Love or money? This off-Broadway play examines the age-old question. Read our review
The pandemic shined a light on how we work, when we work, where we work. For some, it opened doors to new ideas, new careers, new ways to look at life.
More than 100 years ago, Elizabeth Baker’s “Partnership” examined work-life balance. And now Mint Theater, which digs up plays from the past that have been lost or forgotten, is producing the show off-Broadway at Theater Row.
Kate Rolling (Sara Haider) is the ambitious owner of a small fashion boutique in Brighton, England. When Mr. Pillatt (Geme Gillette), the owner of the largest shop in town, proposes a merger that includes matrimony, she sees it as a good business opportunity. And then she meets a man who wants more than just success.
Directed by Jackson Grace Gay, the 2½-hour “Partnership” is predictable and, at times, a pleasant diversion. The first act drags along at a tiresome pace. Scenes seem far too rehearsed, and it's easy to get lost in the dialogue.
Things improve after the first intermission, largely because of Joshua Echebiri as the charming and charismatic Lawrence Fawcett. He doesn’t mind working, but believes going outdoors and taking in nature is far more important.
Sparks do not instantly fly between Fawcett and Kate, but she is curious about this odd fellow. He intrigues her, and Haider and Echebiri do have a connection.
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Gillette succeeds as the fussy and ever-so-dull Pillatt, whose focus is always on business. Christiane Noll is effectively haughty as Lady Smith-Carr-Smith (now that’s a name!).
Dependable dressmaker Miss Blagg (Gina Daniels), young and emotional Gladys Tracey (Madeline Seidman) and annoyingly pretentious Maisie Glow (Olivia Gilliatt) all work for Kate, expressing surprise, shock and understanding at her decisions. Tom Patterson plays both a young man who adores Gladys and an admiring friend of Maisie.
Standing watch over Kate's shop is the mannequin Sally, “robed in the latest fashion,” according to the script. She is mentioned so often during the show she seems like a colleague. At one point, Kate tells Fawcett that when she is in the shop, she feels like Sally.
Alexander Woodward does a fine job creating the shop’s set used in the first and third acts. Costumes by Kindall Houston Almond are first-rate. James Hart Dyke allowed the Mint to adapt his painting to set the scene for Act II, which takes place on the rolling hills of the Downs.
Overall, the audience did not seem overly impressed: There was courtesy clapping at the end of Act I, and the applause only slightly increased in Act II. When it was over, there was sustained appreciation. This kind of period piece just does not warrant a rousing standing ovation.
This is the third play by Baker the Mint Theater has presented since 2019. The program contains lots of information about the author, and how she “portrayed the constrictions of modern industrial capitalism as much as she celebrated the liberations of women in the work force.”
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When it first premiered, a reviewer called "Partnership" “intelligent” and “interesting,” adding “It grips you precisely because it is not a fairy tale.”
I wouldn’t say there is anything gripping about the current production — but call it a good reminder about what matters. When money takes on the heart, love should always win.
Go: “Partnership,” through Nov. 12, Theatre Row, 410 W. 42nd St., $39 to $99; https://minttheater.org/production/partnership/.
Bill Canacci can be reached at bcanacci@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Partnership off-Broadway review: Play tells story of love, money
