Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Heidi Schreck’s WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME, more potent than ever on Broadway

• By drediman
• April 1, 2019
• No Comments

Heidi Schreck in “What the Constitution Means to Me” at the Helen Hayes Theatre. Photo by Joan Marcus.

Heidi Schreck’s What the Constitution Means to Me has had a long journey this season already, having played to great acclaim Off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop in the fall, then continuing its successful run in the winter at the Greenwich House Theatre. How apropos then that this spring, it would march on. And indeed it has. Last night, the timely play triumphantly arrived on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theatre, and it might just be one of the sleeper hits of the season.

I adored the unconventional play, which is written and performed by Ms. Schreck, in its Off-Broadway incarnation at NYTW. What the Constitution Means to Me is mostly an autobiographical one-woman show about Ms. Schreck’s complicated long-term relationship with the United States Constitution (e.g., her 15-year-old self competitively debated its content and its merits). As the play unfolds, she draws deeply enlightening, increasingly personal links between the flawed document and herself, as well as the women in her family.

What the Constitution Means to Me has been directed by Oliver Butler with a quiet sense of urgency, which gives the play its potency. Ms. Schreck is a formidable presence onstage; she’s both charismatic and strong. Her performance is notable for its clarity and refreshingly critical and balanced perspectives. Although she dominates the play, Ms. Schreck is not the only performer onstage; Mike Iveson endearingly plays a peripheral character, as well as himself. The play’s coda introduces a third “character” (no spoilers here), ending the important new play on a powerfully moving and hopeful note.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME
Broadway, Play
Helen Hayes Theatre
1 hour, 40 minutes (without an intermission)
Through July 21