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[0:00] Jeff Malone: Welcome to Half Hour with Jeff & Richie, the podcast where we explore the latest shows we see, sharing our insights and opinions on the performance of storylines and everything in between.

[0:07] Richie Grasso: In today's episode, we're discussing the Broadway production of The Imaginary Invalid. Whether you cannot catch the show in person or you want to expand your thoughts after seeing it, this episode is for you.

[0:17] Jeff Malone: And as always, we want to inform you that this episode will contain spoilers, so if you're ready to dive into this production, stick around with us. I'm Jeff.

[0:24] Richie Grasso: And I'm Richie, and we're thrilled to be your hosts for today's episode. But before we start the conversation about The Imaginary Invalid, here are a few words from our advertisers.

[0:33] Jeff Malone: Welcome everyone to a new episode of Half Hour with Jeff & Richie. Today we're discussing The Imaginary Invalid. Argon is a professional patient who obsesses over every ailment. To cut his medical bills, he plans to marry his daughter Angelique to a doctor. But she loves someone else, and his sharp-tongued maid, Twinette, has plans of her own. A comedy about money, medicine, and marriage.

[0:55] Richie Grasso: So let's get into our bold statements for The Imaginary Invalid.

[0:58] Jeff Malone: All right. I mean, I'll go first. I think that anytime you get Molière on stage, I think you're in for a treat. And I think Bill Irwin is doing some incredible things here with his adaptation, as well as with his performance. In his bio, it says he's an actor and a clown. And I think that's so great that he's doing so much wonderful work like that. While I don't know if I was 100% on board with some of the directorial choices and the pacing of some of the comedy of this, I do think that the costumes, scenic design, and the overall production was overall pretty strong.

[1:27] Richie Grasso: Yes. I kind of agree with that. I find my bold statement here for The Imaginary Invalid is that I think that bringing this play into the modern day had the right intent, but I don't know if it fully landed with every element that I think we needed from this play.

[1:45] Jeff Malone: Yeah. So we'll dive in a little bit here. So interestingly, when you said modern day, I think, did you mean bring the show to the modern day? Because it's not set in the modern day, of course, for those of you who haven't seen it.

[1:56] Richie Grasso: Right, meaning for us.

[1:57] Jeff Malone: Right, exactly. To see it in the present day, right. Because we are set in a very specific time period with lavish costumes and scenery. We'll get to some of the production choices in a second. But I think Roundabout does everything, right? They're always putting different shows on in their season. So I've seen this show idea of like, let's bring The Imaginary Invalid, let's do a new, more modernized text of sorts from Molière. I think it's great that we see Molière like this in this way. I actually think it's great that we saw it set in the period with lavish costumes and scenery. And I think that was really important to tell this. I think it's also funny. And I think, you know, as some people have said, Molière is where a lot of like comedy-esque situational comedy kind of began long, long ago.

And I think that's why a lot of that still works. Now, I will say this piece seemed to, at times, not for me pick up the laughter and the comedy until about halfway through. I felt like they were trying, and then they were trying. And it was like, hey, this is funny, right? Let's laugh. And there was Bill Irwin's in the couch chair for a long time in the beginning, like with some monologues. And I think it just kind of had a hard get out of just getting this text started. And then the dance piece in the very beginning was very cool with the masks. I thought that was very cool. And I think that as the show went on, this concept of, oh, someone is ill, or are they ill, and the mayhem that ensues with the family drama because he's so convinced that he's ill and needs help. Sure, it's certainly a reflection on today's times as well. And I think it just, like I said, I think it just took a little while to get some of that comedy going, if that makes sense.

[3:35] Richie Grasso: I agree with this. And that's where I think that's why I'm saying like bringing the play to the modern day. Yes, not this show being set in modern times, but bringing it to us in the modern day. And I'm looking at this and I'm kind of saying like, I get the humor, but like, is the humor still funny is where I think I'm landing with the text on this. And I'm like, it's funny, but then it's not funny. It's funny. It's a lot of toilet humor, which at a time I think is like what people would make comedy out of, especially in the play space. And I think like we've kind of moved very far away from that kind of humor.

[4:09] Jeff Malone: Yeah. I mean, I certainly think that medicine and modern medicine today is actually somewhat of a hot topic, right? In today's political climate, in today's world. And so like, I think what it seemed like part of maybe Bill Irwin's mission here to bring this to a modern audience was this sense of like, Hey, what was talked about hundreds of years ago in this movie or a play kind of relates to today about how there's so many people that think they're ill or need to get all these treatments and get all these things done to have medicinal help at their side 24/7. Of course, so many people do need that, but this was kind of showing someone who like really didn't and was kind of like, you know, what was, what was Argon's character really here?

A little bit lonely, a little bit trying to control his family. There was a lot of like, I want my daughter to do this. And so I think like, yes, the toilet humor does kind of after a while for me anyway, get like, okay, okay. Is there, are we going to find another pacing with this? And so, yes, I feel like overall, I think there was some funny moments and I think Bill really brought a lot of the comedy. He was one of the strongest people in this. It's incredible to see him work. I think he's like really good at the physical comedy of it and just delivering lines. And I think if you like him, people will really enjoy that performance.

[5:23] Richie Grasso: And Bill Irwin actually says, he asks a question too, about can one afford to be sick? And I find like, does that message come across in this play? And where do you think that kind of comes across in this play?

[5:39] Jeff Malone: Well, it's interesting because there was all these different treatments, all these different doctors that were going to help him with these things. And he kept getting all these treatments and they weren't even sure what was working and what wasn't. Cause he, so I think, I think that's a really interesting question because there's also this point here that the show also argues that laughter and theater are the actual medicine in and of itself, right? So maybe there was this, this statement to be made of, oh, well the laughter and the people in and out of doors coming in and out made him feel better. Maybe brought him joy when he was feeling, maybe it was a different time of therapy of sorts that he needed than actual literal treatments of some kind. You know, that's a commentary to make too.

[6:19] Richie Grasso: Right. And then also, does it lean slightly satire in a way on the whole medical industry world? You know, I think there's multiple factors that are actually happening in the actual writing of this play because, you know, there is a lot of being poking fun at the medical field. Doctors overcharging, oh, I was charged for this. I was prescribed this. It costs this keeping a log of how many bills you have. Also being wealthy and being able to go to the doctor, I think is also a big point and like factor here in this play. And he's also trying to make the point that if his daughter marries a doctor, he'll get free treatment and he's counting his coins. Meanwhile, like, I think it's ironic that he's counting his coins and trying to get this free help, but he lives in this huge, glorious, you know, beautiful mansion with all these wonderful wigs and costumes and things. So that's also the irony here that they're talking about.

[7:14] Jeff Malone: Right. And brings it back to the question around, can you afford to be sick? At this point, he can afford to be sick. It's like his whole thing is around being sick. But then the title of this is The Imaginary Invalid. And so an invalid is, you know, usually someone who is ill or sick or hurt of some kind. So the imaginary invalid is like, is he making all this up?

[7:34] Richie Grasso: Going back on it is like, are you a hypochondriac here? And you think you're sick and you actually are not, or you are forcing that you are sick. So it's interesting. I think, you know, there's a lot happening there.

[7:46] Jeff Malone: And we talked a lot about Twinette the Maid, and I feel like we'll talk about Rachel Bloom's performance on that in the next segment. But I feel like there was this character, and I think this is where, like, when you look at the roots of this, I'm sure this is where Bill Irwin said, oh, Molière was onto something here, because how many times do you see sitcoms or situational comedies, right? A sitcom being short for that, where you see, oh, there's always a character lurking, watching, the maid, the butler, the doorman, whatever, right? So that was kind of this character. She saw so many things, didn't know what to believe, saw this family and all these visitors in and out. So that was a cool character for her, I think. And I think that's a cool, like, stock comedy character is like the person who's always there watching everything, giving commentary to the audience, kind of like helping guide some of the plot a little bit. I think that was a cool character.

[8:31] Richie Grasso: Yeah, because I think it's written that way for you to be like, oh, okay, she's telling us that he's not sick. He's imagining all of this stuff. And then what is actually happening here? He's kind of getting overdrawn here by so many different doctors. And she's like, wait, I could do the same thing to him at the end of this. I can help take his money, or I actually want to help his daughter, because she's not getting any money. It's getting left to like, maybe this girlfriend that he has, or getting left to whoever else is left beyond that. And coming back to it, it's like, oh, no, she wants to help the daughter who actually believes in him. So it's interesting.

[9:15] Jeff Malone: Totally, totally. It's a cool plot and concept. And I think this would be a good time to kind of take a quick break. And when we come back, we'll talk a little bit about the direction, some of the design choices and some of the actual performances. So we'll be right back.

[9:25] Richie Grasso: Okay. And we're back. So let's start talking a little bit about this writer and star here. We have Bill Irwin starring in it, writing this adaptation, doing this 90-minute cut as well. We are going from a almost over three-hour play trimmed down to a 90-minute, no intermission play. You know, is that trending right now with these long plays? Sure. I mean, I think we're still seeing the Arthur Millers and the Tennessee Williams and more of the modern plays, modern meaning, you know, older, but still somewhat modern, longer in its full run. But I think when we see the Shakespeare's and the Molière's and some of this, I think we're seeing a lot of these adaptations of trimming down, trimming down, get the plot through a little, you know, audience attention spans now are the 90 minutes to two-hour maxes kind of for a lot of things. So in terms of just like the writing of this and Bill's performance and kind of doing both roles, what are your thoughts on Bill in general with this?

[10:10] Jeff Malone: I think he did a great job. You know, I think he truly was inspired by this piece to help bring it back to the stage and bring new life to it, which is definitely something that Roundabout does as a theater company as well. So I think it's like kind of in the perfect home for this. I think that interestingly enough, he, you know, rewrote this and is starring in it very similar to Molière. And the same thing happened. He wrote this, this was his last play and he actually collapsed.

[10:43] Richie Grasso: Molière.

[10:43] Jeff Malone: Yes. He actually collapsed on stage and died after. So it was like his last play. And it's very interesting to see, like Bill Irwin is now writing this and then starring in it and very similar. Hoping the best of health for Bill Irwin during this run, of course.

[10:58] Richie Grasso: Well, he's got past the four performances.

[10:58] Jeff Malone: Yeah, right, right. Well, that's, you know, he's got to get to the end of the run here, but he was, no, he was really, really great in this too. I think that, I think Bill was one of the stronger standouts with this. And then, you know, Bill also didn't direct it. We also have some direction here as well by Brandon J. Dirden. So I think with Brandon's direction, you know, this is where I think I had a little bit of an issue where I found that everything was really two-dimensional. Everyone walked down to this very center chair and it was very 2D and it was like in and out and you went right to the chair and right back to the door and everything was like along these walls. Now, did the set give for that?

Yes. If you wanted to take it, maybe the vision was like, well, when you watch I Love Lucy or sitcoms on television, it is very 2D and you have the couch right center and the door in the back and everything's to the couch and center. So if you were mocking or mimicking this sort of like sitcom, like let's kind of come down to the audience and keep it centered the whole time, fine. And that worked for that. However, I'm not watching a television show. I am watching a live theater performance and I felt like the set was very restrictive to this one room, which I think worked because the set kind of appeared after that whole dance moment in the beginning. Beowulf Boritt does this set, which is just beautiful, but it feels like a doll's house.

It feels like a boxed in, we're kind of putting these cartoon caricatured characters in this front and center. So for 90 straight minutes of that, and this is me being nitpicky, I felt like that kind of limited some of the comedic upstart because it was like, go down to the couch, say your line, it's funny, go back to the door, go back down to the couch, say your line, stand up, stand center, go back to the door. It just felt very that for a long time. And I wasn't sure if I was extremely impressed with the direction of this, even though I think Bill and the cast brought a lot of good moments in the acting.

[12:40] Richie Grasso: I would agree with that as well.

[12:43] Richie Grasso: There are moments that Brendan does well, but there are also moments that he didn't really lean into what's actually happening in the play here, and I agree with that. I think there's moments where you need to be directing the other actors that are on that stage, even when a scene is going on that they are not part of. This is the perfect style of play for them to be like, oh, I'm listening over here to see what's going on, or oh, I'm off stage. What is the comedic moment that's happening off stage? And I think that is definitely something that was missing from the direction in this play, especially when this is a comedy and it is more in that style, very similar to like Noises Off or a play that goes wrong, and we have doors opening and closing and yelling and screaming and laughing, and where is that moment for you where you're getting those actual moments in the play?

Yeah. And now maybe this wasn't as so physical comedy heavy as some of those others in terms of like Noises Off is all about, what do they always say about Noises Off? There is a character in Noises Off and it's called The Doors, right? The doors are of major importance, and there were doors in this. And yeah, so there was so much in and out of visitors and family that I think we could have just played up some of that. It just seemed very 2D. Right. And that's why I'm saying we have two focal point doors here that are designed beautifully in this set design by Beowulf Boritt, and I look at it and I'm saying those should have been used. They're also in almost like a circular pattern where people can be going in one, quick changing, coming back out, which they did.

And they did a little bit of that. Yeah. I think I was looking for more of a heightened experience in that from the direction, definitely. When you talk about some of the design, I totally would agree that Beowulf Boritt's set is very strong. I think his sets are always wonderful. We've just seen a lot of his work. Costume designer Karen Perry, really, really blown away by this. And I will also say Nikia Mathis, who we've had on the podcast before, hair and wig design also really impressive too. The aesthetic of all that was very, very smart. Yeah, it was super period, but also like next level in terms of like, yeah, we're in 2026, so what does this look like now? Versus like, what could it have looked like? And I loved seeing that. And it stayed true to the time period. Yeah. Yeah. So totally. In terms of some actual performances, who was a standout for you or a few standouts for you in this production?

[15:08] Jeff Malone: I do think Bill Irwin, who plays Argan, was a great standout. He's basically on the stage almost the whole time, except for when he has to go off stage and use the bathroom, but he is still performing during that time, which it is funny. So that is probably my big standout there. It was nice seeing Rachel Bloom on the stage, Broadway debut here, and to kind of have this new element on the stage with what she's bringing was fun to watch as well.

[15:35] Richie Grasso: Totally. I would agree with all that. I will say a shout out to Brooks Ashmanskas. He's just always so funny in everything he does. He's a scene stealer in the best way, I think. He comes in and you just know you're going to get a good performance. Really, really smart and really, really strong. I also really enjoyed Daniel Croix Henderson's performance and Hiram Delgado's performance. I thought they were really strong in their roles too. Across the board though, this whole cast, I was really impressed that they worked really well together.

[16:01] Jeff Malone: Yeah. I do think they all worked really well together as well, so it was great. Good stuff. Well, why don't we take a quick break and when we come back, we'll talk a little bit about what does this mean for Tony Award potential as Roundabout Theatre Company puts on their first Broadway show of this Tony season. We'll take a quick break and we'll be right back.

[16:19] Richie Grasso: Okay. We're back. This is Roundabout's first show of their season. They have a few shows coming up. I always say here, sometimes the shows in the fall, specifically the plays, don't always get remembered in Tony season. It's something that sometimes they do and they really, really do, but a lot of times they don't. My question to you would be, is this production going to be remembered at the Tonys this year? Do you feel like this is for specific things or for best revival of a play in general? How do you feel this will live up to the Tony nomination potentials that come out in usually April and May?

[16:50] Jeff Malone: Well, I look at this show and I say, okay, it's The Imaginary Invalid. There is history here with the show, so it could have this moment of still maybe creeping into the Tony Award category here. It will be revival. I don't know. I think, like you're saying, it's their first show of the season. I think they put the show that they are not expecting to get a ton of Tony Award nominations in that slot. I don't know. I could be wrong, but I would look at this and I would say, yeah, I don't think it's going to be extremely remembered in this Tony season, but it could. Right now, I would say it could get in there for revival. I think also Bill Irwin could potentially be nominated for leading actor.

Other than that, and maybe Scenic Design by Beowulf Boritt. I mean, again, it is a beautiful set and Beowulf works a lot in the industry during the season, so this could be one of them that makes it in or it could not, but we always expect and do get a beautiful Scenic Design whenever we attend a Roundabout show.

[17:58] Richie Grasso: I would agree with a lot of that. I think that this could get some potential Tony buzz. I mean, it's also interesting when you look at some of the critic reviews of this. This did get a New York Times Critics Pick, but then Time Out said not recommended. So it's interesting. It did get some mixed reviews. I think that in general, yeah, I'm not sure. Again, I really think the direction was really working for me with some of the choices, but costumes, sure. Scenery, sure. Bill Irwin's performance could potentially be a Best Revival nomination, although there's a lot of revivals coming this year, so I don't know. It'll be interesting to see what comes with that. What do you think when you see something like this?

And first of all, we had two productions of this within 16 months. There was an off-Broadway version of this in 2025 and now this Roundabout Broadway version with Bill Irwin's adaptation. What do you think about when a show is done frequently and adapted in different ways for a modern audience, especially an old, old show like this?

[18:49] Jeff Malone: I think that people are still inspired by this work. I mean, there's no other way really to put it other than that. It still is timeless in a way. We're talking about an industry here, especially in the medical industry, that it still deals with these certain topics today. And I think that's where people still resonate with it. And they say, oh, listen, we're taking a playwright that's known. We're putting a little bit of a newer spin on it. We're editing it down and then we're going to bring it to the stage and we're going to tell it in this way. And I think that's where, you know, it still works in some way and people still want to see it. And listen, there were people at the theater so that, you know, if they were not interested in it, there would be no one there.

[19:32] Richie Grasso: Yeah. Yeah. And I think also, you know, it's important to kind of remember that I always, I always say here, everything can be on Broadway. And when you look at the topics of vast array here, we look at like, okay, and now we have a Molière and also down the street is a Shakespeare in a very different modern adaptation with Much Ado About Nothing down the street with a Jamie Lloyd production, which is getting its own spin. Right. So you see these older works come back. And I think it sometimes takes Roundabout or MTC or some of these theater companies to do the public theater, right. What do we get with Shakespeare in the Park every year? Right. So I think it's important. I think it's good to tell these stories and bring younger audiences into something like this too.

[20:10] Jeff Malone: Yeah, I would, I would agree with that. And I would say that this does keep it true to Roundabout. Right. I mean, like having them bring something older back into the season, like they're not going to only do new works at Roundabout. Right. So I think like that's where a strong point comes in.

[20:27] Richie Grasso: Right, right, right. If you had to maybe bring someone new into this show after seeing it, who might you cast?

[20:32] Jeff Malone: In the title role or in any role, really?

[20:42] Richie Grasso: Yeah, let's go title. I, you know, it's interesting because I feel like you would want a comedy actor, almost like along the lines of like, and I'm just saying this because we just saw Billy Crystal in 860, but someone like Billy Crystal, someone like Jim Carrey, someone who's like in that, in that comedy route of like, who does a lot of this like loud, larger than life, physical comedy, like almost like Eddie Murphy could do, like someone like from the golden age of, of the, of not, like the nineties was golden age of comedy per se, but it kind of was. Our golden age. Right. Some of those people who did a lot of that. I could see someone, someone like that doing it.

[21:18] Jeff Malone: Yeah. That's funny that you say Billy Crystal, because I think actually, yeah, he could work really well in the title role of this Imaginary Invalid.

[21:27] Richie Grasso: And for a little bit of a silly question now, who out of us is the bigger hypochondriac and what's the most traumatic you've ever been about a tiny cold and who might be the real Argan here between the two of us?

[21:38] Jeff Malone: Okay, well, that's easily you.

[21:38] Richie Grasso: Oh, wow. I will say when you get a little cold, you are not having it.

[21:45] Jeff Malone: Yeah. But I don't make it my whole personality.

[21:50] Richie Grasso: I definitely am. I am a little bit of a sore loser when it comes to being sick. I just, yeah. But I mean, we're talking about Argan here is like not even really sick in this show. And he thinks he is, I mean, when I have a cold, but when you feel like coming on, I think you take the Argan in here where you're like, I think I'm getting a cold. And that's when I know game over.

[22:11] Jeff Malone: I think I'm a little bit on the other side where I'm like, Oh, I really don't want to be sick. I really don't want to be sick. I don't want anyone to know. I really don't. And then like, I just let it go. But then when I do get sick, yes, I could be a little bit of a pain. Now I will say it's interesting because like if you modernize the show and you brought the show to the modern day, I think the interesting spin on like the modern medicinal world would be a sense of like, Oh, all these bills I'm getting, what is this? Does insurance cover it? Does it not? Like, there's a comedy there of sorts of like, wait, but you're charging me for that. Yeah. But your insurance covered that, but not that.

I think there could be like comedy mayhem around like an emergency room or a doctor's office or something. Not that medicine is comedic per se, but like, look what Molière has done with it. I think that would be a modern telling of like, Oh, make your appointment, but you made it on the app, but you didn't call in like the technology aspect of it would be very interesting if that, if this was modernized that way, I wonder what that would do. But I also wonder like, maybe did this production need that?

[23:13] Richie Grasso: Well, yeah. And maybe that's why some of the comedy felt a little slower to me. And like, that's why I feel like for the first half, I really wasn't actually like in full throttle with the comedy aspect of this until we were like halfway through. It just felt like the piecing, like the Rachel Bloom bit of her changing the character look and then back and the glasses on. That was funny. Like I wanted more of that, you know, and I just felt like it just felt stiff. Like I'm supposed to stand here and now I'm supposed to leave. And I just wish there was more.

[23:40] Jeff Malone: Yeah. Maybe, maybe we did, if we did take this out of the time period and set it in the modern day, what that would have done for modern audience. Well, right. And I think people might have resonated with that slightly more. I just think like, you know, keeping it in its time period, then I think that's where it should be kind of like over heightened with everything, like really beat it over the head with the comedy for me and don't play it almost safe than, um, than what we had. So, yeah, I mean, I think it's, it's fine.

[24:12] Richie Grasso: Oh my gosh. We're almost out of time. What is your final thoughts on The Imaginary Invalid on Broadway, Jeff?

[24:17] Jeff Malone: I think this is a great start for Roundabout in a way this season. I think, you know, it has funny moments. It is a great cast and it's doing something fun with a Molière play. And now let's see what else Roundabout's going to bring here. So definitely check it out before it closes.

[24:33] Richie Grasso: Yeah. I mean, when they say they have the Rocky Horror Picture Show playing at one of their theaters and then The Imaginary Invalid playing in another, that just goes to show the diversity element of the works that they're trying to put up of all different time periods. Right. So yeah, it's got a comedy bit to it. It's got, it's got some funny moments. Bill Irwin's great to see live. If you want to check it out, it's got a few weeks left of the run, um, before more things come because we know, and these theater companies have quite a few shows in one season to get in. So good stuff. Good stuff. Well, that wraps up our discussion of this episode. We hope you enjoyed our deep dive into The Imaginary Invalid.

And remember, we want to hear from you. Continue the conversation with us on Instagram and TikTok at Half Hour Podcast and drop us a comment on Spotify and let us know your thoughts on The Imaginary Invalid. Please also leave us a review. Your reviews mean so much to us. And remember to subscribe to our channel for all past and future episodes. Until next time, I'm Jeff and I'm Richie saying tata for now. Bye.