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  • Exclusive Interviews / The Daily Prophet / Theater Reviews

Theater Review: “The Boy Who Was Woody Allen,” Starring James Phelps

by Claire Furner · February 6, 2013

Anyone looking to broaden their awareness of the work and mind of film director and actor Woody Allen has a more-than-modest selection of documentaries and biographies to choose from. Filmmakers, critics, and academics are regularly seeking to impress upon us their knowledge of this notoriously private man, and on this point, The Boy Who Was Woody Allen is no different. However, this production offers an original and alternative story of the iconic filmmaker, although one that is not entirely convincing.

The play is largely narrated by the titular character, John O’Leary, a 6’3″ Catholic teen who, after an epiphany, informs his school career’s officer that his life ambition is to become Woody Allen. And this he does, after convincing his mother, marrying a lesbian goth, and become a stand-up comedian. But as fame and success come his way, his muse may not be quite who he thought.

Pun heavy and reliant upon an audience with a decent awareness of Woody Allen’s filmography, the play has some entertaining moments, but more often than not, they fall short of genuine comedy. True absurd gems such as the moose at the party are overshadowed by jokes that are stretched far too thinly, and the songs, despite being catchy, feel largely tacked on last minute.

The cast generally does their best with the script and with direction that seems limited at best. James Phelps, of Potter fame, makes a convincing stage debut maintaining momentum – and the accent – through long sections of speech. The constant multi-rolling allows for cast members Carrie Marx and Fliss Russell to make their mark, whereas others are left a little exposed by the rapid changes.

Overall, the show makes for a mildly entertaining evening. Given the time to develop, The Boy Who Was Woody Allen certainly feels like a play to watch.

 

 

Full Transcript with James Phelps, Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Transcribed by Adam Leuenberger

James Phelps: I'm James. What's your name?

Claire Furner: I'm Claire. That's is my friend Mel. I'm from MuggleNet.

James: Oh, cool.

Claire: Thanks very much for talking to me.

James: Thanks for coming.

Claire: Congratulations.

James: Thank you.

Claire: Stage debut? I assume?

James: Yeah. [unintelligible] Sorry.

[Everyone laughs]

Claire: That's okay.

James: It's good. Yeah.

Claire: How many weeks have you been rehearsing for?

James: Three.

Claire: Three. Wow. That's quite quick.

James: Yeah. [laughs]

Claire: Did you do any preparation, stage-wise, before? Or [did you] just [go] straight into it?

James: No, pretty much just straight in. And Adam, the director, he's worked on loads of plays. I think he won an award in Cannes years ago, so he's quite a good guy. He put my mind at ease for everything.

Claire: So when did you finally have the part or get offered the script?

James: About 22 days ago.

Claire: So [you have been] cramming doing Woody Allen research?

James It was quite a bit of a turnaround.

Claire: Probably a stupid question, but you are a fan of Woody Allen before? What have you seen of his?

James: Yeah, I've watched Manhattan, Annie Hall, Bananas, all that stuff.

Claire: So you got some of the jokes and everything? [laughs]

James: Yeah.

Claire: I'm still plodding my way through it but that's cool. So, hopefully, this will go someplace else if it gets picked up?

James: Yeah, hopefully. I think tomorrow's the night when it's...

Claire: The people are in.

James: Those people are in. So it's good to get the few teeny problems that are still being worked out. But apart from that, we should be...

Claire: The previews are always like that.

James: Exactly.

Claire: So what's next if this doesn't go on? Film? Theatre?

James: I don't know. I'm going to New York next week. They are unveiling the Harry Potter Tour. The exhibition is going to be back in New York. They've asked Oliver and me to go and say, "Hello" for that.

Claire: Fantastic. [unintelligible]

James: No, we are going up next Tuesday or Wednesday. Hello. This is Anika, my girlfriend. So, yeah, it's gone pretty well.

Claire: In terms of the comedy, this is quite different from the stuff you were doing in Harry Potter. You've done a short, is it? Another film? Was that comedy? I haven't seen it.

James: Last year. No, it was about a comedian, but it was a serious play about a comedian. For the audition, I had to do a five-minute standup with two people.

Claire: Wow, that's intense.

James: Yeah it is. Like, "You better laugh." That was intense.

Claire: You've had good training in comedy then.

James: Kind of, but when we were on the Potter sets, Julie Walters was my mom, and she's pretty funny.

Claire: That's not too bad. Do you know if anyone is coming to see you? Or is your brother coming to see it?

James: My brother is coming to see it. He said he's not going to tell me when. He doesn't want to make me nervous or something. He and a couple of other guys from the cast are coming as well.

Claire: Fantastic. Thanks very much for talking today.

James: Thank you very much. Nice to meet you.

Claire: Nice to meet you too. Good luck with the rest of the run.

James: Thank you. Bye.

 

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