Francis Ford Coppola's The Conversation

A surveillance expert becomes paranoid about his safety while holding tapes with dangerous content in his possession. Based on Francis Ford Coppola's 1974 movie of the same title, this new adaptation retains the same elements of the original premise, but this time there's no Watergate scandal to attach it to. There may not be a specific case now, but with wire-tapping currently in the news, it's still very timely. Filmmaker Michael Moore may be hitting up the invasion of privacy as a topic next. This production is beautifully staged, well-acted, and successful in recreating the film noir feel of the film as well as the era in which it was first conceived. It's a must-see for top quality entertainment. .........................................................................................................................

"I'm a good man." says Harry Caul (David Mogentale, excellent and sounding consistently like Kevin Costner) unconvincingly into the audience. And as The Conversation unfolds, it's easy to discern that the doubt stems not from any holes in Mogentale's acting, but from the mentally-torn character that he plays. For Harry loves his profession as a top-notch wire-tapper, but a recent job for a Director (James E. Smith) has him very worried. He's recorded conversations between a couple, Ann (Feldpausch) and Mark (Craig Butta) that he wishes he hadn't, and not even a fat paycheck for his services is enough to hand the tapes over to the Director's assistant, Matthew Harrison (Jack Dillon). What will happen to the couple? Is he an accomplice in their doom? Not only are there open-ended questions, but he has to deal with his Catholic guilt on top of them. But Harry's fears aren't unfounded; he's had dangerous recordings before.

Years ago, Harry worked a job that resulted in the death of three people. Although he insists to his peers and associates that he is not responsible for the actual content of the tapes or how his clients use them, he's still carrying the weight of his past. Emotionally, it is clear that Harry is unbalanced. He's reticent, secretive, and shies away from close relationships with friends and lovers. Two women in particular, Amy (Amber Gallery), the lover that's half his age and clueless about his life, and Meredith (Julianne Carpenter), the older temptress who's not so clueless, experience his aloofness firsthand. They know he's unattainable, but they're still captivated. But if Harry wasn't born this way, he was made this way by his job. The privacy he exploits becomes what he desperately tries to preserve in his own life. When he won't give up the tapes, he opens himself up for investigation and exploitation. The tracker becomes the tracked. Too bad Harry can't cope when the tables are turned.

Kate Harris' adaptation of the screenplay is smart, Hitchcockian, and respectful of the original thriller. Like the film, much of the play relies on great sound design; here, Tim Cramer not only inserts recordings at key moments, but also creates eerie sounds between scenes. Although The Conversation retains much of the content of the film such as Harry's wardrobe (Mogentale wears a plastic raincoat the same way that Gene Hackman did in the movie) and saxophone-playing, there are no mimes and no opportunity to compare Harry's scene in the bathroom to the hotel bathroom scene in Psycho; there is no bathroom scene.

The stark, platform stage by Mark Symczak, doubling as both a bed and park steps, is practical and creative, but it's the wire mesh booth behind it that's the real prize. This prop is a believable vantage point for observers, changing room, sound room, and Amy's apartment all in one. The recording equipment within Harry's office, placed downstage in his warehouse apartment, reminds the audience that Harry's job is the priority in his life, and sometimes to his own detriment. The lighting design by Douglas Cox is precise, separating scenes by illuminating only the most pertinent parts of the stage at the right times. Leo Farley's crisp direction brings clarity to the exterior and interior scenes, even when they are done simultaneously and there is much activity onstage. The ensemble is superb, executing the mystery and intrigue surrounding this play. The glitches and fading out of the voices on the tape are mimicked well by Feldpausch and Butta, even if their dialogue is not always in sync with the recordings.

The Conversation is a great production by the 29th Street Rep that kicks off their 20th anniversary season well, and makes their 2-year hiatus worth the wait. The film that the play is based on doesn't get as much attention as the Godfather films, so this production is a good way to remind us of this gem. There are no gratuitous scenes, from fellow surveillance expert William P. Moran's (Tim Corcoran) hilarious demonstration of a Home Shopping Network-type taping device to the house party initiated by Paul Meyers (Thomas Wehrle). Almost everything up to and including the surprise ending (for those who haven't seen the movie) works together to advance the story and maximize entertainment value. And in light of the scrutiny of our current government's pursuits and technology, the similarities between Harry's fears and today's U.S. citizens won't be lost. Thanks to a well-conceived production by everyone involved, the audience won't be lost, either; they'll be thrilled. Get it, thrilled.
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Through May 4th. Tickets: $20. http://www.smarttix.com/. 29th Street Rep, 212 West 29th Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10001