It pays to keep your eyes peeled at the new revival of “The Odd Couple,” which opened Thursday night on Broadway, because some of the funniest moments occur in silence.
There’s Matthew Broderick, playing neat freak Felix Unger, holding a soup ladle under the chin of Nathan Lane, who portrays divorced slob Oscar Madison, while he munches an hors d’oeuvre.
And Broderick’s parade through Oscar’s living room as he continuously sprays a can of air freshener.
There also are plenty of funny lines in the 1965 play by Neil Simon, although it is not the laugh riot that first united Lane and Broderick on a Broadway stage:Mel Brooks’”The Producers” in 2001.
In fact, both actors seem somewhat subdued in these roles as mismatched friends thrown together by Felix’s pending divorce.
Though Oscar obviously needs a “wife” to disinfect the apartment and keep him on a budget, it’s clear that almost anyone would find it difficult to live with Felix, a needy hypochondriac who’s happy to cook and clean but also wants stimulating conversation.
“The Odd Couple” does have an excellent supporting cast, which includes Brad Garrett (TV’s “Everybody Loves Raymond”) as the poker-playing cop Murphy as well as Rob Bartlett (radio’s “Imus in the Morning”) and Lee Wilkow (”Kiss Me, Kate”)