University of Virginia Library

The Broadway Beat

Leonard Gershe's 'Butterflies Are Free'

By Steve Wells
Cavalier Daily Staff Writer

NEW YORK - There are basically
three types of comedies.
First and most prevalent are those
which simply are not funny.
Second are those which are funny.
Third and least common are those
which are funny and which also
unobtrusively deliver a humanistic
message. Mary Chase's "Harvey" is
the prime example of this species.

The newest member - and
surprise member at that - of this
select group of plays opened
recently at New York's Booth
Theatre. While Leonard Gershe's
"Butterflies Are Free" is nowhere
near being the classic that "Harvey"
is, it does combine humor with
humanism to form one of the most
enchanting and fulfilling comedies
Broadway has offered in several
years.

The play's premise is as simple -
and as overworked - as it can be.
It's about a young man named Don
who has just left his home and his
overprotective mother for the first
time. He now lives in a quaint
Greenwich Village apartment and
has as a next-door neighbor a
bouncy little blonde named Jill. No
sooner do the two fall in love than
does Don's mother appear on the
scene to interfere. The outcome, of
course, is never in doubt.

There is one twist that Mr.
Gershe applies to this stock situation
that gives it distinction. Don is
blind; he was born without sight.
He feels no hostility and is able to
easily accept his condition. It is
others, such as Jill, who create
problems for him. It is they who
confuse sympathy (which he does
not want) and love (for which he
eagerly awaits).

Don's blindness is the basis for
many of Mr. Gershe's hilarious
one-line jokes. But the author's
purpose goes deeper. In a manner
reminiscent of Sophocles' in "Oedipus
Rex," Mr. Gershe uses his
character's lack of sight to introduce
into the story irony that leads
directly to the heart of the play.
Although Don is blind, he sees the
value of life that can only be
attained through true love. Jill, on
the other hand, is afraid to become
involved in a lasting relationship
and therefore is unable to really
appreciate life.

Warmth And Genuinely

"Butterflies Are Free," has a
warmth and genuinely that is rare in
comedies today. Not once do we
question the credibility of the three
main characters and their interrelationships.
We accept them and soon
become attached to them, realizing
all the while that at least two of
them are dangerously close to being
stereotypes.

Boyish Charm

Here is where the cast comes in.
The three principals are, quite
simply, just too damn spirited and
too damn talented for us not to
appreciate their stage characters.
Keir Dullca injects into Don a
certain boyish charm that works to
perfect effect. He displays a fine
singing voice in putting over a Judy
Collins-like ballad, which, incidentally,
Miss Collins or one of her
counterparts would be wise to
record. In a beautifully written part
Mr. Dullca/ gives a performance
worthy only of utmost admiration.

For those of you who remember
Eileen Heckart as the mother of
young lovers in "Barefoot In The
Park," her excellence in a similar
role now will come as no surprise.
She successfully conveys the feelings
of a woman who does not want
to face up to the maturity of her
son, the son for whom she used to
write stories about little Donnie
Dark, a blind Superman. If it seems
like Miss Heckart is Broadway's
perennial worrying mother, don't
complain, she's wonderful.

Newest Star

As for Blythe Danner's flighty
interpretation of Jill, well, let me
just say that it is good enough to
make her the theatre's newest star.
Displaying the same effervescent
personality and irrepressible vitality
she did in Lincoln Center's production
of "The Miser" last May, she
gives an added dimension to the
kooky-blonde-next-door image.
She's also a girl who, if you aren't
careful, you might find yourself in
love with before the evening is over.

Unlike many comedy directors,
Milton Katselas has treated the
characters as people rather than
merely joke machines. There is
little he can do along these lines
with a minor, unfortunate character
that lacks the depth of the others.
But, for the most part, Mr.
Katselas' staging rises to Mr. Gershe's
script - and vice versa.

Universal Appeal

"Butterflies Are Free" is a play
with universal appeal. Not only
should it attract the typical Broadway
audience (ugh!), which will not
see beyond the laughs, but it should
also go over with the hard-sell
younger set, which will probably
overlook the play's predictability
and appreciate its sincerity and
genuinely.

Mr. Gershe and all concerned
with "Butterflies" deserve credit
for taking a yawn-provoking idea
and molding it into something
special.