Review: Love Lessons of a Queen of Theater in a "Song of the Flame"

This is evident in his tortured relationship with Ed; with the wife, Ed marries Laurel (Roxanna Hope Radja, who brings out the twisted masochism of the character with talent); and with the handsome, much younger Alan, the model (a sympathetic Michael Hsu Rosen).

These are the dramatis personae of the first part of the play, which on Broadway acquired a new breeze. The pain these people inflict on each other in the name of love (and the denial of it) is still purring beneath the surface. The second part introduces us to David (Jack DiFalco, who is convinced that he's too old for the role), a 15-year-old homosexual that Arnold hopes to adopt and, most importantly, Ms. Beckoff, the woman Arnold calls Ma, who comes from Florida visiting.

It's Ms. Ruehl's play, which she runs through and almost never steals the show in a cleverly rolled performance. From the moment she arrives, carrying all sorts of luggage, it is clear that Ma and Arnold have the same flesh. Even when they argue, which is often the case, they have the synchronized rhythms of a vaudeville team.

One could even say that Ma, the mistress of the iron will, is what Arnold longs for. This makes her all the more heartbreaking as she rejects him as a homosexual with lovely household dreams. Arnold can not cope with him any more, nor can he resist him, does not support him – making their decisive confrontation a royal battle.

"Torch Song" has its moments of pure sitcom – there is a long scene about the horrors of Ed's kitchen – that you can only smile and endure. But it also incorporates shadows of tragedy, including a plot involving a brutal hate crime, which feels sadly topical.

And there are times when Mr. Urie's Arnold lets us see the authentic and bottomless fear and uncertainty under the larger-than-life facade. It is there that a sudden and unexpected glitter is illustrated in his eyes when he says that at 13, "I knew everything".

Arnold tells us in his opening monologue: "A drag queen is like an oil painting. You must step back to get the full effect. "Mr. Uriah gives us this full effect, for sure. But as you come to know this queen of the dizzying drama, which is sobering and surprisingly instructive, taking a step back is hardly an option.