New York Times
September 3, 1981

Critic's Notebook:

Praise the Actor Who Takes Command

By FRANK RICH

Once upon a time August was a month for ''layoffs'' on Broadway. To escape the box-office doldrums, productions would disband until the city filled up again in the fall; new shows wouldn't even dream of lighting their marquees.

But, as the huge commercial success of ''42d Street'' most spectacularly proved a year ago, producers no longer need wait for Labor Day to unveil their latest wares. Audiences are ready to line up for tickets in the summer's dog days, provided the show is right - and light. This August, two productions took the plunge, and although one of them, ''The Supporting Cast,'' is wilting before the leaves in Central Park, the revival of ''My Fair Lady'' is likely to be with us for months to come. On Broadway, if not at Yankee Stadium, a .500 win-loss record is nothing to scoff at...

***


When legendary performers like Rex Harrison - or, say, Lena Horne -take command of the stage, they seem to do so by divine right. At the Uris, the whole audience leans forward during the opening minutes of the Covent Garden scene, waiting for Mr. Harrison's first entrance, ready to let him do as he will with us. While such stars can eventually let us down - or, like Miss Horne, even exceed our expectations - they do start with a big advantage. It's an advantage that, quite justly, has been earned with time.

No such head start exists for an unfamiliar actor like John Vickery, who is playing Prince Hal in Des McAnuff's staging of ''Henry IV, Part 1,'' which will end its extended run this weekend in Central Park. Mr. Vickery is 30 years old, has spent most of his career in San Francisco and looks even younger than he is.

He begins from scratch with the audience each time out; surely only a few diehards remember his previous (if striking) New York appearance as Malcolm in Lincoln Center's disastrous ''Macbeth'' of last season. But at the Delacorte, Mr. Vickery takes command, all right - despite the fact that Mr. McAnuff's clever, handsome production offers plenty of effects and several other performances that are also worthy of admiration.

Still, there's no way to resist the special magnetism of Mr. Vickery, whose resonant yet human-scaled voice and nimble athleticism catch our attention through the unbeatable means of artistic simplicity. A slight, almost wimpy figure when we first spot him in Mistress Quickly's tavern, he manages to reveal both the carefree boy and the manly hero in this fledgling warrior from the very outset.

In his scenes with Falstaff (Kenneth McMillan), Mr. Vickery is a true carouser, and yet he seems to be standing outside himself as well, looking to the future. In the actor's pixyish, intelligent eyes, we see that Hal is already balancing the books on the experiences o f his frivolous days - storing away Falstaff's scattershot w isdom for later use and discarding the bluster.

We don't actually hear or see the grown-up Hal for a while, of course. This Prince's voice rises to its full majestic height only when he rises from his father's throne to pledge that on ''some glorious day'' he'll at last be able to say, ''I am your son.'' But, thanks to the groundwork, the growth from carefree dilettante to fearless, armor-clad hero is seamless. We're not surprised at Hal's transformation - just thrilled.

It is also to Mr. Vickery's credit that once the derring-do Henry V-to-be stands revealed, the little Prince is not forgotten. When he finally meets Hotspur (Mandy Patinkin) for their showdown, Mr. Vickery at first faces his antagonist with an impish grin and a fist placed casually, playfully, on his waist. There's some of Falstaff's barroom bravura in the old boy yet.

Whenever one first sees an exciting young American actor on a New York stage, the inevitable rejoinder is, ''Well, he's terrific in contemporary roles, but can he play the classics?'' Mr. Vickery has pulled off the surprising feat of reversing the clauses in this question - and he leaves us tantalized with anticipation. Let's say, for optimism's sake, that the 1981-82 theatrical season officially begins with him.

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