Wilder’s writing (and Mr. Litt’s acting) that this strange,
uptight little man is so compelling. Our curiosity is aroused; we want to
know what made him this way. The clues come in a second-act subplot,
in which Theophilus is hired by a rich girl’s father to stop her from
eloping with a local substitute teacher. This poignant sequence (well-
played by Virginia Kull and Brian Hutchison) has a more grown-up
resonance, for though Theophilus succeeds in breaking up the
mismatched couple, he’s tormented by his actions. “Strange,” the girl
says to him. “I don’t know you, but because of four hours with you, my life
will be different.”
As the substitute teacher points out (supplying an unabashedly onthe-
nose metaphor), a catalyst can affect everything around it without
changing its own fundamental nature. No matter how many times he
makes his circuit through Newport, stopping off at a mansion, a rooming
house, a tennis court, Theophilus seems unchanged.The spectacles
and the suit are almost a uniform, keeping him at a remove from human
contact.
Theophilus North earns high marks for imagination, but remains in the
end a kind of timeworn paean to a bygone way of looking at the world. In
this, it is true to Wilder. Even in his own time, there were those who
thought Wilder sentimental, and Theophilus North is undoubtedly tinged
with old-time nostalgia.
But there are muscles rippling under the play’s rose-scented skin. Right
through his last moment on stage, Theophilus is a contrary character,
too shrewd to settle for fine poetry, too full of romantic yearning to make
peace with mere ordinary life.”
“While his character is static, Giorgio Litt always manages to make
North compelling, especially when his mask of objectivity drops, as
when Theophilus “rescues” a runaway heiress from an unsuitable
marriage, saving her suitor as well. The play is skillfully directed by Carl
Forsman with a minimum of fuss and furniture, and the actors are spiffily
dressed by Theresa Squire. The production’s greatest strength is its
cast of seven, six of whom play a number of roles, including people,
places, and the occasional thing, like Theophilus’ jalopy.”
“Here, in no particular order, are my “Noh-ccalades” for the top 10 live
performances of 2006:
Theophilus North Matthew Burnett’s adaptation of Thorton Wilder’ novel,
stunningly populated by a luminous cast, headed by Giorgio Litt who, in
his New York stage debut, gave my single favorite performance of the
year.”
By BARBARA AND SCOTT SIEGEL | October 5, 2006
“Further kudos go to every member of this extraordinary ensemble.
Giorgio Litt, who is splendid playing the title character with a unique form
of educated innocence, is the only actor playing one role; everyone else
essays multiple roles. And they do so with distinction. They deserve at
least this much recognition: Virginia Kull, Geddeth Smith, Margaret Daly,
Joe Delafield, Regan Thompson, and Brian Hutchison.”
By: DAVID FINKLE | September 15, 2006
“Wilder would also have liked the scholarly aspect of Giorgio Litt, who
plays Theophilus, whom Wilder based not only on himself but on the
fantasy of a twin brother who died at birth. (The twin was to have been
called Theophilus; moreover, it’s probably no coincidence that North is
an anagram of Thorn, further giving rise to the work’s autobiographical
nature.) The round-faced, bespectacled, and earnest Litt couldn’t be
better at the sometimes tentative behavior Burnett and Forsman ask of
him.”
By DAVID NG | September 20, 2006
“Nuanced acting all around imparts some depth to the play’s predictable
life lessons. In an inventive comic touch, the ensemble takes turn
personifying Newport’s various buildings and historic landmarks.
Theophilus North is no Our Town, but the production’s affection for its
flawed characters and their big dreams never feels less than genuine.”
October 3, 2006
“It would be unfair to single out anyone, but I will; a real standout is
Giorgio Litt (in the title role), making his New York debut, who is never off
stage for the entire show. The only disappointment in the evening was
that the theater was less than 50% occupied tonight. What a shame.”
By ELISABETH VINCENTELLI | September 21, 2006
“Keen artistic director Carl Forsman and actor Giorgio Litt, in the title
role, do a great job of suggesting that Theophilus’ intrusions in the lives
of his new neighbors often come burdened with an unspoken sense of
superiority, but the character remains likable because he always means
well—and this is the kind of motivation you hardly ever seem to
encounter in art these days.”
