If you've never seen a play by openly gay writer Christopher Durang, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike is a outrageously great place to start.
While Durang is known for his joyously madcap theatrical productions that skewer theatrical conventions, his current play explores the strained relationship between two siblings and their older, self-absorbed sister who brings a 20-something piece of man candy home for the weekend.
The older sister Mosha is played by a wildly funny Sigourney Weaver (showing her astounding command and breadth of acting skill). And she shares the stage with a talented cast including David Hyde Pierce (the openly gay actor who played Niles on TV's Frasier.
You don't need to know anything about Anton Chekov (the playwright who wrote Uncle Vanya) to appreciate Durang's American send-up of Russian dramedy. After all, when Mosha goes to a costume party dressed up as Snow White and forces her younger siblings to go as dwarves, you get a pretty good idea of the tensions that Durang has set to comically explode onstage.
Watch a review from Here TV's Josh Rosenzweig below:
