Tag Archives: Moshe Bloxenheim

GUEST REVIEWER: “Stark and Shtark: A review of the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene Production of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF (in Yiddish)”

Stark and Shtark

A review of the
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene Production of
FIDDLER ON THE ROOF (in Yiddish)
At the Museum of Jewish Heritage

August 19, 2018
GUEST REVIEWER: Moshe Bloxenheim

Now, I am not a natural Yiddish Speaker by any means and I entered the theater to see this Yiddish Production of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF with the attitude of one who might be going in to see an opera in a familiar but foreign language. To my amazement the addition of Yiddish to FIDDLER ON THE ROOF did not alienate me, nor did it feel like a gimmick. While the use of Mr. Shraga Freidman’s Yiddish translation did not always have the flowing poetry of the English of Mr. Joseph Stein’s book and Mr. Sheldon Harnick’s lyrics, the language had its own particularly biting beauty to the ear. Even in Mr. Friedman’s Yiddish rendition, Mr. Sheldon Harnick’s words still flow with Mr. Jerry Bock’s music in a classic unity, from the buoyant introductory song “Traditsye” [Tradition] to the final mournful and ironic “Anatevke” [Anatevka].

The plot itself may be a simplified adaptation of Mr. Sholom Aleichem’s Tevye stories, but this Yiddish FIDDLER ON THE ROOF gives me the sense of an old sepia photograph taken to preserve a sense of place.

Within this picture, we behold 1905 Anatevka – a village on the Russian Pale of Settlement. Tevye, the poor yet philosophical dairyman, scratches out a meager living for himself and his wife Golde and their five daughters. When Tevye’s older daughters reach out beyond the safe and traditional futures that their parents had expected for them, it signals the beginning of changes that will eventually overturn the seemingly stable world of Anatevka.

A keen cast of performers populate this little Shtetl.

Mr. Steven Skybell splendidly imbues Tevye with the weariness of a man who can barely get by, but he also shows Tevye’s spirit: that wonderfully wry sense of humor and the deeply personal – if sometimes annoyed – relationship with G-d that makes him so moving. This Tevye clearly values the past but will do his best to adjust to the changes that will affect him and his family. What is more, is start turns such as “Ven Ikn Bin a Rothchild” [If I were A Rich Man], Mr. Skybell knows how to stay admirably and enjoyably in character.

As Tevye’s wife, Golde, Ms. Jennifer Babiak gives a good performance. She is indeed the careworn wife and mother who manages, but wants security for her daughters. Ms. Babiak is fine singing the soulful “Shabes Brokhe” [Sabbath Prayer] and she gets good laughs when she chides of Tevye or reacts to Yenta. But I did not feel that Ms. Babiak’s Golde was the most wifely counterbalance to Tevye.

On the other hand, Ms. Rachel Zatcoff truly makes Tsaytl her father’s child. She is willing to do her best to be a good daughter, but she cannot keep silent when she feels her own life will be thrown away. When Tsaytl speaks up for herself, Ms. Zatcoff lets us feel the desperation and thrill of her audacity.

Similarly, Tevye’s second daughter Hodl discovers that her own future runs contrary to Anatevka and family expectations. Ms. Stephanie Lynn Mason skillfully portrays Hodl’s development as she discovers love and sees that the world is more than just Anatevka. In “Vayt Fun Mayn Liber Haym” [Far From The Home I Love] Tevye’s second daughter is not merely singing about the sorrow of leaving all that she held dear for love. Instead, Ms. Mason makes it clear that Hodl is now paying the price of looking beyond herself.

The role of Khave is a role of little dialogue yet she is the daughter who brings Tevye and Golde’s world crashing down. It is amazing how Ms. Rosie Jo Neddy still gives us the full emotional impact Khava’s choosing a man outside her faith and how it would make her an outcast. Tevye’s heartbreaking song “Khavaleh” becomes all the more affecting due to Ms. Neddy’s beautiful dancing.

What about the men who have won Tevye’s daughters?

It is possible to make Motl Kamzoyl a nebbish’l but if the likable Mr. Ben Liebert shows us a Motl who is meek, his Motl is also clearly in love with Tsaytl and takes inspiration from her – even facing Tevye for Tsaytl’s hand against all hope.

Mr. Daniel Kahn gives us a principled Pertshik who is out to want to improve the world and who thinks a bit too highly of his own ideas, but Mr. Kahn’s Pertshik wins us over with his open appreciation of Hodl who easily brings him down to earth. When he sings “Itst Hob Ikh Di Gantse Velt” [Now I Have Everything] Pertshik is not only a man who has found love but also humanity.

Compared to Motl and Pertshik, the Russian, Fyedke, has little to say. Nevertheless, the attractive Mr. Cameron Johnson says it with an honest flair. Singing and dancing, Mr. Johnson takes a memorable moment in the spotlight in “Lekhayim” [L’Chayim, To Life].
In spite of Leyzer-Volf being wrong for Tsatyle, Mr. Bruce Sabath makes us sympathize with this lonely widower, and like him. Unsuitable as he might be, it is clear that Mr. Sabath’s Lazar-Volf would try hard to make Tsaytl happy. In addition, Messrs. Sabath and Skybell know how to make the best out of their character’s bickering.

Of course Ms. Jackie Hoffman’s Yente the Matchmaker has her own definite opinions regarding girls who find their own husbands. Here is a hilariously sublime and all-too recognizable noodge: She busily rises above her own lone status, ignoring defeat as she poses and answers all her own questions, pushes some surreal matches and outright steals the very scenery.

Another delightfully notable presence was the spectre of Leyzer-Volf’s first vife, Frume-Sore, enacted with wickedly melodramatic abandon by Ms. Jodi Snyder.

Mr. Adam B. Shapiro plays the Rabbi of Anatevka with a sweet and sad buffoonery of a man who had always been assured and comfortable in his position and is now trying to use the same formulas in the face of circumstances he had never conceived of.

Any actor taking on the role of Der Gradavoy [The Constable] has to portray a prejudiced man who can countenance the persecution of innocents by government ukase. Mr. Bobby Underwood understandably avoids the easy melodrama inherent the role, but I felt his understatement was more a case of playing it safe.

Ms. Lauren Jeanne Thomas is excellent playing the Fiddler of the title, punctuating the show with her musical presence.

The rest of the company are first-rate as well and all bring this isolated community to vivid life..

Director Joel Grey has an admirable trust in the material, deftly interweaving the comedy and drama, never allowing the action to flag for a second. Every person seems to have a story in this Anatevka, even if there is not time enough for them to tell it — this is an even more noteworthy achievement when you realize that several of the performers are working phonetically in an unfamiliar language.

Although Choreographer Staś Kmieć is clearly influenced by Mr. Jerome Robbin’s staging of the original Broadway production, he creates a remarkable spectacle that is surprising for such a small venue. Besides the dancing, Mr. Kmieć works ideally with Mr. Grey to set up both public and private moments in the life of the community.

The orchestra is ably led by Mr. Zalmen Mlotek using Mr. Larry Blank’s adaptation of Mr. Don Walker’s original orchestrations for Mr. Jerry Bock’s wonderful music. Mr. Mlotek and his players appear onstage, underlining the fact that they too are part of the proceedings and can comment on and underline the action without intruding. In addition, Director Gray and Conductor Mlotek know how give those performers who were not so comfortable in Yiddish an air of fluency that happily fools those of us who are also not that familiar with the “Mamaloshen” [Mother Tongue].

Mr. Beowulf Boritt’s stark scenic design with its paper and fabric hangings and basic props are a suitable canvas for Messrs. Grey and Kmieć to paint a picture of the past. Assisted most effectively by Mr. Peter Kaczowrowski’s lighting, Ms. Ann Hould-Ward’s costumes and the hair and wigs of Mr. Tom Watson, the performers vividly summon up the houses and streets of Anatevka on the deceptively simple set.

I am always surprised when a small theater needs amplification, but Mr. Dan Moses Schreier’s sound designs are suitably understated. (Finally, I realize how apt the name Schreier – which is Yiddish for “a shouter” – is for audio work).

In all, the Yiddish FIDDLER ON THE ROOF is an amazing production that gives far more to the audience than one might expect. Would it be as satisfactory in English? That is something to consider, but not too intently, since this Yiddish Language production is quite marvelous as it is.

Having finished the overall review, I would like to applaud Mr. Sheldon Harnick, the original lyricist of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF who prevented the present adaptation from replacing the word “Tradition” with “The Torah”. Understandably, this change promises a real dramatic kick to the play but I believe it would make the whole premise of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF ring false. “Tradition” implies rules based on societal norms and roles. “The Torah” deals with the religious belief that defines Tevye and his community not merely as residents of Anatevka with quaint customs but as Jews. In FIDDLER ON THE ROOF Tevye struggles to balance his understood position in Anatevka with the changes that are threatening tradition while trying to understand what G-d would want from him. Under “Tradition” Tevye can question and even adapt, but he does not defy G-d. If “The Torah” became the theme, then we would be seeing Tevye and his neighbors finally being evicted from Anatevka for the very religion that Tevye would have been discarding all along.

 

Fiddler on the Roof (in Yiddish)

DIRECTED BY JOEL GREY

July 4, 2018 – Oct. 25, 2018
at Museum of Jewish Heritage

 

 

or call 866-811-4111

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About the reviewer:
MOSHE BLOXENHEIM

I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York.Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

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GUEST REVIEWER: We’ll Take Manhattan! A review of Encores! concert reconstruction of Cole Porter’s THE NEW YORKERS

We’ll Take Manhattan

A review of Encores! concert reconstruction of

Cole Porter’s
THE NEW YORKERS

At New York City Center
March 22, 2017

by Moshe Bloxenheim

 THE NEW YORKERS originally featured specialty acts, material built around Mr. Jimmy Durante’s unique personality and took a very amused look at the world of Park Avenue Society, Gangsters and Prohibition, making no bones about the fact that this was not a show for “The Little Old Lady from Dubuque” though I daresay she might have had a whale of a time too. Encores! manages in a case of sheer theatrical chutzpah to piece together a fine entertainment that gives an impression of the enjoyment that was to be found in the original 1930 show even if an accurate reconstruction is not in cards.

Mr. Cole Porter’s score alone is well worth the price of admission. Admittedly many numbers are hits imported from other shows, but they seem to make themselves perfectly at home sometimes showing up in surprisingly adroit ways. Mr. Jack Viertel assists in this with a concert adaptation of Mr. Herbert Fields original book that allows the plot to entertain and move the show onward without ever forgetting that the songs come first.

The gangsters, good time girls, vapid socialites, adulterers, hoofers, gigolos, prisoners and so on that inhabit THE NEW YORKERS are all likeable and occasionally endearing and make the most of whatever story had first been furnished by Mr. E. Ray Goetz and the famous New Yorker Magazine cartoonist, Mr. Peter Arno: Alice Wentworth, a pretty socialite, is engaged to marry the stodgy, wealthy and reputable Phillip Booster. She expects her marriage to be like that of her parents, Dr. Windham and Mrs. Gloria Wentworth. The Doctor is the swain of the entertainer Lola McGee and the famous inventor of the pick-me-up drug Alcodol while Gloria has Captain Hillary Trask as her special pick-me-up. When the handsome young Captain goes off with Lola, the Doctor and Gloria are rather nonplussed to have to go home together. All plans for a similar life with fiancé Phillip go out the window the moment Alice meets the dashing speakeasy owner Al Spanish. Al and Alice are quite smitten and, for good measure, Philip falls hard for Al’s girlfriend, the singer Mona Low. Unfortunately, complications arrive in the guise of Feet McGeegan, who wants Al to keep out of the Caviar Racket (as if rum-sunning wasn’t hazardous enough). Merry mayhem ensues with some frequency and lots of great music and dancing. Through it all comedian and drink Inventor supreme Jimmie Deegan struts his stuff, the Three Girl Friends Trio and the Varsity Eight chorus sound and look stunning, and jokes about prohibition, politics, society, prison and Cole Porter references are tossed in with happy abandon. Oh yeah – it all ends right.

Delightful Ms. Scarlett Strallen ensures that Alice Wentworth is no mere pretty face, making the most of the character’s savvy naiveté and getting her some wonderful laughs in Alice’s discovery of Real Life (in the form of Al Spanish). Ms. Strallen can also deliver a song with the best of them making the well-known “Most Gentlemen Don’t Like Love” and “Night and Day” just two of the many high points of a very well scored evening.

Anti-antihero Al Spanish may be a gun-toting gangster but Mr. Tam Mutu makes him the perfect gentleman from the wrong side of the tracks. He exhibits a sort of Gee Whiz quality that makes him the good guy even as he guns down his rivals. Mr. Mutu has an ability to put a number over that looks downright effortless and yet so enjoyable.

Usually a musical has one main lead couple and one subplot. But THE NEW YORKERS delivers far more.

Ms. Mylinda Hull gives a wonderful performance as Mona Low. Mona may be losing her Al to Alice but Ms. Hull can make one quite believe that this torch singer knows how to set the stolid Phillip Booster on fire and Mr. Todd Buonopane’s Phillip is a hoot as he transforms from Alice’s burden to Mona’s pleasure.

Alice’s parents are the second couple as they discover that although infidelity is lots of fun, it is always nice to come home to one another. Dr. Windham Wentworth is one of those urbane if slightly vague men-about-town and Byron Jennings plays him with fine understatement. Ms. Ruth Williamson makes Gloria Wentworth a fine contrast to the good Doctor, giving us a woman-about-town who might like home better. Her delicious delivery of “The Physician” comes across is the complaint of a lady who feels a bit ashamed that she much prefers her husband to her boyfriend – if he would only give her a glance!

Then there is Lola McGee and Captain Hillary Trask. These two may not end up together living happily ever after, but Ms. Robyn Hurder and Mr. Tyler Lansing Weaks ensure that they and the audience have a good time for the present. When Ms. Hurder delivers “Please Don’t Make Me Be Good” it is clear that she already is.

Then there is Mr. Kevin Chamberlain in the role of Jimmy Deegan – the comic mixologist. Just the knowledge that Mr. Jimmy Durante originated the part makes his memory a hard act to follow. Still, Mr. Chamberlain makes Jimmy Deegan truly funny and gets the best out of the silly dialogue, yet he is able to add enough Durante mannerisms to make us see how Mr. Durante might have laid them in the aisles in 1930 just as Mr. Chamberlain proceeds to do in 2017. His Act One closer “Wood” is an example of how great absurd comedy can really last.

Aiding and abetting Mr. Chamberlain are his two comic and dancing sidekicks Monahan and Gregory, played with gleeful skill by Messrs. Clyde Alves and Jeffery Schecter.

While Jimmy Deegan is a unique comedy turn all by himself, there are several other specialty acts that deserve much praise:

The Gangster Feet McGeegan is the villain of the show in the mold of Snidely Whiplash or Witch Hazel. So naturally as one of those characters who deserves killing, THE NEW YORKERS obliges, having Feet coming to an untoward end over and over and over again. Mr. Arnie Burton manages to give him just the right level of cartoonish melodrama proving that death may be easy and comedy is hard but comic death is an art all its own. As an added highlight, Mr. Burton stops the show with the brilliant patter number “Let’s Not Talk About Love”.

Other musical delights include the trio of Mss. Christine DiGiallonardo, Lindsay Roberts and Kathryn McCreary as the Three Girl Friends and the Varsity Eight in the guise of Messrs. Matt Bauman, Sam Bolen, Brian Flores, Matthew Griffin, Curtis Holland, Timothy McDevitt, Brendon Stimson and Cody Williams, who recreate the numbers originated by the megaphone-wielding Waring Pennsylvanians.

Many of these performers double up in several roles but Mr. Eddie Korbich laudably wins the multiple casting honors as he appears and reappears as a doctor, a nightclub major domo, a waiter at a deli, a policeman, a butler…

The rest of the company deserve top marks for their acting and dancing, but even with the wealth of pleasure offered onstage, one performer still stands out indelibly: Ms. Cyrille Aimée delivers “Love for Sale” on an empty stage without any introduction and brings down the house. This lonely, haunting performance on its own would have made THE NEW YORKERS worth seeing.

Director John Rando has no trouble with the fact that THE NEW YORKERS is a series of songs with barely enough plot to keep the show from being designated a revue or vaudeville (not that there would be a problem with either one). But Mr. Rando ensures that even with all the numbers being launched in so many ways by different people and acts that everyone gets to shine and nothing ever clashes so that the show buckets along engagingly to its loopy conclusion (the memorable “I Happen To Like New York” chorale). Mr. Chris Bailey’s choreography has a lot to do with this because so much movement and dancing carry THE NEW YORKERS forward. A gangster battle where the machine gun fire is enacted by tap-dance emphasizes the period, plot and cartoonish nature of the show since the assailants and their would-be targets just keep happily tapping and firing. More than that, the specialties are clearly staged to make the most of the talents involved yet invoke their predecessors in the roles. In fact, where many songs have at least a line to cue them in, Messrs. Rando and Viertel know that sometimes a song should be left to fend for itself and ensure that a moment like Ms. Cyrille Aimée’s singing of “Love for Sale” stands alone as the jewel of the show as the original piece did in 1930.

This care with THE NEW YORKERS songs and music is obviously shared by the Rob Berman and the Encores! Orchestra. Mr. Berman’s arrangements and conducting and Messrs. Josh Clayton’s and Larry Moore’s orchestrations are out to get the best of musicians and actors and all deliver beautifully. Even when a number is an import from another show and of a slightly different style (like “The Physician” from the English show NYMPH ERRANT), it just seems to be a natural fit in THE NEW YORKERS. Certainly it would have been braver and wiser for the show to have selected more obscure pieces from Mr. Porter’s songbook and give them the currency they may deserve but I enjoyed myself too much to quibble with what is on offer.

The look of the show is also quite striking with designs that appear as an idealized 1930. Thanks to Mr. Allen Moyer’s scenery and Mr. Alejo Vietti’s costumes one can see glitz and glamor even in Sing-Sing prison and Mr. Ken Billingtons’s top-notch lighting makes even the shimmering reflections of the ladies’ lamé gowns become part of the visual pleasure.

I was a little surprised at the unevenness of Mr. Dan Moses Scheier’s sound system, but besides a few aural fades in Act One, everything sounded pretty good, upholding the illusion that you could hear the voices from the actors rather than the loudspeakers.

THE NEW YORKERS is a loving and varicolored bouquet to the people, foibles and theater of that 1930’s city but it still has an enchanting effect in today’s Empire City as well. As with all first public Encores! performances there was a slightly tentative feeling as the performers gauged how the material was landing, but all went wonderfully well and I am sure that the future performances will only get better and even funnier.

Encores! final Performance of THE NEW YORKERS was 7 PM Sunday Night, March 26, 2017.

About the reviewer:

MOSHE BLOXENHEIM
I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York. Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

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Read how ENCORES restored the show: http://www.nycitycenter.org/Home/Blog/March-2017/Reclaiming-The-New-Yorkers?fullsite=true

GUEST REVIEWER: DEAR WORLD at The York Theatre

Small WORLD, isn’t it?

A Review of Musicals in Mufti’s concert production of

DEAR WORLD

At the York Theatre
by Moshe Bloxenheim 

Musicals in Mufti’s concert production of DEAR WORLD is one of those lovingly staged productions that can beguile an audience into wondering why this show didn’t work the first time? With a book based on Monsieur Jean Geraudoux’s play THE MADWOMAN OF CHAILLOT and an often delightful score by Jerry Herman, DEAR WORLD relates how Countess Aurelia, Madwoman of Chaillot saves humanity from being overrun by the soulless seekers of money and power. In the Countess’ adventure the audience is introduced to the characters who make up her world and those who threaten it.

The Prospector and the three corporate Presidents seek to destroy the Countess’ beloved Paris for the lake of oil that they know is below the city. Mr. Gordon Stanley is a perfectly peevish Prospector who is driven by oil and cannot see any romance beside it. He fits perfectly in with the Presidents who are played with relish by Messrs. Stephen Mo Hanan, Peter Land and J. Bernard Calloway. All the gentlemen gleefully twirl a metaphysical villainous mustache with panache, bringing their best to their anthem of greed “Just A Little Bit More” and being merrily hissable in “The Spring of Next year” where they exult in the destruction of Paris.

The young executive Julian had been one of their crew until he realized that people would be hurt and Mr. Hunter Ryan Herdlicka manages to show this change of heart quite briefly and yet credibly. Indeed, under the Countess’ idealistic spell Julian goes from accomplice to uncertain to penitent to hero and lover and the handsome Mr. Herdlicka accomplishes the changes with charm and ease, most memorably in a tender scene where Julian pretends to be Adolphe Bertaut – the man who had broken the Countess’ heart many years in the past.
Nina is a waitress and general factotum at the Café Francis – the bistro where the Countess holds court and the place that the Prospector wants to destroy to start the oil drilling. Ms. Erika Henningsen makes a sweet and pretty Nina who clearly enjoys being a part of the Countess’ world. We root for her Nina and Julian to fall in love with each other and cheer when Ms. Henningsen sings “I Never Said I Love You” (even with its inept positioning in the show).

One of the Countess’ aides and links from the harsh real world to her romantic existence is Mr. Lenny Wolpe’s jovial Sewerman. From his number “Pretty Garbage” and onwards Mr. Wolpe creates a man who has his mind in the most delightful of gutters, giving cheerful denials about the outrageous world below that make it seem even more wonderful and fantastic. When the Sewerman gives a “sympathetic” defense of the rich in Act Two, Mr. Wolpe extracts some wonderfully timely comedy out of the moment.

It is a talent indeed to play a role without practically a word and Mr. Kristopher Thompson-Bolden makes a beautiful Mute – the observer of all and assistant to the Countess. For a man who will not speak, Mr. Kristopher Thompson-Bolden’s Mute is a real chatty soul and can even deliver a song with flair – allowing gesture and dance to supply the lyrics that are then picked up and sung by the other performers.

Other helpful men who brighten the stage are Mr. Dewey Caddell as the Police Sergeant and Ben Cherry who is the Waiter at the Café Francis.

Two other Madwomen assist the Countess: Ms. Alison Fraser gives us a striking and memorable Madame Constance, Madwoman of the Market. She could have jauntily stepped out of an Edward Gorey drawing but her fancies are less gothic and more aurally and erotically absurd.

Adding to the fun, Ms. Ann Harada’s superb Madmoiselle Gabrielle, Madwoman of Montmarte is relentlessly virginal and unsullied. Ms. Harada’s character could simply be childish and a bore about her imaginary lap dog, Dickie, but Ms. Harada makes us see why the others would care for her and even makes us wonder if we aren’t seeing the dog too, even though Mlle. Gabrielle then claims she hadn’t brought Dickie after all.

Finally, the Doyenne of Madwomen: Countess Aurelia, Madwoman of Chaillot.
Ms. Tyne Daly gives a definitive performance as the sanest Madwoman there ever was, living in a romantic dream that must be cruelly interrupted to save the beauty of the real world. As a Madwoman, Ms. Daly sensibly gives her Countess the only French Accent in this stage Paris and often seems to have to refocus her fantasy driven mind. Musically, Ms. Daly does not sing her songs prettily but delivers them to brilliant effect, making them truly enchanting. The Countess’ plea against reality “I Don’t Want to Know” is downright heart-stirring as Ms. Daly performs it. Then again, the Madwoman’s tea party in Act Two could easily become a scene stealing battle, but Ms. Daly is clearly at stage center joining in with Ms. Harada and Ms. Fraser in creating a wonderful piece of musical theater studded with comic gems. You want to hug and take care of Ms. Daly’s Countess even while knowing full well that she is more than capable of taking care of you.

Mr. Michael Montel directs DEAR WORLD with the clear understanding that the more intimate this show is, the better it will work and makes the most of the small York Theatre Stage with its basic setting by Mr. James Morgan and lighting by Brian Nason. He does his best to make us forget some of the bumpier moments of the book and well evokes the fairy tale atmosphere of this whimsical story.

There have been times when I have been to a musical that sadly manages to evoke earlier recording of the show by its current shortcomings. Happily, this cannot be said of DEAR WORLD where Mr. Christopher McGovern’s first-rate musical direction and piano playing – along with the fine bass and accordion skills of Mr. Louis Tucci – sound anything but spare.

Messrs. Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee’s original book for DEAR WORLD has been revised by Mr. David Thompson and he has made a noble effort of reworking and tightening the show, changing the song order, working with added material and introducing some numbers to better effect. While “Just a Little Bit More” is not my favorite number, it now gives a suitable way for our Villains to better define who they are and relocating “The Spring of Next Year” to Act Two gives these characters a number that lets them reestablish themselves to the audience as evil beings when they musically celebrate Paris’ impending ruin. The Countess’ “Kiss Her Now” has become a very satisfying moment, framing Julian and Nina’s love towards the end of Act Two. Still, even the concert premise cannot really overcome the clumsy placement of Nina’s lovely “I’ve Never Said I Love You” which suddenly erupts without rhyme or reason.

And then there is the Title Song.

Mr. Jerry Herman creates some unforgettable pieces: “I Don’t Want To Know”, “Each Tomorrow Morning”, “Kiss Her Now”, etc. – but the title song “Dear World” is one of those things that must be gotten through because it is a TITLE SONG. Messrs. Thompson and McGovern clearly have done their level best to make “Dear World” work as an anthem that will bring heart back to the protagonists but in spite of their efforts, it still feels like being beaten repeatedly between the eyes with a Hallmark Get Well card. One annoying aspect of the song is the fact that the people singing “Dear World” are the ones being forced save the world – it will not save itself like the song repeatedly insists. The song that immediately follows it, “One Person”, is actually more to the point and moves things forward. Perhaps it is heretical, but I think the show would be much better if “Dear World” was totally rewritten with more suitable lyrics or even dropped altogether.

Still, even in its current condition, DEAR WORLD is well worth it – as a marvelous entertainment with a great cast and as an appropriate fable for these times. Even the flaws are intriguing and some of the more creative spectators may leave the theater both thrilled with what they have seen and contemplating what might be done do to overcome the imperfections.

 Alas, DEAR WORLD closed March 5.

About the reviewer:

MOSHE BLOXENHEIM
I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York. Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

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DEAR WORLD
Book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee
New Version by David Thompson
Music and Lyrics by Jerry Herman
Based on The Madwoman of Chaillot by Jean Giraudoux as adapted by Maurice Valency
Directed by Michael Montel
Music Directed by Christopher McGovern
Featuring Tyne Daly
With Dewey Cadell, J. Bernard Calloway, Ben Cherry, Alison Fraser, Stephen Mo Hanan, Ann Harada, Erika Henningsen, Hunter Ryan Herdlicka, Peter Land, Gordon Stanley, Kristopher Thompson-Bolden, Lenny Wolpe 

GUEST REVIEWER: THE MIKADO (Revised)

Sword-Play

A review of the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players’ new production of
THE MIKADO: or, the Town of Titipu
at the Kaye Playhouse

by Moshe Bloxenheim

December 31, 2016

The new NYGASP production of THE MIKADO has closed after an all too limited run, but even though I had already reviewed one cast during the run, attendance of later performances convinced me that the alternate principal actors deserved mention as well (and I could clean up some of my worst typos).  So here is the expanded “get the whole set’ review, in the usual text below and DOC attachment formats.

Moshe
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Sword-Play

 A review of the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players’ new production of

THE MIKADO: or, the Town of Titipu

At the Kaye Playhouse

 Covering the performances of December 31, 2016, January 5 & January 8, 2017

 As this MIKADO is a significant production for NYGASP, it seemed only fair to cover ALL the performers who alternated in the lead roles.

According to theatrical legend, a falling Japanese battle sword inspired Sir William S. Gilbert to create a new operatic satire of English foibles set in the contrasting framework of the Japonaiserie craze that was then sweeping London.  Whatever the cause, Sir William, aided by his producer Richard D’Oyly Carte then embarked placing THE MIKADO in as authentically Japanese a setting as could be possible for an 1885 English Comic Opera Company.  The New York Gilbert & Sullivan Player’s (NYGASP) brand new production of THE MIKADO sets the work as it might have appeared newly born in Sir William’s mind – a very English world in “Japanese” fancy dress that has yet to be touched by the research in costume and sets that was to come.

To prepare the audience for this cerebral concept, NYGASP’s Mr. David Auxier has written very brief and effective tongue-in-cheek prologue that confronts Sir W.S. Gilbert with the challenges faced by an author in a successful theatrical partnership: To create a new work that is acceptable to his composer partner Sir Arthur Sullivan, their producer Richard D’Oyly Carte and some very distinctive and demanding members of the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company.  Suffice it to say a Japanese sword figures most effectively, literally knocking the author into a world based on the characters, expressions and Japanese goods he had just experienced.

Sir William’s hero, Nanki-Poo arrives in the town of Titipu.  He is, in fact, the heir to the throne of Japan, but has disguised himself as a minstrel to escape the matrimonial claims of the formidable lady Katisha.  In his musical wanderings, Nanki-Poo has fallen in love with Yum-Yum who is a ward of Ko-Ko, a cheap tailor.  When Ko-Ko is condemned to death under the Mikado’s ban for flirting, the town of Titipu promote him to Lord High Executioner under the reasoning that Ko-Ko can execute other miscreants after he carried out the job on himself.  Circumstances soon require that Ko-Ko execute SOMEBODY and as he would rather not be the victim, he strikes a bargain with the love-blighted Nanki-Poo.  Betrothals are made, revelations are prevented, complications run cheerfully rampant, logic is taken to lunatic extremes and eventually all ends happily with more than a few sacred cows being taken on.

 Musically, THE MIKADO shows its composer Sir Arthur Sullivan as a worthy match to Sir William’s language.  Sir Arthur clearly enjoys the characters of THE MIKADO and carefully fits the music to the characters and actions, whether for Ko-Ko’s busy sounding list, Nanki-Poo and Yum-Yum’s youthful, romantically teasing “Were You Not To Ko-Ko Plighted,” Katisha’s threatening yet sympathetic melodies or the brashly imposing “A More Humane Mikado” sung by the title character.  This score is not simple accompaniment, but is a vital contribution to the setting and action of the play and THE MIKADO shows both men at a creative high point.

In revising and refreshing THE MIKADO, NYGASP has cast the roles very carefully and quite successfully.

 Mr. Jesse Pimpinella’s Nanki-Poo may appear at first glance to be a wide-eyed youth, but he certainly knows when he has the advantage and takes it, to the glee of the audience.  This Prince disguised as a Wandering Minstrel is uniquely artless and direct and I am sure time and experience will make Mr. Pimpinella’s performance even more enjoyable.

It is easy to see why Nanki-Poo falls in love with Yum-Yum because the charming Ms. Quynh-My Luu is everything one could hope for in the role.  Her Yum-Yum is a pretty and sweet girl but Ms. Luu also adds a bit of assurance and a hint of steel that brings certain scenes to new life as well as making the most of some classic bits of humor.  Vocally, Ms. Luu’s redition of “The Sun Whose Rays are all Ablaze” is a highlight of the evening and reveals the smooth transition from the girl first seen in “Three Little Maids From School” to a woman who is aware of her powers.

Yum-Yum’s sister Pitti Sing is given a wonderful zest by Ms. Jessica Rose Futran.  Her character is always a bit more aware of the situation to excellent effect, delightfully culminating in her desperate, yet eager taking of the spotlight in the Trio “The Criminal Cried’

Ms. Lauren Frankovich is quite winning as Yum-Yum’s other sister, Peep-Bo, with her drolly unfortunate tendency to state the obvious when everybody else would rather not hear it.

One wonders HOW these three girls became the wards of the cheap Tailor Ko-Ko, but the audience should consider itself very fortunate that Mr. Adam B. Shapiro is performing as the guardian who became Lord High Executioner.  Already amusing in the prologue as the unsatisfied Arthur Sullivan, Mr. Adam B. Shapiro takes elements from that introduction and creates what is for me one of great Ko-Kos.  This is a man who cannot believe where he has ended up and is waiting for the other anvil to drop.  Nevertheless, this Ko-Ko is more than a cartoon and even when he is forced to woo the aggressive Katisha, there is byplay between the two that is very human.  Mr. Shapiro’s mastery of musical numbers is a pleasure to witness ranging in moods and delivery from the updated list of social quirks in “A Some Day it May Happen” through the comic yet touching ballad “Tit-Willow.”

Ms. Cáitlín Burke’s Katisha is fantastic.  In the prologue as the lead Contralto and in Katisha’s later Act One entrance, the fire and storminess of the part blast onto the stage, but Ms. Burke then reveals shading in the character that makes her so much more than a villainess.  Katisha may be a pain in the neck, but she earns our sympathy and beneath the bossiness it is clear that she has something to offer.  Ms. Burke’s ability to capture all this makes for musical, dramatic and comic gold, especially in Act Two when Katisha mourns her single state in “Alone, and yet Alive,” and is then won over by the fearful Ko-Ko, culminating in the buoyant duet “There  is Beauty in The Bellow of The Blast.”

Considering Katisha’s demanding presence in his court, the Mikado clearly has a lot to put up with and Mr. Cole Grissom plays the Emperor of Japan with the smooth, disdainful air of one who might easily have entire the cast executed; would it not make such a mess and bother.  In the Mikado’s song, “A More Humane Mikado,” Mr. Grissom’s character knows how uncomfortable the townsfolk are in his royal presence and uses that to great advantage.  HE is the Mikado and do not forget it!

Another man with aspirations to power is Pooh-Bah, the Lord High Everything Else.  Mr. Andy Herr builds an admirable Pooh-Bah of flash and cash who is obviously rooted in the prologue part of the urbane producer, Richard D’Oyly Carte.  Both men will do it all – so long as there is money in it.  Pooh-Bah uses his alleged dignity to his advantage as Mr. Herr shows quite entertainingly but I truly enjoyed his eagerness to gild the lily in “The Criminal Cried as he Dropped Him Down.”

In the Gilbert and Sullivan canon there are Ko-Ko roles, Pooh-Bah parts and Katisha contraltos, etc., but not as much thought about Pish-Tush, “A Noble Lord.”  But it is here where the genius of NYGASP’s new version lies, because this Pish-Tush is the William S. Gilbert of the prologue who is dreaming up this new operetta.  The estimable Mr. Chris Vaughn embodies the author discovering, enjoying and even critiquing his own idea; Tentative at first, as a dreamer realizing who he is supposed to be, Gilbert/Pish-Tush becomes a keen witness and eager contributor to the proceedings.

 In the course of the current production, other NYGASP members have taken on these roles and deserve their own mention too.

Mr. Daniel Greenwood’s Nanki-Poo gives the air of innocence that such a young hero must have, but adds a delightful touch of awareness that allows him to deliver a line or even a pause that homes right into the humor of the moment.  Vocally as well, this Nanki-Poo ranges from heroic to tender to whimsical with ease.

If Mr. Greenwood knows how to provide just the right amount of cleverness, Ms. Sarah Caldwell Smith understands how to take part in the most nonsensical situations with skillful sincerity, giving THE MIKADO another truly fine Yum-Yum.  Musically as well Ms. Smith is superb and her scene and duet with Mr. Greenwood in “Were You Not To Ko-Ko Plighted” is an “anti-flirtatious” highlight.

If Yum-Yum lacks irony, Ms. Amy Maude Helfer makes a very effective Pitti-Sing with her air of one who has a good idea of how silly things are becoming and has to pitch in against her better judgment.  She is neatly contrasted by Ms. Alexandra Haines as the third little maid, Peep-Bo: a most amiable girl who drops social bricks with amusing nonchalance.

As their guardian, Mr. David Macaluso’s truly funny Ko-Ko is indeed a tailor out of his element.  Even when he wants to take advantage of his new rank of Lord High Executioner, this Ko-Ko knows something is bound to go wrong.  It is just a question of What Now?  Yet for all Ko-Ko’s foolery, Mr. Macaluso also develops a subtly sympathetic side that really works well in his wooing of the daunting Katisha.

Ms. Angela Christine Smith creates a marvelous Katisha who may enter in a fury, but we can see her humanity from the very first.  If we feel the force of this lady’s anger and desire for vengeance, Ms. Smith also makes us see the despair and loss of hoped for love.  This Katisha has been hurt and she is downright heartbreaking in her aria “The Hour of Gladness is Dead and Gone.”  Though the “Daughter-In-Law-Elect” is a bossy-boots there is a feeling that she may be doing it to ensure that she is not left out in the cold.  While Ko-Ko’s winning of Katisha is still wonderfully comedic, Ms. Angela Christine Smith made me root for Katisha too.

Katisha’s intrusive presence seems to be the one thing that visibly annoys the Mikado because Mr. Chris White splendidly portrays him as a dangerously jovial fellow – this Emperor clearly takes pleasure in his absolute power and how is it his fault if his witty inclination for boiling oil may unnerve some people?

One citizen of Titipu who does not care extreme punishment is the “Lord High Everything Else” Pooh-Bah.  Mr. Matthew Wages quite lives up to Sir W.S. Gilbert’s best satire of mendacious bureaucracy and class consciousness.  This Pooh-Bah will certainly “…put in his oar” to great amusement, and does very nicely too in the prologue as the eager Richard D’Oyly Carte.

As I mentioned before, the role of Pish-Tush is now far more significant because he is now the unconscious W.S. Gilbert who is literally dreaming up the show in front of us.  As played by Mr. Joshua Miller, Pish-Tush/Gilbert is ever the creative playwright who is happy to see how the plot unwinds to his prodding, even if he might give a grimace or two at a rhyme or joke that his characters deliver.

 The Chorus of Noblemen, Schoolgirls and Townspeople are all to be praised, populating Titipu with as Victorian a suburban London crowd as could ever be found in Japan.

 In addition to the admirable cast, Mr. David Auxier’s brilliant reconsideration and careful direction of THE MIKADO goes very far to ensure the success of this production.  With the directorial assistance of Mr. Kelvin Moon Loh, Mr. Auxier has not missed a trick in highlighting and reviving the humor of the story and its characters while keeping everything united and moving merrily along.  These gentlemen understand that this is an English comedy set in a “Japanese” framework of the imagination –The non-English setting pointing out the absurdity and parody without being a caricature on its own.  Even the most radical of changes are carried out with respect to context: While I am quite partial to the original “Mi-ya Sa-ma” chorus that greets the Mikado of Japan and his entourage, I believe Mr. Auxier’s new lyrics “Oh Mikado, Great Mikado” are not merely an effective substitution, but cleverly add to the Gilbertian whimsy of the moment by allowing the citizens of Titipu to express their true feelings while ostensibly chanting praise of their monarch.

In addition, Mr. Auxier’s choreography is very well done, ideally setting off the music and singing or to create tableaux that highlight the story itself.

The unreal, dreamlike atmosphere is further enhanced by the beautiful setting by Mr. Anshuman Bhatia – based on Japanese Block prints and Mr. Quinto Ott’s highly stylized costumes that feature exotic yet recognizable touches such as straw derbies and ornate open framework bustles and even snippets of other Gilbert and Sullivan operas.  Mr. Ott truly excels with his fanciful Mikado regalia and Katisha’s striking outfit.  Mr. James Mills also rises to the occasion in his make-up work especially in his expressive design for Katisha.  Sets, costumes and visages all look extremely well under Mr. Benjamin Weill’s deftly handled lighting and all unite to give a sort of picture-book aspect that is most appealing.

In the first version of this review I had mentioned that the first performance I saw under the baton of Conductor and Music Director Aaron Gandy seemed a bit out of sorts.  Knowing how good the NYGASP musical direction usually is, I assumed this was a unique occurrence.  I am pleased to say that later shows found Mr. Gandy and the NYGASP orchestra back in top form.  Mr. Gandy and the musicians clearly enjoy the vitality and range of Sullivan’s music and share the same energy and sense of fun as the performers onstage.

Production Stage Manager David A. Vandervliet and Assistant Stage Manager Annette Dieli do amazing work ensuring the smooth flow of THE MIKADO, ensuring that it entertains without a hitch.

There is always much risk and a great deal of work inherent in any new production. So Producer David Wannen and Mr. Albert Bergeret, the founder of NYGASP and Production Manager deserve special congratulations for their willingness to bring this new version of the classic work to fruition.  As it is now, NYGASP’s new staging of THE MIKADO has shed a lot of distracting addenda, firmly and happily returning the focus back to where it belongs: on Sir William Gilbert’s witty libretto and Sir Arthur Sullivan’s timeless score. 

Performances:
Click on any of the links for tickets or go to:
https://kayeplayhouse.primetix.com/Tickets/?perfid=425

*Family Overture – Musical introduction and plot summary made entertaining for the entire family (1 hour and 15 minutes before curtain in theatre)

The Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College
68th Street Between Park and Lexington Avenues

About the reviewer:

I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York. Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

GUEST REVIEWER: Encores! Concert staging of CABIN IN THE SKY

Devil may care.

A review of Encores! concert staging of
cabin

at New York City Center
February 11, 2016

CABIN IN THE SKY is one of those battles between the Heavenly and Hellish forces over a soul – that of the hapless Little Joe to be specific – that encourage the spectators to root for the good and grand even if there seems to be much more entertainment in the bad and brassy. To be fair, both sides are blessed with the marvelous music by Mr. Vernon Duke and the fine lyrics of Mr. John Latouche as well as some eye-catching choreography inspired by Mr. George Balanchine’s work for the original production, but even at its most buoyant moments, CABIN IN THE SKY’s Virtue always has a whiff of smug schoolroom morality. I can’t say if this was inherent in Mr. Lynn Root’s original book for the show or the result of Messrs. Ruben Santiago-Hudson and Jack Viertel’s concert adaptation for Encores! but no one is exactly at the edge of their seat rooting for Righteousness. Especially since the Devil has the charm, the campier lines and most of the best dance numbers.

Nevertheless, the cast of CABIN IN THE SKY provides some very winning performances that often transcend the limitations and triteness of the material.

Mr. Chuck Cooper is a petulant delight playing the Head Man: a son of the Devil who is trying to “make good” in his Poppa’s business by getting Little Joe’s soul. While his satanic efforts may not exactly breed success, they are always diverting and earn well deserved applause. Musically as well, Mr. Cooper never flags, and his rendition of “Do What You Wanna Do” backed up by his superb assistants in evil – Ms. Tiffany Mann and Messrs. Dennis Stowe and André Garner – is a veritable crowd pleaser.

blog-cabincast
On the other side of the scale, Mr. Norm Lewis makes a gratifyingly caring Lord’s General, earnestly fighting for good but with a level of amusement that keeps him from being a cardboard seraph. The problem is, that even while the Lord’s General is trying to help Petunia and Little Joe, the best argument he can offer up is the very engaging but still tame “It’s Not So Bad to Be Good.” Not exactly heady stuff for Little Joe after the production numbers that the Head Man brings onstage. Basically Mr. Lewis’ Lord’s General and his angels – played by the worthy Ms. Kristolyn Lloyd and Messrs. Jared Joseph and Nicholas Ward – are the sort of beings you would bring home to impress your folks, whereas Saturday night is more entertaining in Mr. Cooper’s diabolically fun company.

10-cabin-in-the-sky.w529.h352As for the object of Good and Bad’s dispute. Little Joe is a schmo, yet, we don’t wonder why Petunia bothers with him, because Mr. Michael Potts makes Little Joe Jackson a likeable and sympathetic hero. Indeed, Mr. Potts makes even Little Joe’s enjoyment of his newly virtuous life believable. His playfulness when singing “In My Old Virginia Home (On the River Nile)” with Petunia makes us fully appreciate why his wife has been fighting for him when she obviously can do better.

Of course, there is nothing like another woman to mess things up for a man and Georgia Brown – as played by the talented Ms. Carly Hughes – is perfect for the job. Georgia Brown is one of those terribly attractive and self-assured ladies who is perplexed when she cannot get what she wants – such as Little Joe. Ms. Hughes gives her pursuit of Little Joe a good dash of humor as well as spice, and plays off Mr. Michael Potts most effectively.

Fighting to save her man from Hell is Little Joe’s devoted wife Petunia. By rights, this lady should be a romantic doormat, but the admirable actress billed as “LaChanze” creates a plausible woman with backbone who can see the good in her husband and lovingly draw it out. This heroine is both a worthy wife and darned good company who easily captivates the audience with numbers like “Taking a Chance on Love.” When it appears that she has reached the last straw, Ms. LaChanze’s Petunia changes dramatically into a woman who can best even the worldly Georgia Brown and bring down the house with the impressively sung number “Savannah”

bww-tv-watch-highlights-of-lachanze-norm-lewis--more-in-encores-cabin-in-the-sky_1

The rest of the company is truly first-rate and deliver many high points in the show, most memorably the wonderful and boisterous “Dry Bones” which in itself is worth the price of admission.

Director Ruben Santiago-Hudson creates many memorable moments in the action of CABIN IN THE SKY but while I was entertained and interested, I was never really gripped by the sometime sitcom setup of the story (which Mr. Santiago Hudson also had a hand in). There is unevenness in the narrative that saps some of the drama out of the twists in the plot.

On the other hand, Ms. Camile A. Brown’s choreography provides impressive pieces of dance and movement. But at times certain numbers seem to get lost in a sort of Balanchine recital mode that merely extends the performances instead of enhancing the songs or adding to the story.

Musically the Encores! Orchestra conducted by Mr. Rob Berman is superb and Mr. Jonathan Tunick’s orchestrations of Mr. Vernon Duke’s music is a joy to listen to, taking full advantage of the chorus’ Gospel voices along with a big band sound reminiscent of the early 1940’s. Everything is properly amplified by Mr. Scott Lehrer’s audio designs, though the body microphones seem to be a little more obvious than intended.

Keeping with the concert staging, Ms. Anna Louizos’ sets are basic yet very effective – especially the opposing twin thrones in which are seated the Head Man and Lord’s General. Ms. Karen Perry is just as skilled in providing attractive costumes that go far in illustrating the personalities of the characters from the cheerful red garments of the Head Man and his henchmen to the white suit and amusing silver lamé cape worn by the Lord’s General. Everything is lit to good advantage by Mr. Ken Billington.

With its unequal book and overabundance of “Balanchine,” this CABIN IN THE SKY could have used more work on its dramatic foundation. But if it does not approach perfection, CABIN IN THE SKY is often very entertaining, with splendid songs and a praiseworthy cast who work hard to give the show a substance that it might not otherwise have.

About the reviewer:

I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York. Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

Originally produced in 1940, Cabin in the Sky followed Porgy and Bess in celebrating African-American music and dance traditions. The musical tells the story of “Little Joe” Jackson (Michael Potts), a charming ne’er-do-well who dies in a saloon brawl and is given six months on earth to prove his worth to the Lord’s General (Tony Award nominee Norm Lewis) and the Devil’s Head Man (Tony Award winner Chuck Cooper)—all while struggling to remain true to his loving wife Petunia (Tony Award winner LaChanze) and resist the wiles of temptress Georgia Brown (Carly Hughes). Long considered a lost treasure, the score of Cabin in the Sky—which includes jazz hits like “Taking a Chance on Love” and “Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe”—will be restored to its original glory for Encores!

GUEST REVIEWER: THE VISIT At the Lyric Theatre

Be our guest.

A review of
THE VISIT
at the Lyric Theatre

April 12, 2015 and April 21, 2015 – Opened April 23, 2015

THE VISIT offers so much that one does not usually get in a typical new musical nowadays: a score with memorable songs, a plot that is thought provoking and best of all, a Star Turn of the Highest Caliber. THE VISIT is also a brave show, in the sense that it does not try to stroke the audience’s sensibilities and even dares to make them work at understanding what happens onstage. In the VISIT, the citizens of the desperately poor Swiss town of Brachen welcome Claire Zachanassian, the richest woman in the world, who is returning to the hometown that she had fled long ago. The impoverished villages hope that they can persuade Claire to use her wealth to revitalize the town. To their surprise Claire agrees but lays out a deal. She will endow the village with untold billions if they kill the man who loved her, impregnated her and then denied being the father of her child, forcing her to flee Brachen when she was a young girl and make her own way in a cruel and dangerous world. That man is Anton Schell, an impoverished shopkeeper who can’t even win the respect of his own family. The leaders of the town indignantly reject such a horrendous offer, but soon after townspeople start buying expensive items from Anton’s store, charging their purchases to some unmentionable windfall they expect and talk darkly about how Anton had so foully wronged poor Claire…

Mr. Terence McNally has created an often powerful book based upon the original play by Mr. Friedrich Dürrenmatt and Mr. Fred Ebb’s lyrics and Mr. John Kander’s music further hone the sharpness of this Brechtian Fractured Fairy Tale. Justice, revenge, the violent collision of love and self-interest, and the moral fluidity of honorable people are all covered in rather raw terms, but somehow there is a humor and even lightness that flavors even the most severe and unsavory moments of this story with a touch of vaudeville. Messrs. McNally, Ebb and Kander work very carefully together contrasting the diverse feelings of the Brachen denizens with their attempts to form a united front in the face of poverty with such numbers like the community glee “Out of the Darkness.” They eventually show these same people descending into moral self-delusion with the bitterly entertaining “Yellow Shoes.” As far as Claire is concerned, her very first entrance provides her with firm dramatic footing augmented with strong numbers like the unforgettable matrimonial success catalogue “I Walk Away” or Claire’s soulful description of her feelings for and about Anton and their broken past in “Winter.”

Admittedly, not every song is a gem – Anton’s first number “I know Claire” has a very general feeling as if it could be from any show at any period from 1965 to the present. In fact there is sometimes an uneven style that seems less an attempt at being rustic and more a case of needing more work. Nevertheless much of what is on offer is choice indeed.

The opening scene of THE VISIT makes for a most appropriate introduction to the threadbare inhabitants of Brachen: Ms. Diana Dimiarzo’s plays the Mayor’s wife and local gossip and Messrs. David Garrison, Rick Holmes, Aaron Ramey, Timothy Shew and Jason Danieley are the town’s Mayor, Priest, Policeman, Doctor and Schoolteacher respectively: all are excellent as desperately respectable people who will throw aside all scruples if they have to, all the while convincing themselves of their decency.

Just as bad – and very good – are the members of Anton’s own family. Ms. Mary Beth Peil is wonderfully acerbic as Matilde Schell, a wife who never hesitates to reminds Claire that she is the woman who married Anton, yet doesn’t even find much satisfaction in that fact. Mr. George Abud is Anton’s son Karl and Ms. Elena Shaddow plays daughter Ottilie, showing a very effective indifference for a father who couldn’t even afford to let them have things from their own family store. The promise of prosperity brings this family and the town to life, even though they all have to keep tamping down that little part of them that knows what the price will be. Mss. Piel and Shaddow and Mr. Abud make this painfully clear in the song “A Car Ride;” a pleasant and simple number sung with Anton where the Schells enjoy what is the first happy family moment that they have had in many years. Everyone is delighted but the unspoken cost is still there.

Contrasting the dingy indigence of Brachen’s people is Claire Zachanassian’s astonishing entourage led by Mr. Tom Nelis’ imposing Butler Rudi. Mr. Matthew Deming is Eunuch Louis and Mr. Chris Newcomer takes the role of Eunuch Jacob. All three are always dressed in dapper suits, carefully hatted and walking in eye-catching footgear. These performers shine in their marvelously fantastic roles, often taking the spotlight with remarkably controlled insanity beginning with the Eunuch’s startling backup chorus in “I Walk Away.”
Since this is a show about a present that can never escape the past, the figures of the young Claire and Anton are part of every scene whether reenacting their amour or watching the current situation. Ms. Michelle Veintimilla and Mr. John Riddle truly haunt the show, vividly showing the joy of young love and standing aside as observers to the demands and cruelties of the real world. When Ms. Veintimilla and Mr. Riddle join their present counterparts (such as in the beautiful song “You, You, You”) the contrast of destroyed youthful romance and the cynicism, hurt and longing that has taken its place is deeply moving.

Of course the present Anton has long been a beaten down man who cruelly sacrificed love for security and has since had to make do without either. Mr. Roger Rees plays this role expertly rising from the miserable storekeeper to the hopeful former lover who dares to hope a little. Mr. Rees displays every turn of amazement, disgust and realization that is inherent in Anton Schell as he sees the past catch up with him and the future demand his removal. Mr. Rees makes it painfully clear that anyone in Brachen could have been as cruel and stupid as Anton had been in his youth, but there are times in the middle of THE VISIT when Anton is less caught by the story than bogged down in it.

Of course it is a task indeed for Anton to approach the level of the fabulous Claire Zachanassian – especially when Ms. Chita Rivera so embodies that adjective. This is natural, not only due to Ms. Rivera’s phenomenal performance but because Claire’s presence simply permeates the play – even when the action does not focus on Claire, it occurs because of her. Ms. Rivera imbues this glamorous and wealthiest of women with the world weary brio of one who is always in charge, but when Claire turns to the only happy memory of her past, Ms. Rivera lets the joy and pleasure of that youthful love melt her hardness. This is one of the reasons that Claire Zachanassian is not a monster of vengeance, but someone all too human and desperate to take back something that had been stolen from her so long ago. This performance keeps the play’s ending from being the grotesque finale that it might have been and transforms it into something that ought to be seen to be appreciated: a true example of Theatrical Power at its height.

Director John Doyle does amazing work with THE VISIT giving the story the universal feeling that a fable ought to have. But Mr. Doyle wisely never paints anyone as an outright villain, making the wrongs committed all the more real. People can disassociate themselves from bad actions that happen in the present just as they did so many years ago. Other folks may demonstrate what can happen when justice is withheld. But the moral caprices are far from alien. Unfortunately, while the show engrosses and appeals and appalls two thirds of the way through THE VIST seems to get stuck. The depiction of Anton feeling trapped and his putting up with the emotional justifications of an apologizing villager is essential but the storytelling at this point seems to go awry and put a drain on the energy of THE VISIT’s surreal narrative. Maybe Anton ought to have more or different emotional power as he watches his own world turn on him, but as done now, Anton, Mr. Doyle and THE VISIT seem to just soldier through this void, until theatrical balance returns. Happily the ending is well worth it.

Ms. Graciela Daniele’s choreography lets the citizens of Brachen make much use of Mr. Scott Pask’s spare scenic design with its decrepit railroad station setting and Claire’s vast pile of luggage and coffin. With the addition of Mr. Japhy Weideman’s lighting, we are taken all over Brachen from station to hotel to woods to past and present with amazing clarity, giving a wonderful meaning to the idea of dealing with people’s baggage. Then also, both Mr. Doyle and Ms. Daniele gives nodding acknowledgement to the notion that Claire Zachanassian now has some trouble with her limbs, but they allow Ms. Rivera to soar gloriously beyond such commonplaces as physical infirmity in this mythic role. When handling the young Anton and Claire too, director and choreographer are amazingly able to let these shades be a part of the action and still keep them firmly in the past.
Music Director David Loud contributes mightily with the orchestra allowing the different types of numbers – choral to star solo to ghostly echoes – to shine and fit the action even when the music suddenly shifts from one style to another.

The costumes by Ms. Ann Hould-Ward with hair and makeup by Messrs. Paul Huntley and J. Jared Janas are downright spellbinding with the dusty threadbare denizens of Brachen contrasted strikingly against the glamorous and dapper beings that are Claire and her crew and the cream white garb of the young Claire and Anton.

As it is now, Ms. Chita Rivera and Messrs. Kander and Ebb’s score make THE VISIT a truly amazing spectacle to behold and well worth the trip to the Lyceum Theatre, but there is still a feeling of inertia in the middle of THE VISIT that cannot be ignored and must be endured as one goes from the extraordinary start to its dazzling finish.

Running Time: 95 minutes, no intermission

LYCEUM THEATRE
149 West 45th Street
Between 6th Avenue and Broadway
Box Office Hours:  Mon – Sat: 10am – 8pm | Sun: Noon – 6pm
Online Tickets: Or Call 212.239.6200

About the reviewer:

I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York. Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

EDITOR’S UPDATE: 04/28/2015

GUEST REVIEWER: A review of Lincoln Center Theater revival of THE KING AND I

Anna’s Undies
or
The Front Row Follies

A review of Lincoln Center Theater revival of
THE KING AND I
At the Vivian Beaumont

April 7, 2015 IN PREVIEWS

NOTE TO READERS: I usually try to treat every show I review as if I am seeing it for the first time. However in the case of THE KING AND I such a position was not entirely possible.

Mr. Oscar Hammerstein II wrote the book and lyrics for the classic 1951 musical THE KING AND I basing his work on Ms. Margaret Landon’s novel ANNA AND THE KING OF SIAM, (which is in turn a reworking of Ms. Anna Leonowens’ dramatic memoirs of the 1870’s). THE KING AND I tells the story of the young widow Anna Leonowens who in the 1860’s has journeyed to Siam with her young son Louis. Anna has been hired as teacher for the King of Siam’s royal family as part of the King’s plan to modernize (westernize) his country while fending off the imperialist ambitions of European powers. As she starts her work, Anna finds herself being drawn into the intrigues of Palace life and even having conflicts with the King – primarily regarding a certain term of her contract that he claims to have no knowledge of. In turn the King is intrigued by the Englishwoman who apparently has no fear of him and who represents the western advances in sciences and ideas that he is aspiring to achieve. When Western adventurers call the King a barbarian whose country should be made a protectorate Anna helps him to entertain and influence an English Delegation with results that deeply affect the King, the Royal Family, Siam and herself.

Director Bartlett Sher and his production team are clearly in awe of THE KING AND I and have mounted a revival that is both an astonishing eyeful and a veritable crowd pleaser. But for all that Mr. Sher and Co. have accomplished to impress the hell out of the audience and make it feel that it has gotten its money’s worth, there is an air of self-importance and a tendency to miss details that keeps this revival from being the truly outstanding production it so clearly is trying to be.

The book itself is an example of this problem: the current revival makes certain revisions to Mr. Hammerstein’s book and cuts the song “A Puzzlement” in a way that adds emphasis to the King’s difficult position as a traditional Eastern monarch who must adapt and strategize in the face of European imperialism. For the most part, I actually like these changes which make His Majesty seem less naïve and driven by personal desires than in previous productions. However, there is a tendency to make the situation clear and then immediately expound upon another variation of the same point. This causes certain scenes to lose their tension and focus and become rather labored. Judicious cutting and refining would definitely help.

Of course even with such changes, the rest of the score is wonderfully intact: from the optimistic trepidation of “I Whistle a Happy Tune,” through the endearing “Getting to Know You,” and the climactic “Shall We Dance,” Composer Richard Rodger’s and Mr. Hammerstein’s widely ranging music and lyrics define characters, enhance the action and make up one of the truly great musical scores.

This production of THE KING AND I is indeed “Mrs. Anna’s” show as Ms. Kelli O’Hara’s Anna Leonowens sweeps into Siam with all the apparent eagerness and self-confidence of someone who is certain that she is right. But Ms. O’Hara makes it clear that Anna’s assuredness and insistence of promises being fulfilled is actually the armor her character uses to protect herself and her son in this strange new place. Bit by bit this shell is removed, letting us see the woman who can become a discreet champion of doomed lovers in the moving “Hello Young Lovers,” make a classroom of royal children into a believable mutual adoration festival through the joyful “Getting to Know You.” It is Ms. O’Hara’s ability to contrast Anna’s humanity and vulnerability with her overwhelming desire to have everything set to rights in the Kingdom that makes this Governess a heroic and sympathetic person instead of the interfering intruder she might easily have been. This Anna may be exasperated and critical of the King – earning our sympathy and well deserved laughs and applause in the explosive and difficult soliloquy “Shall I Tell You What I Think of You?” – but she champions his goals and even makes some effort to understand him.

As Anna’s employer, Mr. Ken Watanabe is a truly formidable King Mongkut of Siam, presenting a man driven by politics as well as royal prerogative. This King understands how essential it is for him to speedily assimilate new ideas and languages, while trying to maintain authority in a changing world. Thus for Mr. Watanabe’s King, his fascination for Mrs. Anna is that of someone who represent the challenge of a Western influence as well as a colleague with whom he can communicate. Mr. Watanabe uses his accent to provide a vocal brusqueness that would be natural for a Monarch who is still feeling his way through English. Alas, some of the spectators around me did have some trouble fully understanding him – especially when he sometimes hastened though his sentences. Furthermore – although I fear this may have been due to Mr. Bartlett Sher’s direction – Mr. Watanabe’s depiction of angst was often of an “all or nothing” style of delivery that made his version of “A Puzzlement” appear less a song of intellectual perplexity than of digestive trouble.

Adding to His Majesty’s anxieties is the emotional isolation of his new wife, the Lady Tuptim. A gift from the court of Burma, Tuptim had already fallen in love with Lun Tha, one of the Burmese delegates, before she had ever been presented to the King. Charming Ms. Ashley Park is a wonderful Lady Tuptim, giving her role a grace and spirit that makes Tuptim more than just a girl driven by love. This is a woman who dares to hope for a better future even in the face of futility. Ms. Park’s memorable rendition of “My Lord and Master” – a song describing Tuptim’s emotions when she has been accepted as a wife to the King – manages to be both operatic and yet believably from Tuptim’s secret heart.

Although the handsome Mr. Conrad Ricanora’s Lun-Tha is not as imposing or even as heroic a character as the King is, his reckless and despairing love for Tuptim endows his role with its own power. When he sings “We Kiss in a Shadow,” Mr. Ricanora makes it Lun-Tha’s musical lure that unites him to Tuptim in their dangerous dream.

Where Tuptim feels trapped in the world of the Palace, Ms. Ruthie Ann Miles’ brilliant Lady Thiang is a poised inhabitant. Ms. Miles’ shows us the embodiment of a loving consort, who truly loves the King and does all she can for him and her son, the Crown Prince Chulalongkorn, seeing their potential for good. This is clearly shown in Ms. Miles’ moving performance of “Something Wonderful” which can all too easily become a hymn to enablement rather that the longing need of a woman to assist someone she loves in their aspirations for greatness.

As the heir of the King, Prince Chulalongkorn represents the aspirations for the future. Mr. Jon Viktor Corpuz presents us with a sturdy young prince who is not sure that he is really thrilled with life under Anna’s instruction and plays the Prince’s gradual warming to his teacher most quite well, keeping Anna unsure of how much her lessons are reaching him.

Mr. Jake Lucas succeeds nicely in preventing Anna’s son Louis Leonowens from becoming a mere prompt for other people’s dialogue. Indeed Mr. Lucas’ sunny young man provides an interesting contrast to the Royal Children, always being part of the crowd yet apart from them too which gives his duet with Chulalongkorn in the recap of a “A Puzzlement” a bit more depth than I expected in a reprise that was originally devised to cover a scene change.

Another surprise was Mr. Paul Nakauchi’s finely tuned performance as the King’s Prime Minister, the Kralahome. Mr. Nakauchi created an aloof dignitary who truly understands and respects his ruler, letting his feelings for him show briefly but most effectively.

The rest of the performers are all excellent, be they wives, children, courtiers, dancers and foreigners. Indeed the troupe who dance the balletic play-within-a-play THE SMALL HOUSE OF UNCLE THOMAS are simply phenomenal, performing this earnest “Siamese” take of UNCLE TOM’S CABIN with a flair and sense of fun that never crept into parody.

It is obvious from this splendid cast and the ornate production that Director Bartlett Sher truly has an embarrassment of riches on his hands. I only wish he could let some of that wealth fall to the sidelines when a concept does not quite work. Also it is apparent that Mr. Sher is enthralled by staging and designs that can only be appreciated properly from the back rows of the theater. This results in a lovely and inspiring state of affairs for anyone seated in the rear of the house but downright frustrating to those holding seats closer to the action, starting with the opening scene which became a debacle for many people sitting in the first four or five rows around the Orchestra Pit: As the stage extends over the musicians in orchestra an imposing model steamer sails onward, its prow towering above the front of the stage apron. When Captain Orton and Louis Leonowens appear on the top deck of this vessel, all that is visible for those unfortunates in the closer seats is Captain Orton’s cap. Then Ms. Kelli O’Hara makes what ought to be THE star entrance as Anna Leonowens. Her voice is clear and her hat the only visible part of her until she approaches the ship’s rail and treats the spectators seated beneath the ship to several long and unnerving views of the vast underside of her hoopskirt. After THAT introduction, I can report that under the interesting array of her crinoline, Ms. O’Hara wears sturdy traveling shoes, proper hose and clean pantalets that ended above the knee.

After this annoyingly awkward sequence, everyone climbs off the ship which pulls away to reveal a quayside setting that would have been perfectly fine from the very beginning since most of the action and singing takes place here anyway IN FULL SIGHT. But clearly someone’s judgement was woefully affected by the concept of that unfortunate ship.

This “sightlines be damned” tendency occurs consistently and aggravatingly throughout the evening, caused by the arrangements of the set, a prop or groupings of the cast members and I firmly and regretfully lay the blame for this ineptitude at Mr. Bartlett Sher’s feet. Doubtlessly Mr. Sher is trying to emulate the beautifully cinematic flow of SOUTH PACIFIC (a show he dazzlingly revived at the same theater some years ago), but the palatial progression and set pieces of THE KING AND I constantly works against such a dynamic approach due to the need for the action to be visible to the entire audience and because all the time taken for the constant onstage shifting and rearranging of scenery tends to drain off more and more energy.

Then too, it appears that Director Sher sometimes focuses on the impressive climax of a scene but lets everything coast into it. At other times he allows the action to build up ponderously, such as the aforementioned thematic repetition of the King’s concerns with Europe. For me the worst instance of all this sloppiness is in Act 2 during Anna’s final confrontation with the King. Each of her accusations is rushed along like a run-on sentence that comes to a halt with her final indictment of His Majesty. This haste robs Ms. O’Hara and Mr. Watanabe of their most powerfully dramatic moment since each of Mrs. Anna’s charges is meant to hit the king like an emotional body blow until he can no longer take it and finally erupts at her.

Still, there is much to praise in Mr. Sher’s work from the scholarly and politically shrewd King through Anna’s delightfully individual relationship with each of the Royal Children. Mr. Sher makes certain that even the smallest role onstage provides another character in the story rather than function as mere walking scenery. If I had to argue with any of the characterizations it would be with Mr. Edward Baker-Duly’s Sir Edward Ramsey: why must this visiting dignitary who had been part of Anna’s past always get played with a sort of to-the-gallery vapidity? I have seen this style of portrayal often enough to assume it is traditional with revivals of THE KING AND I but to me is just seems silly and makes Anna and the King’s interaction with Sir Edward of far less importance than we have been led to believe it should be, especially after all the highlighting of the King’s political concerns.

Choreographer Christopher Gattelli is quite faithful to Mr. Jerome Robbin’s original dances but marvelously makes the fullest use of the vast Vivian Beaumont stage to permit the performers to come alive rather than merely re-enact the glory of Mr. Robbin’s past work.

Similarly Mr. Ted Sperling directs a wonderfully large orchestra that truly glories in Mr. Richard Rodgers unforgettable music (with the classic orchestrations of Mr. Robert Russell Bennett and Ms. Trude Rittman’s additional arrangements). Alas the Overture deserves better treatment, not merely being truncated which would have been understandable given the length of the show, but being rewritten into a mere hit parade of tunes lingering on “Shall We Dance,” a theme that is usually never heard in the overture because it is reserved for actual performance to heighten it’s impact. Such a spoiler of an overture is better discarded altogether.

The sets (besides the confounded boat) are simple yet grand. Mr. Michael Yeargan understands how sumptuous and magnificent does not have to be overwhelming. He skillfully evokes the Bangkok riverside and the Palace Environs on the large performance space with care and even delicacy. The sets and stage action were admirably lit by Mr. Donald Holder and Mr. Scott Lehrer’s judicious sound designs assured that even if the scenes cannot be fully seen by everybody, they can clearly be heard.

It has been observed that certain moments of THE KING AND I star not only the actors but the costumes they wear and Ms. Catherin Zuber’s gorgeous creations take the stage most impressively. From English hoopskirts to Siamese pha nungs, Ms. Zuber’s garments both capture the eye and define the character of the wearer. While using new designs to make Mrs. Anna look most charming, Ms. Zuber wisely does not eschew the magic of the famous pink satin ball gown that has always made “Shall We Dance” one of the most memorable moments in musical theater. On an irreverent note, THE KING AND I’s opening scene makes it most clear to the closer seat holders that Ms. Zuber is as just meticulous about designing the cast’s underclothes.

THE KING AND I is slated to open on April 16 and it is sure to be a popular draw and should not be missed. All the same, I feel sad that some unfortunate and thoughtless choices will prevent this revival from being the defining hallmark production that it ought to be. And I close with a word of advice:

When booking your seats, avoid the first five rows around the stage.

and an ardent plea to Mr. Sher:

SINK THAT SHIP!

About the reviewer:

I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York. Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

Guest Review of Encores! “THE BAND WAGON” at New York City Center

Off the wagon.

A Guest Review of Encores!

“THE BAND WAGON”

at New York City Center

November 8, 2014

THE BAND WAGON is an energetic celebration of the music and lyrics of Messrs. Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz. Based on the 1953 MGM film THE BAND WAGON, Mr. Douglas Carter Beane uses the original screenplay by Ms. Betty Comden and Mr. Adolph Green to provide a workmanlike pastiche of scenes in which to launch the songs; many of which had originally been created for the 1931 Broadway review of the same name. And what a lovely score there is, with fun numbers like “I Love Louisa,” the wistful “I Guess I’ll Have to Change My Plan,” and the intense “Dancing in the Dark” to name but a few. All are played with the flair and obvious pleasure that has come to be a hallmark of the Encores! Orchestra which is led for THE BAND WAGON by Mr. Todd Ellison. Indeed there is such a wealth of beloved songs that the couple behind me had a lovely time quietly singing along with the music onstage and I had not the heart to turn around and ask them to stop.

The plot is simple: Hollywood Screen Idol Tony Hunter is slipping at the box office and in hopes of revitalizing his career Tony has accepted the invitation of British Thespian Jeffrey Cordova to star in a new Broadway show. Tony arrives in New York only to learn to his reluctant surprise that the show is going to be a musical that Jeffrey will direct – his first musical to be precise. Adding more to Tony’s hesitation is the fact that his former friends Lily and Lester Martin – who aren’t exactly thrilled to be working with Tony again – are supposed to supply the book and score to this new production. Toss in Paul Byrd, a self-important choreographer, and his girlfriend Garielle Gerard, a former member of the Tony Hunter fan club and you know that there are going to be complications, hijinks, tantrums and spur-of-the-moment decisions of such significance before they make it to Broadway, that I wondered why they didn’t simply resort to Judy and Mickey’s barn – actually someone DOES ask that same question in the show.

The cast works very hard to flesh out the cinematic shadows they are saddled with. Mr. Brian Stokes Mitchell gives a pleasantly light performance as Tony Hunter that is in keeping with the “aw shucks” 1950’s ambiance. In fact he’s a somewhat more entertaining but slightly flawed “Father Knows Best” figure; trying to marshal his troupe to a successful first night and at the same time renew his career and inspiration. But there was very little Tony Hunter for Mr. Mitchell to work with so I took Mr. Mitchell at his word that this was his role and just enjoyed watching him try to make the best of it. Song and dance-wise he was simply delightful.

The Great British Dramatic Actor Jeffrey Cordova is a theatrical babe in the woods who is such a good sport and so eager to take up the latest half-baked idea that he would be absolutely impossible to believe as a character had not Mr. Tony Sheldon had so much fun playing him with a wink and a nudge. Jeffery is unreal, but Mr. Sheldon makes him amusingly good company.

Complementing Jeffrey Cordova is his devoted right-hand man Hal Meadows. Hal is down to earth and often keeps Jeffrey from running off the rails. As the show proceeds Hal is often the one who is there to keep things moving forward for everybody. Mr. Don Stephenson plays Hal with wonderful understatement often providing an ideal counterpoint to the more volatile “creative” people.

Speaking of volatile, Mr. Michael Berresse is the egocentric choreographer Paul Byrd. Byrd is something of the heavy of the piece – determined to have an advanced ballet produced in the show at all costs (Boo! Hiss!). Thankfully Mr. Berresse remembers that this is a MOVIE version of Broadway and NOT “A Chorus Line” and if he does not quite twirl a moustache and mutter “Curses,” he does exude a villainous single-mindedness to his plot to inflict his interminable ballet upon the public, even at the expense of the show.

It is surprising that Paul Byrd has a girlfriend as talented and idealistic as Gabrielle Gerard who clearly seems to overshadow him. There is something of a blushing “Gee Whiz” demeanor in Gabrielle that Ms. Laura Osnes makes believable. Here is a sweet and likable young lady who has something of a full story to tell us. Better still Ms. Osnes makes us root for her.

Lester Martin is another incompletely drawn character; he is there to sit at the piano and push his music while worrying about losing his wife Lily to Tony Martin. Somehow Mr. Michael McKean brings him sweetly to life and makes us care for this man who knows that his wife had settled for him after Tony left for Hollywood.

Indeed I too was in love with Ms. Tracey Ullman’s Lily Martin. Lily is not glamorous nor does she have any major dance number, but she is the most three dimensional and sympathetic of all the people trying to bring this musical to a successful Broadway opening. Here we have a successful woman who was deeply in love and only married her best friend Lester because she could not have Tony. She has to work out her feelings for both men while trying to keep the show from closing out of town. Watching Ms. Ullman’s superb portrayal of Lily, I thought, “What an amazing musical there might have been had Lily Martin been the focus of THE BAND WAGON – not Tony Hunter.”

The rest of the ensemble do their best to be believable city people and show folk, not even cracking a smile during the most ludicrous of Paul Byrd’s dance excesses.

The problem with adapting a well-known and beloved film into another form is that the original is a ghostly presence that haunts whatever new version is created. In the case of THE BAND WAGON an exorcism would have been a good idea. Mr. Douglas Carter Beane’s book does not want to risk alienating the audience who remembers the original – like the musical duo I mentioned before – but at the same time he often forgets that the speedy development of the plot points that might work in a movie may come across as incomplete onstage. Interactions that can mean a lot in close-up need more fleshing out when on a big stage. Matters that should be detailed are merely relayed to the audience in a second hand way, sometimes with minimal exposition: Who really cares about Tony Hunter and his bad movie making decisions?

Director and Choreographer Kathleen Marshal has to make the most of the uneven script but she cannot get beyond some of the moments that are staged for the sole purpose of setting a song that has no logical place in the script. She tries to interest us in these musical numbers that are often part of the Broadway bound show in a show but beloved as some of these scenes are in the movie (like “Triplets” and “Louisiana Hayride”) it might have been better just to assemble them as some sort of independent entre-act rather than waste time in a painful attempt to make them integral. Again, I have to hearken back to Mr. Beane’s adaptation. I understand that this BAND WAGON is based on Hollywood’s take on Broadway, but the creaky conventionalities (commercial entertainment versus ART, the comeback of the has-been, etc…) and the hackneyed theme of the Lester and Lily Martin’s plot for the Broadway Bound show are either a spoof or a lousy script.

Even when there are departures that seem promising, everything is firmly buried in what Mr. Beane assumes are the Hollywood conventions of the day. Mr. Beane claims the script was a tribute to Ms. Comden’s and Mr. Green’s work as a writing team. As an admirer of the duo, I had this sinking feeling that they’d have demanded a rewrite Happily when the musical numbers get going they are a lot of fun to hear and watch. Ms. Kathleen Marshal does know how to make performers move and some of the staging is memorable such as for the song “I Love Louisa.”

Mr. Derek McLane’s excellent sets and Mr. Peter Kaczorowski’s lighting followed and highlighted the action smoothly, while Mr. William Ivey Long’s costumes were very much of the 1950’s and he allowed himself a sly joke of dressing some performers in the show within the show as recognizable characters from other musicals of the era. But little point: Ms. Osnes please tuck in ALL of your hair for “Triplets” – it just spoils the point when the three babies sing about how they are all alike when one of them is sporting long flowing curls down past her shoulders. Then too in “Triplets”, Mr. Brian Ronan’s sound design is either muffling some of the lyrics or amplifying the performers’ mumbling of them – and not only in that number.

I feel like a grump writing down all these criticisms – especially as the audience seemed to be having a whale of a time. And I enjoyed THE BAND WAGON too for what it was: a pleasant diversion that entertained in spite of its story – not because of it.

  • Cast & Credits

    Book by Douglas Carter Beane
    From the screenplay by Betty Comden and Adolph Green
    Music by Arthur Schwartz
    Lyrics by Howard Dietz
    Based on the classic MGM film
    Produced by special arrangement with Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures
    Featuring The Encores! Orchestra
    Guest Music Director Todd Ellison
    Directed and Choreographed by Kathleen Marshall

    Starring Brian Stokes Mitchell, Tracey Ullman, Michael McKean, Tony Sheldon, Laura OsnesWith Michael Berresse, Don Stephenson, Lawrence Alexander, John Carroll, Joyce Chittick, Jason DePinto, Ericka Hunter, Dionna Thomas Littleton, Gavin Lodge, Erica Mansfield, Brittany Marcin, Paul McGill, Kaitlin Mesh, Jermaine R. Rembert, Brandon Rubendall, Jennifer Savelli, Eric Sciotto, Samantha Zack

  • An Encores! Special Event

    The Band Wagon

    • Mainstage
    • Nov 6 – 16, 2014
    • Tickets start at $30 available here:

About the reviewer:


I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions. I live in New York. Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

GUEST REVIEWER: ON THE TOWN – Lyric Theater – October 21, 2014

Bringing up Gabey.

A review of the revival of
ON THE TOWN
At the Lyric Theater

October 21, 2014

by Moshe Bloxenheim, Guest Reviewer

When the house lights dimmed in the Lyric Theatre on 42nd Street and the audience hushed expectantly, no strains of Bernstein rose from the orchestra pit – instead we heard the stately notes of the “Star Spangled Banner.” Ours was doubtless not the first performance where everyone looked at one another in confusion, but soon enough all rose from their seats, hand over heart, and began to join in singing the National Anthem – first unsure of themselves but finishing the first stanza in full. It was only then that the curtain – itself a large US flag – rose and the show began.

A cynical scheme to make sure no one could hate this show?

No, we are traveling back to 1944 and wartime when New York was truly part of the Home Front and all theater performances started off with this tribute to our embattled country before taking the audience away from the grim realities of battle news, casualties, blackouts and rationing.

Happily there is no rationing or actor shortage in this revival of ON THE TOWN. Nicely cast, cleverly staged and lushly orchestrated, the new production is an enthusiastic valentine to a bygone New York City: a glorious eyeful and earful that goes far to please the audience.
The premise of ON THE TOWN is simple: Ozzie, Chip and Gabey are three US Sailors who have 24 hours leave in New York City before they ship out. As they ride the subway from the Navy yard, Gabey sees a picture of the latest month’s “Miss Turnstiles” and longs for the exotic young lady who has been so honored by the New York City Board of Transportation: Miss Ivy Smith. The three young men agree to split up and use clues from the Miss Turnstiles poster to locate her. As they search, Chip meets the delightfully direct ex-cabbie Hildy Esterhazy and Ozzie encounters a soul-mate in the volatile anthropologist Claire de Loone. But poor Gabey must endure many more obstacles before he can meet the Ivy Smith of his dreams.

Jay Armstrong Johnson, Tony Yazbeck and Clyde Alves

Jay Armstrong Johnson, Tony Yazbeck and Clyde Alves

These three young men and three young ladies may be the lead roles, but the starring spot is reserved for the setting of ON THE TOWN itself; the big, confusing, often tawdry New York City that even in wartime offers a magic wonderland that beats the organized, rational happiness of Disneyland hollow.

To populate such vibrant metropolis, the company has to be large by necessity and many performers play multiple roles: exiting as one citizen of the fair city and reentering the scene as another different character, each one with his or her own story to tell, be they sailor, cop, schoolgirl, commuter, lover or employee of Mr. Godolphin. Such careful delineations are certainly due to the efforts of the director and the choreographer, but a long and hearty ovation surely must go to these actors who never devolve into walking stage properties.

One of these many-faceted players is the very talented Mr. Stephen DeRosa. He plays a motley series of individuals and the spectator is hard put to recognize the tired shipyard worker, wise guy bill poster, harried professor, hackneyed club hosts, etc., as one and the same person even though Mr. DeRosa often adds his own funny touch that makes the most of each individual.

Mr. Phillip Boykin is another skillful actor who adds to the multitude, with his warm booming voice and the ability to go from the sleepy worker who memorably opens the show to the campily shrill announcer for the Miss Turnstiles contest and finishes off as a gritty Coney Island carny.

Megan Fairchild and Jackie Hoffman

Megan Fairchild and Jackie Hoffman

If other actors are giving us a remarkable parade of the New York public, Ms. Jackie Hoffman gleefully rounds up her various personalities to show how many people can be a singular pain in the neck. Whether she is a crotchety Old Lady who objects to our heroes or becomes each of the various club singers who must moan the most inconveniently depressing of songs, Ms. Hoffman is hell bent on demonstrating how ruining everyone else’s fun can be a grand activity, especially when she is playing the chief obstacle between Gabey’s and Ivy’s meeting: the dipsomaniacally mercenary singing teacher Maude P. Dilly.

Though Mr. Michael Rupert only inhabits one role –Judge Pitkin W. Bridgework – he makes the most of this slowly building gag who is Claire’s relentlessly understanding fiancé. For the good Judge, realism is not worthy of a hearing.

Just as gratifying in her small, but vital part is Ms. Allison Guinn as the definitive drip and third wheel, Lucy Schmeeler.

So what of our sailor’s and their ladies?

Jay Armstrong Johnson and Alysha Umphress

Jay Armstrong Johnson and Alysha Umphress

The cutely handsome Mr. Jay Armstrong Johnson definitely gets a merit badge for his performance as the boy-scoutish Chip, who wants to see the big city but is there for his pals. One can easily see why Hildy is determined to get this Sailor away from his guidebook. Not that sensible Chip can resist Hildy for long, and who can blame him? The marvelously named Ms. Alysha Umphress provides a deliciously voluptuous and direct young lady who knows what she likes and is happy to let us all in on the secret. Vocally Ms. Umphress belts her numbers with a wonderfully knowing air that makes her singing “I Can Cook Too” one of the highlights of the evening.

In direct contrast to Hildy is Claire de Loone: she also knows what she wants, but is trying to make do with what she believes would be better for her – such as her fiancé Judge Pitkin W. Bridgework. But deep down Claire knows that better isn’t always best. She is a healthy mademoiselle who tries desperately to maintain a cool, intellectual facade only to give way to vigorous explosions of enthusiasm as she amusingly explains in the whimsical song “Carried Away.” Unfortunately Ms. Elizabeth Stanley never quite strikes the balance between a vessel of simmering passions about to hilariously blow her top or a cartoonish basket case who is dangerously close to putting her carefully manicure index finger to her rosy lips and going Bliblbliblblibl… Still, when avoiding the outright caricature, Ms. Stanley’s Claire can be quite a girl.

Ozzie might get carried away too, but the excellent Mr. Clyde Alves keeps it all in fun and avoids psychiatric undertones. Here is a likeable fellow who might get a bit full of himself but his reaction to the overwhelming Claire shows that he has a thing or two to learn.

Tony Yazbeck

Tony Yazbeck

As a farm boy from the Midwest, one might think the innocent Gabey would have a LOT to learn, but in spite of all his friend’s advice, Mr. Tony Yazbeck’s sweet and boyish Gabey does better relying on himself. From the moment he falls for Miss Turnstiles’ poster, Gabey has everybody rooting for this heart-struck young man. A one dimensional character would be hard put to convey the helpless loneliness of “Lonely Town” or the jubilation of “Lucky to Be Me,” let alone bring the audience along in Gabey’s nightmarish fantasy search of “Imaginary Coney Island.” Yet, Mr. Yazbeck makes it all feel real.

Megan Fairchild and the cast of On The Town

Megan Fairchild and the cast of On The Town

Happily for Gabey, Ms. Megan Fairchild’s Ivy Smith is just what he needs – a nice and pretty girl who is far from the exotic creature that was conjured up by the Miss Turnstiles campaign. Ms. Fairchild can soar in a fantasy ballet and do a Miss Turnstiles strut, but her Ivy is a likeable down-to-earth person who is more than a little bewildered by everyone else’s expectations for her and she proves a droll foil for Ms. Hoffman’s conniving Maude P. Dilly.

Such a big cast could easily engulf a less carefully thought out stage, but Mr. Beowulf Boritt provides a mix of sets, curtains, moving panels and projections that is well worth seeing on its own merit. Under the expert lighting of Mr. Jason Lyons, streets rush by, clubs spring up, subways hurry through a fantastic city that can seamlessly expand to handle the show’s biggest dances and contract to focus on the most intimate moments. This is ON THE TOWN’s native environment and everyone and everything involved seem to belong here and take sheer joy in the energy and motion of the show – even the Status of Liberty’s torch, which would have been blacked out during the war years, beams approvingly over the goings on.

If Messrs. Borrit and Lyons provide the world of 1944 New York, then the costumes, hair and makeup designs of Mr. Jess Goldstein, Ms. Leah Louks and Mr. Joe Dulude II do a fine job of filling the streets with believable 1944 New Yorkers, strikingly imaginary people for the dream ballets, eye-catching carnies and lots and lots of handsome sailors.

On the whole the direction is quite good with Mr. John Rando effectively keeping the development of the characters and their situations flowing smoothly and enjoyably. Unfortunately Mr. Rando does not always know where the fine line lies between the believably funny or the flatly cartoonish. There are, of course, downright caricatures like Judge Pitkin W. Bridgework and Maude P. Dilly where any degree of actuality would ruin the fun, but I somehow wondered if Director Rando had something to do with poor Claire de Loon’s operatic excess. Also Hildy’s speedy moderation of her initial “Duh Bronx” accent with its “Youse” and “Dese” inflections to a more pleasing enunciation show how much this was just a sloppy and unnecessary gimmick to establish character.

But I thought Mr. Rando’s staging had one misstep which went beyond funny-papers “haha” to downright crude: When the Announcer of the Miss Turnstiles competition struggles to relieve the unwilling Ivy of her crown at the end of the month, he looks like he is ripping it off her hair.

It is unfortunate that such lapses are there for both the actors and the audience to endure, but they are happily outnumbered by Mr. Rando’s better choices, Adding to the plusses, Conductor James Moore, the orchestra and the singers clearly appreciate Mr. Leonard Bernstein’s music and (Assisted by Mr. Kai Harada’s subtle sound designs) give it a glorious sound. Ms. Betty Comden and Mr. Adolph Green provided the lyrics as well as a fun book and, along with Mr. Bernstein, convey their own youthful enthusiasm for New York and life and optimism about the future. The songs are gems and more than a few are classic hits starting with the unforgettable “New York, New York (a helluva town).” From the blissful “Lucky to Be Me,” to the endearingly raunchy “I Can Cook Too,” to the sweeping ballet pieces, and the heartfelt “Some Other Time” it is clear that even in their twenties Ms. Comden and Messrs. Bernstein and Green could cover emotional and dramatic ground with a skill that seems harder and harder to find in modern musicals.

ON THE TOWN is a show that was inspired and in part developed by the legendary Mr. Jerome Robbins. Choreographer Joshua Bergasse understands this heritage, giving us a city where dance inhabits every onstage motion without any air of “art for culture’s sake”; it is often funny, frequently beautiful and more than one moment brings a lump to the throat.

With all the people and sets that must pass on and off the stage in such a smooth and continuous progression, it would be ungrateful not to offer up an extra round of applause to the Production Stage Manager Bonnie L. Becker. I bet her backstage work with its split second timings of cast and properties would be another fascinating performance to behold.

At any rate what is offered on stage is a true jewel of Musical Theater. It may not be a flawless pearl, but ON THE TOWN is still to be valued and delighted in.

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Leaving the theater I was left with an interesting question; how many people below a certain age would now see ON THE TOWN as anything but three goofy sailors who have left their ship for a day?

When ON THE TOWN opened in 1944, the musical had dramatic undertones that were felt by everyone whether onstage or in the audience: At the end of their 24 hour leave, these three sailors who had already undergone combat would be shipped off once more to a possibly dangerous destination from which they may never return. Additionally, the three girls were discovering themselves in a world changed by war and no one knew what the outcome would be even at home. Even after 1945, further unrests in the world and the possibility of the draft must have lent the show’s final moments poignancy that I fear many of today’s younger people must miss – living as we now do in a compartmentalized world where the US can be fighting wars that have far less affect back at home than they once might have had. Who would have the nerve these days to talk of a home front or ask anyone to make sacrifices for our nation’s good?

I began my review by mentioning how the show attempted to evoke 1944 by the singing of the National Anthem. Perhaps the sense of those uncertain times could have been enhanced by the addition of one more lighting effect to the dazzling array of projections: a discreet image of World War II news sliding across the Times Square News Ticker.

One more notion: Although it might ruin a desired measure of surprise for the show, I think it would be a little more respectful to both the audience and the National Anthem if everyone had fair warning that the “Star Spangled Banner” was imminent before they got to their seats. It just isn’t something one ought to spring on people.

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About the reviewer:


I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York.

Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

REVIEW: Encores! Concert Revival of LITTLE ME

On whom the Belle told…
A review of Encores! Concert Revival of

LITTLE ME
little me poster

At New York City Center

February 9, 2014

A wealthy, well-connected celebrity decides to share “Her Inspiring Life Story” with the world.  This is the basis for Patrick Dennis’ classic camp novel LITTLE ME which in turn formed the book for the rollicking vaudeville of a musical with the same title.  In bringing LITTLE ME to New York City Center, Encores! has spared nothing in their new concert production:  great performers, superb choreography and excellent staging, all of which set off this tuneful and happily silly show to the best advantage.

Mr. Neil Simon was clearly mining comic gold when he adapted LITTLE ME for the stage and Mr. Jack Viertel’s concert version does not tarnish the show one whit.  Miss Belle Poitrine has decided to dictate her memoirs to the fascinated author Patrick Dennis and give the world “the Truth” of her start as a dewy, well-proportioned lass from the wrong side of the tracks who, due to heartbreak, rose to prominent wealth, culture and social position on the right side of the tracks.  She relates all the people who have helped her along through hardship, war, disaster, Hollywood and Monte Carlo beginning with her one true love and all the other men who happened along the way, bankers, performers, producers, princes and so on…

The company truly romps through the show, most of them even being without the scriptbooks that Encores! had everyone carry onstage as a constant reminder to one and all that this is a “show in concert.  Only one script is ever seen and it generates one of the best laughs of the evening.

There are performers who understand the virtue of facing farce with an absolute straight face and Ms. Judy Kaye is certainly adept at this high comic art.  She sails serenely through the most outrageous narratives never tipping her hand at the absurdity of a situation (and boy can they be fantastic).  As a result, Ms. Kaye creates an unforgettable contemporary Belle Poitrine: a woman with an outrageous – but heroic – past and who clearly not content to rest on her massive pile of laurels.  In doing so, Ms. Kaye wins the adoration of the audience and gets some of the best laughs of the evening.

Neck and neck with Ms. Kaye in capturing the admiration of the audience is the young Belle Poitrine (neé Schlumpfert) who bravely climbs her way out of highly emphasized poverty.  Ms. Rachel York’s Belle is sincerity personified whether she is taking poise lessons in a hotel room with a rich banker or personally comforting a prince who has the pressures of the kingdom on his frail shoulders.  Additionally, Ms. York shows each step of her character’s evolution rising from naïve innocence to sophistication maintaining a blatant nobility and intrusive purity that makes her presence onstage all the funnier and likeable.  Musically as well Ms. York can do no wrong and when she and Ms. Kaye join forces in the number “Little Me” they wreak considerable pleasure.

If there is anyone who can truly blight the irrepressible Belle’s life it is Mrs. Eggleston, a wealthy snob of the first rank and the mother of Belle’s one true love.  While Mrs. Eggleston’s oedipal control of her son is not complex, Ms. Harriet Harris’ starchily droll demeanor makes her the perfect cartoon villainess to root against.

If Belle cannot achieve her heart’s desire there are many, MANY other men who desire her, starting with Tony Yazbeck who plays the devoted and world-wise George Musgrove.  The handsome urbane George may not be the man who can assure “happily ever after” for poor Belle, but the charming Mr. Yazbeck makes it a close thing.  His rendition of “I’ve Got Your Number” is both a seductive call and a wink at the real Belle that George can see and still love.

Ah, but then there are a LOT of other men in Belle’s life: The stingy banker Amos Pinchley whom Belle converts to generosity; Monsieur Val Du Val, France’s rude answer to Maurice Chevalier, Deliveryman and Hollywood Director Otto Schnitzler and Princes AND soldiers and, and, and…  All of whom are portrayed by Mr. Christian Borle.

This is the gimmick.

Little Me 1And a worthy gimmick it is too, for the dynamic Mr. Borle never holds back on the fun, allowing full lunacy of expression whether he is a man toggling through on-and-off amnesia, a Prince calling on his loving subjects with some rather unfortunate news or the innocent nearsighted doughboy Fred Poitrine who rapidly weds and widows Belle.  Not only does Mr. Borle play his goofy roster of characters to the hilt, but he also carries their numbers quite admirably (“Real Live Girl” is a joy) – especially in the role of the ridiculously wealthy, hyper-educated true love of Belle’s life, Noble Eggleston.  As Noble, Mr. Borle has gotten the deadpan demeanor down beautifully, whether he is explaining the difference between a gift and charity to young Belle (charity is better) or training a rapidly sinking linerful of people how to swim before the ship goes under.  There is no doubt that Noble is something of a wet smack (even before the boat sank) but he is Belle’s drip and he loves her – which makes him kind of endearing.  We know he will always be forced to leave, but Noble somehow manages return to Belle.  It is commendable when an actor can carry off a constantly varying array of portrayals, but it is really something when he must also perform one consistent role that has to thread its way in between his other characters at the same time.  If Mr. Borle does not deliver absolute perfection in such a complicated tangle of personas, he does pretty darned well.

Following Mr. Borle through his ever changing personalities is the worthy Mr. Robert Creighton who capably does his share to shift from role to role, matching the scenes as he ranges from the stingy banker’s craven son to a preacher in World War I to a prince’s aide-de-camp and so on.

Naturally there are a whole host of others who make up Belle’s life:  Her mother Momma Schlumpfert, who, in Ms. Gealen Gilliland’s skilled hands, can make even the oldest profession seem naughtily respectable, the Buchsbaum brothers Bernie (Mr. Lee Wilkof) and Bennie (Mr. Lewis J. Stadlen) who memorably launch Belle into show business, Belle’s fascinated ghostwriter Patrick Dennis, played with amusing understatement by Mr. David Garrison and a delightful crew of talented ladies and gentlemen who range from the rag-tag denizens and highfalutin upper crust of Venezuela, Illinois to the various friends who flock around Belle at the close of her recollections.

With the changes in characters and the loosely linked scenes LITTLE ME is strongly reminiscent of the old Broadway review, Director John Rando firmly keeps the narrative focused and the action flowing, yet there is an improvised feel that is well in keeping with the tongue-in-cheek nature of the show.

Dance-wise too there is a sort of “why not?” atmosphere that matches well with the show’s air of intense parody.  Choreographer Joshua Bergasse covered a wide range of dance styles and never wastes a movement.  He and the cast were clearly having a ball with the material and their enjoyment is happily infectious.  Mr. Bergasse’s arrangement of the vaudeville number “Dimples” sung by Belle with her union-suit clad “police” backup was one of those hilariously outrageous moments of theater that will always be stuck in my memory.

This of course leads us to the songs with lyrics by Carolyn Leigh and music by Cy Coleman.  How can one fault such an enjoyable score with numbers like “Be a Performer!” and the standard “I’ve Got Your Number,” especially when the music is performed by the Encores! Orchestra conducted by Mr. Rob Berman?  Under his baton, Mr. Ralph Burns’ orchestrations sweep over the audience with real energy.  Mr. Berman is definitely into “Little Me” and the musicians and singers certainly benefit from his enthusiasm.

The look of the show keeps in with Encores! tendency towards lavish simplicity.  Mr. John Lee Beatty is certainly a master at using the outline of a house to indicate a hometown setting or placing a set of tables and some small backdrops to create a busy nightclub scene.  His scenic designs for LITTLE ME certainly always highlight the action and never draw the focus away from it even when Mr. Beatty slips in his own small visual wisecracks (such as the Buchsbaum Brothers nameplates “BENNIE”, “& BERNIE”).  With all the praise I have been lavishing on LITTLE ME it is downright curmudgeonly to mention a fault now, but I really think that Mr. Beatty ought to remember that the people in the upper gallery cannot fully see the back of the stage; so even if his wonderful gag backdrops get a large laugh from the lower two levels of the theatre, there is an entire third level of spectators that he excludes from the jokes because of he did not consider the sight lines.  If this happened once or twice, I might have overlook such a problem, but such joke screens set off each major scene and leave the upper seats feeling somewhat gypped.

Still it is impossible to be resentful when we also have Mr. Ken Billington’s atmospheric lighting and Sound Designer Scott Lehrer efforts adding their own running gag to the evening by visually and audibly expressing – with some frequency – what true love means to Belle and Noble.

Mr. Paul Tazewell adds his own measure of deviltry in his costumes for LITTLE ME.  They may echo the periods in which each scene is set, but they are never museum pieces – unless they need to be.  Young Belle’s costumes alone are a skillful sartorial map of her advancement in the world and slyly remind us all to what her rise is attributed to.

 It is a shame that this past Sunday evening was the final performance because as done at Encores! LITTLE ME clearly deserves further exposure.  It is a solid, entertaining show that reminds us how wonderful it is to simply have a good time at the theater and walk out afterwards with a broad grin and a strong desire to buy the show’s album.

About the reviewer:
I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York.

Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

  • Cast & Credits

    Book by Neil Simon
    Lyrics by Carolyn Leigh
    Music by Cy Coleman
    Based on the novel Little Me: The Intimate Memoirs of that Great Star of Stage, Screen
    and Television/Belle Poitrine    , by Patrick Dennis
    Directed by John Rando
    Choreography by Joshua Bergasse
    Starring Christian Borle, Robert Creighton, David Garrison, Harriet Harris, Judy Kaye, Lewis J. Stadlen, Lee Wilkof, Tony Yazbeck, and Rachel York

    With Cameron Adams, Stanley Bahorek, Meggie Cansler, Gaelen Gilliland, Arlo Hill, Reed Kelly, Justin Keyes, Eloise Kropp, Josh Lamon, Jenny Laroche, Samantha Massell, Skye Mattox, Paul McGill, Jason Mills, Vivian Nixon, Lindsay O’Neil, Manuel Stark, Clay Thomson, Kathy Voytko, and Amos Wolff

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