The Vertical Hour

The Vertical Hour“People never want to do dangerous…things,” Julianne Moore’s Nadia says during The Vertical Hour, David Hare’s latest play. In the context of the play, the line refers to people in general, especially in politics. However, it could also apply to the theater itself, where jukebox musicals and stage adaptations of films are quickly populating. Happily, The Vertical Hour defies that line, just a little. While not necessarily a dangerous play, it is certainly not a safe one either. It is a politically charged commentary about current events and it dares to ask real questions. Currently at the Music Box Theatre, it is also the Broadway debut of Julianne Moore and Bill Nighy, and a triumphant one for both of them.Moore plays Nadia, a war reporter turned political professor who prefers fighting zones to classrooms. She has been to the battlefields to report on the soldiers and she has been to the White House to consult the President. She thinks fast and talks faster, and becomes much more honest after she’s had a few glasses of wine. And she has left America, the country that she loves and traveled to Wales to meet Oliver (Bill Nighy), the father of her boyfriend Phillip (played by Andrew Scott).The relationship between Phillip and Oliver is a strained one, to say the least. Philip doesn’t trust Oliver, and it is very easy to see why. Formerly a high-profile surgeon, Oliver now lives in isolation in the country, following a personal and professional disaster that changed his life. He is guarded and aloof and sarcastic and wry. Nighy plays the part with a raffish sexuality, letting undertones lie in each sly barb that falls from his mouth. Phillip fears that his father might try to seduce his girlfriend, and he fears that his girlfriend might let it happen.Inevitably, the polite conversation between the Oliver and Nadia turns to the subject of the Iraqi war. Nadia supports it; Oliver does not. Nadia thinks that people should help people; that a country with power should be of service to a country without. Oliver thinks that the war is a complete mess, that George W. Bush is flat-out wrong, and that the United States should begin withdrawing the troops as soon as possible. Nadia credits her experience; Oliver credits his wisdom.These debates serve as the majority of the script, with little action other than the affectations of the characters. The rapid-fire dialogue that the two exchange is heavy and weighted, but it is easy to follow thanks to the performances of the actors delivering it.During her first few moments onstage, Moore appears tentative and cautious. She is mocking to others and self-deprecating towards herself. She seems reluctant to fully explore the character she is playing and seems too mild to be, as her boyfriend describes her to his father, full of "formidable certainly. Committed. Articulate. Passionate. Full of strong feeling." After hearing this, Oliver asks, “Why risk your luck by bringing her here to meet me?”She is full of strong feeling. There is no doubt about that. What exactly she is feeling is hazy, however. While touched upon briefly during dinner with Phillip and Oliver, it is not until a late-night exchange with Oliver that her past is truly explored.This exposition is set up during the first act, but it does not play out until the second. The first half of the play is weighted with anticipation, as everyone, including the actors, wonders where this is all going. It is after intermission that things really start happening. That is also when Moore begins doing herself justice onstage. During a prolonged scene with Nighy, she appears to grasp what she is capable of doing. Her voice grows stronger, as does her presence onstage, and she delivers her lines with much more effect. What begins as a battle of wits between the two soon leads into a journey of self-exploration, and a verbal tango with each one of them daring the other to take it one step further.It is Nighy who truly controls these scenes and who much of the show’s success can be credited to. Every single word that comes out of Nighy’s mouth is ultimately loaded, with subtext and ulterior motives. “I don’t want a lecture; I want enlightenment,” he says during an exchange with Moore. He absolutely owns this character. The sheer physical skill that goes into his performance is overwhelming – even a seemingly insignificant movement of his hand into or out of his pocket feels natural and masterful.The rapid-fire dialogue that these characters engage in is vivacious, touching on subjectslike true happiness, fulfillment, and whether knowledge and awareness is ablessing or a burden.Staged in a starkly simple design, the set allows the characters to fill the stage. It is fortunate that there are minimal distractions, for the conversation that takes place does not permit mind-wandering. Except, perhaps, to wonder what the title of she means, which is explained by Nadia to Oliver. "In combat medicine, there's this moment...after a disaster, after a shooting-there's this moment, the vertical hour, when you can actually be of some use." While this show is not a physical battle, it is certainly a verbal and emotional one. And Moore can thank Nighy for being of some use to her.