Ed Asner as Franklin Delano Roosevelt.By Hap ErsteinLet’s start with the stipulation that I really do not care for one-person shows, which are almost invariably undramatic recitations of facts, delivered to unseen characters in a series of phone calls, often with no theatrical context.There are a few exceptions -- Hal Holbrook’s Mark Twain, Vincent Price’s Oscar … [Read more...]
Theater feature: Asner as FDR: From one liberal icon to another
Ed Asner as Franklin Delano Roosevelt.By Hap ErsteinHe has played a slave ship captain in Roots, Pope John XXIII, adventurer Carl Fredericksen in Pixar’s Up and, of course, Lou Grant, the role that earned him five of his seven Emmy Awards. But for Ed Asner, 81, the opportunity to become Franklin Delano Roosevelt for a couple of hours each night was too good to … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: May 27-June 1
Ed Asner as the 32nd president of the United States.Theater: Ed Asner as Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It is one liberal icon playing another liberal icon in the one-man show FDR, opening a brief five-day run at the Caldwell Theatre in Boca Raton beginning Wednesday evening. The play, written by Roosevelt scholar Dore Schary (Sunrise at Campobello), looks at the … [Read more...]