MUSICAL MAYHEM: MY TOP TWENTY-FIVE MUSICALS The Honor Roll - Part 8

MUSICAL MAYHEM: MY TOP TWENTY-FIVE MUSICALS

The Honor Roll - Part 8

After a break for rehearsals for A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (I play Erronius), it's time to chat about the last two musicals in my Musical Honor Roll. The only thing these two shows have in common is that they both start with the letter "K." (Okay, okay…one starts with "The," but still….)

So without further ado….let's start.

KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN  – Book by Terrence McNally, Music by John Kander, Lyrics by Fred Ebb

"Sooner or later/You're certain to meet/In the bedroom, the parlor or even the street/There's no place on earth/You're likely to miss/Her kiss." The 1985 film adaptation of Manuel Puig's acclaimed novel won an Oscar for star William Hurt. It was depressing, violent, and yet, oddly life-affirming and hopeful. But, when your locale is a South American prison, your protagonists are a gay man imprisoned for having sex with a minor and a political activist imprisoned for belonging to an anti-government group, and where torture is part of the everyday routine, how do you translate that material into a musical? When I first heard of this project, I immediately thought of Stephen Sondheim. It's the sort of dark and serious material he excels at. I was a bit surprised, then, when I heard that John Kander and Fred Ebb were going to supply the score. In retrospect, I have no idea why since Kander and Ebb were the music folks behind the landmark Cabaret, and if they could write a stunning musical with Nazis lurking in the background, well, a prison locale should be no problem. Add Terrence McNally as the book writer and the legendary Harold Prince as the director and the prospects for an exciting evening of musical theatre were indeed great. But the road to Broadway acclaim wasn't an easy one. An expensive 1990 workshop by the now-defunct New Musicals, directed by Prince and starring Lauren Mitchell, Kevin Gray, John Rubenstein and Harry Goz and choreographed by Susan Stroman, did not succeed either artistically or critically. In 1992, Canadian producer Garth Drabinsky (before he went to prison for fraud and forgery…oops) and his production company, Livent, opened a revised production in Toronto, which subsequently crossed the Pond to a successful run on the West End, and then on May 3, 1993, it opened in New York starring Chita Rivera, Brent Carver, and Anthony Crivello and, a few weeks later, would win seven Tony Awards including Best Musical and Best Score. Like a spider, Kiss of the Spider Woman weaves a web, it draws you in. You become invested in the story. Fantasy and reality crisscross and intersect each other as you applaud a fantasy production number one moment and then, in the next, become deathly quiet when a scream from a tortured prisoner jolts you back to the horrid reality of the musical's locale. Kiss of the Spider Woman is unsettling. It is profoundly human. It is breathtaking. And it will haunt you long after the curtain has come down.

October, 1993. Starring the one and only Chita Rivera as Aurora/Spider Woman (Tony Award), the very hot and sultry Anthony Crivello as the political prisoner Valentin (Tony Award) and a magnetic and touching Jeff Hyslop, replacing Brent Carver, as Molina, the gay window dresser sex offender, this was one of those truly magical evenings at the theatre. Harold Prince's thrilling staging was matched by spectacular choreography by Vincent Paterson and Rob Marshall, and boy, would I love to know who did what, and provided a layered, sensitive production filled with both unexpected tender moments and flat-out, jaw-dropping production numbers. Exquisitely designed by Jerome Sirlin (Scenic), Howell Binkley (Lights) and Florence Klotz (Costumes/Tony Award), the environment fit the smallish Broadhurst Theatre (just over 1150 seats) like a glove. Using projections, a vibrant sound design, and blessed with some of New York's finest actors, Terrence McNally's glorious book, and Kander and Ebb's memorable score ("Dear One," "You Could Never Shame Me," "Where You Are," and the title song are all high points in a score of riches), we in the audience were taken on a journey we would not soon forget. And I still haven't. – at the Broadhurst Theatre, New York

Sidebar: In June, 1994, Vanessa Williams, in her Broadway debut, Howard McGillin and Brian Mitchell, as Stokes was known then, took over the leading roles. The critics came back to review the show and threw their figurative hats in the air in salute to Ms. Williams, some even suggesting that this was a superior, sexier cast than the original. A new cast album was recorded featuring the Williams cast. It's the recording I have. It's damn tasty.

September, 1995. When Livent made the bold decision to tour Kiss of the Spider Woman, and, yes, it was pretty bold because even with the big Tony wins, the subject material does not scream boffo road box office, they had the good sense to hire their original Tony-winning star, Chita Rivera, to head up the affair. And, not surprisingly, she brought  star quality and charisma to the Merriam stage. A duplicate of the Broadway production, this had all the bells and whistles and a skilled cast that put it all across. Merle Louise recreated her role as Molina's mother for the tour. Juan Chioran was an effective Molina, sensitive, graceful and ultimately heroic. Dorian Harewood, replacing the originally-billed John Dossett as Valentin, gave a competent, but not very exciting performance. He wasn't bad, mind you; he just didn't seem to always be on the same page as the rest of the folks. A first quality tour of an outstanding show. – at the Merriam Theater, Philadelphia

Sidebar: For decades the Merriam Theater was the Sam S. Shubert Theatre and a popular out-of-town tryout stop for New York-bound plays and musicals. Renovated and buffed to a sheen, it's truly a gorgeous venue.

March/April, 2008. As part of their Kander and Ebb celebration, the always-reliable Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia, mounted a stunning production of Kiss of the Spider Woman. Beautifully designed to take full advantage of the intimate space, played by an outstanding 10-piece orchestra, and performed by a talented cast of just fourteen men and women (the original cast had 21), this production provided an immediacy to the show, made the audience feel they truly were part of the action. Starring a vibrant and engaging Hunter Foster as Molina, a sexy and swaggering Will Chase as Valentin and a smoking-hot Natascia Diaz as Aurora/Spider Woman, this production was dazzling. Bob had never seen the show before and he was absolutely hooked. Perhaps not as show-business spectacular as the original, this was equally spectacular, but in a grittier way that gave the show an unexpected jolt of power, passion, and even more potent violence. Signature never fails to impress. – at the Max (Signature Theatre), Arlington, VA

THE KING AND I  – Book and Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, Music by Richard Rodgers

The original poster and marquee for The King and I starring the legendary Gertrude Lawrence in her final Broadway triumph. She would, tragically, die during her run in the show.

I have always found it unfair when folks accuse Rodgers and Hammerstein of writing only popular, tuneful, but ultimately inconsequential musicals. Even a cursory glance at their "Big Five" disproves that assumption. Carousel's leading couple are in an abusive relationship. The Sound of Music has Nazis mucking up things in Act Two. South Pacific has a subplot about racism. Even Oklahoma! has a dark side to it with the arbitrariness of mob "frontier" justice and how easy it is for people to misjudge others. (If Jud in reality was such a vile character, why did R&H give him the gorgeous "Lonely Room," arguably the best song in the score?) In The King and I, Rodger and Hammerstein take Margaret Landon's novel Anna and the King of Siam, a semi-fictionalized work based on Anna Leonowens memoirs, and weave a tale of East versus West, tradition versus change, and even man versus woman. The lyrics to the song "Western People Funny," often a throwaway to open the second act, not-so-subtly point up the perceived Western superiority to Eastern values and traditions. In the show, Anna emphasizes that the way to impress the contingent of arriving British officials is to emulate European standards of dress and deportment. Tradition versus change: the King wants to bring his country into modern times, but not necessarily at the expense of the traditions of his country, e.g. the keeping of slaves, the absolute authority of the king, etc. This conflict runs throughout the entire show right up to the final curtain in the moving closing scene where the present and future meet. The theme of men versus women also is always present, especially in the song "Shall I Tell You What I Think of You?," and the playful, yet pointed, final scene in Act One. For me, the most potent scene in the show is near the end, when Tuptim is captured after her runaway attempt. The King takes the whip to punish her, but, under Anna's gaze, cannot. He throws the whip down and exits, a broken man and monarch. And Anna, realizing that her efforts to bring Siam into modern times have had some disastrous, unexpected results, is equally devastated. Played and directed well, it's a powerful, uncomfortable, and telling scene. The King and I would have made the Musical Honor Roll if it had nothing more going for it except for the song "Something Wonderful," in my opinion one of the finest songs ever written for the stage. But, thankfully, Oscar Hammerstein gave us an layered book with emotion and humor and outstanding lyrics, and Richard Rodgers gave us that memorable, wonderful score that starts with that incomparable overture and doesn't end until the curtain falls. Often overlooked as a masterpiece of musical theatre is Jerome Robbins' thrilling "The Small House of Uncle Thomas" with its in-your-face anti-slavery message. Pretty heady stuff for 1951, when the show first premiered, and just as compelling today. The legendary Gertrude Lawrence, in a part written for her, originated the role of Anna when the show open at the St. James Theatre on March 29, 1951. Yul Brynner was the King. As written, the King is almost a supporting role. After all, it's not called Anna and I. Over the years, however, especially after Yul Brynner's Oscar win for Best Actor in the film version of The King and I, and most especially with the numerous Brynner-led revivals and tours of the show, the focus shifted from Anna to the King to the point where Anna almost seemed superfluous. The 1996 revival restored character integrity and the show, happily, is now about Anna and the King and not the King and, oh yeah, Anna. I found this quote on Wikipedia, and it's a lovely summary of the show, so I'm going to use it. "The King and I is really a celebration of love in all its guises, from the love of Anna for her dead husband; the love of the King's official wife, Lady Thiang, for a man she knows is flawed and also unfaithful; the desperation of forbidden love; and a love that is barely recognized and can never be acted upon." (Meryle Secrest, Somewhere for Me – A Biography of Richard Rodgers). A beautiful show, still "something wonderful" sixty-five years after its premiere.

 August, 1976. Back in 1976, diversity in casting was pretty much an unknown concept, which could perhaps explain why the very un-Asian Marti Rolph, John Stewart and Terry Saunders played Tuptim, Lun Tha and Lady Thiang, respectively. Let me hasten to add, they were all very talented and good in their roles. I don't know how "Asian" they were made to look, since our seats were in the last row of Terrace B in the massive 11,000 seat Muny Opera in St. Louis. Perfect sightlines, mind you, but everyone was sooooo small. (I'm sure to be even vaguely seen from the cheap seats, stage makeup was liberally applied with a trowel.) But at four bucks, the price was right and it was my first time seeing Yul Brynner in his iconic role. The Muny does not do cheap, so the production was well-designed, well-sung, and, in addition to Brynner, had Broadway vet Constance Towers as Anna and the aforementioned Ms. Saunders, recreating her film role as Lady Thiang, to amp up the star power. Sitting in beautiful Forest Park under a star-filled sky and listening to the lush sounds of Rodgers and Hammerstein's gorgeous score is a pretty terrific way to spend a summer evening. It was all grand, pretty, tuneful, and satisfyingly acted. I would have a more vivid memory of another Brynner/Towers performance two and one-half years later. – at the Municipal Opera, St. Louis

Sidebar: The Muny engagement was produced by impresarios Lee Guber and Shelly Gross, famous for their large suburban in-the-round venues located on the East Coast. Depending on the source, this was either a stop on a national tour prior to Broadway or it was considered a regional tour. In any event, this particular production played the Muny, the Starlight of Kansas City (another huge outdoor venue) and Guber and Gross' Valley Forge Music Fair, Painters Mill Music Fair, and Westbury Music Fair. Of the last three venues, only Westbury is still around, but under a different name. I suspect that the physical production traveled across Missouri to Kansas City, but probably not to the other theatres since they were not proscenium houses. Messrs. Guber and Gross would produce the first major revival of The King and I on Broadway in May, 1977, a production which also starred Yul Brynner and Constance Towers. None of the designers, the director, or the supporting players from the Muny production are listed on the IBDB.com opening night cast/credits for the revival, so I'm wondering if the Muny production was just as the one source called it, a regional tour, and based on the success of that tour, Guber and Gross decided to mount an entirely new production for Broadway. This production would have a long post-Broadway tour, including a stop in Chicago. (See the next entry.)

January, 1979. This sumptuous production came to the Arie Crown after a long Broadway engagement. The draw, of course, was Yul Brynner recreating his signature role as the King of Siam. And, on the surface, he was very good at it. But, if you looked closer, you could tell that, though not quite just going through the paces, he truly wasn't in the moment. Big mistake because co-star Constance Towers WAS in the moment and as a result she stole the show from him. At bows, the audience stood as one and cheered mightily for Towers, but when Brynner came out for his solo bow, the volume decreased noticeably. Oops. Towers for the win! Not-at-all Asian Martin Vidnovic played Lun Tha, and sang it beautifully, but overall this was a more racially diverse cast with actors of Asian descent playing Tuptim (a radiant June Angela) and Lady Thiang (a majestic Hye-Young Choi). Curiously, I would see Vidnovic as the King in another touring production decades later. A grand production that almost managed to make the Arie Crown tolerable. – at the Arie Crown Theatre, Chicago

Sidebar: There is no doubt that the role of the King will forever be associated with its originator, Yul Brynner. And perhaps rightly so. Over the years, however, and before the 1996 revival that shifted the focus back to Anna as it always should have been, an interesting parade of actors tried their hand at singing "A Puzzlement," etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Among them: Farley Granger (!), Rudolph Nureyev (huh?), Herbert Lom (the original London King), and Darren McGavin (TV's Mike Hammer). A recording of Darren McGavin and opera's Risë Stevens, as Anna, from the defunct Music Theater of Lincoln Center's 1964 production, makes for interesting listening. To give you an idea of Yul Brynner's box office clout, when Brynner and Towers took a three-week vacation from the show during this 1977-1978 revival, Michael Kermoyan, Brynner's long-time standby and stalwart Kralahome veteran, and Angela Lansbury, yes, the Angela Lansbury, took over the leading roles. The box office tanked.

Not the cast we saw, but it's a cool marquee design. 

May, 1997. The revival that sailed into the Neil Simon Theatre in April, 1996, had its origins Down Under in a 1991 production starring Hayley Mills. Director Christopher Renshaw took a hard look at the show and gave it a fresh, darker, more dynamic look that made the show more vibrant, more alive, more human. Still magnificent to look at, though perhaps not as over-the-top sumptuous as previous productions, all Asian roles in this production were played by actors of Asian descent. Lou Diamond Phillips (the film La Bamba) was a sexy, compelling King, sometimes playful, sometimes monarchial, sometimes maddeningly stubborn, and sometimes touchingly vulnerable.   (Mr. Phillips is a true "coat of many colors" of ancestry. He's of Scots-Irish, Cherokee, Filipino, Chinese, Japanese, and Spanish descent. Wow.) Faith Prince was a spunky, cheeky Anna. Interestingly and puzzlingly, Prince seemed somewhat robotic for the first twenty minutes or so. Don't get me wrong. She was still hitting all the notes and doing all the right things, but her heart didn't seem to be into it. But then along came "Getting to Know You" and it was as if someone flipped a switch and Prince became truly alive and nailed the rest of the performance. Strange. This was a wonderful new take on an old familiar friend. – at the Neil Simon Theatre, New York.

Sidebar: Though critically acclaimed, at least one theatre arts professional dismissed Renshaw's vision as a The King and I for the age of political correctness. Really?

June, 1998. The final stop on the First National Company's tour of North America, the Christopher Renshaw-helmed production of The King and I starred Victor Talmadge, the King for the entire tour, and pop singer Maureen McGovern as Anna, a newcomer to the role having played Anna for only a few weeks prior to Chicago. I hate the term "pop singer" and it hardly applies to the supple voice of Ms. McGovern. Yes, she still is probably best known for providing the vocals to the treacly "The Morning After" from The Poseidon Adventure and the equally banal "We May Never Love Like This Again" from The Towering Inferno, but this talented songstress can sing pop, jazz, and show music with equal ease and skill. The fact that she kicked butt singing the classic R&H tunes didn't surprise me in the least. I was pleasantly surprised, however, by her acting chops and her portrayal of Anna as a feisty, independent woman. The physical production looked splendid in the beautiful Auditorium Theatre and overall it was a first-rate production. – at the Auditorium Theatre, Chicago

August, 2004. Under the auspices of Atlanta's Theater of the Stars, this 2004 tour had its admirers and its detractors. Though this had more sumptuous elements in the design departments than the 1996 Broadway revival and the 1998 national tour that also played at the Auditorium, it didn't have the edge that Christopher Renshaw brought to his production. Under the reverential guidance of Baayork Lee, a veteran of the original 1951 production (she was one of the King's children), this was a more traditional The King and I. Martin Vidnovic, a previously-seen un-Asian Lun Tha in 1979, was now playing an un-Asian King. I like Mr. Vidnovic and enjoyed his performances in Oklahoma! and Brigadoon, but I'm drawing a blank on his performance here. (And I'm truly not picking on Mr. Vidnovic because he's not Asian. But in 2004, there was absolutely no reason why a professional Equity production of The King and I  should not be appropriately racially cast.) Sandy Duncan played Anna as you would expect Sandy Duncan to play Anna…full of spunk and sass. That spunkiness and sassiness worked wonders in Peter Pan, but here it wasn't quite as successful, especially in the more serious moments. Now, I must say I had a grand time watching her, and her stage presence and charm are undeniable, but I missed the depth that Misses Towers, Prince and McGovern brought to the role. The admirers loved the traditionalism of this production; the detractors thought Duncan needed to be reined in and the production overall a bit cheesy. Not my favorite production of it, but I enjoyed it. – at the Auditorium Theatre, Chicago

It's official! Betsy's going on!! So stoked!

September, 2015. Lincoln Center knows how to produce Rodgers and Hammerstein classics. The iconic score was played as it should be heard with a full orchestra, complete with a string section and, be still my heart, a harp! Bob's former student, Betsy Morgan, was Kelli O'Hara's standby for the role of Anna Leonowens. Not the understudy, you understand, but the standby, thank you very much. Via an article on Playbill.com, I found out that Betsy would be subbing for O'Hara for three performances when O'Hara went out of state to fulfill previous benefit commitments. Well, obviously, this was not to be missed, so we contacted Betsy, bought her house seats, and were dazzled by this beautiful, spare-no-expense production. More traditional in approach than the Christopher Renshaw version, this production, under Bartlett Sher's assured direction, had a strong focus on character and character interaction, especially in the Anna/King dynamic. The production was absolutely stunning to look at and when Anna's ship glided out over the orchestra to start the show, it was a breathtaking moment that reminded me once again how incomparable live theatre is. Jose Llana, Lun Tha in the 1996 revival, was a magnetic, exuberant, yet also regal, King. Tony-winner Ruthie Ann Miles was majestic and strong as Lady Thiang. Ashley Park and Conrad Ricamora (Oliver in TV's How to Get Away with Murder) were suitably both attractive and tragic as Tuptim and Lun Tha. They also sang the parts really, really well! And what about Betsy? She was, in a word, glorious. From her first entrance on the ship as it entered Bangkok to her final curtain, she was assured, intelligent, feisty and just plain terrific. The audience loved her. And let's get serious here...how thrilling is it to see a former student take a well-deserved last bow on Broadway to a standing ovation? Bob was just bursting with pride. Visiting her backstage afterwards was the perfect end to a marvelous evening. (This is kind of fun. This is from my Facebook entry on the evening…"One quibble...Bartlett Sher, your curtain doesn't touch the floor and from we were sitting, the hem looked uneven. You might want to look into that.") – at the Vivian Beaumont Theater, New York

And that concludes my Musical Honor Roll. Let's recap in alpha order: 1776, Annie, Bells Are Ringing, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Billy Elliot, Fun Home, The Full Monty, The King and I, Kiss of the Spider Woman, La Cage aux Folles, Mame, The Scottsboro Boys, She Loves Me, Sweeney Todd, They're Playing Our Song, Titanic

More to come….

© 2016 Jeffrey Geddes

ALPHABET SOUP - Part 3!

ALPHABET SOUP (3)

It's that time again to shake up things, draw a letter from my blue London coffee mug and pick the first five shows from that letter's pile of programs.

Without further ado, drum roll, please…. Today's letter is….

U

Ready? Set? Go!

August, 2002. At the 2002 Tony Awards, Urinetown won three Tonys: Best Book of a Musical (Greg Kotis), Best Original Musical Score (Music by Mark Hollmann, Lyrics by Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis) and Best Direction of a Musical (John Rando). Curiously, in spite of those three major wins, which are,  for all intents and purposes, the three most important creative components of a musical (designers, orchestrators, musical directors, choreographers and all you other important folk, you know I love you as well…xoxo), the Best Musical Tony went to the enormously entertaining and very traditional Thoroughly Modern Millie. At the time, the general consensus was that the Tony voters wanted to return to safer, more familiar ground after the sweep of the previous year's Tony Awards by The Producers. But winning book, score and directing Tonys isn't exactly chopped liver and Urinetown would enjoy a long and profitable run. This tart and tasty political satire about corporate and political corruption and greed, using the premise that people had to pay for the privilege to pee, as the song goes, was exquisitely written by Messrs. Kotis and Hollmann and directed to satiric perfection by Mr. Lando and produced at The Henry Miller, as it was called, as the final production before the theatre closed to make way for an office building. (The interior would be demolished and a gorgeous new theatre rebuilt. It reopened as the Henry Miller, but in 2010 was rechristened the Stephen Sondheim Theatre.) In 2002, The Henry Miller was a bit, well, dowdy. It had obviously seen better days and looked very rough around the edges. It was the perfect theatre for designers Scott Pask, Gregory Dale, Jonathan Bixby and Brian MacDevitt to work their magic and to set the stage for this wonderfully off-kilter show. Leading actors John Cullum and Nancy Opel were both out at the matinee we attended, but were skillfully covered by Don Richard and Rachel Coloff, respectively. Jeff McCarthy and Spencer Kayden were hysterical as Officer Comstock and Little Sally. Jennifer Laura Thompson was both luminous and clueless as Hope Cladwell and the really, really talented Hunter Foster was a terrific hero and stopped the show with the raise-the-roof "Run Freedom Run." For my money, though, the best song in the show is the devilishly evil "Don't Be the Bunny." Satire is hard to do. It can easily go south and just be unbearable. Really good satire is rare. Urinetown is really good satire. Think Threepenny Opera without the tiresome Brecht and Weill stuff. (No, I'm not a fan. Shoot me.) Bob and I laughed and laughed and laughed. It was truly an unexpected delight. - at The Henry Miller, New York

(Sidebar: a 2006 local sit-down production of Urinetown at Chicago's Mercury Theatre was embroiled in a copyright dispute with the creatives of Urinetown who accused the Chicago creatives of plagiarizing the work of the original director and designers. The Chicago production team vehemently denied the charges. The dispute caused the show to close suddenly and at a complete financial loss. The case was settled in federal court and the Chicago production team was ordered to pay the original Broadway team an undisclosed sum of money.)

A snapshot of what was going on in August, 2002. How did we miss Dance of the Vampires?

July, 2003. The marvelous American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) in San Francisco mounted this raucous reproduction of the Broadway original at its home base at the gorgeous Geary Theatre. The exceptionally strong cast was headed by Ron Holgate as Caldwell B. Cladwell, who seemed to absolutely relish his every moment on stage, Charlie Pollack as a handsome hero, the radiant Christiane Noll (one of the few good things in Jekyll and Hyde and who would dazzle us a few years later in the revival of Ragtime) as Hope Cladwell, Jim Corti as Hot Blades Harry, Beth McVey as Penelope Pennywise, Meghan Strange as Little Sally and the reliable Tom Hewitt as Officer Lockstock. Hewitt is a consistently fine actor and a favorite of mine. We went with Bob's brother Andy and his husband and sat in practically the last row of the Geary's second balcony. Once again we laughed lots. And take my word for it, the second balcony at the Geary Theater is very high and very steep. Not for the faint of heart. - at the Geary Theatre (A.C.T.), San Francisco

Oops! "U" had only one show, so let's draw again….drum roll……. And we have….

H

April, 2011. Matthew Lombardo's play about a recovering alcoholic therapist nun, a 19-year-old homeless gay drug addict and a priest with control issues was at times very, very funny, at times very, very dramatic and at times very, very melodramatic. The play starred the divine Kathleen Turner as the recovering alcoholic therapist nun, and, yes, it took me a moment or two to wrap my brain around that bit of casting. Kathleen Turner as a nun? No matter. She was a marvel. That inimitable voice combined with her commanding stage presence made her a force to be reckoned with. Evan Jonigkeit played the homeless gay drug addict in a powerful and sympathetic performance with an added dose of full frontal nudity for good measure. Stephen Kunken was fine as the priest and did what he could with the role, but his part was the weakest and easily overwhelmed by the showier roles of the nun and drug addict. I thought it was a powerful, if flawed, play with an accomplished cast, fine production values and good direction. Bob and I liked it; our friends were less than enthused. We saw a preview performance. Good thing, too, since, despite mostly positive notices from tryout productions in Hartford, Cincinnati and St. Louis, the play was soundly spanked by the New York critics and closed at the end of its first week of performances. I suspect it will have a profitable afterlife in regional, educational and amateur theatre. - at the Booth Theatre, New York

February, 2008. There is a scene in this chilling revival of Harold Pinter's The Homecoming where Raul Esparza, as Lenny, confronts his new sister-in-law, Ruth, played by Eve Best. (Yep, Nurse Jackie's Eve Best.) The scene was so quiet, so sexually charged, so dangerous, and in its way, so evil that it literally took my breath away. Rarely have I seen such understated and such powerful acting. Those few minutes alone were reason enough to see this masterful revival of one of Pinter's most highly-regarded plays. Raul Esparza was so robbed of the Tony that year. (Actually, so was this production. Best Revival of a Play Tony went to the slight, if extremely well-done, Boeing, Boeing.) This is not a happy play. It's filled with loathsome characters engaging in despicable behavior and you wonder if anyone among them has any normal interactions in society. The only moderately sympathetic character in the bunch, Teddy, played by James Frain, eventually yields to his monstrous family. Ian McShane played the head of the household and he was a nasty piece of work. (He was a delightfully over-the-top Devil in The Witches of Eastwick in London.) The always excellent Michael McGrath play McShane's brother and Gareth Saxe played brother Joey. They were all superb, but for me the acting honors went to Esparza and Best. I usually find Pinter on the obtuse side. Not this time. This was truly exciting theatre. - at the Cort Theatre, New York

(Note: in the National Tour of the original Broadway production, Carolyn Jones played Ruth. Yes, Morticia from The Addams Family was more than just smoldering looks and finger snaps. She was a well-regarded actress. I so wanted to see that production, I was still in high school when the tour played Chicago and I couldn't manage a matinee. I probably wouldn't have understood it anyhow at that age.)

July, 2011. Part The Boys in the Band, part My Night with Reg, part Love! Valour! Compassion! with a hint of Company thrown in, with none of the qualities of any of the originals, this so-called "epic" play had lots of zingy one-liners, but not a lot of heart and not a lot of characterization. An unlikeable leading character, though well-enough acted, didn't help, nor did the political/sociological riffs that didn't advance the plot. With one glaring exception, the acting was good, and two performances, Elizabeth Ledo and Stephen Cone, were outstanding.  At times I felt like I was at a production of "Party;" it had that camp-for-camp's sake mentality.  At about 2:15, it's at least 15 minutes too long and could probably be a very good play at a snappy, intermission-less 90 minutes.  To be fair, it was liked by the critics and the audience ate it up.  It wasn't bad; it wasn't good, and it does have some promise, but it won't become the next great gay play, even though that was clearly what the author intended this to be. - at About Face Theatre, Chicago

 This talented quartet...don't they all look so young!...would continue to shine in show business. 

September, 1995. At the risk of being tut-tuted, I must confess that I am not much of a Frank Loesser fan. I don't care for Where's Charley? at all, though that could just be a reaction to a bad audition for a local production a century ago down in Bloomington, but I think it's simply because I don't like the show. The supposed charms of The Most Happy Fella escape me. I don't think Guys and Dolls is one of the greatest musicals ever. And although on the cast recording, much of Greenwillow is actually quite beautiful, there are, sadly, more than a handful of real clunkers (e.g. "Clang Dang the Bell" and "Could've Been a Ring") Having said that, however, I'm wild about his zippy satire on big business, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. The book is funny and pointed, as good satire should be, and the score is one great tune after another. By 1995, this show had long been a staple of community theatre groups and high schools, so the opportunity to see Broadway pros in a Tony-winning production directed by Des McAnuff and choregraphed by Wayne Cilento was not to be missed. Matthew Broderick won his second Tony for his portrayal of J Pierrepont Finch. Broderick has the charming hangdog thing down to an art and it worked to his advantage in this role. Pre-Will and Grace Megan Mullally was a total delight as Rosemary, free from Karen-isms and showing off impressive vocal chops. And look who played Smitty…Victoria Clark! Lillias White was a full-throated and funny Miss Jones, Jeff Blumenkrantz whined and kowtowed with vigor as Frump, Ronn Carroll was an appropriately pompous J.B. Biggley and Pamela Gold did a fine job subbing as Hedy. In the chorus were Jeffry Denman and Martin Moran! Enormously entertaining. - at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, New York

June, 1996. All-grown up at 33, the Karate Kid, Ralph Macchio, gave a solid, entertaining performance in the First National Company of the 1995 Broadway revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Duplicating the look and feel of the Broadway version, this was a high-quality tour with a troupe of seasoned actors including Shauna Hicks as Rosemary, Richard Thomsen as J.B. Biggley, Susann Fletcher as Smitty, who admirably gave a program nod as sharing her home and heart to her female partner and this was in 1996!, a big-voiced Tina Fabrique as Miss Jones, Roger Bart as Frump a few years before he skyrocketed to fame in The Producers, and as a special treat Pamela Blair (the original "Tits and Ass" girl) as Hedy. Professional and enjoyable. - at the Shubert Theatre, Chicago

August, 2011. The 1995 revival was pure pleasure, but the sparkling 2011 revival was an infectious, joyous romp, in no small measure thanks to the ridiculously wonderful performance by its leading man, is-there-anything-he-can't-do?, Daniel Radcliffe. When he was only 17, Radcliffe made an impressive West End debut that won him critical acclaim in the award-winning Equus. Critics were not only impressed by his considerable range as an actor, but also by the fact that he fearlessly shattered his Harry Potter persona by performing the famed nude scene with class and dignity. He repeated his Equus assignment on Broadway two years later in his Broadway debut and once again received acclaim from the critics. For only his second appearance on Broadway, Radcliffe chose to portray one of the most difficult young leading man parts in musical history, that of Finch in How to Succeed. This part requires the actor to not only be charming and impish and adorable, but also show cunning and ambition, yet that cunning and ambition can never be overpowering or threatening. Radcliffe carried the part with great élan not only due to his considerable talent, but also due to the fact that he worked tirelessly to make sure everyone in the audience had a terrific time. While he may not have carried off the singing and dancing chores with the same slick professionalism that a more seasoned musical performer would have, he more than compensated for it by sheer energy and a smile that made us feel like he was having the time of his life. And I suspect he was. The fact that he wasn't even nominated for a Tony Award still has me shaking my head in disbelief. Mr. Radcliffe wasn't alone in this endeavor, however. He was surrounded by an sensational group of fellow actors who added immeasurably to the fun. John Larroquette, in his Tony-winning role, was just so good as J.B. Biggley and the visual of the 6'4" Larroquette opposite the 5'5" Radcliffe was priceless. Rose Hemingway was excellent as Rosemary, Christopher J. Hanke pouted to perfection as Frump, Tammy Blanchard was a comic sexy Hedy, Mary Faber, Patty Goble and Rob Bartlett were great as Smitty, Miss Jones and Twimble, respectively. Brightly designed, directed and choreographed with crisp efficiency and played by a superb pit band, this was just pure joy. I was grinning from ear-to-ear when we left the Hirschfeld. - at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre, New York

That's it for today. More later....Ta!

© 2013 Jeffrey Geddes