Behind closed doors in the state of New Hampshire during the early days of 2008, a former First Lady named Hillary is in a desperate bid to save her troubled campaign for President of the United States. Her husband, Bill, sees things one way; her campaign manager, Mark, sees things another. If any of this sounds familiar, don't be fooled; in a universe of infinite possibilities, anything that can happen, will.
In Hillary and Clinton, Lucas Hnath examines the politics of marriage, gender roles, and the limitations of experience and inevitability in this profoundly timely look at an American dynasty in crisis.
And here we come to the downside of Hnath's slippery technique. He crafts an adult, intelligent play about Hillary and Bill's private and public trials, but he's far too nice about it. Over the course of 90 minutes, Hill and Bill argue, make up, discuss the campaign, but the end is never in doubt, and there's a curiously defeated quality not only to Hillary's hopes, but to the arc of the drama itself. In the end, Hillary and Clinton is the wistful, Thornton Wilder-tinged mediation on HRC that no one asked for. There are rants, jokes and confessions, but it doesn't add up to much more than clever, lightly postmodern fanfic. (The same was ultimately true of A Doll's House, Part 2.) If you expect ideological shocks or absurdist flourishes, you'd be better off watching Full Frontal with Samantha Bee.
There's no shortage of scintillating elements in Hillary and Clinton. First and foremost are two giants of the American stage, Laurie Metcalf and John Lithgow, giving wryly amusing - and occasionally poignant - performances that tantalize with private glimpses into very public figures. Then there's playwright Lucas Hnath, who seems ideally equipped to explore a modern political power union, having mined subversive humor and stimulating insights on marriage and gender dynamics in A Doll's House, Part 2, which won Metcalf her first Tony Award. And not to forget Joe Mantello, one of the most reliably incisive directors working on Broadway.
2019 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2019 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Play | Laurie Metcalf |
2019 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Laurie Metcalf |
2019 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play | Laurie Metcalf |
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