‘PARADISE SQUARE’: The cast. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

PARADISE SQUARE
Book by Christina Anderson, Craig Lucas & Larry Kirwan
Music by Jason Howland
Lyrics by Nathan Tysen & Masi Asare
Choreography by Bill T. Jones
Directed by Moises Kaufman
Ethel Barrymore Theatre
243 West 47th Street
(212-239-6200), www.ParadiseSquareMusical.com

By David NouNou

It’s certainly not the lack of a good storyline that plagues Paradise Square. It has a riveting and compelling story, but the book hammers and repeats itself again and again. In case you missed it in the book, the score will hammer it some more, and if you still missed it, the repetitive choreography will tap, stomp and body slap the message home.

Paradise Square is a fictionalized historical version set in the Five Points area in Lower Manhattan and the events leading up to the violent Draft Riots of 1863 that started as immigrant protests against the Civil War draft, but then turned to violent attacks against the Blacks. As I mentioned earlier, it is a complex and riveting tale, but it is presented quite heavy-handedly.

Nelly Freeman O’Brien (Joaquina Kalukango) is a Black owner of a saloon—left to her by her father who was a slave—in the Five Points. Nelly is married to a white military Irishman, Willy O’Brien (Matt Bogart) who helps her run the saloon until he is drafted. Matt’s sister Annie Lewis (Chilina Kennedy) is married to Reverend Samuel Jacob Lewis (Nathaniel Stampley), Nelly’s brother. The four share the duties to run the saloon. The saloon is open to all immigrants, people of all races down on their luck and even prostitutes. Nelly is the leader of Five Points and a mother figure that makes sure everyone is welcome.

Reverend Samuel takes in a runaway slave and changes his name to Washington Henry (Sidney DuPont), a man who allegedly killed his master in Tennessee. The reverend keeps Washington hidden to protect him. Add to the mix Annie Lewis’ nephew from Ireland, Owen Duignan (A. J. Shively), a recent immigrant who also needs lodging. Washington and Owen end up dancing in the saloon to pay for their stay. Of course, in every Garden of Eden, there is a snake; here, he is a boss man and elected official, Frederic Tiggens (John Dossett). He is the man that will blow Paradise Square by destroying the bond between the Blacks and the Irish.

There is a lot to digest here, but the story isn’t as convoluted as it sounds once you get to meet the characters. It’s that their tale is repeated again and again through the book, score and dance numbers. The book meanders, the score is unmemorable, and Bill T. Jones delivers some excellent dance steps, but they keep recurring with every song and it gets monotonous after the fifth round. Moises Kaufman’s direction doesn’t add much but moves characters from one end of the stage to the other, and from upstage to downstage and reverse.

However, all is not lost. The incandescent, dynamic powerhouse Joaquina Kalukango blows the roof off the theatre with her soaring voice and heartbreaking, gutsy performance. She has a lovely opening number entitled “Paradise Square,” and her final song “Let It Burn” is theatrical history in the making. Her emotion-packed delivery of the song thrills the audience and they erupt with thunderous applause. Last year, she was nominated for a Tony for Slave Play. This year, she has to be the shoe-in to win the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published May 4, 2022
Reviewed at May 3, 2022 performance.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: (left to right) Joaquina Kalukango, Nathaniel Stampley, Chilina Kennedy & the cast. Photo: Kevin Berne.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: Joaquina Kalukango & Matt Bogart. Photo: Kevin Berne.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: Ellis Quinn, Chloe Davis & cast. Photo: Kevin Berne.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: Sidney DuPont & cast. Photo: Kevin Berne.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: Chilina Kennedy & Joaquina Kalukango. Photo: Kevin Berne.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: A.J. Shively. Photo: Kevin Berne.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: Colin Barkell & Garrett Coleman. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: Nathaniel Stampley & Chilina Kennedy. Photo: Kevin Berne.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: Joaquina Kalukango. Photo: Kevin Berne.

‘PARADISE SQUARE’: Kevin Dennis, John Dossett (5th & 6th from left), A.J. Shively (6th from right) & cast. Photo: Kevin Berne.

Video clips from Paradise Square

The post ‘Paradise Square’: Blacks & Irish in 1863 NYC appeared first on StageZine.

‘BRIGHT STAR’: (left to right) Michael Pearce, Bennett Sullivan, Rob Berman & Martha McDonnell. Photo: Nick Stokes

BRIGHT STAR
Book, music & story by Steve Martin
Music, lyrics & story by Edie Brickell
Directed by Walter Bobbie
Cort Theatre
138 West 48th Street
(212-239-6200), www.BrightStarMusical.com

By Scott Harrah

With its bluegrass score and Southern gothic plot, Bright Star—the new musical by Steve Martin and pop artist Edie Brickell, based on their 2013, Grammy-winning album “Love Has Come For You”– is hardly traditional Broadway fare, but it is truly an original work in every sense. This down-home tale has a lot going for it, from energetic choreography by Josh Rhodes to a great cast directed by Walter Bobbie and a breakout performance from golden-voiced Carmen Cusack in the lead role of Alice Murphy. Despite its flaws, Bright Star has enough spunk to hold our attention with a compelling yet convoluted, sentimental story and a sincere, infectious, country-fried songbook.

If one overlooks the two things that bog down Bright Star—Ms. Brickell’s rhyming, often repetitious lyrics and the somewhat predictable plot—it’s easy to suspend disbelief and go with the saga, set in both 1920s and 1940s North Carolina. The musical opens with Ms. Cusack belting out the rousing “If You Knew My Story,” which prefaces all that is about to transpire.

In 1945, young Billy Cane (A.J. Shively) returns from the war and pursues his dream of becoming a writer. He travels to Asheville and tries to get published in the prestigious Asheville Southern Journal, but he first has to impress the discerning, editor, Alice Murphy (Ms. Cusack).

The story alternates from the mid-1940s to 1923, when, in bucolic Zebulon, North Carolina, teenaged Alice Murphy falls for Jimmy Ray Dobbs (Paul Alexander Nolan). The trouble is their fathers don’t approve of the relationship. Jimmy Ray’s dad is Mayor Josiah Dobbs (Michael Mulheren), who has lofty plans for his son, while Alice’s Daddy Murphy (Steven Lee Anderson) is a religious zealot and will not bless their union.

Without giving too much away, there’s a baby involved and a mysterious “accident.” It doesn’t take long for the tale of two decades to meet as the twist we’ve been expecting is finally revealed.

Everything unfolds via Eugene Lee’s multi-purpose set, featuring a revolving wooden cabin. We often see the musicians onstage, playing banjo, violin, piano, fiddle, etc., adding to the hillbilly spirit of the show.

Ms. Cusack emerges as the true Bright Star here because, with her lush, emotional vocals and multi-layered performance, she brings badly needed depth and veracity to the paper-thin material, portraying both young and older Alice with seamless conviction. She’s certainly going to be recognized in a few weeks come awards-nomination time in a competitive season of outstanding female musical actresses.

The songs, from “Way Back in the Day” to “Asheville,” “I Can’t Wait” and “Sun’s Gonna Shine” (the latter is the only one from the 2013 “Love Has Come for You” album) propel the story and will thrill fans of bluegrass. Although an original musical is a rarity on Broadway these days, this one, with all its rhyming songs and formulaic revelations, is solid enough for a good, healthy run.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published March 27, 2016
Reviewed at press performance on March 26, 2016

‘BRIGHT STAR’: Carmen Cusack & Paul Alexander Nolan. Photo: Nick Stokes

‘BRIGHT STAR’: Hannah Elless & A.J. Shively. Photo: Nick Stokes

‘BRIGHT STAR’: Carmen Cusack. Photo: Nick Stokes

The post ‘Bright Star’ a down-home delight appeared first on StageZine.