Review: Hugh Jackman in a Twisty Tale of ‘Sexual Misconduct’

When Ella Beatty steps onto the stage at the Minetta Lane Theater, she’s not just one of the two actors in Hannah Moscovitch’s ‘Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes.’ She’s also moving furniture — an unusual sight that might make one wonder if the producers skimped on backstage crew. After all, the production is part of the Audible x Together series, a venture that pairs Audible, a division of Amazon, with Hugh Jackman and producer Sonia Friedman to present minimalist, short-run plays at budget-friendly prices. But no, Beatty’s labor isn’t a cost-cutting measure; it’s a deliberate choice by director Ian Rickson, setting the stage for a tightly constructed, psychologically charged drama.

Jackman, the marquee name in this production, plays Jon Macklem, a celebrated yet self-absorbed novelist who also teaches literature at a prestigious college. Despite his literary acclaim, Jon’s personal life is a mess. He’s estranged from his third wife, having a track record of racking up failed marriages like badges of dishonor. Enter Annie, a 19-year-old student in one of his classes, portrayed by Beatty. Although their affair is entirely predictable, Moscovitch crafts it with sharp, unsettling precision.

Macklem, despite his veneer of literary sophistication, is a walking cliché — the aging male academic who rationalizes his behavior through intellectual pretense. He muses about the ‘erotics of pedagogy,’ half ashamed, half aroused by his own narrative. Meanwhile, Annie’s lines are fragmented, hesitant, and almost spectral. Beatty, recently seen in Ibsen’s ‘Ghosts,’ brings a ghostly quality to her portrayal here as well, capturing Annie’s uncertainty while simultaneously exuding an unnerving sense of control.

The audience may feel like they’ve seen this dynamic before: a powerful older man seduces a younger woman, exploiting the power imbalance. Yet Moscovitch complicates the narrative by centering Jon’s perspective. He dominates the dialogue, with his monologues flowing like rivers of self-justification, while Annie’s fragmented speech underscores her disorientation. But is Annie truly a victim? She repeatedly tells Jon that his crude novels taught her ‘what I like,’ openly devours his attention, and even shows him her own writing, eagerly soaking up his praise. The play subtly asks: who is manipulating whom?

Jackman is perfectly cast as Jon, exuding a dangerously seductive charisma that keeps the audience guessing. Even when Jon’s temper flares, particularly when Annie fails to behave in ways he deems rational, Jackman maintains an undercurrent of charm. He embodies a man who sees himself as the tragic hero of his own narrative, even as he drags a lawn mower across the stage — a surprisingly apt metaphor for the way he bulldozes over other people’s boundaries.

Rickson’s direction is masterful, creating a production that’s deceptively simple yet loaded with meaning. Isabella Byrd’s lighting design often shines a harsh, unforgiving light on the audience, implicating them in Jon’s moral ambiguity. Mikaal Sulaiman’s sound design, consisting of faint, dreamlike music, adds to the sense that we’re drifting through Jon’s self-constructed fantasy.

The play’s most compelling moments come in the second half, when we meet Annie again after a significant time jump. She’s older now, more self-assured, and dressed in a way that conveys her newfound maturity. Jon, too, has aged, sporting new glasses and a more subdued demeanor. The contrast between the two raises the question of who has truly evolved — and whether revenge and growth are two sides of the same coin.

The minimal set design by Brett J. Banakis and Christine Jones employs little more than a few chairs, a desk, and that infamous lawn mower, but it’s more than enough to convey the emotional stakes of the story. Rickson’s production proves that when the performances are as strong as those delivered by Jackman and Beatty, less can indeed be more.

The Audible x Together initiative is still in its experimental phase, with its next production, ‘Creditors,’ set to open soon with a star-studded cast including Liev Schreiber and Maggie Siff. If ‘Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes’ is any indication, the project is a promising model for affordable, thought-provoking theater that strips away the spectacle and forces the audience to confront the raw, unsettling dynamics between power and desire. And yes, if you cough at just the right moment, Hugh Jackman might even offer you a bottle of water.