‘GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR’: Ben Rappaport & Sean Hayes. Photo: Joan Marcus

GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR
Written by Doug Wright
Directed by Lisa Peterson
Through August 27, 2023
Belasco Theatre
111 West 44th Street.
(212-239-6200), www.goodnightoscar.com

By David NouNou

Most people today would not know who Oscar Levant is except if they watch TCM and see An American in Paris or The Bandwagon. For those who do know something of him, he is most difficult to describe. He was a conundrum; he wasn’t attractive in real life, but he was an MGM star. He was best known for his sarcastic wit and self-deprecating humor but could have been a concert pianist instead of a humorist, and he excelled in both. He was multitalented but also a tortured soul. He also had his inner demons to contend with, which included bouts with drugs and alcohol. Who would one get to play such a person? You certainly wouldn’t think of  Sean Hayes who portrayed Jack McFarland on TV’s “Will and Grace.” Here comes the surprise, although Mr. Hayes is much too good-looking to portray Mr. Levant, Mr. Hayes digs deep to capture the essence that was Oscar Levant, giving one of the year’s most outstanding performances on the Broadway stage.

The play is set at NBC dressing rooms in Hollywood in 1958. Jack Paar (Ben Rappaport) has been transferred to Hollywood to do the nightly “Tonight Show” for sweeps week in L.A. instead of his usual home base in New York City. His first guest stars for the premier show are: Oscar Levant, Jayne Mansfield and ventriloquist Señor Wences. I wonder if that episode really existed (I Googled for hours and couldn’t find it). Regardless, they all appeared on Jack Paar— if not together, certainly separately.

Unbeknownst to Jack, June Levant (Emily Bergl) has committed Oscar (Mr. Hayes) into an institution to dry him out for his drug overdoses. It’s very close to showtime and there is no Oscar in sight. He does eventually appear: disheveled, abusive, manic, but with his abrasive wit still intact. Playwright Doug Wright doesn’t supply us with any back story or how Oscar came to this state. We only know he has a four-hour pass from the institution in the belief that he is attending his daughter’s graduation, when in fact he is appearing on “The Tonight Show” with Jack Paar.

Oscar also has his inner demons and voices to contend with; that of George Gershwin (John Zdrojeski). Oscar one might say was the definitive interpreter of Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” among other works, his career was dominated by Gershwin’s compositions and not his own.

What makes the play ironic is the strict moral code of what used to be censorship and what could be said on live TV. Head of NBC, Bob Sarnoff (Peter Grosz), is totally against having Oscar on “The Tonight Show” because of his coarse humor and what he might say (this is a wink to the audience at this point of where our TV morals are today) but Paar is insistent. Levant appears because Parr knows he can goad Oscar into pushing the envelope with his viewpoints on politics, religion and sex, all of which were taboo topics on live TV at the time. To give full justice to the jokes, you just have to see the show.

The play is quite enjoyable and interesting, but director Lisa Peterson should have brought out her editing shears to trim excessive, needless exposition in the beginning between Sarnoff and Paar, and especially the scene with Gershwin and Levant toward the end.

Putting that aside, we have to give credit where credit is due. Having seen Mr. Hayes in An Act of God and Promises, Promises, Jack McFarland was still lurking in the wings. However, what we see now is an actor shedding his past, and digging deep to capture and create a troubled soul. His performance is sensational and his piano performance is spellbinding. The recital at the show’s end is a magical theatrical moment.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published April 28, 2023
Reviewed at April 27, 2023 press performance.

‘GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR’: Ben Rappaport, Sean Hayes & Peter Grosz. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR’: Emily Bergl & Sean Hayes. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR’: Emily Bergl & Sean Hayes. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR’: Sean Hayes & John Zdrojeski. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR’: Marchánt Davis & Sean Hayes. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘GOOD NIGHT, OSCAR’: Alex Wyse & Sean Hayes. Photo: Joan Marcus.

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‘WAR PAINT’: Christine Ebersole & Patti LuPone. Photo: Joan Marcus

WAR PAINT
Book by Doug Wright
Music by Scott Frankel
Lyrics by Michael Korie
Directed by Michael Greif
Choreography by Christopher Gattelli
Nederlander Theatre
208 West 41st Street
(877-250-2929), www.warpaintmusical.com

By David NouNou

Due to a scheduling mix-up, I had the good fortune to see War Paint as the last show of the season. After seeing so many movies turned into mediocre musicals, I can honestly say it was a thrill to enjoy this gem of an original musical. I am not saying it’s perfect, but for an audience that can remember the wonderful musicals of the 1950s and 1960s, this is as close as you can get to such wonderful heights.

With a witty book by Doug Wright, an excellent melodic score by Scott Frankel and Michael Korie (all three of Grey Gardens fame) and deft direction by Michael Greif, they have created a highly entertaining musical about world-renowned cosmeticians Helena Rubinstein (Patti LuPone) and Elizabeth Arden (Christine Ebersole).

Rubinstein was from a Polish shtetl and Arden came from a poor farm in Ontario, Canada. Both women came to America and reinvented themselves as the prima donnas of beauty. Madame Rubinstein, as she became known, catered to wealthy European immigrants, while Arden catered to New York society. They competed with each other for more than 50 years, never having met, but they revolutionized the beauty industry. In addition, they were the only females who owned their own businesses at the time. They had their ups and downs and unfortunately for them, they didn’t know when it was time to change with the times. When things were being re-branded for the young market, they clung to their “exclusive” roots.

I did mention earlier this is not a perfect musical and that’s because the two protagonists never met.  You have these two magnificent titans and there is no conflict between them; they just refer to each other as “the other one.”When you think of Grey Gardens, the two women were constantly together, thus creating the friction. Here you have two giants who live parallel lives and they don’t intersect, thus creating a vacuum.

However, when you have two legendary actresses the likes of Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole, there is little to fret about the vacuum. These women know how to manipulate a line and an audience. Their presence and outstanding vocal gifts fill any gaps in the story line. Their performances are award worthy; they recently both received Tony nominations for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical, and deservedly so. I only wish that the score was nominated as well. Mr. Greif, the director, got the nomination for Dear Evan Hansen.

War Paint earned two additional nominations for the lovely costumes by Catherine Zuber and a sublime set by David Korins. Thanks to Mr. Korins, audiences finally get to see a realized set that moves like a Swiss watch and not some tacky cheap set that is moved by actors or stagehands. That was the norm back in Broadway’s golden years, with sets that moved effortlessly and transported you to another world. Thanks to War Paint and its creators and designers and especially to Ms. LuPone and Ms. Ebersole, we are transported again.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published May 4, 2017
Reviewed at performance on May 3, 2017

‘WAR PAINT’: Christine Ebersole, Patti LuPone & cast. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘WAR PAINT’: Pattil LuPone. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘WAR PAINT’: (left to right) Jennifer Rias, Steffanie Leigh, Christine Ebersole, Mary Claire King, Stephanie Jae Park. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘WAR PAINT’: Douglas Sills & Patti LuPone. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘WAR PAINT’: Christine Ebersole. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘WAR PAINT’: Douglas Sills & John Dossett. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘WAR PAINT’: Christine Ebersole & John Dossett. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘WAR PAINT’: Christine Ebersole & John Dossett. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘WAR PAINT’: Christine Ebersole. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘WAR PAINT’: Christine Ebersole. Photo: Joan Marcus

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