‘Rope’: Ignoring that corpse in the buffet chest
One of Alfred Hitchcock’s most underrated thrillers was “Rope,” a 1948 experimental film set in real time at a posh dinner party in New York City. But the attendees don’t realize there’s something sinister on the menu: a freshly strangled body, stuffed inside the buffet chest. The victim, as it happens, was to be an … Read More
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One of Alfred Hitchcock’s most underrated thrillers was “Rope,” a 1948 experimental film set in real time at a posh dinner party in New York City. But the attendees don’t realize there’s something sinister on the menu: a freshly strangled body, stuffed inside the buffet chest. The victim, as it happens, was to be an honored guest at the party; his absence arouses stinging suspicions.
Famously starring James Stewart, Farley Granger, and John Dall, “Rope” considers power, privilege, and the perverse joy of committing the “perfect murder.” Will the two handsome, snooty Princeton-educated hosts, who happen to be secret lovers, maintain control or crack under pressure?
The film version of “Rope” was based on the 1929 play by Patrick Hamilton. And now that play has been retooled by Gordon Greenberg in a diverting albeit erratic production by The New Group at the Theater at St. Clement’s. Scott Elliott directs.
Set in late December 1957, the play opens with highly agitated “roommates” Garrett (Cameron Monaghan, best known for playing the gay bipolar son in Showtime’s “Shameless”) and Nate (Corey Fogelmanis), partially dressed, frantically setting up for a small dinner party. Nate puts on a record, none other than the soundtrack from the Hitchcock horror classic “Psycho.” It becomes clear that the men have just mercilessly killed their friend, Ronald Kentley, and Nate is freaking out.
“Nobody knows,” Garrett says. “No one ever will. It bonds us forever.”
[caption id="attachment_65667" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Jason Butler Harner and Corey Fogelmanis in "Rope."Monique Carboni[/caption]
Soon we meet the motley group of dinner guests. There’s Richard (Graham Phillips), an obsequious chum from Princeton and Leila (Elizabeth Gillies), a clever student at Sarah Lawrence who flirts with Richard. Later, Judge Kentley (James Waterston) arrives wondering why his son has gone missing. The final guest is Rupert (Jason Butler Harner), a formidable professor at Princeton who, we later learn, has a sexual history with the hosts.
What distinguishes this new adaptation is that the gay elements, tamped down and coded in previous versions due to prevailing antigay sentiment, are on full display here. The young men kiss freely and sexual scenarios are portrayed. “Take off your pants…Show me your ass,” orders the domineering Garrett in a flashback in Nate’s dorm room.
Garrett enjoys dropping sly hints about his intimate relationship with Nate. After Richard warns Garrett not to insult Nate by “punching below the belt,” Garrett retorts, “I have permission. Nate doesn’t mind a low blow every now and then.”
While the dialogue is sharp and the performances are engaging, the twisty, talky narrative is only intermittently spellbinding and tests limits of believability. The excuse for using the narrow, coffee-table height chest to dine on is ludicrous (the murderers repeatedly claim their dining room has been taken over by a collection of books that Nate recently inherited). The dinner spread appears meager and only a few bites are taken. Surely the image-obsessed Garrett, who boasts about his tailored suit from J. Press, would not host such a lame, slapdash affair.
[caption id="attachment_65668" align="aligncenter" width="691"]
Clockwise from Left: Graham Phillips, Elizabeth Gillies, Cameron Monaghan, James Waterston, Jason Butler Harner, Corey Fogelmanis.Monique Carboni[/caption]
The pacing is slack and the staging — such as maneuvering the guests around the buffet chest — is clunky. What’s more, the flashbacks are not clearly articulated. One of the more arresting moments, however, occurs later in the evening, when Kentley grimaces and asks “What’s that smell?”
The original play was inspired by the infamous real-life Leopold and Loeb murder case from 1924, where two intelligent, well-bred young men, who were lovers, killed a teenaged boy for the thrill of it. Their motivation has been described as a Nietzschean exercise in intellectual superiority. While that notion might have resonated deeply in 1929, or in 1948, it may baffle today’s theatergoers.
For a wildly comedic take on the “Rope” story, be sure to catch the play “Messy White Gays” next time it comes around. Written by Drew Droege, the unhinged farce centers on two self-absorbed queens who murder the third member of their throuple just before friends come over for a cocaine-fueled Sunday brunch in their Hell’s Kitchen apartment. The body, which stinks to high heaven, is stashed in their tacky Jonathan Adler credenza.
Rope | The New Group | Theater at St. Clement’s | 423 W. 46th St. | $59 – $99 | Through December 6, 2026 | 95 minutes, no intermission
Jason Butler Harner and Corey Fogelmanis in "Rope."Monique Carboni[/caption]
Soon we meet the motley group of dinner guests. There’s Richard (Graham Phillips), an obsequious chum from Princeton and Leila (Elizabeth Gillies), a clever student at Sarah Lawrence who flirts with Richard. Later, Judge Kentley (James Waterston) arrives wondering why his son has gone missing. The final guest is Rupert (Jason Butler Harner), a formidable professor at Princeton who, we later learn, has a sexual history with the hosts.
What distinguishes this new adaptation is that the gay elements, tamped down and coded in previous versions due to prevailing antigay sentiment, are on full display here. The young men kiss freely and sexual scenarios are portrayed. “Take off your pants…Show me your ass,” orders the domineering Garrett in a flashback in Nate’s dorm room.
Garrett enjoys dropping sly hints about his intimate relationship with Nate. After Richard warns Garrett not to insult Nate by “punching below the belt,” Garrett retorts, “I have permission. Nate doesn’t mind a low blow every now and then.”
While the dialogue is sharp and the performances are engaging, the twisty, talky narrative is only intermittently spellbinding and tests limits of believability. The excuse for using the narrow, coffee-table height chest to dine on is ludicrous (the murderers repeatedly claim their dining room has been taken over by a collection of books that Nate recently inherited). The dinner spread appears meager and only a few bites are taken. Surely the image-obsessed Garrett, who boasts about his tailored suit from J. Press, would not host such a lame, slapdash affair.
[caption id="attachment_65668" align="aligncenter" width="691"] Clockwise from Left: Graham Phillips, Elizabeth Gillies, Cameron Monaghan, James Waterston, Jason Butler Harner, Corey Fogelmanis.Monique Carboni[/caption]
The pacing is slack and the staging — such as maneuvering the guests around the buffet chest — is clunky. What’s more, the flashbacks are not clearly articulated. One of the more arresting moments, however, occurs later in the evening, when Kentley grimaces and asks “What’s that smell?”
The original play was inspired by the infamous real-life Leopold and Loeb murder case from 1924, where two intelligent, well-bred young men, who were lovers, killed a teenaged boy for the thrill of it. Their motivation has been described as a Nietzschean exercise in intellectual superiority. While that notion might have resonated deeply in 1929, or in 1948, it may baffle today’s theatergoers.
For a wildly comedic take on the “Rope” story, be sure to catch the play “Messy White Gays” next time it comes around. Written by Drew Droege, the unhinged farce centers on two self-absorbed queens who murder the third member of their throuple just before friends come over for a cocaine-fueled Sunday brunch in their Hell’s Kitchen apartment. The body, which stinks to high heaven, is stashed in their tacky Jonathan Adler credenza.
Rope | The New Group | Theater at St. Clement’s | 423 W. 46th St. | $59 – $99 | Through December 6, 2026 | 95 minutes, no intermission 
