Tru Greatness

A riveting stage actor both on and Off Broadway and an acclaimed director of works produced by the LAByrinth Theater Company, of which he is a co-founder, Philip Seymour Hoffman is a true star of the theater world. Now, with his towering performance in the title role of Capote, Hoffman enters the ranks of Hollywood’s great character actors/stars in the tradition of Paul Muni, Charles Laughton, and that other (unrelated) Hoffman, Dustin.

Whether or not he wins the Oscar for Best Actor this year — a nomination, at least, seems inevitable at this writing — Hoffman’s portrait of Truman Capote will long be remembered for its honesty, subtlety, and penetrating intensity. It doesn’t hurt that the movie itself is a stunning piece of work. Its inclusion in the New York Film Festival, where it premiered this week prior to its commercial release, is yet another testament to its artistic merit.

Capote marks the feature directorial debut of documentarian Bennett Miller, but this is not a standard biopic. Instead, the film focuses on the most important chapter in Capote’s life: the research for and writing of his non-fiction masterpiece In Cold Blood. It begins with him reading a New York Times article about the Kansas murders, then shows us his first trip to Kansas to write a magazine article about the killings and his subsequent immersion in writing his book, which took up six years of his life. The film, which further details Capote’s infatuation with one of the murderers, unfolds as a rich tapestry of conflicting emotions.

The major triumph of Hoffman’s performance is that he captures Capote’s complex personality, showing us his unbridled ambition balanced by his genuine affection for a kindred spirit in murderer Perry Smith (Clifton Collins, Jr.). We also see his fascinating relationship with Nelle Harper Lee (Catherine Keener), who served as his research assistant just months before she won a Pulitzer Prize for writing To Kill a Mockingbird (which has a character based on a young Capote). As a snapshot of New York literary life in the fast lane versus the simpler life of the people of Kansas — both the innocent and the guilty — the movie is mesmerizing. After seeing it, you’re sure to think of the title of Capote’s most famous book in a whole new (and darker) light.

It should be noted that Capote was written by Dan Futterman, who has several major credits as a theater actor, and features such stage stalwarts as Amy Ryan, Bob Balaban, and Mark Pellegrino in supporting roles. (Even Keener, best known as a film actress, trod the boards in the 2003 Off-Broadway revival of Burn This.) Why are there so many theater people involved in the film? Try this answer: Hoffman and Futterman are also Capote‘s executive producers.

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History in the Making at Feinstein’s

Musical theater history could not come in a more charming package than 95-year-old Kitty Carlisle Hart. With the help of her dedicated musical director, David Lewis, Mrs. Hart recently held forth for four sold-out nights in her delectably chatty cabaret act at Feinstein’s at the Regency. (She’ll return for two shows on November 11-12). The lady told amusing anecdotes about the many people she knew in the theater — Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, the Gershwins, George S. Kaufman, and, of course, her late husband, Moss Hart — and performed songs that commented on those stories. At her age, it’s hardly surprisng that her once-lovely soprano is greatly diminished, but she still knows how to sell a song.

If you want a bit of jazz history, head over to Feinstein’s for the current show starring the popular guitarist/vocalist John Pizzarelli and his dad, guitar legend Bucky Pizzarelli. These two have often performed together, but this act — simply titled Pizzarelli & Pizzarelli — is special. First off, no other jazz performer tosses off comic patter better than John, and he’s in particularly fine form when telling tales about his father. One could simply listen to him talk for an hour and be fully entertained.

Fortunately, John also happens to be a brilliant jazz guitarist in his own right. His delicate solo version of “Say It (Over and Over Again),” by Frank Loesser and Jimmy McHugh, is inspired. But the show’ s greatness comes in its second half when John’s trio of musicians (his brother Martin on bass, pianist Ray Kennedy, and drummer Tony Tedesco) withdraws and Bucky joins his son on stage. Then it’s just the two of them — father and son, master and pupil — playing their guitars and making the sort of music that only they can create. Their version of “Sing, Sing, Sing” is the most amazing piece of guitar playing we have ever heard. The Pizzarellis continue at Feinstein’s through October 8

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[To contact the Siegels directly, e-mail them at siegels@theatermania.com.]