"P" SOUP – THE SEQUEL OF THE RETURN…HUH?

"P" SOUP – THE SEQUEL OF THE RETURN…HUH?

("P" Soup is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alphabet Soup)

More "P" Soup!

I wanna be a producer of a parade where everyone is comfy-cozy in their pajamas.

THE PRODUCERS

– Cadillac Palace Theatre, Chicago

February, 2001. Last tryout performance before heading to New York. The atmosphere outside of the Cadillac Palace was insane. People were literally going up and down the line of audience members waiting to enter the theatre and offering to buy their tickets. I even heard someone say they'd pay $600 for a pair. (And, yes, I thought about it…briefly. Figured if someone was willing to pay that much money, I'd better see the damn thing.) The buzz had been overwhelming; the reviews ecstatic. Anticipation was palpable. And I'm happy to say the show delivered on all fronts. It was a triumph the likes of which I had seldom seen. Stellar performances by Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Gary Beach, Roger Bart, Cady Huffman, and Brad Oscar, filling in for the injured Ron Orbach (Oscar would replace Orbach for the New York opening), had the audience in an almost continuous state of hysterical laughter. Susan Stroman's direction and choreography were inventive, effective, and memorable. I mean, seriously, the "Along Came Bialy" number with the walkers? Brilliant! The Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan book kept the laughs in constant supply and Mel Brooks' score won't win any awards for originality or musical theatre brilliance, but it was tuneful, bright, and toe-tappingly satisfying. "Springtime for Hitler" was ridiculously over-the-top. For me, the highlight was Lane's "Betrayed," a tour-de-force that got the biggest ovation of the night. For a pre-Broadway tryout, it was in sensational shape, ready for New York critics in my opinion. When The Producers opened in New York, the lines at the box office went around the corner, the critics raved, and at the 2001 Tony Awards, it won in every category in which it was nominated, winning a record twelve awards. The Chicago performance was, and remains, a singular experience. – at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, Chicago

– Aronoff Center (Proctor & Gamble Hall), Cincinnati

November, 2002. A funny thing happened to The Producers in its third stop on the "Max" tour…at least for me. And that was, the show I found exuberant, fresh, fabulously funny, deliciously irreverent, and so wrong in all the right ways, was now slick and professional, knowing full well the material was guaranteed to get laughs and therefore everyone involved could just relax and not give it 100%. They could chill out at, oh, 85-90%. The capacity crowd at the Aronoff Center's Proctor & Gamble Hall, a 2700-seat barn, pretty, but with zero intimacy, didn't give a hoot that they weren't getting the same show I saw twenty months earlier in Chicago. My companion, in fact, found it wonderful. But the truth is, in Chicago, that incomparable and definitive cast, the fresh direction and choreography, the hysterical book and score, and the physical production itself all combined to make the theatrical equivalent of a positive perfect storm, if that makes any sense. Here in Cincinnati, though everything looked and sounded the same, it simply wasn't. I frankly did not like Lewis J. Stadlen, playing Max. He underplayed everything, especially in his underwhelming "Betrayed." Broadway vets Fred Applegate (Franz Liebkind), Angie Schworer (Ulla), neighboring Covington, KY native Lee Roy Reams (Roger De Bris), and Jeff Hyslop (Carmen Ghia…he would leave the tour after the Aronoff engagement, and, according to the local review, was absent on press night. Was he fired?) were all fine and hit their marks with assurance. I did like Don Stephenson's Leo a lot. He had charm to spare and just the right amount of nerdiness. The local reviewers and audiences ate it up. I didn't. – at the Aronoff Center (Proctor & Gamble Hall), Cincinnati

PARADE

– Vivian Beaumont Theatre, New York

December, 1998. Preview performance. Somber. Unrelenting. Brilliant. The tree that stood tall and foreboding throughout the show set the mood. The story of Leo Frank and the travesty of his trial and execution at the hands of a lynch mob was told with integrity and honesty under the direction of master director Harold Prince with just-right choreography by Patricia Birch. Broadway vets J.B. Adams, Don Chastain, John Hickok, Herdon Lackey, Evan Pappas, and Rufus Bonds, Jr. provided sterling support. The show, however, rests on its two main characters, Leo and Lucille Frank, and those two parts could not possibly have been in better hands than Brent Carver and Carolee Carmello's. Two incredible actors delivering exquisite, nuanced, deeply involving performances.  Don't believe me? Revel in the glory of Carmello's "You Don't Know This Man." Carver and Carmello's duet near the end of the show, "All the Wasted Time," left the audience breathless. This was a show in which you could hear a pin drop, and you often did. "The Factory Girls/Come Up to My Office" segment during Act One's trial is hands down one of the creepiest and most disturbing numbers in musical theatre, right up there with "Yellow Shoes" from The Visit. Not a happy show, the Tony that year went to Fosse, about as safe as you can get. However, Alfred Uhry would win a Tony for Best Book of a Musical and Jason Robert Brown would win for Best Score. Sadly, Parade never found its audience and it ran less than 100 performances. I am simply mad about this show. – at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre, New York

– Berkeley Street Upstairs Theatre, Toronto

January, 2011. When it was announced that Parade would make its Canadian premiere in Toronto, Bob and I immediately made plans to see it. And that, as they say, was a mistake. A co-production from Studio 180 and Acting Up Stage Company, this was a hot mess. Full stop. Poorly designed, poorly directed, poorly acted, and with two competent, but unexciting leads, we hated every minute. Plus our seats were mere inches from the too-loud orchestra. Had our seats not been on the far side of the theatre and we would have had to inconvenience our entire row and walk in front of the stage to exit, we would have left almost immediately. We did at the interval. Sad, sad, sad. – at the Berkeley Street Upstairs Theatre, Toronto

– Writers Theatre, Glencoe, IL

July, 2017. In Writers Theatre sparkling, but cold, new home, Parade was a textbook example of just how good Chicago theatre can be when talented folks at the top of their game get together and put on a show. This was simply superb, from beginning to end. My one quibble was that director Gary Griffin still hadn't mastered directing in a thrust environment and directed the show as though it were being performed in a proscenium house. Fortunately, we were in what would be center orchestra in a proscenium house, so we didn't miss a thing. Patrick Andrews and Brianna Borger as Leo and Lucille Frank were so, so good, vocally and acting-wise. They were supported by a cast of fourteen actors, not a weak one in the bunch. These sixteen actors brought this show to brilliant life. Bravo all! The best show we'd seen at Writers…and our last until things change on the artistic level, which, I believe, will never happen, at least by choice, at this North Shore society darling. – at Writers Theatre, Glencoe

THE PAJAMA GAME – American Airlines Theatre, New York

February, 2006. Preview performance. For many in the capacity audience on February 19, 2006, I suspect the highlight of Roundabout Theatre's absolutely delightful production of 1954's The Pajama Game was at the finale's "The Pajama Game" when Harry Connick, Jr. appeared shirtless and wearing pajama bottoms. The audience went wild and for good reason. Connick was a total muffin of masculine tastiness. (Off subject…if only his performance in On a Clear Day You Can See Forever had even a smidgen of that sexiness, perhaps that show wouldn't rate as the worst show I've ever seen to date.) Directed and choreographed by Kathleen Marshall, this was a lovingly produced slice of musical theatre 1950s fluff. The show has always had a terrific score, and this cast did it full justice. Connick's singing was better than his acting, but he gave it his all, and he just appeared to be having a grand time. His piano riff during "Hernando's Hideaway" made that song the show's undisputed highlight. Co-star Kelli O'Hara was feisty, funny, and sang the crap out of her songs. Michael McKean (Hines), Roz Ryan (Mabel), Joyce Chittick (Mae), Peter Benson (Prez), and Megan Lawrence (Gladys) provided top-notch support, with Lawrence being especially funny and endearing throughout. Curiously, Marshall gave "Steam Heat" to Mae instead of Gladys, and the number was excellent, but I missed the precision and snap of the Fosse original. I'm grateful that Marshall didn't feel the need to update or reimagine the material, but instead treated the show with respect and affection. Yes, much now seems dated (a 7 ½ cent raise?), but when done as a period piece with no irony or affectation, The Pajama Game offers theatergoers a lovely break from the cares of the everyday world. I loved it. – at the American Airlines Theatre, New York

Miscellaneous Tidbits:

o For the record, Connick put on a sleeveless undershirt for bows. Sigh.

o The Pajama Game won the 1955 Tony Award for Best Musical, would run for 1063 performances, and be made into a terrific film starring John Raitt and Doris Day.

o Composer/lyricist team of Richard Adler and Jerry Ross wrote only two complete shows together, The Pajama Game and the following year's Damn Yankees. Ross died at the young age of 29 in 1955. Richard Adler wrote the music and lyrics for two flops, Kwamina and Music Is, but never had another success on Broadway.

A sequel to a sequel! Well, that's it for "P" Soup. Until next time!

© 2018 Jeffrey Geddes

MUSICAL MAYHEM: MY TOP TWENTY-FIVE MUSICALS The Honor Roll - Part 4

MUSICAL MAYHEM: MY TOP TWENTY-FIVE MUSICALS

The Honor Roll - Part 4

Some more musicals from the fifteen shows that make up my musical Honor Roll. Lots to talk about, so sit back, pour some coffee and let's begin.

SHE LOVES ME - Music by Jerry Bock, Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, Book by Joe Masteroff

If the only thing She Loves Me had going for it was the glorious score by Sheldon Harnick  and Jerry Bock, that alone would be enough to place it among my top twenty-five musicals. Happily, though, this jewel box of a musical has many more beautiful gems on display. Joe Masteroff's book sparkles with wit and sophistication with a smattering of adult themes all told with taste and class. Unique, perhaps, among musicals, each principal has at least one solo musical moment to shine and the show goes from one musical treat to another. And what musical treats! "Dear Friend," "Will He Like Me?," "She Loves Me," "A Trip to the Library," "Vanilla Ice Cream." I think it's fair to say there isn't a bad, or even mediocre, song in the lot. Not often done, this bon-bon of a show had a too-short original run despite a press kit full of great notices. Producer/director Harold Prince, in an isn't-hindsight-great reflection on the show's financial failure, suggested that the Eugene O'Neill Theatre, which Prince praised as the "perfect" theatre for this show, at just over 1000 seats was too small to financially support the show. Try telling that to the producers of The Book of Mormon, which has been making fistfuls of money at the O'Neill since it opened.  It's also been suggested that She Loves Me was just too delicate, too quiet of a show when most musicals being offered at the time were louder, more obviously there to entertain you. Whatever the case, it played a respectable, though money-losing, nine months and quietly slipped away to the Music Theatre International (MTI) catalog. A revival by Roundabout Theatre in the early 1990s did fine in its Roundabout run, but, sadly, failed once again to find an audience to embrace its remarkable charms in a Broadway transfer. This much-neglected show deserves better. UPDATE: Roundabout has announced She Loves Me as part of its 2015-2016 season!!

October, 2010. As performed at Writers' Theatre's intimate Tudor Court  venue, Michael Halberstam's production of She Loves Me was a mostly lovely affair that played things a bit too gently and sang the songs a bit too delicately. Part of this, I believe, was due to the size of the cast. In the original production, the cast numbered twenty-two. In a 1993 revival by Roundabout Theatre, the cast numbered seventeen. In the Writers' production, the cast numbered only twelve. What this meant was that the ensemble numbers were under-populated and didn't register as well as they should have, most especially in "Twelve Days to Christmas," which just sounded anemic. The five ensemble members needed to be beefed up by three. With an orchestra of four, the score sometimes sounded a bit too thin and I wonder if just using a piano might not have worked better. The talented principals all played their roles with skill and professionalism, including a perfectly charming performance by Jessie Mueller as Amalia, but the acting also seemed muted at times, almost as though Halberstam didn't trust the show enough to let it sing out with unrestrained joy. Yes, She Loves Me is not your typical brassy Broadway musical, but it is a Broadway musical, after all, and far from being a delicate flower, it's full of brio and sass and doesn't need to be handled with kid gloves. Having said all this, I thoroughly enjoyed the evening, I really did, but I wanted to be enchanted, and, frankly, I wasn't. – at Writers' Theatre, Glencoe IL

December, 2011. All the sass and brio that was missing from the Writers' Theatre production was in ample supply in this one-night only staged reading benefit for Roundabout Theatre. This was a star-packed, joyous evening that respected the gentle charm of the property, yet let it be funny, stylish, and joyous at the same time. Jane Krakowski as "bad girl" Ilona knows how to work both a stage and an audience and nailed her two solo numbers. Gavin Creel, handsome and debonair, was a suitably sleazy Kodaly. Michael McGrath was a wise and sardonic Sipos (the part I would love to play….attention, Bob!). Rory O'Malley's Arpad was adorable innocence. Peter Bartlett's pinched and overly-proper Headwaiter made a smallish part memorable. Victor Garber can practically do no wrong in my book. His talent has impressed me for decades and he made Mr. Maraczek a warm, yet formidable, character. Josh Radnor's wildly appealing and thoroughly well-sung Georg was a treat. And, best for last, Kelli O'Hara's luminous Amalia centered the entire evening. When she hit that magnificent high note near the very end of "Vanilla Ice Cream," the audience burst into rapturous applause. Yes, she was that good. Yes, she is always that good. It was pure pleasure from beginning to end, smartly staged by Scott Ellis and played to perfection by a seventeen-piece orchestra. I cannot wait for Roundabout's remount next season! – at the Sondheim Theatre, New York

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One of our favorite companies, this was their stellar 2011-2012 season. We saw all of them except for "The Road to Mecca."

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MAME - Music and Lyrics by Jerry Herman, Book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee

From Pinterest...the Winter Garden marquee heralding the first post-Angela Lansbury Mame.

Auntie Mame, Patrick, Vera, Gooch and the cavalcade of fabulous characters that inhabit their lives are old friends of mine. The original novel by Patrick Dennis is a much-loved favorite in my library, a book I have read an almost obscene number of times. The play adaptation by Lawrence and Lee is among my top twenty-five favorite plays. I adore the film version of the play featuring Rosalind Russell's definitive portrayal of Mame Dennis. Lawrence and Lee skillfully adapted their play to a musical book and Jerry Herman added a delightful score to the mix and…voila!...a top twenty-five favorite musical. (The less said about the legendary-for-all-the-wrong-reasons film version of the musical starring a woefully miscast Lucille Ball, the better. Come to think of it, the woefully miscast Barbra Streisand made a hash out of the film version of Hello, Dolly! Mr. Herman just doesn't have good luck with screen versions of his shows apparently.) Mame is not a perfect show. The character of Ito seems more annoying than ever in the musical version. The title tune, while catchy and a toe-tapper, is, well, boring; a lot of cakewalking, running around in circles, twirling parasols and serenading the leading lady who does nothing but smile and nod and look thrilled. She sings not a single note in the song. Odd. "That's How Young I Feel" is an extraneous number for Mame and the younger members of the chorus that's supposed to be fun and festive, but comes off as annoying and makes me want to jump up on stage, smack Mame and tell her to grow up and act her age. "Open a New Window" could be cut by half. It's a great song, but goes on for too long. Yeah, we get it. "Open a new window," blah, blah, blah. Great philosophy, nice tune, but do we really have to open every window in New York City before the song ends? But then, ah…but then, Mr. Herman also offers us "My Best Girl," "Bosom Buddies," "We Need a Little Christmas," "Gooch's Song," and, most especially, the soaring, magnificent "If He Walked Into My Life." Jerry, love, you are forgiven those little musical oopsies. It's a show that makes me smile and feel on top of the world, a joyous romp celebrating life. We all should have an Auntie Mame!

June, 1968. To celebrate graduating from high school, some friends and I went to see the final performance of the 1st National Touring Company of Mame. While the tour did well up to this point, apparently the six-month Chicago run did not live up to financial expectations and the producers decided to close the tour. And that was a pity because Celeste Holm was a marvelous Mame. Not as outwardly madcap or lovably eccentric as either Angela Lansbury or Rosalind Russell, Holm infused the part with a wry wit and genuine warmth that gave this Mame a softer patina. Make no mistake, Holm was no schlub in the glamour department and sang the score with power and confidence. A duplicate of the then-running Broadway original, this production featured an outstanding cast including Wesley Addy (Babcock…and Holm's husband), Ruth Gillette (Mother Burnside), Arsenio Trinidad (Ito), Robert Kaye (Beauregard), Shawn McGill (young Patrick) and especially delicious performances by Vicki Cummings as an hysterical and acerbic Vera and a pre –"M*A*S*H" Loretta Swit (!!) as Gooch. Lovely production. – at the Shubert Theatre, Chicago

 The Muny program was so loaded with adverts and sponsors that the credits were awkwardly spread out over three pages. A bit cheesy and disrespectful of the talented folks involved in my book.

July, 1976. Ten years after she set Broadway on fire with her Tony-winning performance as everyone's favorite aunt, Angela Lansbury traveled to the historic and massive Municipal Opera in St. Louis, affectionately called The Muny, to show the folks who packed the 11,000 seat outdoor venue exactly what all the fuss was about. So was all the hoopla and the Tony Award win justified? Absolutely. Elegant, funny, loving and just plain fun, you wanted to be Patrick almost from the moment she made her entrance. She commanded the giant Muny stage and that's no small feat. Accompanying her were old pals from the original production, Anne Francine as Vera (Bea Arthur's replacement) and the original Gooch, Jane Connell, and the affection and ease that these ladies had for each other was obvious. Robert Kaye and Arsenio Trinidad were back as Beauregard and Ito, respectively, and Charlotte Jones was a formidable Mother Burnside. Staying close to the look and feel of the Broadway original, the show pretty much copied Gene Saks' original direction and Onna White's original choreography was recreated. How great it was to see this incredible actress in one of her iconic roles. And what a perfect way to spend a warm July evening in beautiful Forest Park. – at the Municipal Opera (Muny), St. Louis

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"In sight, it must be right." 

One of the full-page Muny adverts, this is interesting because none of these places still exist. The Holiday Inn Riverfront Resort (Resort??) is now either the Crowne Plaza or the Mansion Center Apartments, can't tell for sure, but all the establishments that formed "St. Louis' Number One Entertainment Center" are gone.

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June, 2006. You would be justified in thinking that a lavishly mounted, spare-no-expense production of a beloved musical starring a two-time Tony Award-winning and Emmy-winning star and featuring both a Tony-nominated actress and a Tony-winning actress as its primary supporting players and played to musical perfection by a great, big, full orchestra would be greeted with valentines by the critics. Yes, you would be justified in thinking that, but you would be wrong. Curiously, the lush Kennedy Center production of Mame starring a vivacious and radiant Christine Baranski as Mame and featuring Harriet Harris as a peerless Vera and Emily Skinner as a hapless Gooch received less than enthusiastic notices. Primarily focusing on what the critics felt was a lack of connection between Mame and Patrick and a fuzziness in some of the supporting players, the reviews just did not reflect the quality of the performance that we had the pleasure of seeing. Exquisitely designed by Walt Spangler (sets), Gregg Barnes (costumes) and the redoubtable Ken Billington (lights), choreographed with energy by Warren Carlyle and directed with great taste and great fun by Eric Schaeffer, this was overall my favorite production of Mame. Christine Baranski's Mame was vibrant, classy, and touching and her chemistry with both her Patricks was palpable. In terrific vocal form, her rendition of the iconic "If He Walked Into My Life" blew me away in what I now consider the definitive version. Harriet Harris has few peers when it comes to comic timing and her Vera was priceless. Happily, Baranski's comic timing is equally spot-on and the scenes between Mame and Vera were sensational. Emily Skinner's Gooch was winsome, Jeff McCarthy's Beauregard made the most out of a usually thankless role and Max von Essen and Harrison Chad were both charming as Old and Young Patrick, respectively. Both of us thought the production was fantastic. Sorry, critics. You were dead wrong on this one. Sadly, this production did not move to Broadway as was widely rumored and, except for a short-lived 1983 production starring Angela Lansbury, Mame has not been coaxing the blues right out of Broadway's horn. – at the Eisenhower Theatre, Washington D.C.

Sidebar: After the performance, we had the pleasure of meeting Christine Baranski and chatting with her in the outdoor plaza at the Kennedy Center. Gracious, charming and very funny, when I commented how off-base I felt the reviews were, she revealed that many in the production, including her, felt that the show had been reviewed too soon, after only three previews, following a rigorous rehearsal schedule, but the powers-that-be refused to push back the press opening. By comparison, a pre-Broadway tryout of First Wives Club during its Chicago run played a month of previews before being reviewed by the critics. Later reviews of Mame were more in tune with what we felt.

 Bob in front of the Kennedy Center.

 The two of us pre-show.

Bob and Christine enjoying a beautiful day and a chat in the Kennedy Center courtyard. Christine Baranski=class.

That's it for now! Take time out to enjoy a show.

© 2015 Jeffrey Geddes