‘REDWOOD’: (left to right) Khaila Wilcoxon, Michael Park, Idina Menzel, Zachary Noah Piser & De’Adre Aziza. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

REDWOOD
Book by Tina Landau
Music by Kate Diaz
Lyrics by Kate Diaz and Tina Landau
Directed by Tina Landau
Nederlander Theatre
208 West 41^st Street
https://www.redwoodmusical.com/

By Scott Harrah

Idina Menzel is back on Broadway, starring in the new musical Redwood—a show that is anything but standard musical-theater fare. The story is set in the redwood forests of Northern California and revolves around a troubled woman, Jesse (Ms. Menzel).

Jesse has a career and is a wife and mother. The trouble is, she’s grieving the recent loss of her only child to a drug overdose and has left her wife Mel (De’Adre Aziza) behind back east after an argument. She has traveled to Eureka on the California coast to explore the redwoods.

Deep in the forest

Jesse meets two dendrologist scientists in the forest: Seasoned climber and aging hippie Finn (Michael Park) and his young colleague, Becca (Khaila Wilcoxon), a tough, no-nonsense young woman. Jesse also meets the real stars of the show: scenic designer Jason Ardizzonne-West’s high-tech California redwood trees, enhanced by video designer Hana S. Kim’s curved LED columns, lit by lighting designer Scott Zielinski.  The central large redwood tree is theatrical high-tech at its best.

The other main attraction here is, of course, Idina Menzel and her incredible vocals. The 105-minute one act features 17 songs, of which Ms. Menzel sings 13, and seven of hers are solos. Her voice is as pure, powerful and soaring as it was 21 years ago when she debuted as Elphaba in Wicked.

Redwood has a running theme of the importance of finding oneself, but the musical is often too heavy-handed and comes across as contrived at times. Creating a musical based on drama instead of comedy is no easy task. Although Tina Landau and Kate Diaz have constructed a thought-provoking tale and composed many solid songs, Redwood is hardly in the same league as Hamilton, Sunset Boulevard or Wicked. A musical about a woman with a troubled marriage and a recently deceased child is not exactly lighthearted material. However, Ms. Landau is a gifted musical-theater creator and director—as anyone who saw the excellent and underrated 2017 musical SpongeBob SquarePants can attest.

Extraordinary cast

Despite the show’s shortcomings, Redwood features an extraordinary cast. Standouts include Khaila Wilcoxon as Becca. Her performance is consistently intense and engrossing, and she is in fine voice. De’Adre Aziza as Jesse’s wife Mel, and Michael Park as Finn, are both great in their roles. The real surprise of the show is Zachary Noah Piser as Jesse’s late son, Spencer. Mr. Piser is touching and poignant when he sings the musical’s best song, “Still.”

Redwood will certainly thrill Idina Menzel fans simply because she has so many songs. Although not all  the songs are memorable, her voice is consistently mellifluous and exhilarating. In spite of the often-awkward premise of Redwood, Ms. Menzel truly shines whenever she’s on stage, belting her heart out.

Published February 24, 2025
Reviewed at press performance on February 20, 2025

‘REDWOOD’: Idina Menzel & Khaila Wilcoxon. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘REDWOOD’: Zachary Noah Piser & Idina Menzel. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘REDWOOD’: Idina Menzel. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘REDWOOD’: Khaila Wilcoxon & Michael Park. Photo: Matthew & Evan Zimmerman.

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