Bonjour,
LAST CHANCE – FINAL 3 PERFORMANCES! DON’T MISS OUR HIT SHOW “IF I NEEDED SOMEONE”
Our critically acclaimed production of Nell LaBute’s “If I Needed Someone” is now in the final weekend of its run. Only six performances left! Make your reservations now for the last remaining seats!
TOP TEN! Recommended!
“Frédérique Michel directs the two-hander smoothly, moving the characters organically in time with the action. And it’s clear Michel and the very skilled actors have delved deeply into the characters and the complexities of the drama. LaBute has a gift for being provocative, which makes for a rewarding theatrical experience. And in that context, a piece of advice: see the play with a member of the opposite sex. It will almost certainly guarantee a lively discussion over post-performance drinks or on the ride home.” — Stage Raw
“WOW!”
“Drunken hookups aren’t what they used to be, at least according to Neil LaBute in his undeniably provocative, bitingly funny, and potentially button-pushing World Premiere two-hander If I Needed Someone at Santa Monica’s City Garage Theatre….The more we get to know Jim and Jules, the more complex each of them becomes, and the same can be said about LaBute’s play, though none of this would work nearly as well as it does at City Garage without precisely the right duo to bring Jules and Jim to life, and in Davis-Lorton and new company member Adam Langsam, ace director Frédérique Michel has hit the jackpot. Imagine if you will a late 1980s/early 1990s pairing of Jennifer Jason Leigh (in Single White Female mode) and Tom Hanks (circa Sleepless In Seattle) and you’ll have some idea of what Davis-Lorton and Lansam (both absolutely terrific) bring to their roles….Just as he did in 2008’s Reasons To Be Pretty, If I Needed Someone dissects male-female relationships as only Neil LaBute can—savagely, but not without humor and maybe even a sliver of hope. LaBute fans won’t want to miss this City Garage Theatre World Premiere coup.” — Steven Stanley, StageScene LA
“These actors [Devin Davis-Lorton, Adam Langsam] accomplish an Olympic-level effort, not only in terms of bringing truth to their every word (no small feat) but in listening to each other (sometimes), allowing themselves to change (eventually)….The two person cast–while proving themselves capable of this acting marathon–have a very good script with which to breathe life into a fictional tale on stage. It feels remarkably complete in its portrait of these two people, living as we do, in a time of change and not really sure precisely how to navigate their own times….The script gives us a powerful series of moments and revelations between people who want to connect, want to understand each other, want someone to not give up…The conclusion, simple in some ways while intensely complex in others, reminds us we can indeed connect. Loneliness is not incurable. We may be doomed to die, but we are not doomed to live totally alone….Kudos to everyone involved, including of course director Frederique Michel!” — David MacDowell Blue, Night-Tinted Glasses
“The evening shared by Jules and Jim – for all of its misunderstandings, misperceptions, and bristles, for all the insecurities and past hurts it opens for both characters – is the kind of first date that people looking for love dream of having. That the scenario springs from the mind of playwright Neil LaBute is both fitting and hugely ironic…It’s hugely also satisfying to witness. Much of that satisfaction comes from the efforts of Michel’s actors whose negotiation of this dance just feels right… Michel’s two performers unpack and unravel these individuals with delicateness. With his boyish good looks and unaggressive manner, Langsam is so convincingly what Jim claims himself to be – a woke, evolved man – that we spend a lot of the play waiting for the other shoe to drop. LaBute has trained us well in this; the men and women of his plays can get really mean. But Langsam is sporting some serious charisma. Jules’s reluctance to let him depart makes sense. Equally excellent, Davis-Lorton moves Jules from what first appears to be a drunken party girl looking to pick fights to something deeper, more complicated and certainly more vulnerable. As Jules settles in, finds her footing with this guy in her apartment, changes her outfit and ultimately commits an act of complete trust, Davis-Lorton reveals a lady who can have things both ways. And as the curtain falls on a lilt from George Harrison, we learn that, yes, she does do sweet. So, ironically, does Neil LaBute.” — Evan Henerson, Broadway World
Recommended!
“If I Needed Someone expertly navigates the tricky terrain of modern-day dating IRL (in real life)….a mostly painful and prickly yet shrewdly observed tango; more a delicate dance than a battle of the sexes. LaBute’s observations are so acute, it is uncomfortable to watch this repartée all unfold. The playwright highlights the perilous pitfalls of modern dating, the difficulties of balancing expectations with the inclusion of consent….Performances here are fantastic. The cast acquit themselves extremely well, conveying a lot of subtle nuances (and not-so-subtle declarations). Director Frédérique Michel does an excellent job with the material, keeping the play’s pace lively, intriguing and electric. There’s a brisk and bracing honesty to LaBute’s writing that advances towards a poised (perhaps open-ended) yet satisfying conclusion.” — Pauline Adamek, ArtsBeatLA
Also, the Argonaut published a very nice piece about the play.
If you haven’t yet seen it get your tickets here! It’s very sharp, very contemporary, and a lot of fun. Seats are going fast!
city-garage.ticketleap.com/if-i-needed-someone/
About the Play
This smart, sexy, funny, timely comedy follows a girl and guy over the course of one night while they try to navigate the minefield of contemporary gender politics. They’ve just met. They like each other. They’re attracted to each other. They’ve ended up back at her place but now the true test begins. How do they avoid saying or doing the wrong thing? How do they say or do the right thing? What does that even mean in today’s world of relationships? Neil LaBute, well known for his biting, provocative plays that show men at their worst and women at their most frustrated, here takes a gentler, sweeter tone and crafts a love story that remains just as edgy, just as full of razor-sharp insights, showing two people who maybe, just maybe, might make it to the other side of the dating wars and find each other out there in the darkness.
A New Play from Neil LaBute! “If I Needed Someone”
August 2 – September 22, 2024
Thursdays, Fridays Saturdays at 8:00pm; Sundays at 4:00pm
Merci,❤️
Frederique, Archie (& Charles)
