Steve

When I walked out of Steve I realized that two nights in a row I had seen almost the same show. Obviously different in concept, acting, and execution, Steve and Dada Woof Papa Hot dealt with the same themes (save for the cancer side plot in Steve). Again we have an affluent New York City gay couple with a kid trying to figure out how to be a functional family. One of the men is caught sexting, the other sleeps with an Argentinian waiter named Esteban. One of them is good with the son, the other has a hard time understanding how to handle the kid. Oh and the first scene was the two couples (and female friend) sitting at a table in a restaurant -- I didn't actually go into detail, but that's how Dada Woof Papa Hot starts too .

And yet Steve had moments of farce and stepped out of the world of realism every once in a while. For that reason the play was uneven. I kind of felt that it needed to go deeper into being a drama or decide it was a comedy, instead of see-sawing back and forth. The funny moments were deliriously funny but the dramatic moments were so-so. So in the end I wasn't emotionally drained like I might've been if the dramatic moments went deeper like the funny moments did.

I saw Matt McGrath just a few weeks ago in George McBride at MCC. He was completely brilliant as an aging drag queen downtown. And in Steve he was completely brilliant as aging ex-Broadway chorus boy, Steven. So I'd say Matt McGrath is just a pretty darn good actor. His comedic timing is great, and his facial expressions are hard to beat.

Steve was much more minimalist than Dada Woof Papa Hot, which was good because if the set had been more complicated it would've ruined the transition from realism. This would've created an issue similar to the one I had with the Bachelors. The idea of pausing reality to rewind and do it over is explored in Steve, and it's an interesting idea that I wish had been used once more -- it was used twice and needed to happen a third time to really seal the deal.

The show didn't amaze me, but I enjoyed myself. Those who love a good musical theater reference will love the show as the characters practically speak in references to musicals old and new. 

If you're going to the show, make sure to get there early when the house opens. There's a fun little thing that happens before the show.