Review: Hold On to Me Darling and Adam Driver’s Achy Breaky Heart

Comedy grows in the chasm between artfully stated objectives and real reptilian ambition — and that gap is wide as the Grand Canyon in Kenneth Lonergan’s Hold On to Me Darling, now receiving an excellent off-Broadway revival at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.

Adam Driver stars as Strings McCrane, a movie star and country music singer-songwriter mourning the recent passing of his mother. Studio executives are inconsolable as his absence from set is costing them $250,000 a day. His personal assistant Jimmy (Keith Nobbs, as stalwart as a cocker spaniel, with eyes even more loving) schedules a visit from the hotel masseuse, Nancy (Heather Burns), to distract him. Their instant chemistry earns her an invitation to the funeral, which this still-married woman interprets as a pre-engagement and ticket out of her crummy life.

The midlife crisis continues back home in Beaumont, Tennessee, where Strings floats the idea of leaving celebrity life behind and running a feed shop with his brother Duke (CJ Wilson). He also reunites with his attractive cousin Essie (Adelaide Clemens), whom Nancy correctly views as a threat. A showbiz empire hangs in the balance in this episode of Game of Thrones guest-written by Dolly Parton.

In my review of the 2016 world premiere of Hold On to Me Darling I praised Lonergan’s mastery of American cliché, a quality even more pronounced in this tightly directed remounting from Neil Pepe (who also helmed the original production). “I was raised with dogs and chickens,” Nancy repeatedly notes with outsize modesty, sounding very much like Kamala Harris reminding us that she’s from the middle class. Everyone in the cast commits to these lines with the fervor of true believers, which makes them even more hilarious.

This is especially true of Driver, whose dramatic intensity has long made him a highly anticipated host of SNL. “Thing I like about Nancy is she’s real,” he tells Essie, perhaps to make her jealous. “You know she’s a lovin’ mother to two little twin gals? Always wanted me some kids. Maybe now’s my big chance to pick up a couple on spec.”  And we’re sure that he has convinced himself this sounds perfectly reasonable — even noble.

That makes the moments when the masks slip even more pronounced, like when Nancy is at a loss to respond to Strings’s financial woes. “Maybe you oughta go on back home and ask all them dogs and chickens,” Jimmy says, maintaining his puppy-face innocence as Nancy frowns. Aggressive Southern gentility threatens to curdle into Real Housewives hostility, and we reach for the popcorn.

The design team from the original production remains, with Walt Spangler re-creating his brilliant 3D puzzle of a set (the backstage transformations happen so imperceptibly, they seem to be executed by fairies operating under the careful guidance of production stage manager Jason Hindelang). Suttirat Larlarb and Lizzie Donelan design the costumes, adorning Driver in black like a 21^st-century Johnny Cash. David Van Tieghem’s original country music underscores the scene transitions, evoking the aural and emotional world these characters inhabit. And Tyler Micoleau’s lighting expands and colors the limited stage space. It all works as well as it did at Atlantic, but the play itself feels tighter and funnier.

The excellent cast bears some responsibility, perfectly executing the comic timing Lonergan’s script requires while tying every action to real stakes. Burns, in particular, convinces us that Nancy is driven not by pure ambition but a desperation to escape. The late appearance of Frank Wood in a surprise role seems to expand the possibilities of this country soap opera into a second season — and like Strings, we’re not sure we should trust him at all.

Hold On to Me Darling makes a comedic meal out of one of the great absurdities of American popular culture: While Strings plays the role of a lonesome cowboy with a six-string, he’s actually a corporation with a host of attendants and shareholders. They all depend on him for their livelihoods, and otherwise deeply personal matters (the death of a parent, a sudden marriage, a quickie divorce) are fundamental business concerns. He couldn’t let go if he tried, so best hold on for dear life.