‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Grey Henson & cast. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

ELF: THE MUSICAL
Book by Thomas Meehan & Bob Martin
Music by Matthew Sklar
Lyrics by Chad Beguelin
Choreographed by Liam Steel
Directed by Philip Wm. McKinley
Through January 4, 2025
Marquis Theatre
210 W. 46^th Street
https://elfonbroadway.com/

By Scott Harrah

Breaking holiday news: Elf: The Musical has finally been revived after 14 years, and this production is glossier and more gleeful than ever. It has been slightly updated for a 2024 audience with jokes about TikTok and other things that are topical in the 2020s. Based on the hit 2003 film starring Will Ferrell, the musical stage adaptation of Elf was originally produced on Broadway in 2010, directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw.

Those who have seen the movie Elf might remember the plot. Buddy (Grey Henson) is an overgrown 30-year-old innocent from the North Pole who travels to New York City to find his father, Walter Hobbs (Michael Hayden). Upon finding his father at the office, a hard-nosed workaholic, with no time for his family, Buddy discovers he has a stepmother, Emily (Ashley Brown) and a half-brother, Michael (Kai Edgar). While working at Macy’s, he also finds a girlfriend, Jovie (Kayla Davion). Complications arise as Buddy tries to adjust to his new life in New York, and that’s what makes it so much fun. Buddy discovers that New Yorkers have lost their belief in Santa and have little Christmas cheer, and it is his obligation to bring it all back.

Great book & score

Elf: The Musical has a great book by Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin. What’s more, the score by Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin (both wrote the musical adaptation of The Wedding Singer) is joyful and bubbly. Two songs are standouts. “The Story of Buddy the Elf” is an old-fashioned showstopper, and “A Christmas Song” (featured in both act one and act two) should be a holiday classic by now.

A gifted cast

First, Grey Henson (Shucked) is consistently charming as Buddy. He has great comic timing and genuinely seems to be having fun throughout the show. In addition, Kayla Davion (Tina: The Tina Turner Musical) shines as his girlfriend Jovie. She is the woman he meets while working at Macy’s. Ms. Davion is sassy and has great chemistry with Mr. Henson, and her powerful voice is a total crowd-pleaser when she belts out her solo song “Never Fall in Love (With an Elf).”

Furthermore, Sean Astin (known for Lord of the Rings and Netflix’s “Stranger Things) is sublime in dual roles as both Santa Claus and publishing executive Mr. Greenway. Newcomer Kalen Allen is spunky and quick-witted as a store manager at Macy’s and also as a hot dog street vendor.

Fine supporting performances are also given by Ashley Brown (Mary Poppins) as Emily Hobbs, Buddy’s stepmother; Kai Edgar as Buddy’s little half-brother, Michael Hobbs; and Tony Award nominee Michael Hayden (Judgment at Nuremberg) as Walter Hobbs, Buddy’s biological father.

More festive

On the whole, this revival of Elf: The Musical is actually much more festive the original 2010 production, thanks to razor-sharp direction by Philip Wm. McKinley, Liam Steel’s energetic choreography and clever scenic and costume design by Tim Goodchild, lighting design by Patrick Woodroffe, video design by Ian William Galloway and Mesmer Studios, and others responsible for the Yuletide visual effects. The show is full of holiday cheer and is winning family holiday fare. Spoiler alert: Watch out for Santa’s sleigh hovering above the audience and lots of snow during the grand finale.

Published November 17, 2024
Reviewed at press preview on November 16, 2024

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Grey Henson & cast. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Sean Astin. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Kayla Davion & Grey Henson. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Kai Edgar & Grey Henson. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Michael Hayden (center) & cast. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: The cast. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Michael Hayden, Ashley Brown, Kai Edgar, Grey Henson & Kayla Davion. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

‘ELF: THE MUSICAL’: Kalen Allen. Photo: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

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‘OUR TOWN’: Ephraim Sykes & Zoey Deutch. Photo: Daniel Rader.

OUR TOWN
By Thornton Wilder
Through January 19, 2025
Directed by Kenny Leon
Ethel Barrymore Theatre
242 West 47th Street
www.ourtownbroadway.com

By Scott Harrah

The latest revival of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town bears little resemblance to the classic drama often produced in high schools. Director Kenny Leon has reinvented the renowned story set in Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire into a modern-day look at small-town life that reflects 21^st century America instead of the early 1900s (the original period for the play).

The show opens with characters onstage singing a hymn that combines Jewish prayers in Hebrew, Muslim prayers in Arabic as well as Christian references. The Stage Manager (Jim Parsons) who narrates the story is still an integral part of the show, but Mr. Leon has added many of the touches that European directors insert into American stage classics to give a “new” twist, such as audience members seated on the stage. Characters in the show enter via running down the aisles through the audience and hop on stage. Although these directorial choices are often effective, they may not please purists of the show.

Our Town has always been produced with minimal sets and props, and in this version the biggest part of the set is a group of lanterns hanging above the stage. Minimalism has always been front and center in the play, and director Kenny Leon has trimmed down everything from the sets to the show’s running length. Our Town is a three-act play, but here it has been condensed into a brief one act that runs about 100 minutes. Since there is no intermission, one of the Stage Manager’s classic lines at the end of Act I—“That’s the end of Act I, folks. You can go and smoke, now. Those that smoke”—has, of course, been cut.

Act I focuses on the daily life of people in Grover’s Corners. The Stage Manager talks about the mundane happenings in the town, from births, marriages, deaths, the paper boy’s route, what people eat for breakfast, folks gossiping, and so on. Our Town centers on two families: First, Mr. Webb (Richard Thomas), the local newspaper editor, and Mrs. Webb (Katie Holmes). They have a young son, Wally (Hagan Oliveras) and daughter, Emily (Zoey Deutch). The second family in focus are the Gibbs, including Dr. Gibbs (Billy Eugene Jones) and Mrs. Gibbs (Michelle Williams). The Gibbs also have a son, George (Ephraim Sykes) and daughter, Rebecca (Safiya Kaijya Harris). Emily and George soon develop a budding romance.

Other townsfolk include the gossipy Mrs. Soames (Julie Halston) and choir director Simon Stimson (Donald Webber, Jr.), a man who is also the notorious local alcoholic. In addition, the dairyman Howie Newsome (John McGinty) is deaf, and characters use sign language to communicate with him.

In Act II, it is three years later, and Emily and George are planning to get married. George decides against leaving town to attend college and decides to stay in Grovers Corners to marry Emily. Despite some hesitation, the two eventually wed.

Act III is set nine years later and takes place in a cemetery outside town. Without giving too much away, many townsfolk have died. One died of pneumonia, one of a burst appendix, and another died by suicide. We meet the local undertaker Joe Stoddard (Anthony Michael Lopez) and Sam Craig (Doron Jepaul), a man who has returned to Grover’s Corners for a cousin’s funeral. We soon realize the deceased cousin is one of the play’s main characters. The Stage Manager talks in detail about death and the probability of an afterlife, but without any religious interpretation.

Overall, director Kenny Leon has added many nice touches, such as the smell of bacon wafting out into the audience when Mrs. Webb is cooking breakfast.  Mr. Leon gets primarily effective performances from the cast.  Mr. Parsons is outstanding as the Stage Manager. Mr. Thomas and Ms. Holmes portray a great married couple as Mr. and Mrs. Webb, and the same holds true for Mr. Jones and Ms. Williams as the Gibbs. Ms. Halston is often hilarious as the town busybody Mrs. Soames. Mr. Sykes is believable and often touching in his role as George Gibbs. Ms. Deutch as Emily is consistently good, but her final “good-bye” speech—one of the play’s most iconic moments—comes off somewhat strained. This is hardly the best Our Town revival, but fortunately the modern touches and tweaks do not diminish the timeless story of community and life’s ups and downs in small-town America.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 18, 2024
Reviewed at October 15, 2024 press performance

‘OUR TOWN’: (left to right) Anthony Michael Lopez, Safiya Kaijya Harris, Shyla Lefner, Billy Eugene Jones, Michelle Wilson, Jim Parsons & Katie Holmes. Photo: Daniel Rader.

‘OUR TOWN’: Billy Eugene Jones & Michelle Wilson. Photo: Daniel Rader.

‘OUR TOWN’: Ephraim Sykes, Katie Holmes & Richard Thomas. Photo: Daniel Rader.

‘OUR TOWN’: The cast. Photo: Daniel Rader.

‘OUR TOWN’: (left to right) Ephie Aardema Sarnak, Julie Halston, Richard Thomas & Hagan Oliveras. Photo: Daniel Rader.

‘OUR TOWN’: Zoey Deutch. Photo: Daniel Rader.

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‘THE WIZ’: Wayne Brady (center) & cast. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

THE WIZ
Book by William F. Brown
Additional material by Amber Ruffin
Score by Charlie Smalls
Directed by Schele Williams
Choreography by Jaquel Knight
Marquis Theatre
1535 Broadway at 45th Street
(877-250-2929), www.WizMusical.com

By David NouNou

Believe it or not, it was the original The Wiz that actually saved Broadway in the 1970s. Broadway was dangerous—from 42nd Street going northbound, there was a lot of crime and drugs. Geoffrey Holder, the great director and designer, reimagined The Wizard of Oz as an Afro-centric fantasy and turned it into one of the most exciting, original, and innovative musicals. It rescued the commercial New York theatre industry and started filling seats on Broadway.

This version is not as innovative or clever as the original production. Sure, it still has the classics of “Ease on Down the Road,” “Believe in Yourself,” “Home,” and “He’s The Wiz,” but now it uses more camp than genuine humor. The humor here, in most cases, seems a bit forced. However, this is still a fun show.

Dorothy (Nichelle Lewis) gets caught in a tornado, her house splits, and lands in Oz, killing the Wicked Witch of the East. There is no Toto nor any munchkins here. Glinda is the Good Witch of the South (played by the ever-gorgeous Deborah Cox). She warns Dorothy to put on the silver sneakers and never give them to the Wicked Witch of the West because they are the only thing that will keep her safe and get her back to Kansas. In order to do that, she has to go see the Wizard to grant her wish.

Along the way she meets the Strawman, who like to be called Dorothy (Avery Wilson, who needs a brain). Next is the Tinman (Philip Johnson Richardson), a rusty old tinman who wants a heart to feel.  Finally, the cowardly lion (Kyle Ramar Freeman) is seeking courage. They join forces to see the Wizard and are derailed by Evillene (Melody A. Betts), making them go through a poppy field.

They eventually wake up, end up in Oz and meet the Wizard (Wayne Brady), and what a handsome Wizard he makes. He asks them for proof that they killed Evillene. By now he has shown himself as a fraud and flees. With the help of Glinda, they all possessed what they wanted but had to find out for themselves.

Nichelle Lewis as Dorothy is a delight and has a lovely singing voice. Wayne Brady is dynamic and charming as The Wiz. R&B legend Deborah Cox is one of the show’s highlights, and her powerful vocals on such songs as “He’s the Wiz” with Addaperle (Allyson Kaye Daniel) and the townspeople are a bright spot in the first act. The direction by Schele Williams isn’t exactly crisp or original.  It relies mostly on cheap jokes, letting the actors do their thing with very loose discipline until it gets a laugh.  Jaquel Knight’s choreography is rhythmic and delightful. If you want to relive the fun of The Wiz, this is the time for it.

Editor’s note: This is the last review by David Nounou, written two days before he passed away on April 27, 2024. Everyone at StageZine remembers David fondly and we all miss him.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published May 9, 2024
Reviewed at April 24, 2024 press performance

‘THE WIZ’: Deborah Cox & Nichelle Lewis. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘THE WIZ’: Kyle Ramar Freeman, Nichelle Lewis, Phillip Johnson Richardson & Avery Wilson. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘THE WIZ’: Deborah Cox. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘THE WIZ’: The cast. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘THE WIZ’: Nichelle Lewis & Melody A. Betts. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

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‘DOUBT: A PARABLE’: Liev Schreiber & Zoe Kazan. Photo: Joan Marcus

DOUBT: A PARABLE
Written by John Patrick Shanley
Directed by Scott Ellis
Through April 21, 2024
Todd Haines Theatre
227 West 42nd Street
(212-719-1300), www.roundabouttheatre.org

By David NouNou

To date, John Patrick Shanley’s 2005 Pulitzer Prize Award-winning play Doubt: A Parable is still one of the finest and most concise dramas ever written. At 90 minutes, it gives us an account of a nun, a priest and an accusation—and it is riveting.

Set in 1964 at St. Nicholas, a Catholic church and school in the Bronx, NY, it starts with Father Brendan Flynn (Liev Schreiber) giving us a sermon about a shipwrecked sailor lost at sea for days, having doubts in the direction where he is drifting. Sister Aloysius Beauvier (Amy Ryan) has doubts about anything decent in life, especially Father Flynn’s benevolence. Sister James (Zoe Kazan) not only is the assistant to Sister Aloysius but also plays the eyes and ears—and is in doubt about everything she enjoys in life being sucked out of her by the demanding Sister Aloysius. The last character is Mrs. Malloy (Quincy Tyler Bernsteine), the mother of the only Black boy at St. Nicholas who is befriended by Father Flynn.

In its original production, Doubt was brilliantly staged by Doug Hughes and performed in the highest caliber by Cherry Jones as Sister Aloysius and Bryan F. O’Byrne as Father Flynn. That production had shadings that kept you shifting allegiances. With the exception of Mr. Schreiber, this is an uneven production.

Actors are supposed to bring in their own interpretations to any role and should never try to replicate anyone else’s performance. However, the actor also has to bring shadings to extreme characters especially when they are hell bent on destruction. Amy Ryan, a very capable actress, was a last-minute replacement for Tyne Daly. She is diminutive in stature as compared to the imposing, larger-than-life Mr. Schreiber. Her portrayal of Sister Aloysius is evil incarnate. There is no wiggle room in her performance to give her some space to make her more objective or try to see her viewpoint of what she perceives to be the duty of a headstrong principal of the school. She just sucks out any joy from any life force.

This is where Mr. Schreiber’s charm, charisma and stage presence comes in and brings much needed oxygen back to the stage. Whether there is any proof that he has any guilt on the 12-year-old Black boy by supplying him with altar wine or doing anything inappropriate is unevenly balanced because of the nature of the two antagonists.

Zoe Kazan gives a touching, tortured, conflicted performance as young Sister James who has been so burned by the elder sister. Quincy Tyler Bernstine has a beautiful turn as the mother of the boy who just wants her son to pass the semester so he can go to a good school. Her scene with Sister Aloysius is genuinely touching and she wants nothing to do with her personal vendetta scheming.

In the end it falls on Scott Ellis’ unbalanced direction which has Ms. Ryan floundering when she cries; she has doubts about everything. You feel nothing for her because she instigated the events not from any facts but pure evil, so there is no shifting of allegiance or compassion from one character to the other.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published March 15, 2024
Reviewed at March 14, 2024 press performance.

‘DOUBT: A PARABLE’: Amy Ryan & Zoe Kazan. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘DOUBT: A PARABLE’: Amy Ryan & Quincy Tyler Bernstine. Photo: Joan Mrcus.

‘DOUBT: A PARABLE’: Liev Schreiber & Amy Ryan. Photo: Joan Marcus.

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‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: (left to right) Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff & Lindsay Mendez. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG
Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by George Furth
Directed by Maria Friedman
Hudson Theatre
141 West 44th Street
www.MerrilyonBroadway.com

By David NouNou

It is easy to see why Merrily We Roll Along was savaged by critics and bombed when it opened on November 16, 1981. It used up its advance sales on 44 previews and lasted only 16 performances. It was to be a Stephen Sondheim vehicle with a no-name cast; “just Sondheim” as its selling point. This was before he was a deity. It failed on so many levels.

It lacked the grandiosity of his 1979 Sweeney Todd, or the majesty of 1976’s Pacific Overtures, or the beauty of 1973’s A Little Night Music, or the extravaganza of 1971’s Follies or the brilliance of 1970’s Company. Merrily We Roll Along was a dreary musical about three friends examining their lives in 1978 and going backwards in time to 1957 when they first met in their prime. It lacked any sets; the costumes were made up of jeans, khakis and T-Shirts with the character’s names on it. I guess because the cast was so lackluster, it was the only way the audience could identify them. Its failure was also due to the feeling of detachment from the musical itself and its characters. In 1981, audiences wanted to feel empathy for their characters and Merrily just didn’t give them that. Another blow came in the form of Michael Bennett’s explosive razzle-dazzle Dreamgirls, loosely based on the formation of the musical group Diana Ross and the Supremes. There was plenty of attachment and empathy there. The choice was simple: It came down to dreary or razzle-dazzle.

Merrily has developed a cult following over the years. With songs like the bouncy “Old Friends,”  and the haunting “Not a Day Goes By,” the musical started picking up steam. Fast forward to 2023: Sondheim is a deity now. You’ve got three leads that are big names, full of charm, charisma and audience visibility/connection. It’s a fully mounted production with a multi-functional set and costumes galore. The detachment that failed in 1981 works wonderfully for the age we live in now. However, it is Maria Friedman’s visionary direction that has reshaped a dreary musical into a full-blown, knockout production.

Having Daniel Radcliffe (Charley Kringas), Jonathan Groff (Franklin Shepard) and Lindsay Mendez (Mary Flynn) has given this musical a luster that it desperately needed. It is 1976 in Franklin Shepard’s Bel-Air mansion with all the phonies and sycophants surrounding him and extolling him. He is a producer now; he has left his roots of composing music for the glamour of Hollywood and all its pretentiousness. He is on his second marriage to theatrical actress, Gussie Carnegie (Krystal Joy Brown). She divorced Broadway producer, Joe Josephson (Jeremy Kushner), who produced Franklin and Charlie’s first musical hit, Musical Husbands.

Also at the party is a second member of the original trio, Mary Flynn, who has always been in love with Franklin but he has always been blind to it. She has written a bestseller and has now become a critic. Also, she loves her liquor. She is the mirror that Franklin has to look into to see what he has turned into; not the brilliant composer he always wanted to be. He is a success as a moneymaker, but a total failure as a man, a friend, a husband, and a father.

Moving backwards in time to 1973 at NBC Studios in Manhattan, Charley Kringas is awaiting the arrival of his composing partner and friend Franklin for an interview, but instead Franklin is late due to another venture of moneymaking. They are asked what it is like to be working together, and Charlie interrupts by “if I may…” and sings “Franklin Shepard, Inc.,” the showstopping number of the show, which incidentally sounds much like the style and tempo of “I’m Not Getting Married Today” from Sondheim’s Company.

Going further back to 1967, a courthouse where Beth Shepard (Katie Rose Clarke) is divorcing Frank and he asks her if she still loves him, and she sings the heart-wrenching “Not A Day Goes By.” End of Act I.

Act II is the weaker of the two. It starts in 1964 with Franklin and Charley’s first huge success, and keeps moving backward to 1960 when they formed their first revue at a downtown club in New York City where Beth auditions for them and Frank ends up proposing to her, until it’s finally 1957 on an NYC rooftop where the trio (Franklin, Charley and Mary) first meet, and sing about their bright future which is ahead of them in the song “Our Time.”

The musical was problematic from the onset. It had a difficult book to navigate through and the characters were most unlikable in its original formation—a no-no in musical comedy. However, over the years the book has been revised a few times, and there is no overlooking Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez. They are the oomph this show so desperately needs. Their charisma and charm make you overlook a lot of their character flaws and that’s perfectly okay, because everyone is flawed in some form or another. They work in harmonious sync. They complement each other’s performances. This is a tremendous asset to this complicated show. They smooth out the wrinkles and give it an easy flow.

In addition to Maria Friedman’s excellent direction, there is the sublime live orchestra—not pre-recorded tracks that are used in so many musicals today to cut costs—conducted by Joel Fram, and the divine orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick carry this musical into melody heaven. This is how you take a flop, reimagine it, cast it with a splendid trio, and turn it into an incredible memorable revival.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 23, 2023
Reviewed at October 22, 2023 press performance.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: Katie Rose Clarke & Jonathan Groff. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: (left to right) Reg Rogers, Katie Rose Clarke, Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe & Lindsay Mendez. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: The cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: Krystal Joy Brown & Jonathan Groff. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: (left to right) Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff, Reg Rogers
& Krystal Joy Brown. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: (left to right) Krystal Joy Brown, Reg Rogers, Natalie Wachen & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

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‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’: (Left to right): Lindsay Mendez, Daniel Radcliffe & Jonathan Groff
. Photo: Andy Henderson, 2023.

Rehearsals have started for the Broadway revival of MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG, which begins performances at Broadway’s Hudson Theatre (141 West 44^th Street) on Tuesday, September 19. Tickets are on sale now at https://merrilyonbroadway.com/

Directed by multi-Olivier Award^® winner Maria Friedman, MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG features music & lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, a book by George Furth, and is based on the original play by George S. Kaufman & Moss Hart.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG will star Daniel Radcliffe as Charley Kringas, Jonathan Groff as Franklin Shepard, and Lindsay Mendez as Mary Flynn. The production will feature Krystal Joy Brown as Gussie Carnegie, Katie Rose Clarke as Beth Shepard, and Reg Rogers as Joe Josephson. The cast will also include Max Rackenberg, Brady Wagner, Sherz Aletaha, Maya Boyd, Leana Rae Concepcion, Morgan Kirner, Ken Krugman, Corey Mach, Talia Robinson, Amanda Rose, Jamila Sabares-Klemm, Brian Sears, Evan Alexander Smith, Christian Strange, Koray Tarhan, Vishal Vaidya, Natalie Wachen, and Jacob Keith Watson.

The production recently enjoyed a critically acclaimed and completely sold-out run at New York Theatre Workshop, after its sold-out runs at London’s Menier Chocolate Factory and the Olivier Award-winning West End transfer produced by Sonia Friedman Productions.

Spanning three decades in the entertainment business, MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG charts the turbulent relationship between composer Franklin Shepard and his two lifelong friends — writer Mary and lyricist & playwright Charley. An inventive cult-classic ahead of its time, MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG features some of Stephen Sondheim’s most celebrated and personal songs. Maria Friedman first directed the musical at London’s Menier Chocolate Factory – a production that subsequently transferred to the Harold Pinter Theatre, where it garnered the most five-star reviews in West End history before going on to win the Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG is produced on Broadway by Sonia Friedman Productions, David Babani, Patrick Catullo, Jeff Romley, and New York Theatre Workshop. This production was originally produced at the Menier Chocolate Factory (Artistic Director David Babani) and subsequently produced in London’s West End by Sonia Friedman Productions, Menier Chocolate Factory, and Neal Street Productions.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG also features choreography by Tim Jackson, orchestrations by Tony Award winner Jonathan Tunick, scenery and costume design by Soutra Gilmour, lighting design by Amith Chandrashaker, sound design by Kai Harada, hair and wig design by Cookie Jordan, casting by Jim Carnahan, CSA and Jason Thinger, CSA, music supervision by Catherine Jayes, music direction by Joel Fram, associate music supervision by Alvin Hough, Jr., and music coordination by Kristy Norter. Merrily We Roll Along was originally directed on Broadway by Harold Prince and originally produced on Broadway by Lord Grade, Martin Starger, Robert Fryer, and Harold Prince in association with Ruth Mitchell and Howard Haines.

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‘FOR COLORED GIRLS’: (left to right) Stacey Sargeant, Amara Granderson, Okwui Okpokwasili, Tendayi Kuumba, Kenita R. Miller, D. Woods & Alexandria Wailes. Photo: Marc J. Franklin.

FOR COLORED GIRLS WHO HAVE CONSIDERED SUICIDE/WHEN THE RAINBOW IS ENUF
Written By Ntozake Shange
Directed & choreographed by Camille A. Brown
Through June 5, 2022
Booth Theatre
222 West 45th Street
(212-239-6200), www.forcoloredgirlsbway.com

By David NouNou

The late Ntozake Shange and her play For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enuf were both ground-breaking. Ms. Shange was only the second African-American woman to have a play produced on Broadway by 1976. The first was Lorraine Hansberry and her immortal 1959 play A Raisin in the Sun.  Ms. Shange coined the term “Choreopoem” for her play, meaning poetic monologues accompanied by dance movement and music.  It tells the stories of seven African-American women who have suffered in a sexist society.

The seven women in the play have no names except for the beautiful colors of the rainbow. They are simply known as (placed in alphabetical order): Lady in Blue (Stacey Sargeant), Lady in Brown (Tendayi Kuumba), Lady in Green (Alexis Sims), Lady in Orange (McKenzie Frye), Lady in Purple (Treshelle Edmond), Lady in Red (Kenita R. Miller) and Lady in Yellow (D. Woods), and beautiful they are.

Their stories are many: They are singular but yet they blend into each other, lyrical and yet poetic. Some have been battered but they are survivors; they have been abused by their men but have come out the other end of the rainbow stronger. They celebrate their color and their womanhood through dance, music and the joy of their lives.

The women are a cohesive unit. They are the perfect ensemble that is so intertwined, they pick up where the other leaves off. They are in sync together; it is impossible to single out one from the other; they are a beautiful rainbow team, all of whom I mentioned by name earlier. These magical performances are beautifully staged by Camille A. Brown, an actress, dancer and choreographer. Ms. Brown has used her talent and expertise injecting the show with rhythm, passion and joy. The stage is in constant motion. For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enuf is an ode to the women in the play and the women they represent.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published April 27, 2022
Reviewed at April 26, 2022 press performance.

‘FOR COLORED GIRLS’: (left to right) D. Woods, Kenita R. Miller, Alexandria Wailes, Tendayi Kuumba, Okwui Okpokwasili, Amara Granderson & Stacey Sargeant. Photo: Marc J. Franklin.

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‘WEST SIDE STORY’: Shereen Pimentel, Isaac Powell & cast. Photo: Jan Versweyveld

WEST SIDE STORY
Based on a conception by Jerome Robbins
Originally directed & choreographed by Jerome Robbins
Book by Arthur Laurents
Music by Leonard Bernstein
Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Directed by Ivo van Hove
Choreographed by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker
Broadway Theatre
1681 Broadway & 53rd Street
(212) 238-6200, www.westsidestorybway.com

By David NouNou

Where and how does one begin to disseminate this preposterous “reimagination” of a once-revolutionary Broadway classic that reinvented musical theatre, now reduced to an abstract Eurotrash mess? Credit for this abomination must certainly go to Belgian director Ivo van Hove. His definition of directing is having a downpour of rain on stage in anything he directs. Remember his production of A View From the Bridge from 2015? Well, there are two downpours here: one in the rumble scene and the second is in Tony’s death scene and finale. Mr. van Hove takes American classics and injects them with European pretentiousness.

That is just one of the absurd insertions in this revival. I’ll name you a few more just so you will know what you are paying for. The stage is totally bare, making the Broadway Theatre stage seem cavernous. What you get instead is a videographer on stage taking pictures of cast members and imposing them on the back wall of the theatre; that’s how the show starts. The hardest thing to explain to you is also the dumbest: Why are cast members in different scenes being videotaped behind a makeshift set obstructed from audience view and shown on the back wall as if watching a movie? As if that isn’t enough, some of the cast members in some scenes are actually photographed on real streets and then splashed on the wall.

Naturally every song has a videotape with various images on that infamous wall. One example is “America”, sung by Anita, Bernardo and the Sharks. When Anita sings “I like to be in America,” you see pictures set in America. However, when Bernardo sings about Puerto Rico, you get the images of downtrodden people and hovels. With all these images bombarding our line of vision, it is counterproductive to what is actually going on stage. The actors are so dwarfed by the images that you hardly notice them but are preoccupied with all the photographed visuals.

Here is another one: Remember the brilliantly conceived balcony scene where Tony climbs a fire escape to meet Maria in her apartment complex, ultimately confessing their love for each other and then sing “Tonight”? What once was a lovely, touching and romantic scene has now been reduced to the two of them chasing each other around on a bare stage singing, then writhing on the dirty streets of New York in each other’s arms—and all this is superimposed on the giant back wall.

Jerome Robbins conceived a brilliant musical adaption of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and moved the setting to 1957 in modern-day New York City. He changed the Capulets and Montagues to the Jets being the American gang and the Sharks being the Puerto Rican gang. He gave them distinct looks and mannerisms that fit each group. Each gang was fighting for their turf and trying to eliminate the other. Well, that wasn’t good enough for Mr. Van Hove, so he decided to make them all tattooed ’hood rats hip-hopping their way on the stage and making them indistinguishable from one another. Whether it is the opening scene where you meet the two gangs, or the dance at the gym, or the rumble, the cast members have so melded and morphed into one another that you have no idea who is fighting whom, and by this point you don’t care because it has become a big, aimless mess on stage.

As for the leads Tony (Isaac Powell), Maria (Shereen Pimentel), Anita (Yesenia Ayala), Bernardo (Amar Ramasar) or Riff (Dharon E.Jones), there is nothing that makes them stand out in any form. For those unforgettable characters have been reduced to memories of what we know of them either from previous revivals or from the classic iconic (though dated) 1961 movie.

Back to Jerome Robbins. Not only did he conceive this masterpiece, he also directed and choreographed the show. The choreography was innovative and electrifying, it changed dance forever on the musical stage. The staging was concise and synchronized with razor-sharp movements. Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker has scraped all that genius precision and come up with a mash-up of dance styles with the usual back flips and the one-arm stand kick with nothing visually pleasing or exciting. I guess she didn’t hear the adage “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

I’ll give you another dilly for the road. This is just for laughs: Who wears gold-sequined capri pants to a rumble? This sparkly gem comes from costume designer, An D’Huys–another ridiculous idea gone bad.

There is really nothing more one can say about a masterpiece that once was throbbing with excitement being reduced to a cliché of tedium in the name of “reimagination.” Of all the recent musical revivals of West Side Story, Oklahoma, Carousel, The King and I or Kiss Me Kate, this has to be the saddest and most pitiful, because it had the most sublime heart-pounding score of any show. The score by Leonard Bernstein is one of the most memorable and exciting pieces ever composed, thus making West Side Story one of the most vibrant and legendary musicals of our time. West Side Story deserved a better fate than this abysmal Eurotrash version.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published February 20, 2020

‘WEST SIDE STORY’: The cast. Photo: Jan Versweyveld.

‘WEST SIDE STORY’: The cast. Photo: Julieta Cervantes

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FRANKIE AND JOHNNY IN THE CLAIR DE LUNE
Written by Terrence McNally
Directed by Arin Arbus
Through August 25, 2019
Broadhurst Theatre
235 West 44th Street
(212-239-6200), https://www.frankieandjohnnybroadway.com/

By David NouNou

Frankie and Johnny in the Clare de Lune first opened at Stage 2 of the Manhattan Theater Club in June 1987 with Kathy Bates and F. Murray Abraham, who was followed by Kenneth Welsh. As described, Frankie is a fat, frumpy waitress who is emotionally defined by her unattractiveness. She is a waitress in the diner where Johnny is a short-order cook who is in good physical condition. There was a revival in 2002 with Edie Falco and Stanley Tucci at the Belasco Theatre. Ms. Falco wasn’t fat or unattractive but had her share of hang-ups, and Stanley Tucci in that version was hot.

The current incarnation gives us a different slant of these two people; they are both still damaged souls and desperately seeking a connection. They are both fairly attractive but come with a lot of baggage. After six weeks of working together, Frankie and Johnny finally go out on a date and, from the onset of the play, we find them having explosive sex in her apartment.

Naturally for Johnny, (Michael Shannon), he feels he found his soul mate and they are meant for each other as in the song “Frankie and Johnny.” However, for Frankie (Audra McDonald) she is more cautious and feels once the deed is over, it is time for Johnny to leave. This is not going to happen. Johnny is persistent, and does everything to convince Frankie he is her man. Their differences are also their similarities. They’ve both made bad choices throughout their lives and have had consequences to pay for it. Johnny sees it as a last chance for love and redemption; Frankie is just afraid of commitment and the fear of being beaten up again. It is ultimately music that starts to bring these two together. On this particular night, Johnny calls up a radio station DJ to play the beautiful song they heard earlier that night, but the DJ instead plays the enthralling “Clare de Lune” by Claude Debussy

What makes the piece exciting is the casting. Michael Shannon is a revelation here for multiple reasons. If you ever saw him in films like The Shape of Water, Nocturnal Animals or Revolutionary Road, he does not come off as the genial “nice guy next door.” He is intense. Intense. So, Frankie has got to be thinking what the hell has she gotten herself into with this overzealous could-be psycho, who she will ultimately have to face again on Monday at the diner? The harder part of the two characters in this case is Johnny’s, not only does he have to seduce Frankie, he has to seduce the entire audience in rooting for him. In an odd perverse way, we would all like to have such a committed person in our life. His seductive manner is overpowering, but his intentions are always true and good. He brings humanity in the purest form to Johnny.

Ms. McDonald has to be constantly on her guard as whether Johnny is for real or another Saturday night crackpot. She puts barriers up, and he methodically brings them down. Matched together, Ms. McDonald’s Frankie could easily throw Johnny out of her apartment if she wanted to; she is that strong a woman. Also, what works against Ms. McDonald are the hideous costumes she has to wear, for they strip her of any femininity and vulnerability. Her Frankie could have used those two characteristics, and matched Mr. Shannon in charming and seducing the audience to her side of thinking. Instead, she just settles for the frumpiness.

This is one of Terrence McNally’s most charming and delicate plays and very accessible. However, in this case, the Broadhurst Theatre becomes a cavernous venue for such a delicate piece. The apartment in use is a studio in Hell’s Kitchen, but at the Broadhurst Theatre, it seems like a three-bedroom apartment, so a lot of the cramped, in-your-face, claustrophobic tensions are lost. Perhaps the show should have waited for the smaller venue, the Booth Theatre (which will be available soon), where the fireworks of these two talented and overwhelming leads would have ricocheted off the walls.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published June 5, 2019
Reviewed at June 4, 2019 press performance.

‘FRANKIE AND JOHNNY IN THE CLAIR DE LUNE’: Audra McDonald & Michael Shannon. Photo: Deen van Meer

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‘TORCH SONG’: Ward Horton & Michael Urie. Photo: Matthew Murphy

TORCH SONG
Written by Harvey Fierstein
Directed by Moises Kaufman
Through February 24, 2019
The Helen Hayes Theater
240 West 44th Street
(212-239-6200),www.torchsongbroadway.com

By David NouNou

The original gay fantasia—set in the early 1970s and 1980s and every gay Jewish boy’s dream of being able to have the gorgeous hunk WASP lover and living happily ever after—is back. But as we all well know, that fantasy is not always the case even if we attain the unattainable. Originally known as Torch Song Trilogy, Harvey Fierstein wrote a play with a tailor-made role for himself. It was first produced Off-Off-Broadway, then moved to Off-Broadway at the Actors’ Playhouse, and finally came to Broadway in 1982 at the Little Theater, now the Helen Hayes, where it has landed in a most triumphant revival. Torch Song has come back home to its original theater with a shorter title and all the humor and pathos that made it a groundbreaking gay classic.

Upon second viewing what stands out the most is how pertinent and relevant the subject matter is now, even more so than it was in 1982. Back then, it had a certain voyeurism to gay culture and was titillating to see gay life explored so openly.

Act I entitled “International Stud” is set in a real backroom bar that existed in the ‘70s and ‘80s. We meet Arnold Beckoff or Virginia Hamm (Michael Urie), that being his drag name and a torch singer living in New York City. He encounters Ed (Ward Horton), the unattainable bisexual stud at the bar. He leaves with Ed and his real problems begin.

Act II, entitled “Fugue in a Nursery,” takes place three years later, 1974. Ed is with Laurel (Roxanna Hope Radja) and Arnold is invited by Laurel for a weekend in the country. Arnold is now with a former hustler, now model Alan (Michael Hsu Rosen). Needless to say, all that ensues is a kind of mixed doubles.

Act III “Widows and Children First” is the money-shot act and the most solid of all. It is now 1980 and we get to meet Mrs. Beckoff (Mercedes Ruehl), the role that was originated by Estelle Getty. It is here that we discover how the proverbial apple does not fall far from the tree. We learn about Arnold adopting an orphan, David (Jack DiFalco), and we find out that Ed has left his wife and is staying with Arnold. Most important is the battle royal that ensues between mother and son. Both have lost loved ones and both deal with their losses in different ways. Both demand love and respect on their own terms.

The third act shows how ahead of its time Torch Song really was. What we take for reasonable expectations now of having unattainable relationships and marriage, a family, and respect from loved ones was really once a fantasy. Although we have come a long way, certain dogmas remain constant.

Michael Urie has made the role of Arnold Beckoff his own. He has placed his own stamp and his own original contemporary take on Arnold. Mercedes Ruehl as his mother is electrifying. Their blow-up with each other is theater magic. Moises Kaufman’s direction gives the proceedings a feel of the present, although they are set in the not-so-distant past. The one flaw in this otherwise flawless revival is the casting of Jack DiFalco as the son David (who is supposed to be a 16-year-old teenager). This is the role that introduced the public to a young Matthew Broderick and later to Fisher Stevens; they were teenagers, Mr. DiFalco now is David. He is not a teen and does not even look like one. The head-scratcher here is didn’t anyone in casting or the production team see this as an obstacle? Regardless, Torch Song still holds up more than 36 years later as an epic of LGBTQ life that has a lot to say about sexuality, family, gender roles, love and acceptance to a new generation.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published November 5, 2018
Reviewed at November 4, 2018 press performance.

‘TORCH SONG’: Mercedes Ruehl & Michael Urie. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘TORCH SONG’: (left to right) Roxanna Hope Radja, Ward Horton, Michael Urie & Michael Hsu Rosen. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘TORCH SONG’: Jack DiFalco & Michael Urie. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘TORCH SONG’: Michael Urie. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘TORCH SONG’: Michael Urie & Jack DiFalco. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘TORCH SONG’: Mercedes Ruehl. Photo: Matthew Murphy

‘TORCH SONG’: Michael Urie. Photo: Matthew Murphy

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