The new play, Promising, at the Beckett Theatre at Theatre Row has a lot going for it. The audience is greeting by the raw concrete and glass of a stunning condo, high above the city. This set, with scenic design by James. J. Fenton, creates apartment envy before the show even starts. The high power trio that enters is familiar to most New Yorkers, power-broker male trailing a press manager and a hard working staffer. Promising starts off at a running pace.
Jolie Curtsinger, Jake Robards, Kim Wong and Zachary Clark in Promising
The trio are the up and coming New York City Councilman David (Jake Robards), his staffer / speechwriter / friend Shed (Zachary Clark) and campaign manager Verity (Jolie Curtsinger). They enter the stunning, but empty apartment in full crisis response mode. Two weeks before an election, where David is on track for an easy win, he has just been accused of sexual assault. Shed is busy trying to craft a statement for David, which has to be supportive of women’s rights, but still dismissive of the accusations. Verity is working the phones to keep a positive piece on the Councilman alive and not pulled. David, meanwhile, needs to get ready to meet the press, hovering outside the building entrances waiting for a statement. They are besieged by a hungry press in a glass tower, undersupplied. David sleeps and dresses here, but doesn’t really seem to have stocked the apartment for actual habitation.
