ALPHABET SOUP (5) - A RANDOM LETTER OF THE ALPHABET AND FIVE RANDOM SHOWS!

ALPHABET SOUP (5) -

A RANDOM LETTER OF THE ALPHABET AND FIVE RANDOM SHOWS!

To start off 2015, let's shake things up again, draw a letter from my blue London coffee mug and pick the first five shows from that letter's pile of programs.

And the first letter of 2015 is ….

R

And away we go!

R.S.V.P. BROADWAY – Winter Garden Theatre, Toronto

March, 1997. I rather enjoyed this musical spoof of 1930s New York. With a book and lyrics by Barbara D'Amato and Tony D'Amato and music by Tony D'Amato, this puff pastry of a show sported a ridiculous plot involving a gangster (character name Burns Rubenstein), a Broadway leading man (character name Noel Starr), a naïve girl who wants to be a Broadway star (character name Betty Bounce) and other characters that I frankly can't remember (one of the character names was, wait for it, T. Terrance Terrance and no, I'm not making any of these up!), a pleasant 1930s-flavored score that was so forgettable that you couldn't hum a bar past that number's applause, a spiffy Art Deco set, a lively orchestra, fun costumes, and a talented cast headed by Dirk Lumbard and Jean Louisa Kelly, neither of whom include the show in their resumes and/or Wikipedia articles. The audience was sparse at the performance we attended. Plans to take the show to New York were aborted when the show closed prematurely during its Toronto engagement after receiving negative reviews and poor box office. A video clip on Vimeo is almost painful to watch. Having said all that, however, in performance it was fun, funny,  and well-done. Not Broadway caliber by any standard, but enjoyable nevertheless. I'm surprised it hasn't become a community theatre staple.

Sidebar: The true star of the day wasn't what was onstage, but the theatre itself. Built in 1913 as a double-decker theatre, the Winter Garden is built on top of its downstairs neighbor, the Elgin Theatre. We have toured this marvelous place twice and will likely do it again next time we're in Toronto. We both love theatres…their rich histories and individual personalities, and, yes, theatres have personalities.

THE RITZ – Longacre Theatre, New York

Don't these ticket prices want to make you cry? $10.00 full price? Sigh!

Note F. Murray Abraham's elevated billing. 

June, 1975. When The Ritz opened in 1975, its setting in a gay New York City bathhouse was daring and I'll bet a lot of people went to the show thinking they would get the goods on all the tasty and illicit goings-on that happened in a gay New York City bathhouse. If that was the impetus, those folks left the Longacre very disappointed. Granted, there was plenty of towels and half-naked men, including future Oscar-winner F. Murray Abraham and future TV and film star and admitted sexual deviant Stephen Collins (back when he was smoking hot), and granted there was lots of gay double-entendre, wink-wink humor, but in reality it was all rather innocent and PG-rated, even for 1975. This play helped establish Terrence McNally as a playwright to be reckoned with but, like a lot of early McNally, is an uneven work. Directed by Robert Drivas, designed by Lawrence King, Michael H. Yeargan and Martin Aronstein and starring a magnificently hysterical Rita Moreno, in a Tony-winning performance, Jack Weston, Jerry Stiller, the aforementioned Abraham and Collins, Ruth Jaroslow and George Dzundza, the play was a laugh-filled romp that mostly glided over the flat spots and gave its audiences a grand old time. Moreno's "performance" in the bathhouse's cabaret room remains one the funniest scenes I have ever seen onstage. Absolute scenery chewing at its finest.

Sidebar: My seat location was in the third row on the aisle for this June Sunday matinee performance. During Moreno's cabaret scene, I was laughing so hard and for so long that Moreno actually came downstage, pointed to me and simply said, "You…in the third row," and then gave me a Googie Gomez glare, which, of course, only made me, and the rest of the audience, break down in laughter again. Perfectly in character and such fun.

October, 1975. Stubby Kaye and Mike Kellin, replacing Messrs. Weston and Stiller, respectively, were now above-title billed with Moreno. F. Murray Abraham's billing went from "with (in alphabetical order)" to "Also starring" and a font the same size as McNally's. Stubby Kaye's distinctive talents brought a different perspective to the role of Gaetano Proclo, the guy running from the mob who hides out at The Ritz. A bit more of an overt comic, it was played broader, and though an excellent performance, I rather missed Weston's cluelessness. The performance now played by an almost entirely new cast of principals, with the exceptions of Moreno, Abraham, Christopher J. Brown and Larry Gilman, was as funny and delightful as the first time I saw it. Great fun, now very, very dated.

Sidebar: A product of a pre-AIDS time, The Ritz has not aged well. A 2007 revival by Roundabout Theatre was not especially successful and the 1976 movie was pretty awful, even with Rita Moreno, Jack Weston and F. Murray Abraham recreating their original roles. I'd like to say that with the right cast, the right venue and the right director, it could be a successful period piece, but, although I am very fond of the show, it's just not that strong of a script. Happily McNally has gone on to much better plays. Fun factoid: producer Adela Holzer was sent to prison not once, but twice. Once for swindling theatre producers and another time for a scam involving immigrants. Gotta love it!

ROMANTIC COMEDY – Barrymore Theatre, New York

February, 1980. Poor Bernard Slade. His Broadway debut, Same Time, Next Year, was a multi-year smash, toured extensively, and, for a time at least, was a regional/community theatre favorite. His subsequent Broadway efforts were less successful, with his final entry, barely seven years after his debut, closing on opening night. Romantic Comedy was the most successful of the post Same Time, Next Year plays and ran just shy of one year. I remember this as being a funny and enjoyable evening, if not exactly memorable, smartly designed and capably directed and featuring a supporting cast that included the wonderful Carole Cook, Holly Palance (daughter of Jack), Deborah May and Greg Mullavey (of Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman fame). Anthony Perkins and Mia Farrow were the above-title stars and delivered the comic and star-wattage goods. The show may be best remembered for Anthony Perkins' full nudity in the first scene as he greets Mia Farrow. It's never been reported what Ms. Farrow thought of Mr. Perkins' junk, but his backside, which was the only side we in the audience saw, was agreeable enough, not perky, mind you, but perfectly acceptable. The joke line that accompanied Ms. Farrow's entrance got the evening off to a laugh-filled start. A moderate success that closed shortly after Perkins and Farrow left the show, this is a comedy that time, or at least Samuel French licensing agreements, has forgotten.

RABBIT HOLE- Biltmore Theatre (MTC), New York

 

April, 2006. Final performance. I was very surprised to discover that the critical community did not universally embrace David Lindsay-Abaire's stunning play, Rabbit Hole. Some even compared it to a movie-of-the-week and a sappy one at that. In my opinion, nothing could be further from the truth. Lindsay-Abaire's 2007 Pulitzer Prize-winning examination of grief and how one heals emotionally after a devastating loss, in this case the accidental death of a young child, certainly tugged unabashedly at the heartstrings, but did so with truth, subtlety and humor. It resonated with me, remembering the journey my parents sadly had to take after the sudden death of my older brother at age 42 after he suffered an aneurysm and the difficult emotional upheaval I faced only five years later when Steve died at age 43 from AIDS. From a stunning physical production (scenic design by John Lee Beatty, costume design by Jennifer von Mayrhauser and lighting design by Christopher Akerlind) to Daniel Sullivan's sensitive direction to the powerful ensemble acting by Cynthia Harris, Tyne Daly, John Slattery, Mary Catherine Garrison and John Gallagher, Jr., this was moving and unforgettable theatre. You knew these people; you knew their quirks; you believed in their pain and sorrow. If I had to pick only one scene, it would be the bedroom scene between Cynthia Nixon and Tyne Daly. To witness the connection between these two outstanding actors was a privilege, but then, watching this wonderful play was a privilege.

RAISIN – 46th Street Theatre, New York (1974); Shubert Theatre, Chicago (1976)

June, 1974. Raisin, the musical version of Lorraine Hansberry's sensational A Raisin in the Sun, a favorite of mine (I taught the play during my teaching internship, a prelude of sorts to actual student teaching) and without question one of the truly great American plays of the 20th century, was at its best when it stayed true to its roots and kept the action in the Younger household. When the musical tried to expand and "open up," it was less successful. At the time I saw the show, it was still enjoying the rewards of its Tony win as best musical of 1974 and the audience responded warmly, even affectionately, to the show. The glue of both the play and the musical was, and is, Lena Younger, the matriarch of the Younger clan, played with quiet dignity and an elegant simplicity by Virginia Capers, in a Tony Award-winning performance. Her performance alone was reason enough to see the show. The rest of featured cast, including Herb Downer, substituting for Joe Morton, Ernestine Jackson, Deborah (Debbie) Allen, Ralph Carter, Helen Martin, and Ted Ross, all contributed solid, professional performances. Where the show disappointed was in the score, which soared only in Ms. Capers' two solo numbers and otherwise was eminently forgettable. Enlarging the show to include ensemble and dance numbers didn't add much, if anything, to the show and added time to an already long show. I know this may sound as though I didn't care much for it, but in fact, I enjoyed it quite a lot, but, in large measure that was due to my love of the source material, Ms. Capers outstanding performance as Lena Younger, and Ms. Jackson's warm loving Ruth. Curiously, even though A Raisin in the Sun, has had two starry and hugely profitable limited-run revivals in 2004 and 2014, Raisin has pretty much faded from view. Perhaps in the case of A Raisin in the Sun/Raisin, less truly is more.

Sidebar: Even though Raisin won the Tony as Best Musical at the 1974 Tony Awards, it was more of a win-by-default, being the strongest of a relatively weak season for original musicals. For the record, I would have given Over Here! the trophy, but, while lots of fun, wasn't an especially strong show, either. Raisin was one of a handful of Tony-winning shows that never, well, caught on. It enjoyed solid, even sold-out, business at the start of its run, but then quickly ran out of audiences and, despite a run of over two years, closed at a loss. At its opening, it received everything from a rave to an outright pan, a spectrum of extremes not often encountered. Clive Barnes loved practically everything about it, while over at Women's Wear Daily, esteemed critic Martin Gottfried pretty much hated everything presented onstage at the 46th Street Theatre.

**********

A true prize! An intact ticket from the Shubert Theatre. While computerized systems and the Internet have made ticketing efficient and instantaneous, I still miss the days when you walked up to the box office (or, wait for it, mail order....pick three dates, include check or money order and a stamped self-addressed envelope. You had your tickets within days.) and watched as the box office treasurer skillfully picked out the best available tickets from the racks behind him/her. Have no idea how this escaped being torn by the ushers when we entered.

April, 1976. By the time the First National Tour of Raisin played Chicago, Tony-winner Virginia Capers had been elevated to above-title billing and in the Playbill, producer Robert Nemiroff made sure everyone knew of Ms. Capers' deserved win by billing her as 'Tony Award "Best Actress" VIRGINIA CAPERS.' Not particularly classy, but… I enjoyed the show in New York; I hated the show in Chicago. It was one of those evenings that occasionally occur in the theatre where due to any number of related or unrelated events, a performance is just plain bad. One of the factors, which was more of a sidebar than a factor, was my seat location in the second to last row of the Shubert's very steep second balcony, the only seats available, which was like watching the show from the fifth or sixth floor. If memory serves, the show went up very late, as in twenty minutes or so, with no explanation from management. (Note to theatre managers: very late curtains produce very feisty audiences. Make up something if you have to, but keep your audience informed.) The show, which is relatively intimate, seemed lost in the Shubert. The cast, though talented and capable, lacked energy and seemed to be marking time. Worst of all, though, was Virginia Capers' performance. Oh, on the surface she was doing everything right and then some, but you could tell her heart wasn't in it, as though after well over two years of playing Lena Younger, she was just over it. Perhaps they had had a bad week. Perhaps the late curtain threw everyone off their game. Perhaps they hated being in Chicago. Whatever the case, my friends were hating every minute and since watching a desultory performance from a crappy seat wasn't anyone's idea of a good time, we, along with quite a few fellow folks in the second balcony, bolted at the interval. We went to the Bistro instead.

That's it for now. Stay warm. More later.

© 2015 Jeffrey Geddes