ROBIN'S SHOW REVIEW: TOMORROW MORNING - Discount Offer

Making its NYC debut at the York Theatre Company, this new Off-Broadway musical follows a couple as they face the uncertainty of what tomorrow morning holds on the eve of two life changing events.

A young, giddily smitten couple is looking forward to spending the rest of their lives together as they prepare for their wedding with excitement and lust, while, ten years later, their older selves are drafting divorce papers and looking back on a marriage gone wrong.

TOMORROW MORNING is both a humorous and moving story of the complexity of contemporary relationships and speaks to anyone who has felt the joy and pain of love.  Nothing comes with a guarantee, even if you enter into a relationship with the best of intentions and a full heart, and that is evidenced here.

The show received previous productions in both London and Chicago and, in 2009, won Chicago's Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Musical.  It is performed without intermission for 75 minutes.

The cast of four features D.B. Bonds, Autumn Hurlbert, Matthew Hydzik and Mary Mossberg.  A standout  was Mossberg as Catherine.  Her performance was both strong and moving.  And, Bonds as John nearly brought me to tears when he sang a particularly poignant duet (with Hydzik) entitled Look What We Made, about his nine year old son Jack.  The mom in me could fully relate to this father's love as he shared wonderment and joy, tinged with underlying sadness, knowing that they would no longer be parenting under the same roof....yet they were responsible for bringing this promising, innocent boy into the world.

The show had a welcome light-hearted moment with The Game Show song, and it was clever at the end when Jack's vows were shared in writing with the audience.

Compared to the flash and glamour of so many Broadway musicals these days, TOMORROW MORNING makes it's heartfelt point with a more-subdued, yet well-staged production, and there is soemthing to be said for that.

LAURENCE MARK WYTHE (Book, Music and Lyrics) is one of the UK's leading emerging creators of new musical theatre. Tomorrow Morning was first produced in London in 2006, and then in Chicago in 2008 where it won the Jeff Award for Best Midsize Musical. This was followed by a production in Melbourne and a further production in the UK in 2010 starring Julie Atherton and Jon Lee. His musical Through the Door (book by Judy Freed) was seen in the West End in 2009, also starring Julie Atherton. His other work includes the festive family musical The Lost Chrismas which was recently produced in the UK, and he is currently writing Girlfriends for Korean producers OD Musical. He composed the score for Joe DiPietro's play F---ing Men in Chicago (directed by Tom Mullen), and recently wrote the theme for a new TV project with a BAFTA award winning production company. He lives in London with his wife and two daughters. www.laurencemarkwythe.com

TOM MULLEN (Director) Recently directed Joe DiPietro's F---ing Men, Stages 773, US Premiere; Departure Lounge, Royal George Theatre; Tomorrow Morning, Victory Gardens Greenhouse Theater, (Joseph Jefferson Award Winner - Best Musical Midsize); Love/Perfect Now Change, Noble Fool Theatricals; JOE, Chicago Dramatist; Urinetown, Mercury Theatre, seven Jeff nominations including Best Director and Best Musical. World premiere, What a Glorious Feeling, NYMF Festival; Full Gallop, with Emmy winner Jill Larson; the world premiere of Wicked City; Associate Director of Broadway revival, Company (Roundabout Theatre) and The Rhythm Club (Signature Theatre, Washington D.C.); National tour: The World Goes 'Round for Columbia Artists; adapted Augusten Burroughs novel Sellevision, Ohio Theatre, NYC; Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus; Second City Comedy Theatre. Concerts: Oleta Adams, Sutton Foster and Bea Arthur. Regional credits include: Forever Plaid, A Chorus Line, Betty's Summer Vacation, Nine, Closer than Ever and The 1940's Radio Hour.


DISCOUNT TICKET OFFER:
The York Theatre Company ∙ 619 Lexington Avenue (Corner of 54th St.) ∙ New York, NY 10022
http://www.yorktheatre.org/
Use codeTCMORN45 for $45 tickets!
Box Office: (212) 935-5820 ∙ Box Office Hours: Monday-Friday 12-6pm


*Offer expires 4/23/11. Valid for all performances through 4/23/11. Blackout dates may apply. Offer subject to availability and prior sale. All sales are final; no refunds or exchanges. Schedule and casting subject to change. Offer may be modified or revoked at any time.

GUEST BLOG POST: When Love is Like a Pebble in Your Shoe by Laurie Puhn, author, Fight Less, Love More

When you put your shoes on, they felt fine. But 10 minutes later you can tell something is off. Your foot is uncomfortable. You keep walking because you have to get somewhere, but two hours later you call a time out because you have a blister. You sit down on the nearest park bench or in a bathroom stall, and take a look. There it is, a tiny little hard thing stuck inside your shoe. Phew. You weren’t crazy after all. There was something in there.

I tell this story because it reminds me of another little hard thing that many of us ignore, at first. It’s those tiny put-downs or jokey insults our partners might say to us or we might unwittingly say to them. In my new book, “Fight Less, Love More: 5-Minute Conversations to Change Your Relationship without Blowing Up or Giving In” I share tips to deal with all sorts of tiny pebbles that weigh down the lightness of love, from a lack of appreciation, to feelings of neglect to disrespect, all small pebbles that can irritate a relationship in a big way.

Rude comments are just one type of pebble that’s thrown in our face, leaving a small mark. When your partner says to friends, “Well I had to go out with her again, she wouldn’t stop calling me!” you might think it’s funny for a second, and then it feels embarrassing and wrong. But are you crazy or is your mate being mean? Or have you ever said jokingly, “I have two children, my baby and my husband,” that’s another insult that pokes a hole in the warmth of the relationship.

Sometimes the subtle insult is a cover-up for deeper animosity, but other times, it is the only problem the couple faces. Unfortunately, if you let those pebbles grow in force and frequency, they can create other problems like a need for retaliation.

Here’s how to get a few of those pebbles out of your relationship by choosing the right words at the right time:

1) Counter a put-down. When your mate says something that feels like a subtle insult, don’t push it under the rug. Wait until you’re in private and then say, “That hurts my feelings. Please don’t say that again.” Don’t assume your partner has any idea that he insulted you. You have to speak up to get what you want.

2) Criticize with Influence. The best way to give criticism is to say what you do want, not what you don’t want. If you don’t like the way your mate leaves crumbs on the kitchen counter, focus on the positive, not the negative. Say, “It would be great if you could use the dishrag and run it over the counter just once when you finish cleaning up.” That’s much more persuasive then saying, “You always leave crumbs. Can’t you see them there or are you blind?”

3) Disagree without being Disagreeable. In the moment you disagree with your mate, ask a wise question, “Why do you think that?” Listen to the answer and then, feel free to speak your mind. By listening first and talking second, you show respect for your mate’s opinions, no matter what you think of them. The result: your mate is more willing to listen to you.

Just a small change in words can remove those pebbles before you have a blister, and certainly before you have to change your shoe.

Laurie Puhn is a Harvard-educated lawyer/couples mediator, author of the new book, “Fight Less, Love More: 5-Minute Conversations to Change Your Relationship without Blowing Up or Giving In” (Rodale, Oct. 12, 2010) and advice blogger at http://www.expectingwords.com/.

She is a recognized expert in the field of couples mediation and conflict resolution with a private practice in Manhattan. She also authored the best-selling book, “Instant Persuasion: How to Change Your Words to Change Your Life.” Puhn's mission is to change the way people communicate with each other so they experience less conflict and greater understanding, appreciation and respect in their relationships.