Those who love the work of Charles Busch and who approach each new opus from his quill with joy unrefined might well consider Ibsen’s Ghost prime entertainment. As someone who has over the years enjoyed the work of the actor and writer but is by no means a completist, I was surprised—nay, stunned—to find myself hardly entertained at all.
Perhaps I should address this Primary Stages production by borrowing the title of David Ives’ All in the Timing, that producing group’s first mainstream hit. Ibsen’s Ghost opened at 59E59 on March 14; Cole Escola’s Oh, Mary!, a similarly outrageous fanciful escapade, opened at the Lortel on February 8. Perhaps it is indeed all in the timing, but I’m still laughing at the remembered hilarity of Escola and entourage, while Busch’s play elicited only occasional chuckles. Matters might be different had I seen Ibsen’s Ghost first, at its January tryout at the George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick, N.J. But I don’t think so.
Busch has cast himself in the role of the great playwright’s widow; he certainly looks the part, poured as he is into a perfect costume (designer Gregory Gale), properly bewigged (designer Bobby Zlotnik), and comporting himself as a merry but jealous frau across the cleverly appointed drawing room under a glowering portrait of Ibsen himself. A typically witty touch from set designer Shoko Kambara: the wallpaper consists of pages from manuscripts of (presumably) Ibsen plays.
[Read David Finkle’s ★★★★☆ review here.]
The tale Busch has concocted involves the playwright’s step-mother (Judy Kaye), the playwright’s illegitimate son (Thomas Gibson), his one-time muse (Jennifer Van Dyck), and a former leading lady turned Rat Wife (Christopher Borg). Yes, leading lady turned Rat Wife. There is also a housekeeper (Jen Cody) with a psychosexual Freudian limp. Or is it a MelBrooksian limp? Perhaps these characters will resonate with tried and true Ibsen-ites, or with those intimately familiar with his home life. Not so to this viewer. Rather than this Ibsen arcania—Busch subtitles his play “An Irresponsible Biographical Fantasy”—I’d rather spend another couple of hours with A Doll’s House or A Doll’s House, Part Two.
The supporting actors, all of them, do what they can to enliven their roles under the suitable comedy direction by Carl Andress; and let it be said that they generate a good deal of laughter. But not from me. I actually sat there wondering, at least once, how this play might play with Judy Kaye playing Suzannah Ibsen. Sacrilege, with Charles Busch seated on the settee before my very eyes; but I cannot tell a lie and the thought did indeed cross my mind as I trudged back, dutifully, for the second act of this over-extended trifle.
Let it be said that my New York Stage Review colleague David Finkle (linked above) was thoroughly engaged by Ibsen’s Ghost, while he was less amused than I by Oh, Mary! So there’s that. But maybe it’s just all in the timing. With Oh, Mary! and the equally delectable Dead Outlaw as the brightest new comedy hits in town, I am most surprised to find myself relegating Ibsen’s Ghost to a distant third place.
Ibsen’s Ghost: An Irresponsible Biographical Fantasy opened March 14, 2024, at 59E59 and runs through April 14. Tickets and information: 59e59.org
