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Not an 'Affair' to Remember

By Matt Windman

1:37 PM EDT, April 17, 2008

Harvey Fierstein, center, stars as the "confirmed bachelor" uncle in the musical, "A Catered Affair", about a family's choice of investing in a family business, or paying for a lavish wedding reception for their only daughter, also wrote the book for it based on the film by Gore Vidal and the teleplay by Paddy Chayefsky. Matt Cavenaugh and Leslie Kritzer are groom and bride; Lori Wilner and Philip Hoffman (right of Fierstein) are groom's parents, and Tom Wopat and Faith Prince are the bride's parents. (Newsday/Ari Mintz)

Based on a 1956 film with Bette Davis and Ernst Borgnine, "A Catered Affair" centers on an Irish-American Bronx family that must decide whether to spend its savings on a new family business or to launch their only daughter's marriage with an expensive, lavish catered affair.

It will obviously be compared with "The Light in the Piazza," another romantic chamber piece about a frustrated mother who gives her daughter away at the altar while the father looks on from the sidelines.

"Catered Affair" was designed as a family drama with songs. John Bucchino's sensitive, ethereal songwriting flows seamlessly in and out of Harvey Fierstein's naturalistic dialogue, leaving no space for applause. Combined with John Doyle's cinematic, minimalist staging, they have produced a lean, mean slice of kitchen-sink realism. It's the total opposite of "La Cage Aux Folles," Fierstein's other musical.

It is an elegant production that shines with authentic emotions, but also a snooze fest that may leave you facing a 90-minute nap. It's so studied and contemplative that it turns dull and labored, chilling its sentimental plot below the freezing point. Couldn't its creative team have given us just a spoonful of sugar to help the gritty naturalism and stark minimalism go down?

The other big problem is Harvey Fierstein, who is totally out of place as the gay uncle character. The uncle was not gay in the film version, but was adapted by Fierstein. A gay man at that time would not have been so open about his sexuality. Plus, whenever Fierstein opens his mouth, his deep voice and over-the-top performance style throw off the subtle dynamics of the piece. What was once a nice little musical becomes vanity theatre for Fierstein.

The rest of the cast is superb, especially Leslie Kritzer as the bride-to-be and Faith Prince, who delivers a tour-de-force performance as the aging, anguished mother. Prince and co-star Tom Wopat effectively portray the strains and strength of a longstanding, dispassionate marriage.

Walter Kerr Theater, 219 West 48th St, $29.50-119.50. Mon-Tues 8pm, Wed 2 & 8pm, Thurs-Fri 8pm, Sat 2 & 8pm. Open Run.