Play Review: 'The Subject Was Roses' at Bay Street Is a True Family Affair

Bay Street Theater’s 2024 Mainstage season has opened with a genuine, and quite literal, family affair. In this new production of Frank D. Gilroy’s Pulitzer-winning drama The Subject Was Roses, the complex dynamics and deep-seated emotions of a father, mother and adult son are explored in agonizing detail by real-life husband and wife John Slattery (Mad Men, Documentary Now!) and Talia Balsam (Divorce, Mad Men) and their son Harry Slattery, who shines in his theatrical debut.

Set in the Clearys’ Bronx apartment in May of 1946, the play sees the Irish Catholic family made whole when John and Nettie’s son Timmy returns home after his three-year service in World War II. From the opening scenes of John basking in the scent of his prodigal son’s army jacket to Nettie preparing Timmy’s favorite childhood breakfast, it’s clear that there’s a strong sense of love in this family. What’s clearer still is that the Clearys’ ability to effectively communicate is among their greatest weaknesses.

From their first scene together, John and Nettie are having two distinct conversations — both talking, neither listening — and the pattern somewhat continues in Timmy’s dialogues, becoming especially overt when he’s been drinking. This lack of communication leads to a great deal of resentment and emotional outbursts, and it contributes to one of the major themes of The Subject Was Roses: the rejection of change.

When faced with a change as undeniable and tangible as Timmy leaving home a boy and returning a man, his parents are unable to process the shift in his personality and the family dynamic. Nettie can’t fathom that her little boy doesn’t remember that waffles are his favorite breakfast treat and breaks down in tears. John is mortified that his son abandoned his childhood faith and orders him to attend Mass regardless.

While these characters are written with great depth and nuance, they are built upon the stock templates of the patriarchal working father and the maternal stay-at-home mother, and that lends to the timeless relatability of this play written in the 1960s and set in the 1940s.

Following the insightful guidance of director Scott Wittman, Slattery, Balsam and Harry manifest the full potential of these characters — seamlessly navigating the script’s pivots from moments of rage to grief to laughter with authenticity and respect for the source material.

Were the writing and acting not of such high quality, John could have been a detestable, irredeemable character. He’s abrasive, stubborn, dishonest and short-tempered, all traits that are present in Slattery’s portrayal, but Slattery also captures the sad, broken man beneath it all, who pulled himself out of poverty but still fell short of the status he strived for, leaving him unfulfilled in life but too proud to admit it.

Throughout his passionate performance, Slattery emphasizes the good aspects of John’s personality, including his sharp wit and unfettered desire to connect with his son, even when failing to communicate that. Sadly for John, his fatherly love often went unrequited, as Timmy was much closer with his mother growing up, which left John’s feelings to fester into resentment toward both of them, but especially toward Nettie.

Though Nettie shares John’s emotional immaturity and dissatisfaction with their life, her role in The Subject Was Roses makes her infinitely more endearing, and Balsam earns the audience’s loyalty from the get-go. Her sincere performance as the longsuffering housewife is richly layered with moving portrayals of grief, fear, love, defiance and regret, and with each emotion, her face confirms mastery in her craft.

Harry Slattery’s performance as Timmy is a marvelous sight to behold. No audience member would suspect this to be his first professional theater role without his short playbill bio, or this review, tipping them off. He garners hearty laughter with his pseudo asides and spirited moments of whimsy, mindful never to overact to the point of farce. On the surface, his character is the most level-headed and well-adjusted of the Clearys, seemingly untraumatized by his time on the battlefield, but with each scene of Timmy indulging his newfound taste for liquor, Harry slowly pulls back the curtain to reveal glimpses of real trauma buried under the charming boy-scout persona.

The detailed set, costumes and props in Bay Street’s production of The Subject Was Roses are executed wonderfully. Of special note is the music adapted by Marc Shaiman. The most impactful scenes, such as the climax with the eponymous roses, are capped off with Celtic-inspired musical interludes that create a sense of ominous foreboding and add so much to the overall tone of the show. With its stellar direction and production and a cast whose family chemistry is unrivaled (beyond the obvious reason), The Subject Was Roses strikes a perfect balance of family drama, humor and heart.

The show runs at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor through June 16. For tickets and more info, call 631-725-9500 or visit baystreet.org.