NEW YORK—As I set off to see “Fish in the Dark” at Broadway’s Cort Theatre, I wondered what I would encounter. I'd heard so much talk: Was it a classic Broadway comedy? A stage version of a TV sitcom? An egocentric, starring vehicle for TV writer Larry David, the co-creator of “Seinfeld”? And, is David really an actor?
After viewing the phenomenon, I reached certain conclusions: “Fish” is a farce, defined by Webster as “a light dramatic composition marked by broadly satirical comedy and improbable plot.” And Larry David, without whom there would be no production, is a farceur: “a writer or actor of farce.”
Whatever the definitions, David’s fans are craving this show. A blockbuster of an advance—said to be 13.5 million dollars—can’t be argued with. And it is funny and sometimes silly.
But actually if one digs beneath the gags and David’s outlandish interpretation—wide eyes and widely spread arms, as if bewildered by the goings-on—there are some deep and even poignant issues dealt with.
Norman Drexel (Larry David) and his wife, Brenda (Rita Wilson), are visiting the California hospital where Norman’s 85-year-old father, Sidney (Jerry Adler), lies dying. Joining the couple in the waiting room are Norman’s lawyer brother, Arthur (Ben Shenkman), who has had the “chutzpah” to bring an attractive date, Michelle (Jenn Lyon), a notary no less, to this somber occasion.
Later arrivals include Sidney’s soon-to-be-widow, loud-mouthed Gloria (Jayne Houdyshell). Then there is Norman’s vibrantly Latin housekeeper, Fabiana (Rosie Perez), who formerly worked for Sidney and Gloria.
