By Lee Pfeiffer
It isn't every day you can see a legendary actor perform before an intimate audience, but last night afforded one such opportunity when Eli Wallach took to the stage at The Players, the legendary New York club dedicated to the performing arts. The one night performance was to benefit The Players Foundation for Theater Education, a newly-founded non-profit group that is dedicated to promoting theater history. Wallach was reviving a role he played more than a decade ago in writer Jeff Baron's acclaimed two-character play Visiting Mr. Green. Wallach and Peter Sabri performed a reading of the play in front of a packed house. The plot centers on Ross, a 30 year-old New York executive who has a mishap with his automobile that results in his hitting an 86 year-old widower, Mr. Green. The judge "sentences" Ross to visit Mr. Green one day a week and help him perform errands and odd jobs. When he arrives at Mr. Green's apartment, he finds the elderly Jewish man to be a cynic who seems to have lost his zest for life since the recent death of his wife of many years. Mr. Green is obstinate and abrasive - and makes it clear he does not want Ross's help. Nevertheless, the younger man is persistent and in the course of the play, an unlikely friendship develops between the two men - until it is threatened when a revelation by Ross causes their fragile relationship to be jeopardized.Â
Visiting Mr. Green is sentimental without being mawkish, as it explores how prejudice and intolerance often preclude relationships with people who would otherwise be fast friends. As the cantankerous Mr. Green, Wallach was in top form, mingling cringe-inducing insults with hilarious witticisms. Seeing Wallach perform was a genuine treat. I was transported back in time by the realization that I was watching the man who played Tuco in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Calvera in The Magnificent Seven, not to mention the last living member of The Misfits. At age 93, Wallach is as fiesty as his on-stage alter-ego, and he charmed the audience after the show by mingling and posing for photos. In terms of acting ability, however, Wallach should be looking over his shoulder because he was matched by Peter Sabri, who brought his complex and tortured character to life through a mesmerizing performance. If there's any justice in the New York theater community, we should be seeing a great deal more of this very talented performer.
In all, a wonderful night of entertainment that was made all the more enjoyable by the presence of Jeff Baron, who joined Wallach and Sabri for a post-show Q&A with the audience. Visiting Mr. Green is a true pleasure, made all the more entertaining when it is combined with visiting Mr. Wallach.
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