tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72805513590559899562024-03-13T12:08:11.033-07:00Forbes on Film & FootlightsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger779125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-87355334558593101522024-03-13T12:07:00.000-07:002024-03-13T12:07:38.755-07:00The Ally (the Public Theater)<p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN1y5vOIaomHCGk9SvH7g-7A3-SifvRzfgxIJBvzOhUjZZ1MR7Tu-qJQntKxY6TvyeyqM5kYS2MYioB3RlwPnFMEQbD4uusUlLSe3qAN0s1lccvslLehExcIsmEEBM8yhRUiEqj9aefnHT1WiH4T85rkWC7RMCFTr6Ni2ccjIrgV_zjJumax2sGvXH8g0/s3538/08.%20Ally0674rR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2358" data-original-width="3538" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN1y5vOIaomHCGk9SvH7g-7A3-SifvRzfgxIJBvzOhUjZZ1MR7Tu-qJQntKxY6TvyeyqM5kYS2MYioB3RlwPnFMEQbD4uusUlLSe3qAN0s1lccvslLehExcIsmEEBM8yhRUiEqj9aefnHT1WiH4T85rkWC7RMCFTr6Ni2ccjIrgV_zjJumax2sGvXH8g0/w400-h266/08.%20Ally0674rR.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Playwright Itamar (“The Band’s Visit”) Moses’ latest work is a provocative drama concerning university writing teacher Asaf (Josh Radnor) who signs a social justice manifesto on the urging of his student Baron (Elijah Jones) after the death of the latter’s cousin at the hands of the police. But his action ignites a a firestorm as the document equates the #BlackLivesMatter situation with that of Palestinians by Israelis. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">As Asaf is of Jewish descent, his involvement raises the particular ire of Judaica student Reuven (Ben Rosenfield) who bursts into Asaf’s office and passionately defends the Jewish side, and excoriates Asaf. And later, when Asaf decides his name should be removed from the manifesto after all, he comes under fire from both Palestinian student Farid (Michael Khalid Karadsheh), who argues the other side just as intensely and persuasively, and Asaf’s ex-girlfriend, Nakia (Cherise Boothe) who, in fact, wrote the manifesto. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Moses is, like Asaf, of Israeli descent, and his play is a smart summation of all the arguments of the Middle East conflict. Both sides receive balanced, highly charged airings, and Rosenfield and Karadsheh are superb in their lengthy monologues as they argue their respective positions. No one applauded after either of these superbly acted speeches, as if cheering histrionic virtuosity might be mistaken for allegiance to one political side or the other. Or so it seemed. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The play is a lengthy two hours and 40 minutes, but by the end, there is no actual resolution, as indeed the never-ending conflict in the Mideast seems to bear out. So, too, it was written before the Hamas invasion of Israel on October 7, and all the horrific carnage that followed, so there’s no reference to any of that, but the arguments remain pertinent, and no less potent.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Director Lila Neugebauer who did such a fine job with the current “Appropriate,” keeps the action fluid, and one scene morphs into another without pause. She draws fine performances from all, including Joy Osmanski as Asaf’s wife Gwen, a community relations administrator at the college which is planning to expand its campus; Madeline Weinstein as student Rachel who, though Jewish herself, joins with Farid to sponsor a campus lecture by a best-selling author espousing anti-Zionist sentiments. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Radnor is ideal as the ever well-meaning Asaf who gets embroiled in such a maelstrom of controversy. Never less than likable, he earns the audience empathy from the start and retains it throughout.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The profusion of ideas is intriguing certainly, though “The Ally” frequently seems less a play than a stimulating debate. But, in fairness, there is a surprising amount of humor amidst the heavy arguments, and just enough domestic conflict in the scenes between Asaf and Gwen, and later, Asaf and old flame Nakia to keep us involved. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(The Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street; publictheater.org or 212-967-7555; through March 24)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Photo by Joan Marcus: Ben Rosenfield and Josh Radnor</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-45746676365708564602024-03-06T11:24:00.000-08:002024-03-06T11:29:21.504-08:00The Connector (MCC Theater)<p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-319275e2-7fff-7f0a-17e1-f16f66c96ac7" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS82FQbg2idADSgJUp388qTqXmB_9xddYZL36C-Zzk7uqjHxfAQjbvb090tpzhyphenhyphenZ46plp_xqOCHiHULZ-ToNhe4iDVmBm12NKyXKac-uZL6dcDsJmdIVfmYL90kf_HjF2nlHmeD1XqPzqq9hRhNJoTq2YcdKJlLoDjP0cDZS43B8QmB-GsYHknne_itEE/s1200/Connector%203.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS82FQbg2idADSgJUp388qTqXmB_9xddYZL36C-Zzk7uqjHxfAQjbvb090tpzhyphenhyphenZ46plp_xqOCHiHULZ-ToNhe4iDVmBm12NKyXKac-uZL6dcDsJmdIVfmYL90kf_HjF2nlHmeD1XqPzqq9hRhNJoTq2YcdKJlLoDjP0cDZS43B8QmB-GsYHknne_itEE/w400-h266/Connector%203.webp" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Eager beaver Princeton grad Ethan Dobson (Ben Levi Ross) lands a job as a prestigious literary magazine, the titular </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Connector</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">, after he impresses the longtime editor Conrad O’Brien (Scott Bakula). He quickly befriends assistant copy editor Robin (Hannah Cruz) who becomes something of a girlfriend. </span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">But she, unlike Ethan, has yet to have one of her stories greenlighted. The story is set in the world of male dominated mid-1990’s journalism on the cusp of a changing media landscape, one in which scrupulous adherence to the facts is pitted against good storytelling. </span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Ethan’s first story is an immediate hit with readers, as are his subsequent pieces, and circulation rises. But his winning streak starts to derail when his sensational expose of an embattled New Jersey mayor raises questions of veracity.</span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Though that plot twist is a bit of a spoiler, the theme has been widely publicized by the creators and MCC’s program notes which spotlight journalistic scandals such as Stephen Glass’s fabrications at </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The New Republic, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">presumably an inspiration for the script.</span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Jonathan Marc Sherman’s book is quite interesting, particularly when the narrative takes that particular turn. I find it difficult to assess Jason Robert Brown’s rhythm-heaving, electronic score on first hearing but it’s certainly as skillful and accomplished as you’d expect from the talented composer/lyricist who leads the band at each performance.</span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Several numbers beguile the ear, culminating in the Mideast flavored “Western Wall.” Choreographer Karla Puno Garcia has devised her most elaborate movement for that last lengthy number. Still, I couldn’t help feeling that “The Connector” might be just as compelling as a straight play </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">sans</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> songs. </span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The show was conceived and very well directed by Daisy Prince in her third collaboration with Brown, following “The Last Five Years” and “Songs for a New World.”</span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The leads are all well cast. Ross, who starred in the somewhat thematically related “Dear Evan Hanson” for a couple of years, nails all the aspects of his tricky role, and Cruz makes an equally strong impression as the increasingly discontented Robin while Bakula brings the appropriate gravitas. All sing splendidly.</span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I did feel the band sometimes drowned out important lyrics, but generally Jon Weston's sound design is admirable.</span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">There’s excellent work by Jessica Molaskey as a persistent fact-checker, and Mylinda Hull as a comically dogged fan letter writer whose correspondence take a more aggressive turn when she begins to discern something seriously amiss in Ethan’s copy. Superlative as well is Daniel Jenkins as the magazine’s lawyer. Max Crumm has a standout number as a Scrabble champion, and Fergie Philippe as a rapping informant. </span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Beowulf Borritt’s set </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">-</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">- a sort of checkered pattern dominated by a wall of magazine proofs and piles of manuscripts elsewhere -- and dynamic lighting by Jeanette Oi-Suk Yew keep the show visually interesting. And Márion Tálan de la Rosa’s costumes capture the period and ambience.</span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(MCC Theater’s Newman Mills Theater, 511 W 52</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-size: 0.6em; vertical-align: super;">nd</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> Street; mcctheater.org; through March 17)</span></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Photo by Joan Marcus: (l.-r.) Scott Bakula and Ben Levi Ross </span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-48426940094278212492024-02-28T07:39:00.000-08:002024-02-28T13:08:22.998-08:00Babes in Toyland (Victor Herbert Renaissance Project Live!)<p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-0fef019d-7fff-0999-efa6-f46aefc8b6da" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLkO1WAnHXVMiI19r1_nheJoa8mUP3mDDACFX5GjrWtoxk3J2kgn04L6erkciEyMRZ9e_-glHHoZR5U6BSdbqGlL1C4jWbd8TLzs_g8aumDJukrCL2oCX-5HBucwKtGIe38JmKmv8ppyZnCO5RyRVq2aZ6OFJ4PKXvEIzDLDx3AM-fOqxO2dwz9mpoZcs/s5502/Alyce%20Mott-%20Babes%20in%20Toyland%202-24-154.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5502" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLkO1WAnHXVMiI19r1_nheJoa8mUP3mDDACFX5GjrWtoxk3J2kgn04L6erkciEyMRZ9e_-glHHoZR5U6BSdbqGlL1C4jWbd8TLzs_g8aumDJukrCL2oCX-5HBucwKtGIe38JmKmv8ppyZnCO5RyRVq2aZ6OFJ4PKXvEIzDLDx3AM-fOqxO2dwz9mpoZcs/w400-h261/Alyce%20Mott-%20Babes%20in%20Toyland%202-24-154.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I approached this resurrection of The Little Orchestra Society’s 1990s-era “Babes in Toyland” with some trepidation. Admirable champion of Herbert’s work that the Orchestra’s late director, Dino Anagnost, was, when it came to “Babes in Toyland,” he always opted for a greatly abridged version geared to children. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Gone were any songs not directly integral to the plot. According to VHRP Artistic Director Alyce Mott in her introductory remarks to the production under review here, Maestro Anagnost considered them the “kitchen sink” songs (as in “everything but the…”). </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">But nonetheless, it can’t be denied that many of those numbers were among the most popular in the show, and have been generally included even in otherwise abbreviated stage, recording, and broadcast versions of the three-hour extravaganza that premiered to such great acclaim in 1903.. “Beatrice Barefacts,” “Jane,” “The Moon Will Help You Out,” “Our Castle in Spain,” and above all, the infectious earworm “Barney O’Flynn” were all casualties of Anagnost’s edition. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">As this was the version Mott chose to revive, I wondered how much of the score would be left given the rather ungenerous 65 minute running time. Much to my relief, there was more than I imagined, and it was well sung by Mott’s as-usual well-chosen cast, with Herbert’s music authentically played (in a reduction of the original score) by ace Music Director Michael Thomas and his eight-member New Victor Herbert Orchestra. True, not all the verses were there, and Mott changed many of lyricist Glen MacDonough’s words to match the streamlined plot, but the result still made for a satisfying earful to the audience at my performance, nearly all adults as it turned out. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">With just a smidgen of an overture, Alexa Devlin as Mother Goose addressed the audience in the time-honored way of children’s theater delivery. But such was Devlin's command and charm that it registered as ingratiating not patronizing. And when she launched into the introductory strains of the hit tune “Toyland” in her warm and engaging mezzo, the crowd was right with her, singing along to the refrain. I wish she had more to sing, but besides a later reprise of “Toyland,” she was allowed a verse of the famous “I Can’t Do That Sum.” </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">McDonough’s 1903 book was impossibly complicated but every other aspect of the show had critics outdoing themselves for superlatives: the wondrous stagecraft, the elaborate scenery and astonishing special effects, splendid costumes, beautiful girls, and above all, that superlative score by Herbert which far outshone the songs for “The Wizard of Oz,” the hugely popular extravaganza that immediately preceded and inspired “Babes” at Columbus Circle’s Majestic Theatre. Though a smash hit in New York and on tour, it didn’t quite financially surpass “Oz” because, it has been suggested, of its less appealing book. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Mott’s version positioned Little Bo-Peep and Tom (siblings in the original!) as the central love interest. (The original “babes” were actually brother and sister Alan and Jane, wards of mean Silas Barnaby who wants to dispatch them for their fortune. Alan loves Mary Contrary, and Jane is the sweetheart of Tom (a trouser role). </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVoHJINwHE__0k35BDGaI-uJ8VfS70dPZXc4Tdqc-TCqs3RBOYVVkgdbEITM9kuvS9BXyg_rEqUirMYDVCRoq-zYz9I_fb4mEuhuxim8h-0B4Ddtix711kdcENHrPfF5EIpivEfZvRGIortgBvY1PA3FtvEHxaykWszYfoM6yy2ck0_JfJ5erwAy2aPDo/s5749/Alyce%20Mott-%20Babes%20in%20Toyland%202-24-63.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5749" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVoHJINwHE__0k35BDGaI-uJ8VfS70dPZXc4Tdqc-TCqs3RBOYVVkgdbEITM9kuvS9BXyg_rEqUirMYDVCRoq-zYz9I_fb4mEuhuxim8h-0B4Ddtix711kdcENHrPfF5EIpivEfZvRGIortgBvY1PA3FtvEHxaykWszYfoM6yy2ck0_JfJ5erwAy2aPDo/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20Babes%20in%20Toyland%202-24-63.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">So there had to be plenty of juggling of songs at VHRP. The expanded Bo-Peep role meant that company regular Joanie Brittingham appropriated Alan’s “Floretta” and part of “Before and After,” as well as her part of the familiar “Never Mind, Bo-Peep,” and sang them with her customary skill. Because of Bo-Peep’s perpetually losing her sheep, the character’s recurring business involved a lot of Lucy Ricardo-like “waahhh” outbursts, irritating after a while. And a bit out of character for Bo-Peep’s elevation from soubrette to female principal in this version. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Hero Tom Tom, clearly and strongly sung by Ryan Allais, who offered solid versions of his several numbers including the multi-verse “Song of the Poet.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Mean Silas Barnaby was played with comic relish by the always splendid Matthew Wages who also made the most of his one vocal moment, “The Richest Man in Toyland,” a reworking of “He Won’t Be Happy Till He Gets It.”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZoH8xcXaxMCEUqzVxCWZSIoNlDE7MlU8A_H7R_ivIcNxqsV9DfqdPBQLeJyo9ySfpCjGLdJJKHfgwAnOPjEK1Q5wuDYYidbosYEZxlhy3vvsfWBGRrMtTtIkVFUG3KNdKXRCcZpV_OnHp6n4wc2C_UnGs8WdSf2PV_X1s3Gcd-2_PrPOgYmEcD5tx9XI/s5578/Alyce%20Mott-%20Babes%20in%20Toyland%202-24-66.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5578" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZoH8xcXaxMCEUqzVxCWZSIoNlDE7MlU8A_H7R_ivIcNxqsV9DfqdPBQLeJyo9ySfpCjGLdJJKHfgwAnOPjEK1Q5wuDYYidbosYEZxlhy3vvsfWBGRrMtTtIkVFUG3KNdKXRCcZpV_OnHp6n4wc2C_UnGs8WdSf2PV_X1s3Gcd-2_PrPOgYmEcD5tx9XI/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20Babes%20in%20Toyland%202-24-66.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Chaz Peacock and Andrew Buck were good fun as his comical ruffian henchmen, Roderigo and Gonzargo, and their number “A Great Big Cheer” was set to the tune of “If I Were a Man Like That” from the original. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Mott’s libretto expunged all unseemly parts of the original -- the Toymaker who hates children and wants to maim them with his toys, and Barnaby’s genuinely murderous plans for the babes -- and infused her script with an overall uplifting message of forgiveness. Never mind that when Mother Goose gave everyone the “choice” of whether the contrite Barnaby should live or die at the end most opted for the latter, but Devlin deftly steered things to a more merciful denouement. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">In 1903, most of the fairy tale offspring of the Widow Piper (rather than Mother Goose) were taken by women, but here it was a first-rate half and half. Kathleen Raab, Gabriella Giangreco, Maggie Langhorne, Sarah Bleasdale, and Mariah Muehler made up the female contingent with the other characters played by Joe Marx, Matthew Youngblood, Zach Wobensmith, and Keith Broughton. Company veteran David Seatter played Old King Cole endearingly. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Mott directed the material adroitly as always with lively choreography by Christine Hall.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">On reflection, the production contained more Herbert music than the 1934 Laurel and Hardy or 1961 Disney films or even the mid-1950s TV versions. though I wondered afterwards if a pre- or post-show recital of a few of those cut numbers might not have been a clever way of letting us hear the fuller breadth of Herbert’s great score. In any case, if you’re curious to hear as full a version of the show as possible, the late John McGlinn’s unreleased studio version -- as revelatory as his groundbreaking “Showboat” recording -- is still available on </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvcWovp1pF8&list=PLyHOr2lH0NV82z0Dm-P0-ch5wfiXYtHEq" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">YouTube</span></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">And we must not forget that New York did get to hear a nearly complete version at Carnegie Hall in 2017 under the direction of Ted Sperling, and his MasterVoices cast. The accompanying narration was more than a tad condescending to the material, but the music was superbly delivered by a top-notch Broadway cast (Kelli O’Hara, Bill Irwin, and Christopher Fitzgerald among them), and Sperling’s fine orchestral and choral forces. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">And VHRP will give us Herbert’s orchestral music in all its unadulterated glory, at its scheduled May 26th concert of his orchestral works to be conducted by Steven Byess with a full orchestra. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(The Theater at St. Jeans, 150 East 76 Street; Feb. 20-22 only;</span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/7280551359055989956/3593556125659374801#" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">www.vhrplive.org</span></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> or</span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/7280551359055989956/3593556125659374801#" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> </span></a><a href="https://vhrp-live.thundertix.com" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">https://vhrp-live.thundertix.com</span></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWzsJhSHhTmhBl5yqnkvsiXKnwbzD5eZ3Q4WQSPmVQnYEHGsqnvZ2L_aJQ98s8SOCYm5itx9jNMM3-4BjmQ-tRxF1zasL8xOi6bHx8QeJiguPObUa8jJ7pQnCQTKnkQSZaaTGd4VKwCdssE4BPB4jauYyZchlDXp4-AKTjRD4OskNLmDiDZEcceMGh2gI/s5397/Alyce%20Mott-%20Babes%20in%20Toyland%202-24-1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5397" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWzsJhSHhTmhBl5yqnkvsiXKnwbzD5eZ3Q4WQSPmVQnYEHGsqnvZ2L_aJQ98s8SOCYm5itx9jNMM3-4BjmQ-tRxF1zasL8xOi6bHx8QeJiguPObUa8jJ7pQnCQTKnkQSZaaTGd4VKwCdssE4BPB4jauYyZchlDXp4-AKTjRD4OskNLmDiDZEcceMGh2gI/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20Babes%20in%20Toyland%202-24-1.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Photos by Jill LeVine:</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Top: Alyce Mott (far left) & Michael Thomas (rear in black) with cast</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Below: (l.-r.) Ryan Allais & Joanie Brittingham</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(l.-r.) Chaz Peacock, Matthew Wages, Andrew Buck</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Bottom: Alexa Devlin</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span><p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-61472215915558977302024-02-07T09:00:00.000-08:002024-02-07T09:00:26.774-08:00Appropriate (2NDSTAGE)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx35DcTSnfw8YAwv0YN4zFZYI-AuxY7RrgsAnZ4fEZ8bkn4cyLRPVjaDoQy1ZzzIJYXsM_Gj25dYCJbEp_SsSi3mTGBUIl2KQxHG_IKsXk-zxRYeh6QICJlu_qV-fkqNBlPq1OztF0Db-KH1LjKmORDV7MQgimli6oy7AAce9Q9PAHMop-X2Xifvg9_C4/s5706/Michael%20Esper,%20Corey%20Stoll%20and%20Sarah%20Paulson%20in%20Appropriate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3804" data-original-width="5706" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx35DcTSnfw8YAwv0YN4zFZYI-AuxY7RrgsAnZ4fEZ8bkn4cyLRPVjaDoQy1ZzzIJYXsM_Gj25dYCJbEp_SsSi3mTGBUIl2KQxHG_IKsXk-zxRYeh6QICJlu_qV-fkqNBlPq1OztF0Db-KH1LjKmORDV7MQgimli6oy7AAce9Q9PAHMop-X2Xifvg9_C4/w400-h266/Michael%20Esper,%20Corey%20Stoll%20and%20Sarah%20Paulson%20in%20Appropriate.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">By Harry Forbes</span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Three siblings arrive at a dilapidated Arkansas plantation after their father's death to settle his estate, and long festering familial issues arise, further complicated by the discovery of some disturbing and highly charged artifacts found in the house. Such is the premise of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ provocative, absorbing and frequently very funny play, first seen at the Signature Theater Company in 2014. A spectacular riff on the great family dramas of the stage, like “Long Day’s Journey into Night” and “August: Osage County,” Jacobs-Jenkins turns the genre on its ear and makes the dysfunction in those earlier works seem mere child's play.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Sarah Paulson, long absent from the stage while delivering memorable performances on TV series like “American Horror Story,” plays eldest sibling Toni. Now divorced, she had been the principal caregiver for the father during his lengthy decline, after years of propping up her deeply troubled teenage son Rhys (Graham Campell) and earlier, her ne’er-do-well, now estranged brother Franz (Michael Esper). </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The latter has now shown up unexpectedly with his New Agey girlfriend River (Elle Fanning, very fine in her Broadway debut). Seemingly unflappable brother Bo (Corey Stoll) later arrives from New York with his wife Rachael (Natalie Gold), and precocious young daughter Cassidy (Alyssa Emily Marvin) and son Ainsley (Lincoln Cohen at my performance). </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The play’s title can be taken both as an adjective (as in suitable) and verb (as in take). Was the late patriarch a racist, as the discovery of the aforementioned artifacts, not to mention Jewish daughter-in-law Rachael's assertions at one point, suggest? Or if he was casually racist in a manner that was considered "acceptable" for an earlier generation? But then, what of those artifacts? No matter how they happened to be in the house, the family seems to have no compunctions about appropriating them for their monetary value, despite their heinous origins? </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Toni has become bossy and embittered from years of toiling on behalf of her ailing father, and Paulson makes an impressive meal of the role, giving a dynamic and commanding performance. But all the performances are spot-on perfect, and Jacobs-Jenkins has given each character at least one, if not several, juicy moments. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The highly atmospheric set is designed by the multidisciplinary collective known as dots, with Jane Cox’s lighting complimenting it beautifully. Bray Poor and Will Pickens’ sound design adds mightily to the visuals including the deafening roar of cicadas which fill the theater during scene changes. In fact, all three elements combine for a rather spectacular </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">coup de theatre</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> during the play’s climax.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lila Neugebauer’s direction is ever taut and attuned to all the shifting nuances of Jacobs-Jenkins’ text with its unfailingly funny, intelligent and razor sharp dialogue.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The play runs a generoous 2 hours and 40 minutes, and grips you throughout. Highly recommended.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(The Helen Hayes Theater, 240 West 44th Street; 2ST.com; through March 3)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Photo by Joan Marcus: (l.-r.) Michael Esper, Corey Stoll, Sarah Paulson</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-75861846761517918332024-01-31T15:42:00.000-08:002024-02-01T16:10:45.514-08:00Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch (The Music Box)<p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5eg-Kf_fSClzPeAwxcWOQW9_eoZdwZ1lbRTUVa27rCZ7QsltP4uRf7d1bnNlRnKxjsYxbjy0friIsnFneLcqDuKCwrwfvr0YIAAxB27idV8HQw46Q43CCDDbFZapvLAI0VGOuwUhbckpwXU7uNYwBiTeQkKRP_WgsbVz4EaezTzoIOJqX2we8rdjhKSY/s1362/230927-purlie-victorious-tease_dsgcny.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="766" data-original-width="1362" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5eg-Kf_fSClzPeAwxcWOQW9_eoZdwZ1lbRTUVa27rCZ7QsltP4uRf7d1bnNlRnKxjsYxbjy0friIsnFneLcqDuKCwrwfvr0YIAAxB27idV8HQw46Q43CCDDbFZapvLAI0VGOuwUhbckpwXU7uNYwBiTeQkKRP_WgsbVz4EaezTzoIOJqX2we8rdjhKSY/w400-h225/230927-purlie-victorious-tease_dsgcny.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If there were any doubts about the wisdom of reviving Ossie Davis’ 1961 play, as opposed to "Purlie," the excellent 1970 musical adaptation, especially as the current production stars such a fine singing actor as Leslie Odom, Jr., they are quickly dispelled from the show’s first joyful and funny moments. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For the straight version proves a very worthy property in its own right, and doesn’t even seem at all dated as many other comedies of this vintage might. Odom is completely commanding in his bravura performance as a traveling preacher trying to secure the local church Old Bethel, and throw off the yoke of the blithely bigoted Ol' Cap'n Cotchipee who exploits the black workers on his Georgia plantation.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Purlie hatches a scheme to have Lutiebelle, an innocent country girl, impersonate his long-lost cousin who was rightly owed an inheritance of $500. Lutiebelle is played by the wondrous Kara Young, who impresses mightily yet again after her outstanding comedic and dramatic turns in “Clyde’s” and “Cost of Living.” </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Odom and Young’s performances are part of an impeccably cast ensemble: Billy Eugene Jones is his obsequious brother Gitlow with Heather Alicia Simms as Gitlow’s sensible wife Missy; Jay O. Sanders is the bigoted Ol’ Cap’n Cotchipee, with Noah Robbins his meek but enlightened son Charlie, and Vanessa Bell Calloway the sassy servant who has raised Charlie on the right racial path. The performances are all gems.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Kenny Leon’s direction is fast-paced and masterfully balances the hilarious comedy with the underlying serious themes (unfortunately still relevant after all these decades). The production credits are all first-rate, including Derek McLane’s set which serves as Purlie’s shack, the village commissary, and then wondrously transforms into a church in the final scene. Emilio Sosa’s character perfect costumes, Adam Honoré’s atmospheric lighting, and Peter Fitzgerald’s well balanced sound design. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ll be anxious to rewatch the movie version titled “Gone Are the Days,” with many of the original cast including Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, which used to be a TV staple, but I did relisten to the musical’s cast album. Peter Udell’s lyrics and Gary Geld’s tunes capture the play’s characters and themes exceedingly well.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even so, the current revival, sans musical numbers, comes across just as exuberant, heartwarming and hilarious. Highly recommended, but hurry, as the revival closes this weekend.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(The Music Box, 239 West 45th Street; PurlieVictorious.com, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Telecharge.com or 212-239-6200</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">; through February 4) </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photo by Marc J. Franklin: Leslie Odom, Jr. & Kara Young</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-40192415115501473352023-12-03T12:15:00.000-08:002023-12-03T12:15:20.543-08:00The Gardens of Anuncia (Lincoln Center Theater)<p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrAKvfiLvrT4cjolnyV-M8YU0WDa95IckBnz_A4VAaRiDc21aZZkdvAIEus8L3FixfflkhhgmZwZCkc5Rf0h2pWrOWioQgIZaynfbUzl0vxCGWzgn3TORsoqczY5HdY_wxmt4TpOQ0SM6xK47tvALbBOgbDk_SOue3dxQqgo56CgQWgm6yaDJbgGiiPdQ/s8640/LCTANUNCIA%20%2377%20-%20From%20L%20to%20R%20Eden%20Espinosa,%20Kalyn%20West,%20Mary%20Testa%20and%20Andr%C3%A9a%20Burns.%20Credit%20to%20Julieta%20Cervantes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5760" data-original-width="8640" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrAKvfiLvrT4cjolnyV-M8YU0WDa95IckBnz_A4VAaRiDc21aZZkdvAIEus8L3FixfflkhhgmZwZCkc5Rf0h2pWrOWioQgIZaynfbUzl0vxCGWzgn3TORsoqczY5HdY_wxmt4TpOQ0SM6xK47tvALbBOgbDk_SOue3dxQqgo56CgQWgm6yaDJbgGiiPdQ/w400-h266/LCTANUNCIA%20%2377%20-%20From%20L%20to%20R%20Eden%20Espinosa,%20Kalyn%20West,%20Mary%20Testa%20and%20Andr%C3%A9a%20Burns.%20Credit%20to%20Julieta%20Cervantes.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Composer Michael John LaChiusa honors his frequent collaborator, director/choreographer Graciela Daniele, with a loving portrait of the present day Daniele -- here named Anuncia, and winningly played by Priscilla Lopez -- looking back on her formative years in Peron-era Buenos Aires, where she was raised by her mother, aunt, and salty grandmother. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">These three -- Mami, Tía, and Granmama -- are, as you would expect, beautifully embodied by Eden Espinosa, Andréa Burns, and Mary Testa. We learn that Mami’s husband left her when Anuncia was six, and Grannmama, after early disillusionment, has been separated from her husband for many years, though he does make occasional visits and young Anuncia adores him. But otherwise, Anuncia was raised in an all-female household. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Mami sees to it that Anuncia is enrolled in ballet class principally because of her daughter’s flat feet, but this sets Anuncia/Graciela on her path to becoming a professional dancer. To earn money for the family, Mami works in a government job in spite of her anti-Peronist political views and the potential danger of her position, a situation that does, in fact, lead to the most dramatic point in the narrative.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Besides the stellar work of the women here, various male roles are taken by Enrique Acevedo and Tally Sessions. The former plays on the grandfather and, briefly, the abusive husband/father, while the latter shines in two whimsical present day sequences wherein Anuncia is visited in her garden by a friendly deer with whom she even dances, and later, the deer’s cynical brother. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The basic narrative is frankly not dissimilar from other stories we’ve seen of an adolescent blossoming as he/she comes to maturity, but Daniele's particular story is not without interest. Kayln West plays the young Anuncia well even though, as written, certain aspects of the character’s immaturity are exasperating and vexing. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">LaChiusa’s tango-flavored score falls pleasantly on the ear, but it’s difficult to assess the songs, beyond the fact that they are always apt and, of course, bear LaChiusa’s accomplished stamp. And though this is a small scale, almost chamber work, focusing, as it does, on a limited section of Daniele’s truly fascinating life, I found myself wanting a fuller story.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The show was originally developed and produced at the Old Globe. For the record, this is the fifth collaboration between LaChiusa and Daniele at Lincoln Center Theater, following "</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Hello Again"</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> (1994), "</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Chronicle of a Death Foretold"</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> (1995), "</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Marie Christine"</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> (1999), and "</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Bernarda Alba"</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> (2006). </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">This is not primarily a dancing show, though West has some balletic moments, and Espinoza has a bracing tango number. But, in the authoritative hands of director/choreographer Daniele (and co-choreographer Alex Sanchez) the overall staging is very fluid</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Michael Starobin’s orchestrations under the musical direction of Deborah Abramson put LaChiusa’s score in the best light. And Mark Wendland’s simple but evocative settings, Toni-Leslie James’ period costumes, the lighting by Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer, and Drew Levy’s tasteful sound design are all state-of-the-art.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater in Lincoln Center Theater, 150 West 65th Street; Telecharge.com; through December 31)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #0c0d0d; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Photo by Julieta Cervantes: (l.-r.) Eden Espinosa, Kalyn West, Mary Testa and Andréa Burns. </span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-56875951909012806292023-11-29T11:06:00.000-08:002023-11-29T13:02:28.784-08:00Monty Python’s Spamalot (St. James Theatre)<p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-fa2ba9f7-7fff-4edf-d3cb-d4ffaf29a419" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHS5wVtw0Yx7oYI_s5w7pDs1Zuz729HRezc1BWWzE8Zx3Kp6J6DE4xD09PBzVsjbAQkrBy5B3zWXoUOt9XOy6h9ZHZmtiCPER7HLMB_Cfexpb_TkT_8u4Cy_cncAfJX_D1QpN_17aee6dYf6Vk9v-WJh7kguEQv2Pomo1f_n7HWZ3M9aqaQLvvjByqpLw/s8192/7_SPAMALOT_Credit_Matthew_Murphy_Evan_Zimmerman.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5464" data-original-width="8192" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHS5wVtw0Yx7oYI_s5w7pDs1Zuz729HRezc1BWWzE8Zx3Kp6J6DE4xD09PBzVsjbAQkrBy5B3zWXoUOt9XOy6h9ZHZmtiCPER7HLMB_Cfexpb_TkT_8u4Cy_cncAfJX_D1QpN_17aee6dYf6Vk9v-WJh7kguEQv2Pomo1f_n7HWZ3M9aqaQLvvjByqpLw/w400-h266/7_SPAMALOT_Credit_Matthew_Murphy_Evan_Zimmerman.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">On the face of it, one might think it rather too soon for a return of Eric Idle and John Du Pre’s musical version of the 1975 film “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” But then you remember that the original Tony Award-winning Best Musical production was indeed nearly 20 years ago. That fondly-recalled 2005 premiere production with Tim Curry, Hank Araiza, David Hyde Pierce, and Christian Borle, directed by Mike Nichols no less, might have seemed hard to match.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">But I’m happy to report that the current mounting, sharply directed and choreographed by Josh Rhodes, lives up to all the felicities of the original. The script seems to be only mildly tweaked with a few contemporary references, and I count that as a good thing. Even though times have changed, and not all the gags seem as fresh as before, they generally hold up just fine. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The basic narrative, as you may recall, involves King Arthur (versatile James Monroe Iglehart) and his trusty companion Patsy (Christopher Fitzgerald), and knights Sir Robin (Michael Urie), Sir Lancelot (Taran Killam), Sir <i>Dennis</i> Galahad (Nik Walker) on a comical quest to find the Holy Grail. But the show develops into a multi-faceted spoof of Broadway musicals and all manner of popular entertainment. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">This fine 2023 cast gets into the Monty Python spirit with nearly the same authenticity as the original crew who were perhaps more organically steeped in the Python ethos. And those showstopping songs still delight and tickle the funny bone. The outrageous “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway”-- as the lyric goes “if you haven’t any Jews” -- is a stitch in Urie’s expertly comedic hands, and Rhodes’ choreography with its homage to “Fiddler on the Roof” -- is highly inventive. The infectious music hall earworm “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life,” charmingly delivered by the delightful Fitzgerald, which opens the second act, is embraced by the audience like an old friend. Fitzgerald has some other pearly moments as he dejectedly hears King Arthur bemoans “I’m All Alone,” with nary a nod to steadfast Patsy.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Adding significantly to the fun is Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer as the Lady of the Lake who helps King Arthur on his quest. Her character is comically fashioned as an over-the-top Vegas lounge singer with every vocal cliche in the book. Sara Ramirez was great in 2005, but Kritzer makes the part her own.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Her first act duet with Walker, “The Song That Goes Like This” wherein they wring every ounce of humor out of the overwrought Broadway ballad prototype, and her second act “Diva’s Lament,” wherein she bemoans her suddenly diminished role, stops the show again. Ethan Slater, so delightful in “Spongebob Squarepants” several seasons back, again proves his comic chops in an impressive variety of roles including the narrating Historian, Not Dead Fred, and the lovelorn Prince Herbert. HIs scenes with Killam’s excellent Lancelot, who suddenly discovers his queerness, are another highlight.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Production values are all first rate, including Paul Tate DePoo III’s sets and projections, Jen Caprio’s costumes, Cory Pattak’s lighting, Kai Harada and Haley Parcher’s sound, and Tom Watson’s hair and wigs. Music Director John Bell conducts </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The audience at my performance had a rollicking good time, and if you see it, I think you’ll happily follow the show’s exhortation to “Find Your Grail.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(St. James Theatre, 246 West 44th Street; SpamalotTheMusical.com; phone)</span></p><br /><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Photo by </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #242424; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman: (L to R) Michael Urie, Nik Walker, James Monroe Iglehart, Christopher Fitzgerald, Jimmy Smagula, Taran Killam</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-58130697010742229292023-11-21T14:18:00.000-08:002023-11-21T14:18:25.114-08:00I Can Get It For You Wholesale (Classic Stage Company)<div class="separator"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKxnZKIdM2huUepiND0RFw_bcrUQBDTssa9zLVESSVpMNWiiD1XyhXN0vxJqQWvt0S4NPcK0k38BdU76qaNLV_6ALe7RitPagsV4QBGachTEp3nJHO4CVNc-hd3HUjjw6IreWIjRvejrpAfkFjKRSt152cBnHM2FteYL5vQCHMxH85tiart8Be_mqAVRs/s8640/Rebecca%20Naomi%20Jones%20and%20Santino%20Fontana%20in%20the%20CSC%20production%20of%20I%20CAN%20GET%20IT%20FOR%20YOU%20WHOLESALE%20-%20photo%20by%20Julieta%20Cer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5760" data-original-width="8640" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKxnZKIdM2huUepiND0RFw_bcrUQBDTssa9zLVESSVpMNWiiD1XyhXN0vxJqQWvt0S4NPcK0k38BdU76qaNLV_6ALe7RitPagsV4QBGachTEp3nJHO4CVNc-hd3HUjjw6IreWIjRvejrpAfkFjKRSt152cBnHM2FteYL5vQCHMxH85tiart8Be_mqAVRs/w400-h266/Rebecca%20Naomi%20Jones%20and%20Santino%20Fontana%20in%20the%20CSC%20production%20of%20I%20CAN%20GET%20IT%20FOR%20YOU%20WHOLESALE%20-%20photo%20by%20Julieta%20Cer.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">By Harry Forbes</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Like many today, I know this musical adaptation of Jerome Weidman’s 1937 novel primarily from the 1962 cast album which features Barbra Streisand’s breakout role as harried secretary Miss Marmelstein. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I did see a 1991 revival at the American Jewish Theatre, a production rather strangely ignored in CSC’s otherwise comprehensive timeline of the property from novel onwards, including a 1951 film with Susan Hayward, in a bit of gender swapping, as the protagonist. The Off-Broadway revival was good, as I recall, but I can’t say I remember much about it. And, in any case, the current mounting -- adapted by the playwright’s son, John Weidman, and cannily directed by Trip Cullman -- bears all the classy hallmarks of a major revival, one that I believe is every bit as worthy of a Broadway transfer as such recent shows as, say, “Harmony” and “Kimberly Akimbo.” </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Harold Rome’s score -- which always struck me as nothing special on the album -- comes through much more definitively here. Numbers that register as merely serviceable on the cast album come to vibrant life.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Against the backdrop of the Jewish milieu of the 1930s garment district, the story charts the ruthless rise of shipping clerk Harry Bogen (spectacularly embodied by Santino Fontana) who connives his way to dubious success, first by, as a strikebreaker, creating a delivery company during a major work stoppage, to creating his own dress company, Apex Modes, Inc., with the help of gullible partners, dress designer Meyer Bushkin (Adam Chanler-Berat) and seasoned salesman Teddy Asch (Greg Hildreth), all the while supported by his loving mother (Judy Kuhn) and selfless girlfriend (Rebecca Naomi Jones). </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The role of Harry, originated by Elliot Gould, plays to all of Fontana’s strengths as both solid dramatic actor and one of our top musical theater performers. His vocals are powerful, and he plays Harry’s ruthless charm to the hilt. He never sidesteps the reprehensible aspects of the character, a real bastard who makes other Broadway antiheroes like “Pal Joey” look like saints by comparison. The others are uniformly superb, including the great Kuhn in Lillian Roth’s original role. She’s the very picture of motherly devotion, and her voice is as lustrous as ever. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Jones is lovely and believable as the devoted Ruthie, and all her numbers are standouts including her angry delivery of “On My Way to Love” with Fontana. Joy Woods plays Harry’s sultry showgirl mistress with requisite glamor and sex appeal. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig7G66giGXKDgdP5HarG2pyFE92GB1VSUlCWQscVZIlpubzNWzMsk53Mr4AW2FUwqjlsjAl1DXxZp2P-e3dnOoYgi2eXYKqMWKM4Jq7ALOUmT4yS560BB2GSeQ2AhTEbsO4cMVUMqfm_KcUXz1X4K2_95rRYzRv-pmLuuq-mbGnHPO0R8sqell6qiD4to/s8640/Julia%20Lester%20in%20the%20CSC%20production%20of%20I%20CAN%20GET%20IT%20FOR%20YOU%20WHOLESALE%20-%20photo%20by%20Julieta%20Cervantes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5760" data-original-width="8640" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig7G66giGXKDgdP5HarG2pyFE92GB1VSUlCWQscVZIlpubzNWzMsk53Mr4AW2FUwqjlsjAl1DXxZp2P-e3dnOoYgi2eXYKqMWKM4Jq7ALOUmT4yS560BB2GSeQ2AhTEbsO4cMVUMqfm_KcUXz1X4K2_95rRYzRv-pmLuuq-mbGnHPO0R8sqell6qiD4to/s320/Julia%20Lester%20in%20the%20CSC%20production%20of%20I%20CAN%20GET%20IT%20FOR%20YOU%20WHOLESALE%20-%20photo%20by%20Julieta%20Cervantes.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Julia Lester -- so memorable as Little Red Ridinghood in last season’s “Into the Woods” revival -- socks over her “Miss Marmelstein” number with showstopping charisma and avoids all the familiar Streisand inflections of the song to make it her very own. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">As Harry’s duped partners, Hildreth and Chanler-Berat are outstanding, and beyond the more serious aspects of their roles, each have some delightfully light musical moments: Hildreth, in duet with Woods, on “What’s In It For Me?” and Chanler-Berat on “Have I Told You Lately?” with the marvelously empathetic Sarah Steele as Meyer’s supportive wife. Also outstanding are Adam Grupper as factory manager Pulvermacher and Eddie Cooper as Harry’s original business partner Tootsie. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Cullman uses the CSC space with great dexterity and his staging has real dramatic momentum, seamlessly integrated with Ellenore Scott’s balletic choreography featuring some hora-inspired moves to match Rome’s Jewish inflected score, weaving among the versatile table motif of Mark Wendland’s scenic design. Ann Hould-Ward’s costumes are period perfect. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Music Director Jacinth Greywoode’s chamber orchestrations and David Chase’s arrangements of the score are highly satisfying, and I didn’t miss the lusher Broadway charts one bit. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(CSC, 136 East 13 Street; 212-677-4210 or classicstage.org; through December 17)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-52b27868-7fff-971c-f1dc-ea1074b9a508" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Photos by Julieta Cervantes:</span></p><p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-52b27868-7fff-971c-f1dc-ea1074b9a508" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-52b27868-7fff-971c-f1dc-ea1074b9a508" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Top: (l.-r.) Rebecca Naomi Jones and Santino Fontana </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Below: Julia Lester </span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-62965341953012239432023-11-10T08:19:00.000-08:002023-11-10T08:19:58.076-08:00The Frogs (MasterVoices)<p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEUwXzlDM7F57lzrIxlMk20Yib6q55p2OH1Kcg6fmxAT-Kzbe4wudXGg_jEuOB-v9TTVWdxwHua_Slu-uqi7vfpUH6UH3OwqnpAubQsE1M0-6NdxPWnrn2qD-cH9MnDhoD1AF_Yk9tCrybIl14YBPUqdvEK8-K0f0cm2d4cP4Ze68uDvqEg96lVGyfoTE/s3300/_69A5134_TheFrogs.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2357" data-original-width="3300" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEUwXzlDM7F57lzrIxlMk20Yib6q55p2OH1Kcg6fmxAT-Kzbe4wudXGg_jEuOB-v9TTVWdxwHua_Slu-uqi7vfpUH6UH3OwqnpAubQsE1M0-6NdxPWnrn2qD-cH9MnDhoD1AF_Yk9tCrybIl14YBPUqdvEK8-K0f0cm2d4cP4Ze68uDvqEg96lVGyfoTE/w400-h286/_69A5134_TheFrogs.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Once again, conductor/director Ted Sperling and his MasterVoices forces, have triumphed with a Sondheim work, after their winning “Anyone Can Whistle” last year. “The Frogs” is an anomaly in Sondheim’s catalog, hardly a traditional musical, but more a choral piece, or so it was when first performed at Yale in 1974, and later recorded by Nonesuch, though the work was given more traditional structure in its 2004 production by Lincoln Center Theater. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Nathan Lane, who starred in that Lincoln Center mounting, and hosted the MasterVoices semi-stage concert, in fact, had adapted Burt Shevelove’s original script (based on Aristophanes’ ancient Greek comedy) for that production, and Sondheim reworked and expanded the music. The result, as the MasterVoices presentation demonstrated, was alternately hilarious and profound.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">For this past weekend’s three-performance run, the blue-chip cast members excelled in their respective roles. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Douglas Sills took on Lane’s original part of Dionysos, the god of Theater and Wine, with distinction. In brief, Dionysus travels to Hades with his slave Xanthias (a funny Kevin Chamberlin) in order to bring George Bernard Shaw back to earth to help mankind. But after a competition between Shaw and Shakespeare (Eurpides and Aeschylus in the source material), the Bard’s poetic skill wins the day. Shaw was persuasively embodied by Dylan Baker who delivered a masterful recitation of one of St. Joan’s fervent speeches, while Jordan Donica offered a beautifully spoken Will Shakespeare and sang Sondheim’s moving setting of “Fear No More” gorgeously.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Marc Kudisch was in fine form as Dionysos’s preening half-brother Heracles (aka Hercules), flexing his muscles and, at one point, easing down into an impressive split. Chuck Cooper was most amusing as boatman Charon who rows the pair across the River Styx. And Peter Bartlett was a hoot recreating his 2004 role as the campiest of Plutos, delivering each line for maximum drollery. Candice Corbin had a brief but deeply moving turn as Dionysos’ late wife Ariadne. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lainie Sakakura devised some very apt choreography for the excellent dancers who played the eponymous frogs and Dionysian revelers. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Though apart from the very funny “Invocation and Instructions to the Audience” (here updated with the inclusion of, among other annoyances, a cell phone admonition), none of the other numbers have gotten much stand-alone play. Still, every song in the show bears that treasurable Sondheim stamp, with unmistakable echoes of tunes from the better-known Sondheim classics.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Sperling’s conducting was expertly attuned to Sondheim’s musical language, while the MasterVoices chorus sounded glorious, positioned, as they were, on three tiers. The whole enterprise made an even better case for the show than what I remembered seeing at the Vivian Beaumont 20 years ago.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The score, nicely varied, and at times as stirring as the great "Sunday" ensemble in “Sunday in the Park with George,” was a pleasure to hear, especially when performed so definitively. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lane’s narration, which began with a brief history of the show and his involvement in it, was expertly done, and never detracted but only enhanced the centerstage action. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(Rose Theater, Jazz at Lincoln Center; 10 Columbus Circle;; mastervoices.org; Nov. 3 & 4 only)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Photo by Erin Baiano: (l.-r.) Marc Kudisch, Kevin Chamberlin, and Douglas Sills</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-66082978903946430372023-08-22T14:16:00.001-07:002023-08-22T14:17:59.238-07:00Ohio Light Opera Still Going Strong<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmZkz5b6s9I6ksVxDuRNk7dgEFTOW1rbBLaSsv8PalKNVgCm2a_8ni-Okeg1fjlM5fItLxNUiFYVbw8ChP6uFDJT7F3N-GvpANJIA6CtI7PdLXx-bSrqypsqkFezWZBz_6rnLSjy9mw4l4PQfB2QDXLUn2ypLRphG513MgwA8nnxnd_6r4OVI4wSgRmlY/s2400/Arizona%20Lady%20B.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1504" data-original-width="2400" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmZkz5b6s9I6ksVxDuRNk7dgEFTOW1rbBLaSsv8PalKNVgCm2a_8ni-Okeg1fjlM5fItLxNUiFYVbw8ChP6uFDJT7F3N-GvpANJIA6CtI7PdLXx-bSrqypsqkFezWZBz_6rnLSjy9mw4l4PQfB2QDXLUn2ypLRphG513MgwA8nnxnd_6r4OVI4wSgRmlY/w400-h251/Arizona%20Lady%20B.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the first time in four years, Ohio Light Opera has
returned for a full indoor season of shows (though one shy of the usual seven),
and with a full-sized company of players. After skipping 2020 because of COVID,
there were abbreviated outdoor or partially outdoor presentations during 2021
and 2022 with reduced forces.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">During this time, the talent base of the repertory company
has perforce largely changed, with exceptions such as mainstay performers
Spencer Reese and Jacob Allen, but I'm happy to report that with the influx of
newcomers, the overall quality -- due, no doubt in large part to the leadership
of Artistic Director Steven Daigle -- remains undiminished. So, too, the discreet
addition of body mikes has made a welcome difference in audibility for the audience,
adding just that extra bit of oomph in the expansive Freedlander auditorium.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In addition to their accomplished onstage performances,
Reese continues to come up with terrific choreography for all the productions (as
well as directing one this season), and Allen, the company’s assistant artistic
director, directed two.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The 2023 rarities included Hungarian composer Emmerich
Kálmán’s atypical final work, “Arizona Lady,” and the original 1925 version of
Vincent Youmans and Irving Caesar and Otto Harbach’s “No, No, Nanette” which
today is better remembered for its long-running 1971 Broadway revival.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Also on the roster was “H.M.S. Pinafore,” the obligatory
Gilbert and Sullivan production (reminding us that OLO was, in fact, founded 44
years ago as a company dedicated to the British duo), Jacques Offenbach’s
“Orpheus in the Underworld,” and Broadway classics “Camelot” and “How To
Succeed In Business Without Really Trying.”</p>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkrJnDlPT8fxB56OVn7-x_MDdM4ef-7kiOn-sg4LzWQe5XoCpNQOjfsqxz0VdivM9lxe2HoC2gPDlSMi70uiohlP5067IC3HhiYgwZx4pT8k_sU4u1T91oFWO88epb6r3n97EQfr-kKZNWp4vWP5EYxG5B0fUhupsyXm7dZNFrgewT_qyUNIusTbXaOvg/s2400/CAMELOT%20D.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1050" data-original-width="2400" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkrJnDlPT8fxB56OVn7-x_MDdM4ef-7kiOn-sg4LzWQe5XoCpNQOjfsqxz0VdivM9lxe2HoC2gPDlSMi70uiohlP5067IC3HhiYgwZx4pT8k_sU4u1T91oFWO88epb6r3n97EQfr-kKZNWp4vWP5EYxG5B0fUhupsyXm7dZNFrgewT_qyUNIusTbXaOvg/w400-h175/CAMELOT%20D.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was particular interest among some in seeing the
unadulterated, original “Camelot” to compare with director Bartlett Sher’s
recently shuttered New York revival with its radically revised book by Aaron
Sorkin. To cut to the chase, OLO’s production, faithful to the original text,
proved infinitely superior, demonstrating that Sorkin’s wholesale revisions
were in no way an improvement. Alan Jay Lerner's original script holds up just
fine, and under Daigle's sensitive direction, the show was infinitely more moving
than its big budget New York counterpart. And rather surprisingly, even the
orchestra, under OLO Music Director Michael Borowitz, sounded lusher than the
not inconsiderable 35-piece Lincoln Center orchestra. (OLO’s has about 21.)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">James Mitchell, who also impressed with his well drawn tipsy
boatman John Styx in “Orpheus,” offered a beautifully acted and sung King
Arthur. Though he and the rest of the cast admirably played with English
accents (unlike the recent New York crew), Mitchell chose to eschew broad a’s.
Still, this was a fine, moving performance.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So too, Sadie Spivey’s Guenevere was sensitively acted and
her singing generated comparisons with originator Julie Andrews, while Nathan
Seldin’s Lancelot delivered “C’est Moi '' and “If Ever I Would Leave You” with
appropriate virile panache and Vincent Gover excelled as both Merlyn and
Pellinore. Matthew Reynolds made an appropriately rascally Mordred, and all the
other roles were well handled.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">“Then You May Take Me to the Fair,” cut from the original
production after the cast album was recorded but thereafter not included in the
official vocal score, was not included, nor was the randy knights’ choral “Fie
on Goodness,” both of which were, in fact, reinstated at Lincoln Center. On the
other hand, Nimue’s haunting “Follow Me,” sweetly sung by Sophia Masterson, and
“The Jousts” sequence -- excluded in New York and replaced by a non-musical
sword fight -- were back in their rightful places here, and Guenevere got back
her lovely “I Loved You Once in Silence,” appropriated by Lancelot in New York.</p>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu-c_DwnmFfAbMUhJKrkksug44MjbPPVr_VGjaBk0gqcpgJPX7JdW82QV1PV2mVmkvxpmH6wioj0LPxj5jDPJQFIx5SzKphmFQf65apTRx8XM4XfEt_uJoCnOg3Rjc3QrK7p3BWDp3ZIi6XOgo0ijTh9m5_PnHU_xLw4xkjARL4gZcb0KbPyEgZL-2Mcs/s2400/9MD_9635%20copy%202.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1784" data-original-width="2400" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu-c_DwnmFfAbMUhJKrkksug44MjbPPVr_VGjaBk0gqcpgJPX7JdW82QV1PV2mVmkvxpmH6wioj0LPxj5jDPJQFIx5SzKphmFQf65apTRx8XM4XfEt_uJoCnOg3Rjc3QrK7p3BWDp3ZIi6XOgo0ijTh9m5_PnHU_xLw4xkjARL4gZcb0KbPyEgZL-2Mcs/s320/9MD_9635%20copy%202.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<p class="MsoNormal">The “Orpheus” staging utilized the late Richard Traubner’s
clever 2001 translation, newly adapted by Daigle, who also directed. This was
the original 1858 version, with none of the added music from Offenbach's 1874
greatly expanded version, not even the overture.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Tenor Jack Murphy's Orpheus was a well-sung comic delight.
Bespectacled, lanky and limber, he drove Eurydice (superbly sung by Christine
Price) to the edge of madness with his incessant fiddle playing (incidentally,
quite accurately mimed, while Reese’s choreography kept him in ceaseless
motion), driving her into the hands of a handsome cowboy who turns out to be
Pluto, king of the Underworld, played with devilish charm by Nicholas Orth who
sang his opening number from the auditorium making his way through one of the
long rows before finishing onstage with an impressive falsetto flourish.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Eventually Jupiter -- played by Vincent Gover who should get
a versatility award for all of his brilliantly enacted character roles this
season -- and the other gods from Mount Olympus visit Hades, and Jupiter
attempts to seduce Eurydice by metamorphosing into a fly. The ensuing duet
between Gover, sporting witty gold hot pants along with other wacky fly
accouterments, and Price, was a laugh riot, the best I’ve ever seen, as the
pair worked themselves into an orgasmic lather.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Bergen Price was outstanding in the sometimes tiresome role
of Public Opinion, and handled Daigle’s newly added prologue with aplomb. The
Gods were all well played and sung by, among others, Lily Graham (Diana),
Michelle Pedersen (Juno), Nathan Seldin (Mars), Tzytle Steinman (Venus), Sara
Lucille Law (Cupid), and Margaret Langhorne (Mercury).The whole was stylishly
conducted by Borowitz.</p>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAIvszMnK4U8lvCECRqvR4m1-iyCjx0jAk8GAD8u2Fn7Zxo-O5FTuMa_Jzb60T_HVU053zWYtaqQBxlt1hWUj2Np3mF7PNzxL59HiAfrfoxbPtYXPeSyFO5C0CPLLeMdKpjNdjI7cayFNqCwOGeq_SYzaMMIaxaVtffXd6rskM5uRX-dCkltzfWv0EGwk/s2400/HMS%20PINAFORE%20C.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="758" data-original-width="2400" height="126" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAIvszMnK4U8lvCECRqvR4m1-iyCjx0jAk8GAD8u2Fn7Zxo-O5FTuMa_Jzb60T_HVU053zWYtaqQBxlt1hWUj2Np3mF7PNzxL59HiAfrfoxbPtYXPeSyFO5C0CPLLeMdKpjNdjI7cayFNqCwOGeq_SYzaMMIaxaVtffXd6rskM5uRX-dCkltzfWv0EGwk/w400-h126/HMS%20PINAFORE%20C.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<p class="MsoNormal">“H.M.S. Pinafore” -- performed at OLO more than any other
work (135 times) -- was, by comparison with the season’s other offerings,
fairly standard stuff but nonetheless a crowd pleaser.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">OLO Associate Music Director Wilson Southerland conducted
with customary spirit. And here was Gover again, this time as Sir Joseph
Porter, KCB (which, incidentally, we learned from OLO Board Chairman Michael
Miller’s pre-show talk, stands for Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath!)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I’m not sure I cared for the comic miming that director
Reese devised for Corcoran and Buttercup’s “Things Are Seldom What They Seem.”
which, arguably, spoiled the twist at the end more than it should, not that
diehard G&S fans, who know the show by heart, would care.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Gover’s Porter, Allen’s Captain Corcoran, and Sophia
Masterson’s Josephine were all capably performed. Tzytle Steinman’s Little
Buttercup hardly fit her character’s “plump” descriptor, but her rich mezzo was
a plus. Tenor Owen Malone stepped into the role of Ralph Rackstraw for the
first time at my performance and sang with distinction.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">OLO has already mounted an impressive 14 Emmerich Kálmán’s
works (more than any other company in the world). His operettas are, you might
be surprised to learn, the most performed of any operetta composer globally
thanks to frequent productions in Eastern Europe and Russia. OLO has a few more
titles to go, but they’ve finally gotten around to his last work.</p>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmXiXRyUThDybI2wJe6U1pCglUmPAJQMxwnXo5wXdCn68MARf9g1SaQX4yhkuPEq4dWQxo7U00AXQI7wQwv7iI2p8iRCOPiK-bqtReTmFdBBS9A82HY4vxwRJqURlLTENjrBwulCvYozVZw0Riof_db7LnZM_zDQHdWxPJv3lvmh_jKLyhSAZE0AJQz4/s2400/ARIZONA%20LADY%20E.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="2400" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmXiXRyUThDybI2wJe6U1pCglUmPAJQMxwnXo5wXdCn68MARf9g1SaQX4yhkuPEq4dWQxo7U00AXQI7wQwv7iI2p8iRCOPiK-bqtReTmFdBBS9A82HY4vxwRJqURlLTENjrBwulCvYozVZw0Riof_db7LnZM_zDQHdWxPJv3lvmh_jKLyhSAZE0AJQz4/s320/ARIZONA%20LADY%20E.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>“Arizona Lady '' received its premiere in early 1954 on
Bavarian radio just weeks after Kálmán’s death but was not performed on stage
till six weeks later in Bern, Switzerland. It’s a fascinating piece. In many
respects, it’s a European’s naive view of America but, in truth, Kálmán was an
enthusiastic fan of western novels and films, and the original German libretto
fashioned by his longtime collaborator Alfred Grünwald and Gustav Beer is not
dissimilar from any number of B-level western movies of the time.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As such, the general narrative is fairly absorbing, but it’s
a bit disconcerting when characters react to catastrophic events with
remarkable equanimity, and then moments later, break into cheerful song.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Kálmán endeavored to write in a fresh Broadway style, and
hearing the work in Daigle’s English translation shows the composer not far off
the mark. (Jacob Allen directed.) Kálmán couldn't resist some of his trademark
Hungarian strains, and heroine Lona’s entrance number is a close cousin of the
numbers in “Die Csárdásfürstin'' and “Gräfin Mariza.” This is explained in the
libretto by ascribing her character a partial Hungarian heritage. Thereafter,
the score sounds reasonably American, far more so than, say, Puccini’s Western-themed
“Fanciulla del West.” The “Yip-i-ay-o’s” don’t sound too forced. There are
musically thematic similarities to “Oklahoma!” particularly in the first act
“Arizona! Land Where the Cactus Bloom” number. But curiously, Kálmán’s most
immediate inspiration was apparently the less-renowned 1949 “Texas, L’il
Darlin’.”</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Audience members of my performance had the added pleasure of
watching the show along with Kálmán’s daughter Yvonne Kálmán, the lady
positioned in her customary front row seat, as with past revivals there of her
father’s work.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As hero Roy Dexter, Jack Murphy, the aforementioned comic
Orpheus, was here transformed into a picture-perfect singing cowboy. He’s hired
as foreman of “no-time-for-love” ranch owner Lona Farrell (Louisa Waycott) after
she fires the last one. Ideally, I think there should have been more sense of
repressed passion between the couple, something more akin to the Mariza-Tassilo
dynamic of “Mariza” but, truthfully, the libretto doesn’t afford as much
opportunity.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Elsewhere Tzytle Steinman as Nelly and Reese as Chester
handled the lively second couple numbers amusingly. Matthew Reynolds was
another bright spot as carnival fortune teller Cavarelli (alternating between
his bogus Italian and authentic Irish accents), and Lily Graham had a lively
bit as a shady nightclub singer who attempts to frame the hero.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The orchestra under Southerland’s baton sounded full-bodied
and sumptuous, though sometimes overpowered the singers despite the
aforementioned miking.</p>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiytcXkozthJvyOIzqPsgBOaWSMi4n-YGz4uPkbNolYaAv_w5CKL2id1R8cOr0G-JVe88FZQrkwO2nuHDIW23lrFm9-f63h0zAC5aUhjkrdyp4-QewkS6zay-lOnKTnF_cXWSSZ9BnJIVE9EFNMPSilr0ocGvjdLv5-Us6YVl38--L1cjEENxIJ1A6ToXM/s2400/No%20No%20Nanette%20B.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1298" data-original-width="2400" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiytcXkozthJvyOIzqPsgBOaWSMi4n-YGz4uPkbNolYaAv_w5CKL2id1R8cOr0G-JVe88FZQrkwO2nuHDIW23lrFm9-f63h0zAC5aUhjkrdyp4-QewkS6zay-lOnKTnF_cXWSSZ9BnJIVE9EFNMPSilr0ocGvjdLv5-Us6YVl38--L1cjEENxIJ1A6ToXM/s320/No%20No%20Nanette%20B.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>“No, No, Nanette” was a real charmer, and for those who
remembered the 70s Broadway revival, made a fascinating comparison. Some may
recall theater historian John McGlinn’s memorable New York concert version of
the 1925 original score in 1986, but OLO’s had the advantage of being fully
staged. The Broadway revival with Ruby Keeler, Helen Gallagher, Bobby Van, Susan
Watson and Patsy Kelly had spiffy new orchestrations by Ralph Burns, but the
authentic original makes for a refreshingly different experience.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">OLO’s reconstruction was based on materials at the
University of Texas in Austin, and the production was a sensible amalgam of the
Broadway and London versions, dropping the inconsequential “My Doctor” and
“Payday Pauline” from the former, and using “I’ve Confessed to the Breeze” and
“Take a Little One-Step” from the latter, as did the 1971 revival.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Daigle directed with requisite charm, Michael Borowitz at
the baton likewise had the right period flavor, while wunderkind Spencer Reese
provided miles of choreography besides playing the major role of Billy. (Borowitz
also deserves credit for creating an orchestra-readable performance edition.)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The cast was up to the challenge of OLO’s dancingist show
since the company’s 2017 “Anything Goes.” When virtually the full cast was
onstage tapping away, it made a most impressive sight. My only quibble was that
most of the dances commenced with scarcely a moment of dramatic setup. But it
was all so enjoyable, that seems a churlish complaint. The show’s evergreen
hits, “Tea for Two” and “I Want to Be Happy” were exceedingly well served.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel’s original book was a bit
naughtier than the cozy nostalgic slant of Burt Shevelove’s 1971 revision, and
the Vincent Youmans music (lyrics by Irving Caesar and Otto Harbach) sparkled
as ever.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Jacob Allen played Jimmy, the bible publisher with three
ladies on the (platonic) side. Bergen Price was his frugal wife Sue who, much
to Jimmy’s chagrin, resolutely refuses to spend his money. Sadie Spivey traded
Guenevere’s queenly attire for 20s flapper garb, and was equally delightful.
Julia Fedor was sharp and savvy as Billy’s wife Lucille, delivering fine
versions of “Too Many Rings Around Rosie” and “Where Has My Hubby Gone Blues.”
Alexander Spence was Nanette’s straight-laced suitor.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtZcxFO0OUxiSRH5jdzEjHTcdGkrkQ0GWcPUv5yevJ2LtaooDWLurHxANsTDiBa0jsB0KyAK8lKaFZwWejULNDowNntNxAXMaJ0z4MDeJIHH4rOvo7UCyGKrCuBvLatK5DGMkPZzuVFrFm6FWAOFg9Uap2nMIc3ohSUumrzICZ0mqzUm7p1TNgQqIHr5w/s2400/HOW%20TO%20SUCCEED%20C.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1599" data-original-width="2400" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtZcxFO0OUxiSRH5jdzEjHTcdGkrkQ0GWcPUv5yevJ2LtaooDWLurHxANsTDiBa0jsB0KyAK8lKaFZwWejULNDowNntNxAXMaJ0z4MDeJIHH4rOvo7UCyGKrCuBvLatK5DGMkPZzuVFrFm6FWAOFg9Uap2nMIc3ohSUumrzICZ0mqzUm7p1TNgQqIHr5w/s320/HOW%20TO%20SUCCEED%20C.jpg" width="320" /></a> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Frank Loesser’s 1961 Pulitzer Prize-winning “How to Succeed
in Business Without Really Trying” proved once more how well the OLO forces can
handle Golden Age Broadway material. Reese played J. Pierrepont Finch, the
ambitious window washer who schemes himself to promotion after promotion at the
World Wide Wicket Company, and the part especially showcased his excellent
vocal delivery, so often overlooked given his dancing talents. Gover made an
ideal company president, J.B. Biggley. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Louisa Waycott topped her “Arizona Lady” role with an
outstandingly sung and played Rosemary. Matthew Reynolds excelled as the
conniving Bud Frump, and Bergen Price demonstrated her versatility as the va-va-voom
secretary Hedy LaRue.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Jacob Allen directed with requisite Broadway know-how, and
Southerland was the knowing conductor.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">There were a couple of special events during the week I
attended: a 1985 Hungarian biopic of Kálmán (fortunately subtitled) -- <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7imvzvJfnU&t=6s">“Az életmuzsikájat - Kálmán Imre”</a> -- which featured generous excerpts from many of his
major works. The film was based, in part, on “The Unadulterated Truth,”
Kálmán’s 1932 memoir about the early part of his life. (The book has, in fact,
just been translated by Alexander Butziger, and will soon be available for
order from the <a href="https://operettafoundation.org/terms"><span style="color: #1155cc;">Operetta Foundation</span></a>.)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And Michael Miller gave his annual Operetta Mania potpourri
of eclectic operetta videoclips from the world’s stages. On this occasion, the
items ranged from a Dutch production of Offenbach’s “Bluebeard” and the
all-female Takarazuka Kagekidan Japanese troupe in Cole Porter’s “Can-Can” to a
Morbisch “Giuditta” and Maurice Yvain’s “Là-Haut” from a 1984 Paris production.
The last named prompted the observation that OLO has actually yet to mount a
20th Century French operetta. We also got to see young Jacob Allen cavorting
through “It” from a 2008 OLO production of “The Desert Song.” All the clips were
well chosen and placed in interesting context by Miller.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">There were, as well, several informative pre-performance
talks. Miller handled “Arizona Lady” and “H.M.S. Pinafore,” Reese “Camelot,”
and Allen “Orpheus in the Underworld.”</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Under Daigle’s and Executive Director Laura Neill’s
leadership, Ohio Light Opera has clearly lost not a whit of its mojo, and
remains a unique bastion of musical theater and operetta.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">(The Ohio
Light Opera, The College of Wooster, 1189 Beall Avenue, Wooster, OH; 330-263-2345
or ohiolightopera.org; through July 30)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Photos:
Matt Dilyard<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">(Top)
Tzytle Steinman & company, “Arizona Lady”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">(Below)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">“Camelot”
company</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">(l.-r.)
Gover, Christine Price, “Orpheus in the Underworld”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">“H.M.S.
Pinafore” company</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">(l.-r.)
Murphy, Waycott, “Arizona Lady”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">(l.r.)
Spivey, Reese, “No, No, Nanette”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white;">(l.-r.)
Bergen Price, Colin Ring, Madison Barrett, “How to Succeed in Business Without
Really Trying”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;"><br /></span><p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-54909083302012856222023-06-30T17:50:00.001-07:002023-06-30T17:55:46.563-07:00Days of Wine and Roses (Atlantic Theater Company)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkc8FSErYcl0S66KV9E6SluU-zPoRgLmtQCMhAQvf1rIYgC1qzbWexdc0ryIhFZr9tjOOXmgOBisoLOuiqc7Bf14u2mnpuE4I9M83RebIxHziGm5bTAOcoTWM3G8lE9L034jJM2uW6gSw2-d3Z1df4zJfa2JodbYNiq6axCiPDiKR6wkbZPRxnonnNy9s/s5745/DAYSDress.2159.3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3834" data-original-width="5745" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkc8FSErYcl0S66KV9E6SluU-zPoRgLmtQCMhAQvf1rIYgC1qzbWexdc0ryIhFZr9tjOOXmgOBisoLOuiqc7Bf14u2mnpuE4I9M83RebIxHziGm5bTAOcoTWM3G8lE9L034jJM2uW6gSw2-d3Z1df4zJfa2JodbYNiq6axCiPDiKR6wkbZPRxnonnNy9s/w400-h268/DAYSDress.2159.3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I recently watched the 1958 “Playhouse 90” television version of JP Miller's “Days of Wine and Roses” to have a frame of reference for this new musical version, especially as I hadn’t seen the 1962 Blake Edwards film with Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick in many years.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The narrative of those and the Atlantic’s current production -- developed, in part, at the 2015 Sundance Institute Theatre Lab at MASS MoCA -- traces the rocky booze-soaked codependency of Joe, a 1950s PR man and Kirsten, a teetotaling secretary: “two people stranded at sea,” as they are described. Early in their relationship, Joe persuades Kirsten to join him in his hard-drinking ways. They marry, and thereafter, they experience a pathetic downward spiral. He’ll soon lose his job, and even when after his first failed attempts, manages to straighten himself out, Kirsten will prove more gripped by her addiction than he.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Craig Lucas's book for what might be more accurately defined as a chamber opera adheres to the original teleplay with remarkable fidelity only dropping the rather obvious Alcoholics Anonymous flashback framing device.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">In leads Kelli O'Hara and Brian d'Arcy James, the production is blessed with performers who capture remarkably well the intensity, if not perhaps all the raw ugliness, of the roles’ originators, Cliff Robertson and Piper Laurie. But of course, Robertson and Laurie didn't have to sing Adam Guettel’s complex and demanding score, which they do most beautifully. With director Michael Greif at the helm, the dramatic elements are as strong as the musical ones. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">This has been quite the month for Guettel whose 2005 adaptation of “The Light in the Piazza” just received an outstanding revival at City Center’s Encores series, though it must be said straight away that the storyline of “Piazza” is considerably more audience satisfying than the relentlessly downbeat dramatics of the new work.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Guettel’s score is as technically accomplished if not (at least on first hearing) as melodic that of “Piazza,” and both stars have multiple opportunities to demonstrate their musical and dramatic chops. Guettel varies the musical palette with aching ballads, reflective monologues, and some jazzy riffs to lighten the mood every now and then. But, as noted, the numbers are far from a traditional Broadway musical vein. This is the kind of modern opera Beverly Sills might have championed when she was running New York City Opera back in the day.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Besides the lustrous work of O’Hara and James, the supporting cast is excellent, particularly Byron Jennings, outstanding as Kirsten's taciturn Norwegian father, the part memorably played by Charles Bickford in both the TV version and the film. And there’s good work from Ella Dane Morgan as the couple’s young daughter.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Lizzie Clachan’s versatile lighted panel set in the first few scenes gives way to a beautifully detailed rendering of Arneson’s greenhouse and a sad and dingy motel room as the story progresses. Dede Ayite’s costumes capture the mid-20th century fashions accurately. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Props also to Kai Harada’s crystal clear sound design, and Ben Stanton’s astute lighting.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Musical director Kimberly Grigsby leads the intricate score, orchestrated by Guettel himself along with Jamie Lawrence, with deft sensitivity.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">And I can't resist adding that it was a special pleasure to watch the performance with an intelligent audience that responded appropriately to the drama and the music, without all the showy screaming and yelling heard at the Encores’ “Light in the Piazza” where the rabid show fans greeted each character entrance and musical number, no matter how delicate the mood, as if they were watching “MJ” or “Six.”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">(Linda Gross Theater, Atlantic Theater Company, </span><span id="docs-internal-guid-3be1d676-7fff-5f1c-2e04-adc78ce6a25b" style="background-color: transparent; color: #242424; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">336 West 20</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #242424; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-size: 0.6em; vertical-align: super;">th</span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #242424; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> Street; atlantictheater.org; through July 16)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Photo by Ahron R. Foster: (l-r) Brian d’Arcy James (Joe) and Kelli O’Hara (Kirsten)</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-92008153531435874202023-05-09T09:25:00.002-07:002023-05-09T09:25:15.713-07:00Sugar (J2 Spotlight)<p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-0cf79274-7fff-8c4b-b17d-eaedcc668a6d" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggYRelvijuzK5c-qRPXeFF0IU58IN1DlwwAMDf3lcqu7ANVs0_xr0MADJ8rfFjgsvf1NQtxpJPJ0ZOsKi8QEmhtJXZFbfCBrZjYDbENR_8MmpgJkLQEhga18rY8w7YKMwX-i-JOtqeLRxx8XkcncMizpHPQQiPhwiP9WFRU5-qCVsbcCIPS2mWrVCV/s500/sugar-500x500-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggYRelvijuzK5c-qRPXeFF0IU58IN1DlwwAMDf3lcqu7ANVs0_xr0MADJ8rfFjgsvf1NQtxpJPJ0ZOsKi8QEmhtJXZFbfCBrZjYDbENR_8MmpgJkLQEhga18rY8w7YKMwX-i-JOtqeLRxx8XkcncMizpHPQQiPhwiP9WFRU5-qCVsbcCIPS2mWrVCV/s320/sugar-500x500-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was a brilliant programming decision, to be sure: reviving “Sugar,” the 1972 adaptation of Billy Wilder’s 1959 “Some Like It Hot” film, at the same time as the new musical version is currently packing them in on Broadway. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The plot line of each follows the narrative of the movie, though “Sugar” adheres much more closely to the original concept and dialogue. You have sax player Joe (Chris Cherin) and bass player Jerry (Andrew Leggieri) taking on drag disguise with an all-girl band run by Sweet Sue (Lexi Rhoades). It’s 1929 Chicago, and gangsters, who know Joe and Jerry witnessed the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, are hot on their heels. Once in the band, Joe (now Josephine) falls hard for ukulele player/vocalist Sugar Kane (Alexandra Amadao Frost), and Jerry (now Daphne) is pursued by the wealthy and randy Osgood Fielding III (Richard Rowan).</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2L_mox06yg37Rt1okYtvZtqRmT1-Vd-BWG9cWNR1vHjpzYpOSpvQCuGluqLQSkzJYtP34YMk214xE_LxlYJf2TC7dQSK8sxH-UtAAaksTRL9O-rNRT2m5l4wil-xxMjNFZciJh-T7qqUm0GoyNBJWjb1GWA-CTBsiP6XfUBlEpTGdMvvSLgFo3Fd1/s2048/343074135_973761633808557_5350097249026547304_n.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2L_mox06yg37Rt1okYtvZtqRmT1-Vd-BWG9cWNR1vHjpzYpOSpvQCuGluqLQSkzJYtP34YMk214xE_LxlYJf2TC7dQSK8sxH-UtAAaksTRL9O-rNRT2m5l4wil-xxMjNFZciJh-T7qqUm0GoyNBJWjb1GWA-CTBsiP6XfUBlEpTGdMvvSLgFo3Fd1/s320/343074135_973761633808557_5350097249026547304_n.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The show fits thematically into J2 Spotlight’s season of musicals derived from movies, including “The Goodbye Girl,” coming up next. The season opened with a very impressive production of Kander & Ebb’s “Woman of the Year,” directed, like all the J2 shows, by the very talented Robert M. Schneider.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">What’s clear from the start here is that the score by Jule Styne (music) and Bob Merrill (lyrics) is a good one. Not on the level of their prior collaboration (“Funny Girl”), but quite enjoyable on its own terms.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Production-wise, comparisons are a case of apples and oranges, as this small-scale mounting can’t compare with Broadway. Generally, these J2 productions are beautifully designed, but on this occasion, the scope of the show -- which encompasses a train, hotel rooms, nightclubs, and a yacht -- could only be barely realized. So, too, the action didn’t have much breathing space on the compact Theatre Row stage. As it was, everything felt rather scrunched even with Schneider’s always resourceful choices. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOS9NSQ_qNWrSzYQJLpr3tc2DPFvUNfCSBSXUKJtRNx1W4kaDTA7dv-u7A5lK6O5O6xcdcK98jepAwx6DVfFn4TJ_9f2e_Z4xH9cdmBtIowHjQDxJDbzNlrurEVksPlNMvCSP1ZvhOW0ydVEp4qlCzZiuY6vlI0IMpvnjbaSoUI2nMcWKKX4LCGWen/s2048/343771334_3191099191180673_6656960941994085121_n.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOS9NSQ_qNWrSzYQJLpr3tc2DPFvUNfCSBSXUKJtRNx1W4kaDTA7dv-u7A5lK6O5O6xcdcK98jepAwx6DVfFn4TJ_9f2e_Z4xH9cdmBtIowHjQDxJDbzNlrurEVksPlNMvCSP1ZvhOW0ydVEp4qlCzZiuY6vlI0IMpvnjbaSoUI2nMcWKKX4LCGWen/s320/343771334_3191099191180673_6656960941994085121_n.png" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p>Apart from a restored ballad for Sugar Kane -- “The People in My Life” -- cut from the original production, J2 performs the score as it was heard on Broadway, and eschews the radical changes made for the 1992 London premiere which starred Tommy Steele. (That revival closed early when Steele was injured on stage.)</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">As Joe and Jerry, Chris Cherin and Andrew Leggieri were solid, amusing in their female getups, though less flashily attired by costume director Gabe Bagdazian than were originators Tony Roberts and Robert Morse. They handle their opening duets --- “Penniless Bums” and “The Beauty That Drives Men Mad” -- with aplomb and shine in their climatic solos: Jerry’s “Magic Nights” and Joe’s “It’s Always Love.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Joe actually takes on a second disguise -- a Shell Oil millionaire -- for which Cherin affects a posh upper crust accent rather than Tony Curtis’ Cary Grant voice in the movie. Curtis, by the way, starred as Osgood in a touring production years after the original.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Like role creator Elaine Joyce, Alexandra Amadao Frost has the thankless task of creating an original persona to match Marilyn Monroe’s iconic performance. And she does indeed telegraph her own brand of innocence, and renders Sugar’s yearning for a better life touchingly.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Oren Korenbum, tap-dancing mobster Spats, flanked by henchmen Dude (Caleb James Grochalski) and Lucky (Bobby MacDonnell) are all good but they really needed a more expansive playing area. And there was good character work too from Jordan Ari Gross as band manager Bienstock.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Accompaniment was under the confident leadership of Lindsay Noel-Miller (also piano), and three of the six musicians -- Jessica Stanley (trombone), Kate Amrine (trumpet), and Katy Faracy (alto saxophone) -- doubled as musicians in Sweet Sue’s onstage band, a clever (and pragmatic) touch.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Theater Row, 410 West 42nd Street; www.j2spotlightnyc.com; April 27 - May 7)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photos: (above) Alexandra Amadeo Frost</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">(below) Andrew Leggieri, Chris Cherin, & Jordan Ari Gross</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-53935934558879908172023-05-05T08:58:00.001-07:002023-05-05T08:58:59.092-07:00Iolanthe (or The Peer and the Peri) (MasterVoices)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXOeKH2hoIEwCWm6L6OGObTBlESSLYhsL1gbWx3hkfcdiDwlts6qjPFHJp194iUMjAqnF3hCHEtE194JSCztw8R_ThAwVvXvL-tix9Sz_wq-Q5uqf2UL8Af9y3bV1JR29XNsqGk03icbmuKz4nOJL4vlb1df4arFCv_xzhIJTSrqpBcAcsRanapsJr/s7702/Copy%20of%20MasterVoices%20Presents%20Iolanthe%20photo%20by%20Toby%20Tenenbaum-3585.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5135" data-original-width="7702" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXOeKH2hoIEwCWm6L6OGObTBlESSLYhsL1gbWx3hkfcdiDwlts6qjPFHJp194iUMjAqnF3hCHEtE194JSCztw8R_ThAwVvXvL-tix9Sz_wq-Q5uqf2UL8Af9y3bV1JR29XNsqGk03icbmuKz4nOJL4vlb1df4arFCv_xzhIJTSrqpBcAcsRanapsJr/w400-h266/Copy%20of%20MasterVoices%20Presents%20Iolanthe%20photo%20by%20Toby%20Tenenbaum-3585.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s only May, but I’m betting dollars to donuts that this starry production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s seventh comic opera will be reckoned New York’s G&S event of the year. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Director/conductor Ted Sperling continued his winning streak of superlative musicals and operettas for this latest annual MasterVoices spring event. He had previously mounted “The Mikado” and “The Pirates of Penzance” with felicitous results, but this was arguably the best of all. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What a pleasure to hear Arthur Sullivan’s overture, melancholy and sprightly by turns, played so superbly and with such seriousness of purpose. And the action that followed was not in any way camped up. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For non-Savoyard readers, W.S. Gilbert’s plot concerns Strephon (Schyler Vargas), an Arcadian shepherd, who loves shepherdess Phyllis (Ashley Fabian), ward of The Lord Chancellor (David Garrison). She, in turn, is being wooed by the upper crust twits, Earls Mountararat (Santino Fontana) and Tolloller (Jason Danieley). What Phyllis doesn’t know is that her betrothed is the son of the fairy Iolanthe (Shereen Ahmed), sent into exile years before (under fairy law) for marrying a mortal. (Spoiler: her husband was the Lord Chancellor, who believes Iolanthe died years earlier). Strephon is thus a fairy (but only down to the waist).</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Queen of the Fairies (Christine Ebersole) is stern but softhearted and allows Iolanthe to come back from her banishment. This causes all sorts of complications with Phyllis when Strephon is spied speaking to his mother who, as fairies are immortal, appears to be a woman younger than he. All this was played absolutely straight, with no cheap gags, or audience snickering, about being “half a fairy.”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmtL_U1aknZeQArLof42F6i8IXFk5N3AbEylqrn-jSaGVODqvT2s5PsqIQh58Z_DCTJK1qHalaIds0OKfeXEmdsNJOBuffj6hA3ShnnO2ArdVUTw9-VtzrB_q3-Z9lwwWTRRJstB0gVe3PMS0w8naYEKpgjwRQpgakH6C4U1M9iMjAjMClae8uzMRU/s8256/Copy%20of%20MasterVoices%20Presents%20Iolanthe%20photo%20by%20Toby%20Tenenbaum-3553.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5504" data-original-width="8256" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmtL_U1aknZeQArLof42F6i8IXFk5N3AbEylqrn-jSaGVODqvT2s5PsqIQh58Z_DCTJK1qHalaIds0OKfeXEmdsNJOBuffj6hA3ShnnO2ArdVUTw9-VtzrB_q3-Z9lwwWTRRJstB0gVe3PMS0w8naYEKpgjwRQpgakH6C4U1M9iMjAjMClae8uzMRU/s320/Copy%20of%20MasterVoices%20Presents%20Iolanthe%20photo%20by%20Toby%20Tenenbaum-3553.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The large MasterVoices chorus was positioned upstage behind the MasterVoices Orchestra, except for the March of the Peers, that number spine-tinglingly positioned in the score after the quiet and bucolic tunes which precede it. With a burst of brass, Sperling had the huge tenor/bass contingent enter dramatically from the wings and parade around the stage. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The sopranos and altos (as fairies) were upstage all evening, except for the principals including Nicole Eve Goldstein (Celia), Kaitlin LeBaron (Leila), and Emy Zener (Fleta), all excellent. And there was the delightful addition of Tiler Peck from the New York City Ballet as a Dancing Fairy who flitted in and out most attractively, and contributed to the magical atmosphere. And it was such a relief Sperling eschewed the frequent vulgarization of having the fairies stomp about to the beat of the music. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The cast was a deft mixture of Broadway and opera performers and, as with past MasterVoices productions, the blend worked seamlessly. From the former, Ebersole wasn’t a traditional Fairy Queen, normally cast with a deep contralto, but she made her well trained, light soprano work beautifully for the part and she didn’t miss a comic beat. Her second act ballad “Oh, foolish fay” was her vocal highlight.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Garrison, on book mostly but ironically not the tongue-twisting bravura “Nightmare Song,” adapted his persona well to the crusty Lord Chancellor, though his English accent was a bit hit or miss, also true of some of the others. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Danieley and Fontana made a highly amusing pair of stuck-up peers, and their dialogue about which of them should make the sacrifice not to marry Phyllis, a comic highlight. They sang beautifully: Danieley’s big moment was “Spurn Not the Nobly Born” in the first act; Fontana’s “When Britain Really Ruled the Waves” in the second. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The young lovers were vocally and dramatically strong. As Strephon is only a fairy down to the waist, Vargas was outfitted (by costume designer Tracy Christensen) in shorts, which visualized this dichotomy and made a droll picture. His comic timing and delivery were as impressive as his strong baritone. Fabian also sang strongly and conveyed Phyllis’ cool ambition and self-awareness. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEielE3LhveNifNO8szvzGmcESVyme3oNKgvEyK5CkJ__8jEjQz59eEyL7MCXWgSUqJ_EMxJvxnGZUGdFL6AUz5lvjXiD1_ZeLvOT4clk7dgeh4P-uD3-7nDYmFfYUmpOkpANxSqJoWfAS1JKcyl8WzsK6jybV9Ww3xLoRxIzLtGTRZRqSqPgXm7gNef/s7065/Copy%20of%20MasterVoices%20Presents%20Iolanthe%20photo%20by%20Toby%20Tenenbaum-3153.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4710" data-original-width="7065" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEielE3LhveNifNO8szvzGmcESVyme3oNKgvEyK5CkJ__8jEjQz59eEyL7MCXWgSUqJ_EMxJvxnGZUGdFL6AUz5lvjXiD1_ZeLvOT4clk7dgeh4P-uD3-7nDYmFfYUmpOkpANxSqJoWfAS1JKcyl8WzsK6jybV9Ww3xLoRxIzLtGTRZRqSqPgXm7gNef/s320/Copy%20of%20MasterVoices%20Presents%20Iolanthe%20photo%20by%20Toby%20Tenenbaum-3153.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ahmed, like Ebersole, was cast counter to the traditional voice type. Iolanthe is usually a mezzo but the part suited Ahmed’s sweet soprano, and her poignant plea for Strephon near the end was as moving as I’ve ever heard it.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And I mustn’t forget Phillip Boykin’s Private Willis which was really outstanding and his second act opener, “When all night long a chap remains,” got one of the biggest ovations of the evening, along with Garrison's "Nightmare Song." </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christensen’s designs for the fairies and peers was just right for this semi-staged concert. And there were clear white supertitles for the lyrics, and even green footnotes for some of the arcane references.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtafPIHsQLitopQL-dRXXin98eoFvsO4ZL4K1N_-bad9kIqxGPx_ZrlJegGwECyZ4oxxETSU7nMpb4cnu2D6kQtbAX5ZamVbyt_wuip_-L5A3EkQjDNvUeIAqq8GdeohRjEgx_xNw-ZlXHdge_eoOa0wvBUSgmisXithno4HC565pVxIsNpDs9Lf1B/s6986/MasterVoices%20Presents%20Iolanthe%20photo%20by%20Toby%20Tenenbaum-3338.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4657" data-original-width="6986" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtafPIHsQLitopQL-dRXXin98eoFvsO4ZL4K1N_-bad9kIqxGPx_ZrlJegGwECyZ4oxxETSU7nMpb4cnu2D6kQtbAX5ZamVbyt_wuip_-L5A3EkQjDNvUeIAqq8GdeohRjEgx_xNw-ZlXHdge_eoOa0wvBUSgmisXithno4HC565pVxIsNpDs9Lf1B/s320/MasterVoices%20Presents%20Iolanthe%20photo%20by%20Toby%20Tenenbaum-3338.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sperling’s directorial decisions every step of the way seemed absolutely apt, and his musical leadership impeccable. I look forward to his next foray into G&S whenever that may be. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Carnegie Hall, Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage, 881 Seventh Avenue; carnegiehall.org; May 3 only)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photos by Toby Tenenbaum: </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Top: Cast</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Below: (l.-r.) Ebersole, Ahmed</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(l.-r.) Fabian, Vargas, Ahmed</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(l.-r.) Garrison, Fabian, Danieley, Fontana</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-30814192704063837152023-05-02T06:57:00.003-07:002023-05-02T10:32:52.219-07:00Cyrano de Bergerac (Victor Herbert Renaissance Project Live!)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmY2j0oDljb6WFRXg6atyHJNioCMtvZBsPscccqI7aR3TAxfCcAHxKlOPJCtvzvBuSWHdkoqMgoY2uf7qBf6DhoejPB539eTnIOoSeWdrgjBsUc9xlCYiWzpcpUayLUAd4kxqxgzJ50nm7Mq93PvG4CnTMY_v9p8ixXaP6Uuqsez1vmmetV9G7hL5W/s7038/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-86.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4500" data-original-width="7038" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmY2j0oDljb6WFRXg6atyHJNioCMtvZBsPscccqI7aR3TAxfCcAHxKlOPJCtvzvBuSWHdkoqMgoY2uf7qBf6DhoejPB539eTnIOoSeWdrgjBsUc9xlCYiWzpcpUayLUAd4kxqxgzJ50nm7Mq93PvG4CnTMY_v9p8ixXaP6Uuqsez1vmmetV9G7hL5W/w400-h256/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-86.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“You’re about to see a flop,” VHRP Artistic Director Alyce Mott impishly teased the packed house a few moments before the curtain parted for Victor Herbert’s 1899 adaptation of Rostand’s great play. Rostand’s original had been written a mere two years earlier, and was well known to American audiences from both Richard Mansfield’s authorized production, and various burlesque adaptations.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Adapting the play on this occasion was the brainchild of noted comic opera star Francis Wilson, who was also producing. He apparently hoped to combine his much praised buffoonery with something classier. But book writer Stuart Reed, by all accounts, failed to find a balance between the serious and the lowdown comic elements. Herbert, for his part, wrote a score in keeping of Rostand. The result was an uneasy mix, and the piece did indeed shutter after a mere 28 performances. (A subsequent tour was no more successful.) Mixed reviews acknowledged the quality of the music, but felt Wilson’s comic antics were discordantly out of place.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0A4SeaugUMsXs9fl2YLK7BQ-ApqcJz-CouvAbBEULELzXpSvGi2VxpN3r7ZD25g4WqpqdBxArIr5VbF4nVCB7gVae-JDS_Ye4jr77VVDjWTjXXMziQuV7002KxymNv2xcLLvx1i4yYvRE52kd81pncfnYNzrqPGLQWEfXAVHLb_G5Qr4Sg5gSvgbo/s6747/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-71.jpg" style="background-color: white; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4500" data-original-width="6747" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0A4SeaugUMsXs9fl2YLK7BQ-ApqcJz-CouvAbBEULELzXpSvGi2VxpN3r7ZD25g4WqpqdBxArIr5VbF4nVCB7gVae-JDS_Ye4jr77VVDjWTjXXMziQuV7002KxymNv2xcLLvx1i4yYvRE52kd81pncfnYNzrqPGLQWEfXAVHLb_G5Qr4Sg5gSvgbo/s320/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-71.jpg" width="320" /></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As the original book is now lost (or at least unavailable), Mott had no choice but to write her own libretto based on Rostand, restoring a tragic ending (unlike Reed’s version) and shoehorning Herbert’s tunes to fit. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mott’s version was first heard in a 1999 concert with the Little Orchestra Society at Lincoln Center. The late Dino Anagnost conducted his large orchestra and New Yorkers experienced the score for the first time in a century. A piano-only version production with a cast of five with her brand new VHRP group followed in 2013. The current performance expands those editions to something approaching full-length, though three acts have been condensed to two, there’s been some shuffling of song order to accommodate the new book, and some verses of individual songs have been cut. (Some of those were so tuneful, I regretted not hearing the second verse.) As far as I can judge, only two songs have been cut completely: the Chorus of Poets, and Cyrano’s “Diplomacy” number. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGwINQfqvVV171MrG1BqlqjzADjJjRj6nWCkXuNGpF0Wa8MCbJ1vR5G_kNilf-hsGoUpT5NivbTYdI2qYPzB5jzGfLhgHiwVX-IIApTJ9Kt5mk5VeXI-B92Fe1okIIsgjr658E7YwgF0wPBCTGtAwssEoc8EULXIG_Zo-782v10nNjbB8RHE7RHoy5/s6618/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-100.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4500" data-original-width="6618" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGwINQfqvVV171MrG1BqlqjzADjJjRj6nWCkXuNGpF0Wa8MCbJ1vR5G_kNilf-hsGoUpT5NivbTYdI2qYPzB5jzGfLhgHiwVX-IIApTJ9Kt5mk5VeXI-B92Fe1okIIsgjr658E7YwgF0wPBCTGtAwssEoc8EULXIG_Zo-782v10nNjbB8RHE7RHoy5/s320/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-100.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The well-known plot follows its usual course: poet/soldier Cyrano (Matthew Wages) loves Roxane (Hannah Holmes), his distant cousin, but presumes she couldn’t love him because of his large nose. (We have to take that on faith, as there are no prosthetics used here). She, in turn, falls for the handsome but inarticulate cadet Christian (Ai Ra). Out of love for Roxane, Cyrano agrees to equip Christian with the eloquent words he needs for wooing.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What is evident -- as was the case with Mott’s prior productions -- is that the work is a piece of quality, and one can empathize with the reaction of those 19th century critics who recognized it as such, but bemoaned the lack of voices to do the score justice. Though praising the chorus and orchestra, the </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Times</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> wrote, “So far as the solo numbers went, one had to guess what most of them would sound like if they were well sung.”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPdDj1K8w1Cmr-PhACJa_8ibrfPzuM7edfT-4Pi_NZGvTqKFgXeLMHOW_hQeiNC6rEVnKjdwKDA65_7t2eoMqZ4h1mmbtN7_25Tb1IJezqwXwgraZf6waKhTWYIhxzQ8pn-XsPS7d2UXRgPPSursi8MApFSBQ-WuvYXjWaFlLZrgyb66sj23p4AD7O/s6747/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4500" data-original-width="6747" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPdDj1K8w1Cmr-PhACJa_8ibrfPzuM7edfT-4Pi_NZGvTqKFgXeLMHOW_hQeiNC6rEVnKjdwKDA65_7t2eoMqZ4h1mmbtN7_25Tb1IJezqwXwgraZf6waKhTWYIhxzQ8pn-XsPS7d2UXRgPPSursi8MApFSBQ-WuvYXjWaFlLZrgyb66sj23p4AD7O/s320/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Such was decidedly not the case with VHRP’s current cast. Wages’ Cyrano was strongly sung and authoritatively acted with no silly clowning. He nailed his numbers like “Song of the Nose” and his duets with Roxane with rich tone and sincere feeling. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And Holmes’ Roxane sang with firm voice and, like Wages, exemplary diction, no doubt trumping the role’s originator, one Lulu Glaser. “I Am a Court Coquette,” the waltz “I Wonder,” and “Over the Mountains” were beautifully vocalized. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jonathan Hare was outstanding as Le Bret leading a rousing “Cadets of Gascony” and, later, as the Minstrel, excelled in “‘Neath Thy Window.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wages, Holmes, and Ra had two exceptionally lovely trios: “Let the Sun of Thine Eyes” and “Since I Am Not For Thee.” (Ra led the men in “The King’s Musketeers” song but had no other solo moments.) And mention must be made of a truly luscious a cappella male chorus, “In Bivouac Reposing.” Jesse Pimpinella, who doubled as Montfluery, the actor whom Cyrano runs off the stage in the opening scene, had a lovely solo part in this. Jack Cotterell played Cyrano’s nemesis, Comte de Guiche, and capably served as the evening’s narrator. looking back on the play’s events of 1640. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx9MmBeFftlahM_yHsAwFIi3JRzprkGszDGcjrTIkqZFp4UsHnECphBemjKqw1-nflSd_Dkfv51qXJMTkSFJUIytdnt_F6enDl1A6oOJAsx5b8RfmWcRRSgxCVyJm_exTITfF0z-KlFcObYVZqZlhk73yaJNFK1PES_ApVrT1A_I2FG33b1tKggZm3/s6597/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-107.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4500" data-original-width="6597" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx9MmBeFftlahM_yHsAwFIi3JRzprkGszDGcjrTIkqZFp4UsHnECphBemjKqw1-nflSd_Dkfv51qXJMTkSFJUIytdnt_F6enDl1A6oOJAsx5b8RfmWcRRSgxCVyJm_exTITfF0z-KlFcObYVZqZlhk73yaJNFK1PES_ApVrT1A_I2FG33b1tKggZm3/s320/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-107.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Company veteran David Seatter -- 2013’s narrator -- brought his seasoned expertise to poetry-loving cook Ragueneau, and the befuddled Capuchin monk who is tricked into performing the marriage ceremony for Roxane and Christian. The strong voiced ensemble -- including Sarah Beasdale, Alexa Rosenberg, Joanie Brittingham, Justin Daley, Andrew Buck, Karen Mason, Josaphat Contreras, and Keith Broughton -- impressed from the show’s first moments, and made all the choral numbers count. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5xkULwQux_26yZcm8pnwGqJSmnZHJjC-jO07jJS9GG61n8RgissoeJNRXw1aN-IPYtREylGufyoqi06zKIxECxQmT9EgUq35NzeD3ZZJ11CjT8xRFwHti6MHuXEACLx-wYAzSX5245KwPsRlQgwzD5MHiae99MCGhi_yVooJrvbTjmYNzNnNzr1DV/s6933/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-36.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4500" data-original-width="6933" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5xkULwQux_26yZcm8pnwGqJSmnZHJjC-jO07jJS9GG61n8RgissoeJNRXw1aN-IPYtREylGufyoqi06zKIxECxQmT9EgUq35NzeD3ZZJ11CjT8xRFwHti6MHuXEACLx-wYAzSX5245KwPsRlQgwzD5MHiae99MCGhi_yVooJrvbTjmYNzNnNzr1DV/s320/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-36.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Michael Thomas led a superlative performance in the pit from the catchy overture onwards, with William Hicks at piano and the New Victor Herbert Orchestra, a very welcome expansion from the piano only version in 2013. Viva la Difference!</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mott’s stage direction, abetted by choreographer Christine Hall, visualized the story clearly and filled the fairly wide St. Jean’s stage most effectively.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One might say that Rostand’s play, so perfect in itself, needs no music, but that hasn’t stopped composers from trying including operatic versions by Walter Damrosch and Franco Alfano, and several successful musical theater adaptations. But in Mott’s edition, Herbert’s largely forgotten work emerges as a strong contender.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1KkODhDU4dU-LBXJ-qH6kU5XXvhrKckbyE1IypJA5R6K1CcmQo_bXkatE9hPzayP4ND4QPaMWcPtq7ItmVp_hmNQCPGUSlqSVSx_zmETm3DivA4p3VK9HAa3z2ANZLkIAXnGt21Kf4p2Oa6e3Eq2YdmCTW9ft4RLqOeRNi4uXrOvezlqXNslhMslE/s6747/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-129.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4500" data-original-width="6747" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1KkODhDU4dU-LBXJ-qH6kU5XXvhrKckbyE1IypJA5R6K1CcmQo_bXkatE9hPzayP4ND4QPaMWcPtq7ItmVp_hmNQCPGUSlqSVSx_zmETm3DivA4p3VK9HAa3z2ANZLkIAXnGt21Kf4p2Oa6e3Eq2YdmCTW9ft4RLqOeRNi4uXrOvezlqXNslhMslE/s320/Alyce%20Mott-Cyrano%20-129.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(The Theater at St. Jeans, 170 E. 76th Street; www.vhrplive.org; April 25-27)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Production photos by Jill LeVine</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Top to Bottom: </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Cyrano de Bergerac” company</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(L-R) Matthew Wages, Ai Ra, Hannah Holmes</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(L-R) Matthew Wages, Hannah Holmes</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span face="Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="white-space: normal;">(L-R) Justin Daley, Josaphat Contreras, Hannah Holmes, Keith Broughton, Andrew Buck</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(L.-R) Jack Cotterell, Matthew Wages</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">(</span></span><span face="Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">L-R) Josaphat Contreras, Alexa Rosenberg, Andrew Buck, Karen Mason, Justin Daley, Joanie Brittingham, Sarah Bleasdale, Keith Broughton, Jesse Pimpinella</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The VHRP LIVE! Company of Cyrano de Bergerac</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-11112233482650923572023-04-26T07:16:00.003-07:002023-04-26T10:53:47.829-07:00Camelot (Lincoln Center Theater)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggGKyESy7OAYygEc0cqtUe7kahrA3V-enDxdbSnHrzFkSIg48aJ7I1NS-vnEcboRJSGCxkPnOhnGhommIkuCvT_t5NKPUEecMuwl26BLPM1Aj0BFGSsSmlyw9sDwjARHISJpERtEZ6XncbKnjjl7sE4kFdCJlzmG6b0FtKZwmep2x9jVlTa0RjM1A6/s3896/LCTCAM~1.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3009" data-original-width="3896" height="309" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggGKyESy7OAYygEc0cqtUe7kahrA3V-enDxdbSnHrzFkSIg48aJ7I1NS-vnEcboRJSGCxkPnOhnGhommIkuCvT_t5NKPUEecMuwl26BLPM1Aj0BFGSsSmlyw9sDwjARHISJpERtEZ6XncbKnjjl7sE4kFdCJlzmG6b0FtKZwmep2x9jVlTa0RjM1A6/w400-h309/LCTCAM~1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Director Bartlett Sher's winning streak of lavish musical revivals at the Vivian Beaumont has hit something of a bump with the current mounting of Alan J. Lerner and Frederick Loewe's classic 1960 musical derived from T.H. White's “The Once and Future King.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With a new book by Sher's sometime collaborator Aaron Sorkin -- one which largely robs the narrative of love, romance, and passion -- and a striking but overly austere setting by Michael Yeargan, this revival isn’t exactly dull but, by the same token, not greatly satisfying.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Andrew Burnap, Tony winner for “The Inheritance,” is an intelligent actor, and he has some particularly strong moments in the second act, but especially as no one uses English accents here, registers as less "kingly than the great Arthurs of the past like Richard Burton, Richard Harris, and Laurence Harvey, (and more recently) Gabriel Byrne and Jeremy Irons. So, too, Arthur really should be older than Lancelot who, as we learn in the original Act One close, speaks of Lancelot as an ideal friend, brother, and </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">son</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. (In “The Once and Future King,” Lancelot journeys from France to Camelot in the first place because he grew up hearing of Arthur’s roundtable.) </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Phillipa Soo is a lovely Guenevere with a proper regal bearing and enunciation, and sings impressively with a decent soprano top but, thanks to Sorkin’s book, comes across as rather chilly. Jordan Donica as Lancelot is an imposing presence with a powerful baritone. Donica’s entrance from the rear of the stage, as if coming over the horizon, is wonderfully effective, and his boastful entrance song, “C’est Moi,” strongly vocalized. By contrast, his once chart-topping second act ballad, “If Ever I Would Leave You,” seems consciously soft-pedaled to avoid being a “big” moment.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sorkin has taken magic and miracles out of the story, which, given the source material, is akin to denuding “The Lord of the Rings” or “Harry Potter” of their magical elements. Merlyn is a wise man not a wizard; Morgan Le Fey (Marilee Talkington) a scientist, not a sorceress. And so on. The relatable humanity of Lerner’s original “Camelot” script was surely not in the least diminished by co-existing with the magical elements. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sorkin makes sure that Guenevere is here a decisive “modern” woman with agency. Her marriage to Arthur is one of political necessity (“business partners” as the script has it) to keep the peace between England and France, similar to Shakespeare’s Henry V wooing his Katherine. The title song, wherein Arthur charms Guenevere with his description of the perfect weather of Camelot, is here tiresomely stressed by Sorkin as being merely figurative. (Did audiences ever think otherwise?)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The script's overall lingo, expletives included, is very present day contemporary and politically correct at every turn. The sense of deep love and kinship the three principals should have for each other is missing.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Dakin Matthews is outstanding as Merlyn and then as Pellinore. Taylor Trensch is brattily menacing as Arthur's illegitimate son, and delivers “The Seven Deadly Virtues” well enough. The three principal knights -- Sir Sagramore (Fergie Philippe), Sir Lionel (Danny Wolohan), and Sir Dinadan (Anthony Michael Lopez) -- are played rather villainously. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As with the prior Sher productions, LCT has not scrimped on the musical side of things. And though Frederick Loewe's score doesn't afford nearly as many opportunities for orchestral splendor at “South Pacific,” “The King and I,” or “My Fair Lady,” the sounds from the pit, heard in their original orchestrations by Robert Russell Bennett and Philip J. Lang (and Trude Rittmann’s dance and choral arrangements), under the baton of Kimberly Grigsby, rate as one of this production's strongest assets.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">However, there are cuts. Apart from a little orchestral underscoring, “Follow Me,” originally sung by the cut character of Nimue, is excised. As is half of Arthur's “How To Handle A Woman” (nicely sung by Burnap). I can understand cutting the middle section - “Merlyn told me once: Never be too disturbed if you don’t understand what a woman is thinking. They don’t do it often” -- but this is one of the gems of the score and it's given surprisingly short shrift. By compensation, “Then You May Take Me to the Fair,” cut from the original production and subsequent ones, but known from the original cast album and the 1967 movie, is restored. Guenevere’s “The Lusty Month of May” number has some nice maypole choreography by Byron Easley, but the show affords little opportunity for dance otherwise.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The sequence known as “The Jousts” wherein the chorus describes how Lancelot defeats the three knights against which he is competing, is gone altogether. That sequence is replaced by a sword fight (well staged by seasoned fight director B.H. Barry), wherein Arthur inexplicably takes the place of the third knight. Originally, Lancelot vanquishes Sir Lionel, running him through with his lance, but then brings him back to life, a miracle that is possible because of his genuine moral purity at that point. Here, Lancelot knocks Arthur unconscious and when it is proclaimed a miracle, Arthur sloughs all that off as superstition. No miracles allowed in Sorkin’s telling.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And I must also mention that Lancelot has here appropriated Guenevere's lovely "I Loved You Once in Silence." Well sung, but why? </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The moving final scene of the show wherein Arthur exhorts young Tom of Warwick (actually future “Morte D’Arthur” author Thomas Mallory) to run to safety and tell the world the story of Camelot, is largely spoiled by the stiff performance of the young actor in that small but pivotal role. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Michael Yeargan’s set, dominated by concentric arches, encompasses the entire width and depth of the Beaumont stage and would be an ideal setting for, say, Shakespeare's War of the Roses plays. But staged on such a vast canvas, this Camelot seems strangely under populated. It’s a far cry from Oliver Smith’s colorful fairytale bright sets of the original production, and also art director John Truscott’s rich green and gold naturalistic hues of the film. Jennifer Moeller’s costumes are plush but dark like the set, apart from the “Lusty Month of May” sequence.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Still, for all its shortcomings, there's enough quality here to make the show worth your time though musical theater buffs will know they’re not getting the genuine article. The film, despite some excesses and star Richard Harris's sometimes mannered emoting, is there to remind us how the show should go, especially as Lerner’s own screenplay skillfully solved some of the problematic elements of his original stage script. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Vivian Beaumont, 150 West 65 Street; Telecharge.com or 212-239-6200)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photos by Joan Marcus: (l.-r.) Phillipa Soo, Andrew Burnap, Dakin Matthews, Jordan Donica, and company </span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-47259604221674648802023-04-05T11:27:00.002-07:002023-04-05T11:27:56.520-07:00The Harder They Come (The Public Theater)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyXrAHfLFcvXYjUEnqnMyRTHcj0Q8JxG2d1C6WdNwQudcMYiIUTfCuPYv8mORKIHwgV6A-qYb0nNCuTGbhFE6-r9R0mMziN5FG4KFP4XtPDAPSD8xgP5FfpUxXi9NmpEsHRdg0o7BTzamLqbrNt9m_eMUkKT9pEjRHyc0TA9Q3frLfiQEIvmCB4sc-/s2768/01_hardertheycome0643rr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1845" data-original-width="2768" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyXrAHfLFcvXYjUEnqnMyRTHcj0Q8JxG2d1C6WdNwQudcMYiIUTfCuPYv8mORKIHwgV6A-qYb0nNCuTGbhFE6-r9R0mMziN5FG4KFP4XtPDAPSD8xgP5FfpUxXi9NmpEsHRdg0o7BTzamLqbrNt9m_eMUkKT9pEjRHyc0TA9Q3frLfiQEIvmCB4sc-/w400-h266/01_hardertheycome0643rr.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The 1972 Perry Henzell Jamaican film starring Jimmy Cliff was an international hit and spawned an influential soundtrack album that put reggae on the map. But still, the story of singer Ivan, who comes to Kingston from the country with dreams of becoming a singer and, frustrated at every turn by the establishment, turns to crime, might seem an unlikely subject for a musical. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The remarkable Suzan-Lori Parks has made it work, melding the Cliff songs with new ones of her own for a seamless whole. The plot and much of the dialogue mirrors the film but there are significant revisions. As a program note informs us, Parks “creates a new set of complex, vital relationships between Ivan and everyone around him…What is the personal cost of fighting against systemic injustice? When is violence justified? And ultimately, how can we rediscover our collective sense of joy?”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That may sound a bit high-handed, but the revamp worked for me, and despite a tragic fate of its antihero, the overall tone is surprisingly joyous and upbeat. (Actually, in its juxtaposition of cheerful music and ultra-serious plot, I was reminded of Paul Simon’s short-lived “The Capeman.”) Music supervisor Kenny Seymour’s orchestrations and arrangements beguile the ear throughout. The movie songs like “You Can Get It If You Really Want” and “Many Rivers to Cross,” which were used as underscoring in the film, become character songs for Ivan and the others.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The production is superbly cast, headed as it is by Natey Jones as anti-hero Ivan who gives an outstanding performance both dramatically and vocally. (Jones has an impressive resume of West End credits, as well as the National Theatre and RSC.) You get a real visceral sense of his character’s frustration and growing impatience with the continuing roadblocks in his way to getting his song played. Ivan becomes more of a hothead and increasingly difficult to love as the show goes on, but Jones offers a vivid warts and all portrayal.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Meecah is lovely as the sweet girl he meets and falls in love with when he at first seeks refuge with a church group run by Preacher, the girl’s questionable guardian, and there’s good work by Jeannette Bayardelle as Ivan’s mother. Also outstanding are versatile Jacob Ming-Trent as Pedro who befriends Ivan and, when the chips are down, convinces Ivan to be part of drug lord Jose’s (Dominique Johnson) gang, and Ken Robinson as Hilton, who rules the Kingston music scene with an iron hand, exploiting Ivan and presumably everyone else. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Beautifully staged by Tony Taccone (with co-direction by Sergio Trujillo) with choreography by Edgar Godineaux, the show holds your interest from start to finish. Clint Ramos & Diggle’s scenic design, atmospherically lit by Japhy Weideman, and dressed by costume designer Emilio Sosa, conjure up the Kingston milieu skillfully. And Walter Trarbach’s sound design is nicely balanced, and not the assault on the senses of so many musicals these days.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Perhaps in 2023, the movie’s title doesn’t have the cachet it might have once had, limiting its commercial appeal. But in every other respect, I’d say the show is Broadway worthy. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As it is, the Public’s run ends this week, but if you can find time during these busy days of Passover and Easter, “The Harder They Come” is very much worth your time..</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(The Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street; publictheater.org ;through April 9)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photo by Joan Marcus: Natey Jones (center) and the company </span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-16341418507894679622023-04-03T16:52:00.000-07:002023-04-03T16:52:27.888-07:00The Coast Starlight (Lincoln Center Theater)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF1ru-ny9YAsrFTTzbvJ5aufIvt8KAksqAanTxaOkiDsYYmSt_UBH5rkPyWxOcF-BZQnFMltQAyST_8iUXdCrnSufGPZ7a0ZKYLJF8YBUvjLo5uuoakPIhlKFzr7akOer6NC7R4D74yVhpYOHltkdCJdqw4lklocvvgR51dFm2sPcg3cEfllJ_JdCO/s6000/LCTTHE~1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF1ru-ny9YAsrFTTzbvJ5aufIvt8KAksqAanTxaOkiDsYYmSt_UBH5rkPyWxOcF-BZQnFMltQAyST_8iUXdCrnSufGPZ7a0ZKYLJF8YBUvjLo5uuoakPIhlKFzr7akOer6NC7R4D74yVhpYOHltkdCJdqw4lklocvvgR51dFm2sPcg3cEfllJ_JdCO/w400-h266/LCTTHE~1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How many films and plays have we seen wherein a motley set of characters interact aboard a ship, a plane, or a train? But Keith Bunin’s absorbing and ultimately moving play -- which was commissioned and premiered at the La Jolla Playhouse in 2019 -- gives that old formula a novel twist.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Aboard the train from Los Angeles to Seattle known as The Coast Starlight, six solitary passengers have minimal physical or verbal interaction as they sit in their respective seats, but their innermost thoughts about the fellow travelers, and the imagined conversations that ensue, play out with mesmerizing dramatic potency.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The focal point is T.J., a young Navy medic stationed at Camp Pendleton in San Diego, beautifully played by Will Harrison in an auspicious New York theater debut. T.J. is due back at base for redeployment to Afghanistan, but he’s gone AWOL. As the train wends its way, he wonders if he should, in fact, disembark, and head back while there’s still time.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">HIs troubled demeanor catches the attention of animation artist Jane (Camila Canó-Flaviá) who watches him across the aisle, surreptitiously sketching him while wondering about his stricken expression.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As the train heads on its northward course, they are joined by army vet Noah (Rhys Coiro), now making ends meet with bartending and various odd jobs, and traveling to see his aging mother. And then boisterous 40-something Liz (Mia Barron) who bursts into thei car loudly and profanely detailing the seamy details of breaking up with her boyfriend during a couples workshop over her cell phone. Her hilarious monologue is delivered with showstopping bravura. When T.J. shyly asks her if she’s alright after this emotional tirade (one of the few actual verbal interactions in the play), Liz apologizes to everyone in the car, and offers to buy drinks for all. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Before long, they’re joined by alcoholic and embittered businessman Ed (Jon Norman Schneider) whose inner rage is palpable as he sets the others nervously on edge. And finally, Anna (Michelle Wilson), a lesbian mother of two, who is just returning from identifying the body of her estranged dead brother. She, too, notices T.J.’s troubled mien, and offers him her sleeping compartment for the night. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The compassion shown by the characters, all grappling with their individual dilemmas, is profoundly touching.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The performances, under the sensitive direction of Tyne Rafaeli, couldn't be better. And Arnulfo Maldonado’s turntable set moodily lighted by Lap Chi Chu, against a backdrop of 59 Productions’ projections, captures the essence of the train’s movement and the passage of its 36-hour time most beautifully..</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Though in this day and age, opening up to your seatmates on your next trip may not be the safest or most sensible course of action, Bunin’s intensely humanistic worldview here makes that prospect seem wonderfully appealing. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This exquisitely crafted and performed play is very much worth your time.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, 150 West 65 Street; Telecharge.com or 212-239-6200 ; through April 16)</span></p><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photo by </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">T. Charles Erickson: (l.-r.) Mia Barron, Rhys Coiro, Michelle Wilson, Will Harrison and Jon Norman Schneider. </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-92159781121262932092023-03-31T11:07:00.002-07:002023-03-31T11:11:19.253-07:00Bad Cinderella (Imperial Theatre)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7YpIwBHTHOj8cYil0cOrCovzRrQdSBhB144VvKNXQOqTD0_YrwWM7qzlwwUSX7jJfTTZ6Uay0RbZUEnPUVWwuUQnoj1kH9gkS6N8J3XGLdtRppBdFC-jEa4SLnCu09mszt5FQywW4q19z6OM9nU65WSmUfVQ-Wq8uzTrN-rtrx0BoZrPnQoIJ5DNQ/s8081/1592_Linedy-Genao-and-Jordan-Dobson_photo-by-Matthew-Murphy-and-Evan-Zimmerman.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5390" data-original-width="8081" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7YpIwBHTHOj8cYil0cOrCovzRrQdSBhB144VvKNXQOqTD0_YrwWM7qzlwwUSX7jJfTTZ6Uay0RbZUEnPUVWwuUQnoj1kH9gkS6N8J3XGLdtRppBdFC-jEa4SLnCu09mszt5FQywW4q19z6OM9nU65WSmUfVQ-Wq8uzTrN-rtrx0BoZrPnQoIJ5DNQ/w400-h266/1592_Linedy-Genao-and-Jordan-Dobson_photo-by-Matthew-Murphy-and-Evan-Zimmerman.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Andrew Lloyd Webber has already had a crack at another iconic children's tale, “The Wizard of Oz,” though it was only a partial score, as he was supplementing the familiar Harold Arlen / Yip Harberg tunes from the MGM film.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">His take on Cinderella is all his. But it might as well be the work of two composers: the Lloyd Webber of lush romantic melodies and the Lloyd Webber of pastiche pop and rock. The blend of both has often paid off several times, most lucratively with “The Phantom of the Opera.” But here it's a frustrating mix.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The lush ballroom music, a couple of the romantic ballads especially the Prince's "Only You, Lonely You" and Cinderella's "Far Too Late," as well as felicitous bits and pieces throughout are, taken on their own terms, really quite nice and make one wish this were a full-out romantic telling of the Perrault/Grimm story.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As it is, it's a goofy feminist riff on the tale, courtesy of Emerald Fennell, screenwriter of the clever “Promising Young Woman.” (Alexis Scheer is credited with additional script material.) Douglas Carter Beane’s script revision of the Rodgers & Hammerstein “Cinderella” last on Broadway brought the story more up-to-date but arguably in a much more tasteful, and still amusing, way. They’ve set this one in a town called Belleville, where beauty is the superficially guiding principle. The Godmother (Christina Acosta Robinson) is part beautician/part plastic surgeon.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fennell’s Cinderella is a grumpy goth gal who, in less enlightened times might have been termed a tomboy. And Prince Sebastian is actually the awkward and shy younger brother of the more famous Prince Charming who has been missing in action and presumed dead. Sebastian and Cinderella have been sparring buddies since childhood but it takes them two acts to realize that their easygoing friendship is, in fact, love.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cinderella's stepmother is as ambitious as tradition makes her but has less control of Cinderella who, in this girl power telling, has plenty of agency. She's played with scene-stealing panache by Carolee Carmelo who gives her every line a delicious comic spin, finding nuances that, at least on the basis of the London cast LP, were missed by her U.K. counterpart.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Carmelo has a worthy adversary in Grace McLean as the Queen who harbors a surprisingly kinky admiration for her missing son. And their bitchy duet "I Know You" is the show’s witty highlight. It also happens to be veteran lyricist David Zippel’s best work here. Otherwise, the reliable Zippel, who previously teamed with Lloyd Webber for “The Woman in White,” is less than inspired, pandering, like the show in general, to a puerile audience.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fennell’s script is filled with inconsistencies and head scratching moments. Again, on the basis of the London album, it would seem there have been some dialogue changes. There is, in addition, some new music and a reordering of some numbers.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Though admittedly a subjective opinion, the character of Cinderella, as written, is simply not appealing enough to keep us rooting for her, though Linedy Genao plays her well enough and socks over the power ballads to maximum effect. These include the rather monotonous title song, which includes a brief nod to “In My Own Little Corner” from Richard Rodgers’ “Cinderella” score, and “I Know I Have a Heart (Because You Broke It),” the thrust of which would seem to harken back to the Tin Man’s sentiments in “The Wizard of Oz.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jordan Dobson is very appealing as hapless Sebastian and his “Only You, Lonely You” ballad is arguably the best of the bunch. Curiously, virtually all of these pieces are soliloquies for either Cinderella or Sebastian.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sami Gayle and Morgan Higgins are amusing as Cinderella's vain ambitious sisters in the usual manner. And when -- small spoiler -- Prince Charming eventually shows up, he's played with testosterone-fueled bravado by Cameron Loyal. (All the men in the town are ripped hunks.)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Laurence Connor directs the material at hand capably, with choreography by JoAnn M. Hunter. (The ball is nicely handled.) Gareth Owen’s sound design is pitched at standard Broadway decibels, which is to say, loud.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Gabriela Tylesova’s sets and costumes are certainly eye filling and fun on their own terms</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If Lloyd Webber ever chooses to make a symphonic suite of this score, as he's done with so many of his previous shows, there would actually be a decent amount of listenable material with which to work. But I do wish that rather than turning out yet another show geared at the Gen Z crowd so soon after “The School of Rock,” he had opted for a more mature approach to the story, as his latter-day shows like “The Woman in White, “Stephen Ward” and “Love Never Dies” at least attempted to do.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Imperial Theatre, 249 West 45th Street; badcinderellabroadway.com)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman: (I.-r.) Linedy Genao and Jordan Dobson</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-24110502279695256062023-03-28T08:28:00.000-07:002023-03-28T08:28:20.737-07:00Parade (Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGnx9U0Fwoq7gtj5vOAm--pk3leCG1vRi8ahp3s1ZVVh9-6U_m_Hc3fhcYC3kWhf_5pPFBTV0nTIwWnXu1PJT7JnbuVyrzgkwhEKj0BTwomyXsgCU_AonkmMN9rw_gfbXFCnqnNzfRo15uh5agW-TdRC9_FutANt3Y6ff9AoWh2VHCVgF-y9cy3Ypz/s2560/Micaela-Diamond-and-Ben-Platt.-Photo-by-Joan-Marcus-2-scaled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1706" data-original-width="2560" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGnx9U0Fwoq7gtj5vOAm--pk3leCG1vRi8ahp3s1ZVVh9-6U_m_Hc3fhcYC3kWhf_5pPFBTV0nTIwWnXu1PJT7JnbuVyrzgkwhEKj0BTwomyXsgCU_AonkmMN9rw_gfbXFCnqnNzfRo15uh5agW-TdRC9_FutANt3Y6ff9AoWh2VHCVgF-y9cy3Ypz/w400-h266/Micaela-Diamond-and-Ben-Platt.-Photo-by-Joan-Marcus-2-scaled.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is the superbly mounted revival of the 1998 Jason Robert Brown (music and lyrics)/Alfred Uhry (book) musical about the famous Leo Frank case, so widely praised after its critically acclaimed two week run at City Center, though not officially part of that venue’s Encores series, last year. A Broadway run seemed a logical next step, and here it is.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leo Frank, a superintendent of an Atlanta pencil factory in 1913, was brought to trial for the murder of a 14-year-old girl in his employ. The case was widely publicized and caught the imagination of the country with many prominent figures of the day calling for Frank’s pardon. Though almost surely innocent, as research over the years has strongly suggested, an indictment of Frank was politically expedient, fueled in part by his Jewish heritage. Sentenced to hang, though the sentence was commuted to life imprisonment, Frank was ultimately abducted from jail and lynched by a self-righteous mob. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A depressing tale to be sure, and one watches with that sense of foreboding knowing the inevitable outcome, but Uhry and Brown put the emphasis on the strong bond between Frank and his devoted wife Lucille (beautifully played by Micaela Diamond) who, much to Leo’s surprise, shows her mettle as she fights for his vindication. So there’s a sense of uplift, and bravery in the actions of Leo and Lucille who proclaim their love and commitment to each other in rapturous duets like “This Is Not Over Yet” and “All the Wasted Time.” Brown’s score is cannily crafted so that there are lighter numbers among the heavier ones. “Come Up to My Office” in the first act, and “Pretty Music” in the second, to name just two. And all the music sounds wonderful under the direction of Tom Murray.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This production uses the revisions from a 2007 Rob Ashford revival at London’s Donmar Warehouse. I don’t recall the original Hal Prince production vividly enough to say what’s been changed, but this version works very well.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The cast is first-rate. Diamond, as stated, is marvelous as Lucille and Ben Platt's Leo is equally impressive, singing superbly, and not afraid to show Frank’s chauvinistic side. The role’s memorable originator, Brent Carver, is no longer with us, but as fate would have it, Carolee Carmello, the original Lucille, is right across the street stopping the show as Bad Cinderella’s conniving stepmother in the Lloyd Webber musical of the same name. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the large ensemble cast, there are almost too many outstanding performances to mention. But I can’t resist a shout-out to Paul Alexander Nolan as relentless prosecutor Hugh Dorsey, Alex Joseph Grayson as the factory’s janitor (and, as history has it, probable killer) Jim Conley (whose second act blues number is a showstopper), Sean Allan Krill as Governor Slaton, Eddie Cooper as night watchman Newt Lee, Jay Armstrong Johnson as reporter Britt Craig, Manoel Felciano as anti-Frank publisher Tom Watson. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Dane Laffrey’s simple but effective scenic design, dominated by Sven Ortel’s period projections, and Susan Hilferty’s costumes, pull us convincingly into the period..</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Michael Arden directs with an imaginative hand, and the choreography by Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant contribute to the seamless whole. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, 242 West 45th Street; ParadeBroadway.com; through August 6)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photo by Joan Marcus: (l.-r.) Micaela Diamond and Ben Platt</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-47175610153755868742023-03-22T08:57:00.001-07:002023-03-22T09:01:44.627-07:00A Doll’s House (Hudson Theatre)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcXFyKA6gFrpt34MOah6ccKx1GsFnPVocwaB-cBUCMOQVYnbdMVBy-BK2VS4anPogIuN6MS0fmpLKvnCXe6GX8qLPg_7T2H8qDMovPDtg-cVhf2yLvnPEc_QDF147bsIc4rUrDjnDhhVAKCEOL5JAhKrVTrChplr-CrEVnkjne28kIdzGoDE4O_GEG/s2560/RAW_1.24.1_03-scaled.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="2560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcXFyKA6gFrpt34MOah6ccKx1GsFnPVocwaB-cBUCMOQVYnbdMVBy-BK2VS4anPogIuN6MS0fmpLKvnCXe6GX8qLPg_7T2H8qDMovPDtg-cVhf2yLvnPEc_QDF147bsIc4rUrDjnDhhVAKCEOL5JAhKrVTrChplr-CrEVnkjne28kIdzGoDE4O_GEG/w400-h225/RAW_1.24.1_03-scaled.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A production of Henrik Ibsen’s classic devoid of scenery, period costumes, and props hardly seems a prospect to set the heart racing. And yet, for all of that, director Jamie Lloyd’s production rates as one of the most gripping I’ve seen. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is a highly colloquial version by Amy Herzog (perhaps too colloquial at times as when Nora drops an f-bomb). It's performed on a dimly lit stage with voices cannily amplified by sound designers Ben and Max Ringham to a foreboding score by Ryuichi Sakamoto and Alva Noto, all to highly compelling effect. In Lloyd's mesmerizing staging rather like a radio play, you are thus guided to listen to Ibsen’s ever-suspenseful story even more intently. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jessica Chastain’s Nora Helmer, seated through most of the intermission-less evening, is a triumph. She surpasses her first Broadway outing in “The Heiress.” Not entirely likable in this interpretation, at least at the start, Nora registers as boastful, vain, self-centered, materialistic, and callous. All these traits are suggested in the original text, but are boldly heightened here. Still, as the play progresses, and Nora’s secret crime (forging a signature for a loan to restore her ailing husband to health) threatens to be exposed, she earns our sympathy and the final break from her husband Torvald (staged in a rather thrilling coup de theatre which is completely apt) is powerful as ever.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Arian Moayed is as patronizing and sexist a Torvald as we’ve seen, coolly superior to Nora until he explodes volcanically after learning of Nora’s actions. As Krogstad, the money lender who threatens to expose Nora if she doesn’t prevail upon her husband to save his position at Torvald’s bank, Okieriete Onaodowan is quietly powerful, and plays the role in a far more sympathetic manner than I’ve seen before. His scenes with Nora are strikingly staged with the two of them sitting back to back, as she tries to resist his entreaties. Again, their voices propel the scene. As Krogstad’s old flame, and Nora’s friend, the widowed, impoverished Kristine, Jesmille Darbouze projects quiet strength and resolve. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Michael Patrick Thornton, last seen here in the misguided Sam Gold “Macbeth,” makes an outstanding Dr. Rank, and his crucial scene with Nora -- rife with sexual undercurrent -- is beautifully played. And Tasha Lawrence rounds out the superlative crew as nanny Anne-Marie. (In this stripped down version, we don’t see the three Helmer children, nor the maid Helene.)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My only quibble with the production was Jon Clark’s low-lighting level which, though effective for the aforementioned reason, needed just a couple of notches more illumination. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No one would want this interpretation to be the template for all future productions of the play. And I have comparably fond memories of fully staged mountings including Janet McTeer’s 1997 Broadway turn, and a fabulous 1982 RSC Adrian Noble production in London with Cheryl Campbell and Stephen Moore, to name just two. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is, needless to say, a great play, and, in the right hands, rarely fails to make an impact. On this occasion, Herzog and Lloyd have done the play especially proud, presenting it with renewed relevance and immediacy.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Hudson Theatre, 141 West 44th Street; ADollsHouseBroadway.com; through June 10)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photo Courtesy of A Doll’s House:</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(I.-r.) Arian Moayed and Jessica Chastain </span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-79750802552048736032023-03-07T09:10:00.000-08:002023-03-07T09:10:10.762-08:00Becomes a Woman (Mint Theater Company)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_OHfmTbykP-GfV8qQRhpnxNNqK0EApjrRMZJT-61jYo_1k67SMQYgGY2Spneb4xyixa5XB8RTyJdk6OlPYUGHvE30vJRB-2eru17tc9JLFCFJ3LwOqFQatruv5jWWHrSgYMX7pulBclX5L0X0MQ7SkFoy4ZTHFoIMdKmyYSk_pJIfcqHtvqkJvSSV/s5700/TCP_1938.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4455" data-original-width="5700" height="313" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_OHfmTbykP-GfV8qQRhpnxNNqK0EApjrRMZJT-61jYo_1k67SMQYgGY2Spneb4xyixa5XB8RTyJdk6OlPYUGHvE30vJRB-2eru17tc9JLFCFJ3LwOqFQatruv5jWWHrSgYMX7pulBclX5L0X0MQ7SkFoy4ZTHFoIMdKmyYSk_pJIfcqHtvqkJvSSV/w400-h313/TCP_1938.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Broadway musical buffs may recollect Betty Smith’s name </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">on the cover of the cast album </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">as co-librettist of the 1951 musical, “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn” (based on her international 1943 best-seller). But that, in fact, was to be her only Broadway credit. And yet, Smith was apparently a prolific playwright who prized the dramatic field above all others, turning out around 70 plays. Several won prestigious prizes, but none of them received professional productions. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Just how dedicated she was to the genre is apparent in Mint Theater’s absorbing production of her 1931 play which won the University of Michigan’s renowned Avery Hopwood Award.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The play’s protagonist shares the name of the central character of “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn,” Francie Nolan, but there all similarities end. This Francie, impressively played by Emma Pfitzer Price in her Off-Broadway debut, works in a Kress five-and-dime-cent store in Brooklyn as a song plugger at the sheet music counter. A steadfastly virtuous 19-year-old who resists the myriad flirtations of the male customers much to the amused disdain of accompanying pianist Florry (entertaining Pearl Rhein with a Louise Brooks bob) who has far fewer scruples.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But when good looking, upper crust Leonard (Peterson Townsend), the son of the Kress chain’s chief (Duane Boutté), asks her out for a date, she finally lowers her guard and relents.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the second act, we meet Francie’s lower middle-class family -- boorish policeman braggart of a father (forceful Jeb Brown), pious mother (Antoinette LaVecchia really nailing the character), tactless brothers (Tim Webb and Jack Mastrianni) -- when she brings Leonard home to meet the folks, with (slight spoiler) disastrous results. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The color-blind casting of Leonard here rather requires some temporary suspension of disbelief, as Pa Nolan makes it patently clear before Leonard walks through the door that he expects any fella Francie brings home to be Irish Catholic. As it happens, the whole family treats Leonard with amusingly fawning deference as it seems they’ve never had a well-bred gentleman in the house before.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEfMpvDO0gbdgGSwCl5KAAnbez6v4mRaH_sQ_M6mK9F11-sTCNeO56Ix1RjNgDnlz0TXgphy3dXuTQhUZAAN3oL96Yao4eGxgoPBHh71YHnffx9YlcYhSVKV_d77DEcHGtMfu-H8PTPGuD-0OMqcPl2tpUIMjWGDkDlKMTA7Z_m-hOSPgFUCiHrwrD/s5996/TCP_2343.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4002" data-original-width="5996" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEfMpvDO0gbdgGSwCl5KAAnbez6v4mRaH_sQ_M6mK9F11-sTCNeO56Ix1RjNgDnlz0TXgphy3dXuTQhUZAAN3oL96Yao4eGxgoPBHh71YHnffx9YlcYhSVKV_d77DEcHGtMfu-H8PTPGuD-0OMqcPl2tpUIMjWGDkDlKMTA7Z_m-hOSPgFUCiHrwrD/s320/TCP_2343.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Without revealing any plot specifics, in the third act, let’s just say that Francie shakes off her shy passivity and comes to full maturity, living up to the play’s title. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The humorous tone of the first act -- with Price skillfully warbling a handful of songs, most especially Jerome Kern’s “Left All Alone Again Blues'' from “The Night Boat” -- and engaging in light banter with the other shopgirls, gives way to some pretty heavy kitchen sink melodrama in the second (actually, quite literally, as it takes place in the Nolan kitchen), and then a serious and sobering third. Smith’s dialogue has the ring of veracity, and her feminist perspective is highly persuasive throughout, even if some of the plot turns challenge credulity. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Vicki R. Davis’s sets -- the colorful Kress Dime Store of the first act (which a program note is careful to assure us is purely fictional in all respects as the real-life Kress chain never even had a Brooklyn store), and the Nolan’s tenement kitchen in the second -- are beautifully realized on the Mint’s modest budget. Likewise, Emilee McVey-Lee’s costumes are period perfect.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Under the assured direction of Britt Berke, Price’s highly committed central performance makes us really care about Francie’s plight, and overlook some of those script improbabilities. Her transition from the passive girl of the first act to assured woman in the third is truly outstanding. And there’s marvelous work from Gina Daniels -- likable and warm -- as Francie’s workmate and neighbor Tessie, Jason O’Connell as the good-hearted ambulance driver who’s sweet on Tessie, and Boutté as Leonard’s slickly unflappable father who shares some important moments with Price in the final act. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">NY City Center Stage II, 131 West 55th Street; minttheater.org; through March 18)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photos by Todd Cerveris:</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Top)(l.-r.) Townsend, Price</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Below)(l.-r.) Price, Daniels, Brown, LaVecchia</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-86071218776275321572023-02-28T07:46:00.000-08:002023-02-28T07:46:52.285-08:00The Red Mill (Victor Herbert Renaissance Project Live!)<p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-4ca606cf-7fff-0ac0-b228-0ae5c63d3818" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6kw7D775hQj6iuFc7hT7el_Jv8e0JLXJFhPn292p4ruIwuH-PbcQR33QmDkNN_ZSiyuPLAu2BSJgH5EzYtG0bjJNyTsK5tYTrx8Wg7SPHEGEOU8jgZV7MA-YNhzzSBMi1z0JX0zAMp1o37eoaq1DoGJ_-6OaOQyLwBCtm82S44VZfKhzqM862JkZl/s5397/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-53.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5397" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6kw7D775hQj6iuFc7hT7el_Jv8e0JLXJFhPn292p4ruIwuH-PbcQR33QmDkNN_ZSiyuPLAu2BSJgH5EzYtG0bjJNyTsK5tYTrx8Wg7SPHEGEOU8jgZV7MA-YNhzzSBMi1z0JX0zAMp1o37eoaq1DoGJ_-6OaOQyLwBCtm82S44VZfKhzqM862JkZl/w400-h245/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-53.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is VHRP Artistic Director Alyce Mott’s fourth go-round with Victor Herbert’s popular musical comedy -- originally a vehicle for the great vaudeville team of Montgomery & Stone -- and why not? It is, after all, the longest running of all Herbert’s shows. It ran for an impressive 318 performances back in 1906, and the 1945 revival ran even longer tallying 531 performances.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3PdUmb__gHLjPQ_6ROfVpNlfMrXvJwppRjQX9DLvc-6EC78baS3bkMeevBDZ1FHwEOHyk1yT3pThuvw6FRQg2oGpsqtkp_WBmRuhs46-zTlR7h4AlxRkklTbID85Qmm6PRmXOTa2__HuaZ7-TjerfRHHyNgfkexj-KGo9YskcMzCXPW4EUXqw4Dkp/s3175/Montgomery%20and%20Stone,%20fm%20Billboard,%20Vol%2022,%20Feb%2019,%201910,%20Cover,%20UMBU%20(Cropped).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3175" data-original-width="2881" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3PdUmb__gHLjPQ_6ROfVpNlfMrXvJwppRjQX9DLvc-6EC78baS3bkMeevBDZ1FHwEOHyk1yT3pThuvw6FRQg2oGpsqtkp_WBmRuhs46-zTlR7h4AlxRkklTbID85Qmm6PRmXOTa2__HuaZ7-TjerfRHHyNgfkexj-KGo9YskcMzCXPW4EUXqw4Dkp/s320/Montgomery%20and%20Stone,%20fm%20Billboard,%20Vol%2022,%20Feb%2019,%201910,%20Cover,%20UMBU%20(Cropped).jpg" width="290" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even now, it’s still mightily entertaining, with showstoppers like “The Streets of New York” and “Every Day is Ladies’ Day with Me” as potent as ever. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mott’s version is a streamlined one. At the late Dino Anagnost’s Little Orchestra Society production (2007), it was basically a concert version with narration; Light Opera of New York’s expanded that edition in 2010; and her two with VHRP (the last in 2017 and now this) showed further refinements. Unlike the last, this one has orchestral accompaniment, a huge plus. Seven fine instrumentalists, including the superb William Hicks on piano, played a stylish reduction of the original orchestrations under the commanding leadership of the company’s musical director Michael Thomas. The tuneful overture set the apt period spirit, and was all the more charming for its chamber-like quality.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3kClYLCQHjwnJ8YJMDyCNK8cKBv2Ovb3MGGbiL4GysHZoaD7wmqpjPeMTqJy2IUIiv--ytmB5Qfb-mpKuCRmmSyG37vY4T1tcJd99jedAW0_MMTi2mLlVjTxM1a0ryRT2_Cg5nOCAOKt4vxYQAO__RGqkXzOHCztticMQs1i-bb-ds7IDJNRmHGFg/s5397/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-231.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5397" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3kClYLCQHjwnJ8YJMDyCNK8cKBv2Ovb3MGGbiL4GysHZoaD7wmqpjPeMTqJy2IUIiv--ytmB5Qfb-mpKuCRmmSyG37vY4T1tcJd99jedAW0_MMTi2mLlVjTxM1a0ryRT2_Cg5nOCAOKt4vxYQAO__RGqkXzOHCztticMQs1i-bb-ds7IDJNRmHGFg/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-231.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mott’s libretto makes concessions to modern sensibilities and the size of the company, 16 in all. As before, the characters of soubrette Tina and innkeeper Willem are gone. Tina’s songs were delivered by the romantic lead Gretchen (Sarah Caldwell Smith, repeating her 2017 role) and Berta (formerly Bertha), Gretchen’s aunt (Alexa Devlin). </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The basic storyline remained intact. The setting is Holland. Gretchen loves sailor Dori (originally called Doris)(Andrew Klima), but her father, the Burgomaster (solid David Seatter, a VHRP founding artist) insists on an advantageous marriage to the Governor of Zeeland (Colin Safley). Two penniless Americans, Con Kidder (Vince Gover) and Kid Conner (Andrew Buck), assisted by Berta, try to assist the lovers, especially after Gretchen is locked in the eponymous mill and Dori is tossed into jail by the Burgomaster. Eventually, the comic duo saves the day by impersonating Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. An auto accident involving a French noblewoman (impressively authentic Sarah Bleasdale) and a British solicitor (well cast Jonathan Fox Powers) add a bit more subplot. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHv7qyQDzdKXlaMJcXr-9DQ-H3aY6OmaHA2sl6bJy2oLXdU-OawwXbYKgOHTLQD2i0ggAeg_P1fkQA5UDLW85pqoecDfsdoDvvBYp2uyyUWjcHA-beZu49bbqNX6npg9v81OdOnpw3t9zTpcpeqQEBCr0TH6KUOh6NZXubj3AB9fSGENPxQPjMqVdN/s1507/Red%20Mill,%20Scene%20from%20Red%20Mill,%201906,%20JHG,%20Cropped.tif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="889" data-original-width="1507" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHv7qyQDzdKXlaMJcXr-9DQ-H3aY6OmaHA2sl6bJy2oLXdU-OawwXbYKgOHTLQD2i0ggAeg_P1fkQA5UDLW85pqoecDfsdoDvvBYp2uyyUWjcHA-beZu49bbqNX6npg9v81OdOnpw3t9zTpcpeqQEBCr0TH6KUOh6NZXubj3AB9fSGENPxQPjMqVdN/s320/Red%20Mill,%20Scene%20from%20Red%20Mill,%201906,%20JHG,%20Cropped.tif" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The plot machinations are pretty silly, even in this condensed form, but musically, the show offers one catchy tune after another without a weak link. Some songs lost a verse or two, and a couple were missing altogether, but only real buffs would notice, and it was still a satisfyingly full evening of music which generated warm audience response throughout. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I couldn't help but recall late Herbert champion Frederick Roffman’s memorable production which not only included every number of the published score, but also cut ones like Willem’s “I Ring the Bell,” and even a couple of rare interpolations from other works. For all of Roffman’s genuine scholarship, he was no purist and employed a revised script with some new lyrics and, like Mott, changed the order of the songs, and distribution among characters to suit those revisions. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In Mott’s rewrite, the female characters are given more agency than previously, and the male side suffers a bit. Dori, ostensibly the romantic hero, is fairly ineffectual. But Klima’s vocals were ringingly strong and impressive. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Devlin’s rich vocals, incisive diction, and dramatic prowess were impressively on display. She set the evening’s tone with her authoritative delivery of the opening “Legend of Mill,” originally a second act number, but then reprised it in the second act anyway. She also duetted delightfully with Smith on the rarely done “I’m Always Doing Something I Don’t Want to Do.” But it’s a pity “A Widow Has Ways” has been cut, as she would no doubt have sung it superbly. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq0SK7IWB5068KjB2NAxjDtNaCkKcUaPM3aslxYqnicjwfgHzIQIis8vYQNHMsp6WTKNYUdUT-tKvHWhQGoTE9jiGWuLnmIaROokhVkMe47ZfIua_r_YcZkTaLrbSEG7byR3SW3UACda-biV7wUzrcPhM3l3SJjboFDxMrb0I_hVT02PkqEr3fLab5/s5397/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-130.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5397" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq0SK7IWB5068KjB2NAxjDtNaCkKcUaPM3aslxYqnicjwfgHzIQIis8vYQNHMsp6WTKNYUdUT-tKvHWhQGoTE9jiGWuLnmIaROokhVkMe47ZfIua_r_YcZkTaLrbSEG7byR3SW3UACda-biV7wUzrcPhM3l3SJjboFDxMrb0I_hVT02PkqEr3fLab5/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-130.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The VHRP audience may not have been exactly "convulsed with laughter " as the 1906 audiences were said to have been by Montgomery and Stone, but Gover and Buck were likable and amusing as the comic leads, and their joyous “Streets of New York” number was infectiously performed (in tandem with Smith and Klima). The show-stopping “Good-a-Bye John,” a huge hit in the original production, was missing, perhaps as much for today’s ethnic sensitivities as for its complicated authorship. Herbert was virtually duped into writing the tune hummed to him by Montgomery & Stone, who wanted another number “similar” to something they had done before. The team didn’t reveal to Herbert that what they were quoting to him was, in fact, an existing piece. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK7Pl-YkoZkAFmZYkdgbhiFDq--3Zs-fYV1xZx4j-CZ9mX7XBAaRTtkVsbWJUo_RmMquFnGTYpNebKcE1zpk9z6srACmUunlwLJvVakb-BUh5WFrq_u1oaXPyCvweZUVzQ6S5S1BVJA54bWpeKWQeBbqr5wyPlKtQegAelYZUODmZ6YMF8ej2QcqoK/s5397/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-66.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5397" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK7Pl-YkoZkAFmZYkdgbhiFDq--3Zs-fYV1xZx4j-CZ9mX7XBAaRTtkVsbWJUo_RmMquFnGTYpNebKcE1zpk9z6srACmUunlwLJvVakb-BUh5WFrq_u1oaXPyCvweZUVzQ6S5S1BVJA54bWpeKWQeBbqr5wyPlKtQegAelYZUODmZ6YMF8ej2QcqoK/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-66.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Smith, pretty in pink, sweetly vocalized the score’s famous “Moonbeams,” pairing nicely with Klima there and elsewhere.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijFpEn89N6UW6yFJOpBrZnGt6qQFsIZ4U4ffjd-_i_i1-57DBruN2T1j2Ktnx_BVTE582XvgZ_xY2RZ0k56GJZHGN4HelfAwntcoPIn3q4T-pd2kHVU4BgYIMtj2rxL4fHLZ73e0ZtMNeCcI4p6lWki8PzJUpq5y5kmDxIHKO6XKYyqGtC5nN4pq9-/s5397/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-28.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5397" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijFpEn89N6UW6yFJOpBrZnGt6qQFsIZ4U4ffjd-_i_i1-57DBruN2T1j2Ktnx_BVTE582XvgZ_xY2RZ0k56GJZHGN4HelfAwntcoPIn3q4T-pd2kHVU4BgYIMtj2rxL4fHLZ73e0ZtMNeCcI4p6lWki8PzJUpq5y5kmDxIHKO6XKYyqGtC5nN4pq9-/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-28.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Safley, a much younger Governor than usually the case, delivered his “Every Day is Ladies Day” entrance number with firm voice and great panache, while Alonso Jordan Lopez, Justin Chandler Baptista, and Keith Broughton camped it up jovially as the “ladies.” Safley's subsequent duet with Devlin was another highlight.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOEupHZinW03AFXpvqeOLkAcyaLtvrsuMN9U-3Wv2BuoMbhkQ71MVppSKDQmNABev-gssJzKrAi1AASekdP9V4s_m4IvDpOj_cszrcTAC8WZgLPlZbuYtgOnnkZaA0OUrhCAbEHsi6_KCs9dImjVbnTW1if8P6pGNWQLQuYXEV3Nob5amMUpuuVJgM/s5397/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-187.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5397" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOEupHZinW03AFXpvqeOLkAcyaLtvrsuMN9U-3Wv2BuoMbhkQ71MVppSKDQmNABev-gssJzKrAi1AASekdP9V4s_m4IvDpOj_cszrcTAC8WZgLPlZbuYtgOnnkZaA0OUrhCAbEHsi6_KCs9dImjVbnTW1if8P6pGNWQLQuYXEV3Nob5amMUpuuVJgM/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-187.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Veterans David Seatter and tenor John Nelson as sheriff Franz -- each with impressive and lengthy operetta credits in their CVs -- strutted across the stage like the seasoned pros they are in a delightful vaudeville turn for “You Never Can Tell About a Woman.” </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyEzWmhAAD3FHWNJGWxXT0ggfwskflodk_okMJKQgIDX__XeKQJPDGBr5gJLDidX0dayd7QmUluSOIyGCMkW7YWilCIhC3To-lrSsSviNwOf59niVdUQKJ2M8L1jOsTnFQmu-c5BDn0gmEpuVAMezyqv59LrL6F5n7kWdaT_1H7brnomOgQn8N1mcN/s5397/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-157.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="5397" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyEzWmhAAD3FHWNJGWxXT0ggfwskflodk_okMJKQgIDX__XeKQJPDGBr5gJLDidX0dayd7QmUluSOIyGCMkW7YWilCIhC3To-lrSsSviNwOf59niVdUQKJ2M8L1jOsTnFQmu-c5BDn0gmEpuVAMezyqv59LrL6F5n7kWdaT_1H7brnomOgQn8N1mcN/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-157.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The ensemble of six (Sophie Thompson, Paige Cutrona, and Annie Heartney along with </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lopez, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Baptista, and </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Broughton</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">) were an invaluable asset throughout, providing strong choral support, while playing the inn’s artists and models and other characters along the way. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mott directed her cast very capably, and this production was, in fact, her best staged of the three productions VHRP has done at its new larger venue. Christine Hall devised some cute choreography for the numbers that required it such as “Always Go While the Goin’ is Good.” </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibGUARRLFWbGh6UP_Qtx2lsuxuxc8dpabDAj9-5QfiWecj8VuPBkA0rK5fLwlZGCpBA40PM8CAzPpopiBvL73dmUy2pxB-lg9Oy2YVFcql_8NS8gdT727i2MsKcPQy-yGkyhf9T4N-Pt8Md-uKKOyRasrBUxpn9ABn-XNfM_DKgeAO9EQ935tamqtH/s1620/Red%20Mill,%20Act%20ll,%20Fifth%20Avenue%20Girls,%201906%20B%20Cropped.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="715" data-original-width="1620" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibGUARRLFWbGh6UP_Qtx2lsuxuxc8dpabDAj9-5QfiWecj8VuPBkA0rK5fLwlZGCpBA40PM8CAzPpopiBvL73dmUy2pxB-lg9Oy2YVFcql_8NS8gdT727i2MsKcPQy-yGkyhf9T4N-Pt8Md-uKKOyRasrBUxpn9ABn-XNfM_DKgeAO9EQ935tamqtH/s320/Red%20Mill,%20Act%20ll,%20Fifth%20Avenue%20Girls,%201906%20B%20Cropped.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Back in 1906, the </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">New York Dramatic Mirro</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">r In its review declared, "there is nothing dull about it, not a moment when the audience shows weariness, not a song or a tune that will not bear repetition…it is a steady, satisfying work. "</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqKhePMiP40qA5WBu59isG4tCuO4wvTudl1JQcNxAei1E3XCStPoNwL61EFYgZWCXrcfwyk784k_3rrtymu8CAfd1_d3v2iRFrijmD7rkGYrfLd23dNFMUk1RpELBjgNmuULxoL_2qO1PMf1AJURgyQVY-7fctIHIbwp0waH7XFxvg5lmYCE4Jr74M/s7043/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-230.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="7043" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqKhePMiP40qA5WBu59isG4tCuO4wvTudl1JQcNxAei1E3XCStPoNwL61EFYgZWCXrcfwyk784k_3rrtymu8CAfd1_d3v2iRFrijmD7rkGYrfLd23dNFMUk1RpELBjgNmuULxoL_2qO1PMf1AJURgyQVY-7fctIHIbwp0waH7XFxvg5lmYCE4Jr74M/s320/Alyce%20Mott-%20The%20Red%20Mill-230.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As delightfully shown by VHRP’s small-scale but accomplished revival 117 years later, that assessment still holds resoundingly true..</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Coming up next: an expanded version of Herbert’s very rare ‘Cyrano de Bergerac” (April 25-27).</span></p><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(The Theater at St. Jeans, 170 E. 76th Street; </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">www.vhrplive.org</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">; February 21-23)</span><div><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div><p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-186e9fcf-7fff-8834-0ded-2a253a4580aa" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Production photos by Jill DeVine</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Archival photos from the Collection of John Guidinger</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Top to bottom)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #242424; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Whistle It" with Andrew Buck (Kid), Sarah Caldwell Smith (Gretchen), Vince Gover (Con)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">David C. Montgomery and Fred A. Stone</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #242424; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The New Victor Herbert Orchestra and Maestro Michael Thomas, 2nd from bottom on the Left</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Scene from “The Red Mill” 1906</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"The Legend of the Mill" related by Alexa Devlin (jBerta) to the Villagers</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #242424; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"The Streets of New York" with Andrew Buck (Kid) & Sarah Caldwell Smith (Gretchen); Andrew Klima (Dori) and Vince Glover (Con)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: #242424; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Andrew Klima (Dori) surprises Sarah Caldwell Smith (Gretchen) with his return</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: #242424; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Everyday Is Ladies Day With Me" with L-R: Keith Broughton, Colin Safley as Governor, Alonso Jordan Lopez, Justin Chandler Baptista</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: #242424; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"You Never Can Tell About A Woman" with L-R: David Seatter as the Burgomaster and John Nelson as the Sherriff</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: #242424; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Company</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-77305335351406700042023-02-12T17:57:00.003-08:002023-02-12T18:19:01.900-08:00Pictures from Home (Studio 54)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvcpRpmj9t68AxsaEh8uwNE3JZmC5BLhIi-RxhpsLhPLuf5jQWDyMFxyFc5Yo_OWT6jhdvZXvPR0mHGTdDM9FiBlwG875YOrinPfT825HeIIhdeswG_SSxcU3OBTY7NAgT2SsVhrSrEYO2TKhvBg6zKvYPJ5tZe3m3h0n9MK_BCGscDQiznu9a1tyw/s6720/230112_PicturesfromHome_R2-210_F.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4480" data-original-width="6720" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvcpRpmj9t68AxsaEh8uwNE3JZmC5BLhIi-RxhpsLhPLuf5jQWDyMFxyFc5Yo_OWT6jhdvZXvPR0mHGTdDM9FiBlwG875YOrinPfT825HeIIhdeswG_SSxcU3OBTY7NAgT2SsVhrSrEYO2TKhvBg6zKvYPJ5tZe3m3h0n9MK_BCGscDQiznu9a1tyw/w400-h266/230112_PicturesfromHome_R2-210_F.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-d4da9717-7fff-615f-8398-28d4059ddc8f" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">By Harry Forbes</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The solid performances of Nathan Lane, Zoë Wanamaker, and Danny Burstein are the most striking points of interest here. The play itself -- Sharr White's adaptation of Larry Sultan's pictorial memoir of the same name -- is, sorry to say, somewhat less than compelling.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I must confess I took my seat with absolutely no foreknowledge of what I was about to see. Nor, I'm ashamed to admit, had I even glanced at the title page of the Playbill where I would have learned that what I was about to see was based on the aforementioned source material. So I watched the play under the mistaken notion it was entirely a creation of the playwright. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And from that point of view, I found it only intermittently engaging, and oddly repetitive. The action centers on photographer Larry (Burstein), who lives in San Francisco with his wife and family, and his frequent periodic visits to his aging parents in their San Fernando Valley home, capturing them in staged portraits while interviewing them about the past. The photos, including many from his childhood, are projected on the back wall. (The Sultans had moved from Brooklyn to California in 1949.)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Irving Sultan (Lane), the father, a former Schick razor salesman, is alternately compliant and ornery about his son's purpose. Realtor mother Jean (Wanamaker) is skeptical but overall more agreeable as she also tries to mediate between father and son. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The photographs displayed are, as I figured out later, the actual Sultans. In my initial ignorance, I assumed they were just anonymous models so that the production would not be reliant on the current cast. Knowing the facts makes things somewhat more interesting to me in hindsight.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Larry Sultan, who died in 2009, had said “I wanted to puncture this mythology of the family and show what happens when we are driven by images of success. And I was willing to use my family to prove a point.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White has done his best to give a somewhat repetitive situation a viable dramatic arc. And, along the way, there is a lot of wit and home truths about family and the American Dream ideal of what success was supposed to look like in postwar America. There are even some interesting Willy Loman-like overtones to Irving’s backstory. And there’s real conflict when we learn that Jean has, in fact, been the virtual breadwinner since Irving stopped working. But even so, a certain tedium sets in.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White’s script gives Lane plenty of opportunity to shine including a powerful dramatic outburst at one point. And we’re so accustomed to seeing American-born but UK-raised Wanamaker on her customary English turf, that it’s quite a novelty to see her as in this very American part which she carries off with customary aplomb. She matches Lane’s strong performance, and also gets her big moment amidst all the finely detailed smaller ones. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Irving and Jean’s bickering throughout the play sounds wonderfully natural.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The very versatile Burstein, a mainstay of musicals, is predictably excellent, but Larry is a rather thankless role and we soon empathize with Irving's annoyance at his son's relentless probing. The play is constructed so that Danny breaks the fourth wall (as do the others occasionally) and takes the audience into his friendly confidence but the overall effect is still a bit smarmy.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Michael Yeagen’s set (astutely lighted by Jennier Tipton) -- the couple's spacious living room -- encompasses the different eras of the play’s action, and allows plenty of space for the giant projections throughout. Jennifer Moeller’s period costumes are enhanced by Tommy Kurzman’s wig/hair and makeup which includes a white wig for Lane. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There's understated poignancy in the final minutes of the play, and Bartlett Sher’s direction is as impeccable as ever, but I wish I could have been more genuinely moved.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Studio 54, 254 West 54th Street; picturesfromhomebroadway.com; through April 30)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photo by Julieta Cervantes: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(l to r): Danny Burstein, Zoë Wanamaker, and Nathan Lane</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-32737787689923484332023-01-25T09:57:00.000-08:002023-01-25T09:57:15.191-08:00The Collaboration (Manhattan Theatre Club)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLpOzyw7v2XIv2RhXfOm-lm7PoalnayxJp-ftOy4FbIgUSP35w-z75xMG3lMFKPBnaEHvF-Gqi03_1b8242AXt1wrBYYms16fPz7crAhMASFYGMEZbg2NCMUWO_V9NrSPRcPzyWmXmerApuoEyWve55qwVGIFwaG0p6WV1MZVNY7_oaJQ3WW3W00t0/s7350/COLLAB_3526.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4900" data-original-width="7350" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLpOzyw7v2XIv2RhXfOm-lm7PoalnayxJp-ftOy4FbIgUSP35w-z75xMG3lMFKPBnaEHvF-Gqi03_1b8242AXt1wrBYYms16fPz7crAhMASFYGMEZbg2NCMUWO_V9NrSPRcPzyWmXmerApuoEyWve55qwVGIFwaG0p6WV1MZVNY7_oaJQ3WW3W00t0/w400-h266/COLLAB_3526.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Playwright Anthony McCarten, who’s written solid screenplays based on real-life personages (e.g. “The Two Popes” (Benedict XVI and Francis), “Bohemian Rhapsody” (Freddie Mercury), “The Theory of Everything” (Stephen Hawking), and theater pieces like the current Neil Diamond bio, “A Beautiful Noise,” turns his pen to the art world and the unlikely seeming pairing of Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat who, in 1985, joined forces for a well-publicized art show suggested by the Swiss art dealer Bruno Bischofberger who represented both of them. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The play, directed by Kwame Kwei-Armah, artistic director of the Old Vic, comes to MTC after a successful run at the London venue.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The conflict between the two artists is not, frankly, hugely compelling, despite McCarten and Kwei-Armah's efforts. On the one hand, there’s Basquiat trying to persuade Warhol, who had not been brush painting for years (using the silk screen process instead), to pick up his brushes again, And, on the other, there's Warhol who's infinitely more interested in filming the reluctant Basquiat at work. There’s more drama in the second act than the first, when Basquiat’s former girlfriend (the excellent Krysta Rodriguez in a small but lively role) bursts in needing money for rent and an abortion, and a friend of Basquiat’s, Michael Stewart, a fellow graffiti artist, lies near death in the hospital after being pummeled by police. Basquiat is deeply haunted by the thought that it could just as easily have been him.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There’s some understandable dramatic license in his script. For one thing, each of the men knew and admired the other, whereas the script has it that Bischofberger (a very amusing Erik Jensen) needed to use all his skills of manipulation to get the two to work together. Basquiat craved fame and recognition as much as Warhol, though there’s a sense in the script that he disdains Warhol’s commercialism. Still, the fundamental dynamics between Warhol and Basquiat ring true: respect mixed with envy on Warhol’s part, and a vastly different world view. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Of rather greater import than the narrative of the play itself are the dynamic performances of Bettany and Pope. Bettany grows more interesting with each new project; he’s developed into such a fine character actor, and gives a highly convincing impersonation of Warhol. Pope is currently generating well-deserved buzz for his film, “The Inspection,” and here returns to the scene of his Tony-nominated MTC triumph in “Choir Boy,” with a highly charged turn. These versatile actors are reason enough to see the play. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Anna Fleischle’s sensible set design, flashily lighted by Ben Stanton -- including the artists’ studios -- allows for Duncan McLean’s Basquiat/Warhol-inspired projections to fill the walls. Given Warhol and Basquiat’s unique hair styles, I should acknowledge the good work of Karicean “Karen” Dick and Carol Robinson, the production’s wig designers. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lastly, a sidebar carp: this is the latest in an unfortunate trend of the audience entering the theater to an assault of loud music -- or, in the case of “Ohio State Murders” -- other amplified sounds. Whether the purpose is scene-setting -- in this case, a Studio 54 vibe -- or creating an immersive experience, it’s a needlessly abrasive and alienating gimmick. “Topdog/Underdog,” “Ain’t No Mo’,” and even the Public’s revival of “A Raisin in the Sun,” for heaven’s sake, have all recently employed this irritating device. </span></p><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Manhattan Theatre Club's Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, 261 West 47</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: 0.6em; vertical-align: super;">th</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Street; Telecharge.com or 212-239-6200; through February 11)</span><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photo by Jeremy Daniel: (l.-r.) Paul Bettany, Jeremy Pope</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7280551359055989956.post-36835339627633085912023-01-12T08:32:00.001-08:002023-01-12T08:36:15.184-08:00Merrily We Roll Along (New York Theatre Workshop)<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYTt0DpnzrhUgmDn24AhvT7RBYR_NEfWTRY2lhVrJD07iqBignCUqFkD0CXQZ0gX11njyExxdKwAfplj7oGhDD1XBzQEEN0tqsTKxGbhQiKYu7pIgApXAZWhqw6BTsYiwJf-PqWPWzxQq6dK-Mk-bGxyzGV-teL4agn30pw_ZVXoXGFUBxESDibPTk/s6000/Lindsay%20Mendez,%20Jonathan%20Groff%20and%20Daniel%20Radcliffe%20in%20MERRILY%20WE%20ROLL%20ALONG%20at%20New%20York%20Theatre%20Workshop,%20Photo%20by%20Joan%20Marcus%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3997" data-original-width="6000" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYTt0DpnzrhUgmDn24AhvT7RBYR_NEfWTRY2lhVrJD07iqBignCUqFkD0CXQZ0gX11njyExxdKwAfplj7oGhDD1XBzQEEN0tqsTKxGbhQiKYu7pIgApXAZWhqw6BTsYiwJf-PqWPWzxQq6dK-Mk-bGxyzGV-teL4agn30pw_ZVXoXGFUBxESDibPTk/w400-h266/Lindsay%20Mendez,%20Jonathan%20Groff%20and%20Daniel%20Radcliffe%20in%20MERRILY%20WE%20ROLL%20ALONG%20at%20New%20York%20Theatre%20Workshop,%20Photo%20by%20Joan%20Marcus%20(2).jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />By Harry Forbes<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The latest revival of Stephen Sondheim’s 1981 Broadway failure proves, yet again, that the work, adapted by George Furth from a 1934 play by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart, is -- divorced from Hal Prince’s original misguided staging with its hugely talented but as-yet-unseasoned cast of young people wearing sweatshirts -- an eminently viable one, with a pearly and highly accessible score. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">New York Theatre Workshop’s production is essentially a reworking of the one director Maria Friedman mounted in London’s Menier Chocolate Factory (later moved to the West End and streamed) in 2012. Here, it’s ideally cast with Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe, and Lindsay Mendez as the three bosom buddies -- composer Franklin Shepard, playwright/lyricist Charley Kringas, and novelist/theater critic Mary Flynn respectively -- whose deep friendship ends in tatters because of composer Frank’s selling out for success, and his weakness for the femme fatale wife Gussie (Kyrstal Joy Brown) of his producer Joe Josephson (superb Reg Rogers). </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Of course, as the script moves backward in time -- with its score cleverly constructed in like manner so that reprises of songs come before we hear the full number -- the acrimonious and downright ugly outbursts of the opening scene give way to the joyous optimism of youth. And the show does perforce end happily, even as we’re poignantly aware of what’s fated for the future.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Groff sings beautifully, but every bit as impressive as his vocalizing is his mature dramatic performance, displaying impressive gravitas throughout and youthening convincingly from the shallow Hollywood power player to the idealistic dreamer of the earlier scenes. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The same is true for Mendez whose vitriolic drunken outburst in the early party scene gives way to the empathetic, hugely likable friend who inwardly pines for Frank. But Frank, in turn, will fall in love with Beth (Katie Rose Clarke), and then abandon her for Gussie. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Radcliffe goes from strength to strength with each new stage appearance. After his starring role in “How To Succeed in Business” revival in 2011, it’s no surprise he can sing but here, he convincingly captures the likability and snowballing frustration as he helplessly watches Frank repeatedly make the wrong choices. He forcefully nails the anger of his raging “Franklin D. Shepard” number. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now truthfully, every one of the revivals I’ve encountered since the premiere -- York in 1994, Encores in 2012, and Fiasco in 2019, and even an early barebones basement production at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival -- has demonstrated the show’s dramatic and musical strengths. But good as they all were, this one may be the best of all, anchored as it is by such a well played depiction of Frank, Charley, and Mary’s friendship. It makes their eventual dissolution all the more of a gut punch.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friedman, who played Mary in the 1992 Hampstead Theatre production in Leicester, clearly knows the material inside and out, and directs with a sure hand. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Soutra Gilmour’s set design is mostly functional for the myriad scene changes) but, augmented by Amith Chandrashaker’s lighting, it works effectively. Gilmour’s costumes are period perfect as the action backtracks from 1980 to 1958.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Music Director Alvin Hough, Jr. leads a nine-piece band in a satisfying reduction of Jonathan Tunick’s orchestration, boosted by Kai Harada’s sound design. (Catherine Jayes is music supervisor.) The big numbers like “Good Thing Going,” “Not a Day Goes By,” “Our Time,” and “Old Friends” all receive splendid treatment, and the lesser known ones such as “Growing Up,” “It’s a Hit!” and “The Blob” play more effectively than ever. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The coming Broadway transfer of this sterling revival will perhaps put to rest once and for all any notion of the show being in any way Sondheim’s problem child. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(New York Theatre Workshop, 79 East 4th Street; nytw.org; through January 22)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Photo by Joan Marcus: (l.-r.) Lindsay Mendez, Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0