Forget Patti and the ladies of Osage County. The best female performance currently in New York is Mercedes Ruehl in Edward Albee's Occupant.
In this two person play, Ruehl dominates the stage as great American sculptor Louise Nevelson being interviewed some 20 years after her death. In a magnificent performance, Ruehl captures the many faces of Nevelson. The audience laughed and studied the manner in which Ruehl explored the 88 years of Nevelson's life. We see the immigrant Jew, the mentally ill wife, the lousy mother, the nomad artist and finally the successful woman.
Almost unrecognizable in garish outfits and a double dose of sable eyelashes, the Academy Award winning Ruehl is fascinating. On a simple black stage, she creates a human being rich in complexity which does not differ from how Nevelson apparently created herself.
It is a brilliant performance in a play that is funny, insightful and wise.
