Patrick Grant's music and sound cues are evocative of the setting too, but the framing device of the reading of some of "Aspern's" poems - written, presumably, by the adapter, Mr. Zuckerman - detracts from the otherwise consistent tone. "Aspern" was imagined by James to have had enormous personal magnetism - Juliana is said to have called him a "god." But the verses presented here, while evocative and clever, are simply not good enough to make me believe their author would elicit such devotion by serious scholars. The real poet behind the events on which James loosely based this tale was Shelley. Perhaps the adaptation could have used some lines from one of the great Romantic poets, or simply found a way to suggest the fictitious Aspern's brilliance without quoting him - after all, James did.
Presented by Turtle Shell Productions at the Turtle's Shell Theater (in the Times Square Arts Center), 300 W. 43 St., NYC. Through May 24. Tickets at TheaterMania or call (212) 352-3101.
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