Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers
Erik Haagensen
March 9, 2010: Geoffrey Cowan and Leroy Aarons' "Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers" carries the subtitle "A Radio Play." And that's how it began life back in 1990, as a production of L.A. Theatre Works, a company that specializes in the genre. In 2007, the group decided to put the piece on stage, retaining the radio drama concept. As a result, at New York Theatre Workshop we have actors standing at an array of microphones, scripts in hand, while a Foley artist behind them creates sound effects. Alas, in the hands of director John Rubinstein, the conceit only proves distancing and annoying. The undeniably dramatic true story of a great struggle for American freedom of the press seems awfully dry, coming across as theater that's good for you rather than good theater.
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