Final 2 performances - tonight and tomorrow night.

A few tickets are still available!

www.jcity.org

JCity Theater brings a masterful performance to "State of the Union," a classic tale of ambition, love lost and found, and self-realization. I particularly enjoyed the acting and the intimate setting that is the hallmark of JCity Theater productions. The clever set design brought the story home to me, as I saw players struggle for power, lust, love, and peace. Great stuff. JCity Theater does it again. They set the bar high, and not surprisingly, they do not disappoint.

GC

Final 4 performances for State of the Union!
Last chance to see what the NY Times calls:
A very funny, very smart play. A real treat!

Final Performances: this Wednesday through Saturday 8pm

Tix: $20.00
Location: 252 9th Street.

More information and for ticket purchase: www.jcity.org

Hope to see you there!

And check out the great deals for Dinner and a Show with Hamilton Inn and The Embankment Restaurant!

NEW YORK TIMES - Theater Review
November 5, 2010

A Political Play From the ?40s, Very of the Moment
By ANITA GATES

?State of the Union? is a very funny, very smart play. And when it won the Pulitzer Prize, people must have thought: Oh, good. Now that all the manipulation and dishonesty in presidential politics have been exposed, things will change and the American government can go back to serving, and existing for the good of, the people.

That was in 1946. So there?s your first laugh of the evening.

?State of the Union,? by the renowned 20th-century playwriting team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse, has never been revived on Broadway, so it?s a real treat that J City Theater has mounted a smoothly done production in its new space at St. Michael?s Church. One of the play?s great pleasures is how easy it would be to convince somebody ? by changing a few things here and there ? that it was written last month.

The first scene sets up the situation. ?We?ve got the Congress, and in ?48 we?ll have the White House,? says Jim Conover (Stu Richel), a political strategist. Three other people are seated around his desk: a young newspaper reporter, Spike MacManus (Kellis Carroll); Spike?s publisher, Kay Thorndyke (Wendy Weber Eaton); and an unsuspecting rich businessman, Grant Matthews (Kelly Cooper). Jim has decided that Grant should be the next Republican candidate for president.

There are a few small complications. Grant is having an affair with Kay. His wife, Mary (Sandy Cockrell, who also directed), is having a dalliance with a military man. But the real problem turns out to be that Grant enjoys telling the truth and thinks that a speech is a success if he gets a dozen glowing telegrams from local citizens and one outraged wire from a labor leader. Jim and Kay try to explain their relative significance.

But Mary is on her husband?s side. Although the Matthewses have been largely estranged, Mary has been brought back into the picture, trotting along on a multicity tour, to make Grant look like a happy family man. She begins falling in love with him again, when she sees him ?cockeyed drunk with sincerity.?

The first clue that this is a play from another era ? other than the suspenders and the old-fashioned telephones ? is how many characters there are. J City has double-cast in a few cases (Mr. Carroll, for example, plays a senator as well as the reporter), but at times there are 9 or 10 actors onstage at the same time.

The second clue is the constant drinking. When Mary decides to have a Sazerac or four at an important dinner party, she does indeed say some things she shouldn?t have, but no one suggests an intervention. In the 1940s, that?s just what people did when they drank a lot. And in this play everybody seems to drink a lot.

The party takes place at Grant and Mary?s apartment in New York. The program doesn?t credit a scenic designer, but whoever assembled the set did a clever job. The same tasteful sofas, desks and chairs serve as the furnishings in the Matthews apartment, Jim?s Washington home and an elegant hotel suite in Detroit.

The costumes, also uncredited, are well done, too. Both the men and the women look successful and pulled together in a midcentury way, although Ms. Cockrell?s ensemble in the last act looks suspiciously contemporary, and surely no one wore five-inch stilettos right after World War II.

You probably won?t see this production of ?State of the Union? transferring to Broadway anytime soon, but J City, still a very young theater company, has done an admirable job.

Reminder, tonight after the show - there will be an Artist Talk Back session with Wine Reception sponsored by Henry's on the Hudson.

Hope to see you there!

Just got in from seeing tonight's performance of SOTU. My wife and I enjoyed ourselves immensely! Performances were generally very good. And I never cease to be amazed by the dexterity shown in sets, costumes and -- most importantly -- direction. However, the thing I found most amazing about the play:

Despite its age (written in 1945), the themes, much of the dialogue could've been ripped from a back room somewhere in Washington TODAY.

In fact, after yesterday's national election debacle, I found SOTU to be extremely comforting. Like I wasn't alone in thinking that everybody is crazy. These playwrights in 1945 were thinking the exact same thing. I felt they were writing as if for today. Perhaps national politics aren't such a cluster'f' right now; or if they are, things were the same in 1945. There's something oddly consoling in the fact that kindred spirits both exist and existed.

Thank you to the JCITY theater for reminding me of that.

Great performances, great show, all in our own backyard steps from Hamilton Park. See it!!!

Artist Talk Back Scheduled:

After the performance, this Friday Nov 5th, there will be an Artist Talk Back event - with reception catered by Henry's on the Hudson - free wine and hors-d'oeurves. This is a great chance to speak with the cast and crew of State of the Union and the artists featured in our gallery.

Once again, J CITY Theater has created a gallery in our lobby - curated by Hernando Rico Sanchez and Nelson Alvarez - featuring artwork that reflects the message of the production.

The current exhibition features the work of:
Lucio Fernandez
Daniel Equivia Zapata
Pablo Caviedes
Pablo Marin Ramirez
Renelio Marin


As a reminder:
Performances run Wednesdays through Saturdays - 8pm

Thanks,
Clay

What an amazing opening weekend!
Thanks to our great crowds - looking forward to our next show on Wednesday!

Clay

Tonight is opening night! Hope to see you there.

Opening night for State of the Union is this Friday, October 29th - 8Pm.

Also - J CITY has once again partnered with local restaurants to offer a dinner and show package.

Here are the details:

Option 1:
Just as in the past, The Embankment Restaurant is offering their $30.00 prix fixe meal (3 courses!) for those seeing the show later that night. Just tell your waiter you are seeing the show after the meal.

Option 2:
Hamilton Inn is offering 10% off your entire bill (that's right - not a typo: the entire bill) for those seeing the show later that night. Not to be combined with other specials.

Two great ways to support your local restaurants, see a great show, and save money!


Hope to see you there.
Clay
www.jcity.org

The largest and most ambitious production in J CITY Theater?s history, opens on October 29th.

STATE OF THE UNION - winner of the Pulitzer Prize, is the story of the political education of a presidential candidate.

?An entertaining romp!? - The Washington Post
?Hilarious. Delicious and witty!? - The Chicago Tribune

This masterpiece script races at break neck speed as a high stakes campaign teaches a political novice about the necessities of ethical flexibility and moral compromise. Grant Matthews? exploration of the highest office in the land will require him to choose between his formidable wife and his politically connected mistress. Back room dealings have never been so charged!

Addressing issues of race, immigration, big business, labor unions, and campaign finance reform, this 1946 script is as fresh and relevant as today?s Huffington Post.

A combination of ?Mr. Smith Goes to Washington? and ?The West Wing?.

In this season of mid-term elections - come refresh your belief in the American Dream with some old-school politics.

Dates: October 29th through November 13th
Friday and Saturday, first weekend
Wednesday through Saturday for 2nd
and 3rd weekend
Time: 8pm
Location: 252 9th Street, Jersey City, NJ 07302
Ticket price: $20.00

More info: www.jcity.org