underplay

Ever since the February exam debacle, the State Bar has underplayed the idea that there were substantial problems with the multiple-choice questions.

Gill underplays Booth’s mental challenges, perhaps forestalling a diagnosis that could make it easier for us to distance ourselves from the character.

They don’t want to underplay the dangers, but they also don’t want to discourage someone from pursuing what, for them, has become a passion.

This is all a function of good writing and underplayed acting; the mood is largely deadpan.

The ensemble recreates the communal energy of the characters, though sometimes what’s italicized in the script might have been more potently conveyed with underplaying.