Linda

Disappointing, Relevant, Engaging, Great set, Great acting

See it if 
A dynamite lead & good performances are enough to make up for an unevenly directed & thematically overwritten script that reverses itself.

Don't see it if 
You want to see female empowerment & self-determination rewarded, or a pertinent, important subject resolved in any meaningful way.

As a production, Linda looks as good, sharp, attractive & dynamic as its leading lady, the terrific Janie Dee. The modern contemporary set on its revolving stage is used well, smoothly changing locations & time; costumes are attractive, doing double thematic duty; lighting & sound are great.

Ms Skinner's script, however, despite its snappy, quick paced dialogue fails rather spectacularly and strangely; its second act renounces its first in a burst of melodrama, & goes out of its way at the end to rebuff its own main premise — twice. A tight Act I that speaks directly to & for a very wide range of women's rights & issues, tells us at the end that nothing has changed. A strange position coming from a woman in 2017.

Ms. Dee goes all out for it but can't overcome the character's sudden & immediate breakdown — a false, jolting note in the character & in the narrative line. Jennifer Ikeda fares better as the troubled daughter, acting out the invisibility mentioned in the opening speech, making the skunk suit she wears that makes it possible convincing.

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