THE NEW YORKER

Fashions For Men

February 3 – April 12, 2015

The phrase “generous to a fault” could easily have been coined to describe Peter Juhász, the openhearted but foolish main character in Ferenc Molnár’s 1917 comedy, receiving a delightful revival under Davis McCallum’s direction at the Mint, with the original English translation niftily spruced up by the company’s artistic director, Jonathan Bank. Juhász (Joe Delafield) is the owner of a high-end clothing store in Budapest (exquisitely realized by Daniel Zimmerman’s set and appointed by Joshua Yocom’s props). He’s on the brink of professional and personal ruin as nearly everyone in his circle—customers, employees, wife—takes brutal advantage of his good nature, praising him while bleeding him dry. Delafield may be a bit too young for the role, but he projects a confidence turning to confusion, resignation, and bitterness that is truly touching. The cleverly structured play has good, satiric fun at its tender center, with especially fine comic turns provided by Kurt Rhoads, as the shopkeeper’s noble patron, and by Jeremy Lawrence, as a loyal longtime employee who hears, sees, and knows all.