The Critics Say...: 57 Theater Reviewers in New York and Beyond Discuss Their Craft and Its Future Read Online Free PDF Page B

what Walter Kerr said in a review.
    John Lahr: When I was young, the book I thought was the bee’s knees was Seasons of Discontent by Robert Brustein. I used to write out sentences from it just to feel the rhythm. Brustein’s style was a bit florid and dense when he wrote for the New Republic , but at least he was in the ballpark of wanting a discussion.
    Helen Shaw: I think of Robert Brustein as the ideal critic. One of the reasons I went to the A.R.T./MXAT Institute for Advanced Theater Training was to be there before he left. Being taught by him, and looking at the naughtiness and the liveliness of his mind, was certainly my biggest influence.
    John Simon: I like Robert Brustein quite a bit, but we have significant differences. He claims that I don’t understand American humor.
    Rob Weinert-Kendt: My favorite critic of theater of the past is Eric Bentley. He’s still alive. I think he’s 98 years old now. His books about theater are must-reads. Even though they’re dense, they’re really well-considered and substantive. He’s very hard on a lot of the great playwrights of the 20th century (his stuff about Eugene O’Neill is unforgiving), but they’re really valuable. He writes about big, important subjects that take in so much of the world.
    Andy Propst: I’ve always responded to Frank Rich. I will actually pull out Hot Seat , the collection of his New York Times reviews, and read it just for fun.
    Matthew Murray: Frank Rich fused the fan’s adoration with an unswerving critical eye in a way almost no one else has.
    Charles Isherwood: Frank Rich brought me to the paper. I go back to his reviews all the time. He’s an amazingly exciting theater writer.
    Helen Shaw: Scott Brown writes this kind of baroque, Joycean prose that is a gorgeous keyhole to go down.
    Matthew Murray: My favorite of the current crop is probably Jesse Green of New York magazine. Just like his predecessor, Scott Brown, he turns out intense, intricate, and insightful analyses of new shows that don’t seem to be matched anywhere else.
    Jesse Oxfeld: I do enjoy Jesse Green’s criticism in New York magazine. He’s so deeply enmeshed in the theater world of New York, and he has such an understanding of its history and people. He really brings a lot of insight that goes beyond, “This was a nice performance” or “The set was pretty but the lighting was ugly.”
    Frank Scheck: John Simon has always been a favorite of mine. He can be way over-the-top and vindictive and nasty, but he’s so entertaining and brilliant. He’s so much fun to read that I can’t resist it.
    Michael Sommers: It still gives me a little thrill to see John Simon stomp into a theater.
    Michael Riedel: I’ve always thought that John Simon, in his heyday, was the best. His brutal putdowns of shows were always fun.
    Jesse Green: I grew up reading John Simon in New York magazine. That’s part of the reason I took the job. I was horrified by the hatefulness of his reviews, but he was a stylish and obviously intelligent writer.
    Matthew Murray: John Simon was erudite and willing to say anything and everything he wanted about anyone. He got a not-entirely-undeserved rap for being hard on people. I’m not sure there’s ever been anyone with a more scalpel-edged view of theater and method of reportage than he.
    Terry Teachout: I’ve known John Simon since I came to New York, and I truly admire him. He’s the senior critic in town. I don’t always agree with him—in fact, I frequently don’t agree with him—but he knows more than I’ll ever know. And if you don’t respect that kind of knowledge, you need to be taught a lesson in why you should.
    Elisabeth Vincentelli: I’m ambivalent about John Simon. He’s such a great stylist and writer, but his meanness is just too much. It was delicious to read, but sometimes it got in the way of his critical acumen, and that kind of spoiled the pleasure of reading him. I didn’t feel like there was any generosity behind it.