Not So Musical Monday: Torch Song

Torch Song opened Off-Broadway last year—a pared down version of Harvey Feinstein’s Torch Song Trilogy that won Mr. Feinstein two Tony Awards in the early 1980’s. It took the four hour play and turned it into about two hours and forty-five minutes, and it received some pretty incredible reviews. I was not able to see the Off-Broadway production, and I am so, so glad it made the transfer to Broadway. It just opened on November 1st, and it’s a great play to check out this season.

A three-decade old story about a homosexual man struggling with a desire to be loved, the pain of relationships and family, and having the world accept who he is feels, sadly, as completely relevant today as I’m sure it did when it first debuted. It’s an incredibly funny, touching, emotional, poignant, playful play. The book is strong, and you can see why it won Best Play so many years ago. What elevates an already strong play are some incredible performances.

Early hot take: Michael Urie will win the Tony Award for Best Actor. I retain the complete authority and right to change that take depending on if I see any performances that warrant it, but I’m not sure it’ll matter. Mr. Urie is unbelievably funny in his quips and an outstanding physical comedian, but he also has emotional gravitas that gives so much depth and humanity to the character. I will say Mr. Urie has a quality in his voice that sounds exactly like the 1970s cartoon character Snagglepuss, but I legitimately love it. I never saw Mr. Feinstein play the role of Arnold in the play he wrote, but I have to imagine he couldn’t be more ecstatic to see Mr. Urie carry the torch (I’ll see myself out…)

But Mr. Urie is only my favorite of a nearly flawless cast. Mercedes Ruehl matches Mr. Urie quip for quip playing his mother, and their inevitable fighting feels like two heavyweights slugging it out. Ward Horton plays the bisexual love interest Ed showing conflicting, believable emotion throughout. The cast is rounded out by strong performances in smaller roles by Jack DiFalco, Michael Hsu Rosen, and Roxanna Hope Radja. Seriously—this is a wonderfully cast play.

Torch Song is also well designed, interestingly staged, and well directed. It is a very, very good play. Even with all that in mind, it is still the performances that make it such a memorable show.