BLACKBIRD on Bwy Starring Jeff Daniels and Michelle Williams

 Spoiler alert - The play is about sexual abuse.   The sexual deviant is Ray a.k.a. Peter (Jeff Daniels) a much older neighbor who preys upon a 12 yr old girl, Una (Michelle Williams.)  The two major stars of film & theater give intense emotional performances that are compelling & repelling.  Therein lies the conundrum; to see or not to see.  If you want to see 2 superlative actors sparring, this is a knockout show.  If you prefer not to endure the calamatous fallout on the victim or attend the perverse manipulation of a pedophile, count this show out.  One should not bury their head in the sand in regards to the destruction of sexual & psychological inflicted on children.   Playwright David Harrower won the Oliver Award for his harrowing examination of the permanent scars inflicted upon victims of molestation & the incredulous justification & tactics deployed by the sexual abuser.  The one act 2 character play starts with an intense energy.  Ray thrusts Una into an office break room.  He can barely restain his hostility.  Their relationship is nebulous.  Una is easily assumed to be his mistress & has come to confront him at his workplace.  As quickly as he's shoved Una into the break room, Ray (now known as Peter) is forcible trying to get her outside the building.  The power play between the two is an impressive battle of wills.  Soon, their past history unravels into the trashy details of their illicit & illegal sexual encounters.  The noble writing & stirring portrayal of a young victim whose life is forever sullied is wrenching.  Individual versions are revealed, tempers cool & sexual tension rises. Ray accounts for his actions & emotions.  Having served his prison sentence & made something of his life through (and less stringent sexual abuse laws) he has made a success of his work & personal life.  The most perverse apex of the play is Ray's justification for his past.  The credible & emotional play takes a toll.  Una's life has been destroyed by continuous debasement by the judge, her parents & her peers.  BLACKBIRD becomes derailed towards the end of the play which mitigates its intelligent handling of this painful subject.  Despite the contemptible topic, the play is formidable and Williams & Daniels are indefatigable.