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| Pamela Blair, James Earl Jones. (Photos: Martha Swope) |
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| David Gale, Kevin Conway, James Earl Jones, Mark Gordon. |
Two of the hottest stage actors of the day, Kevin Conway and
James Earl Jones, played the roles of George and Lennie in this revival of John
Steinbeck’s 1937 adaptation of his own novel about two migrant farm workers in
Southern California during the dreary days of the Depression. The play, despite
its obvious flaws, remained a worthwhile and not quite dated exercise. Most
critics bestowed on it their appreciation for its subtle melodramaturgy and
compassionate view of the symbiosis between the canny, protective George and
the powerful but oafish Lennie. Reviews for the production were generally
positive, but some felt that directorial inadequacy and a few
less-than-sterling performances in supporting roles created a mediocre
presentation.
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| James Earl Jones, Kevin Conway. |
The performances of Conway and Jones were considered of
major importance. These actors seemed to have established a bond of genuine
human cohesion, made even more resonant by the fact of Jones’s blackness in a
role originally written for a white actor. John Simon and Walter Kerr, however, were
among the few who insisted that Jones’s casting was an egregious error. Simon
pointed out that the lack of antagonism to a Black Lennie in a play where
Crooks (Joe Seneca), a Black character, is mistreated because of his race, was
nonsense. Still, Simon agreed that Jones “gives one of his best performances.”
Clive Barnes noted that Jones had “transformed himself into a figure of
shambling strength, glimmering intelligence and intense sweetness . . . It is a
beautifully complete performance.”
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| James Earl Jones, Kevin Conway. |
Conway also was loudly praised, John Beaufort pointing out
that he “touches all the conflicting facets of George’s impatient, harshly
protective feeling for the giant child he has undertaken to look after.”
The company included Stefan Gierasch as Candy, Mark Gordon
as Curley, Pamela Blair as Curley’s wife, David Gale as Slim, and David Clarke
as the Boss.