ADAM'S RIB

If you’re expecting the Spenser Tracy/Katharine Hepburn classic battle of the sexes, you’ll be disappointed. But Adam Arkin and Anne Heche make this version their own. Married attorneys Amanda and Adam Bonner find themselves on opposite sides of an assault case, with Amanda defending a woman who shot her philandering husband. Heche and Arkin make this comedy brassier, faster, and less sophisticated than the original, without losing a laugh. This is a first-rate ensemble production with a polished supporting cast, especially Amy Pietz as the gun-toting wife, Marvin Kaplan as the droll court clerk, and Annabelle Gurwitch as the cheating husband’s sweetie. The topping on the hilarious antics is the zippy 1940s’ musical interludes. M.T.B. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB/ MAR 06]