REVIEW: 'Reasons to be Pretty' by Neil LaBute at Asolo Conservatory in Sarasota

My review of the Asolo Conservatory's staging of Neil LaBute's "Reasons to be Pretty," running in today's Herald.

Steph (Gretchen Porro) has been insulted by her boyfriend Greg (Tony Stopperan) and peppers him with enough profanities to fill a football locker room. She won’t let Greg leave their home, physically blocking him from exiting the door at one point, until he admits what she heard he said: That while a female coworker possesses a pretty face, hers is “regular.” The remark terminates the young couple’s four-year relationship.

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Click for interviews with Porro and director Barbara Redmond.

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FRANK ATURA/PUBLICITY PHOTO Gretchen Porro and Tony Stopperan star in the FSU/Asolo Conservatory’s production of “Reasons to be Pretty.”

'Reasons to be Pretty' by Neil Labute opens at FSU/Asolo Conservatory

FRANK ATURA/PUBLICITY PHOTO Gretchen Porro and Tony Stopperan star in the FSU/Asolo Conservatory’s production of “Reasons to be Pretty.”

Neil LaBute ("In the Company of Men," "The Shape of Things") toned down the misanthropy in "Reasons to be Pretty," his first play to hit Broadway, where it ran last year and earned three Tony Award nominations including Best Play.

The Florida State University/Asolo Conservatory's production opens Jan. 4 at the FSU Center for the Performing Arts' Cook Theatre in Sarasota.

I recently sat down with director Barbara Redmond and leading lady Gretchen Porro (Steph) to discuss their staging of the acclaimed comic drama for this feature story running in today's Weekend section.