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Uncle Vanya

Many versions of Anton Chekhov’s 1897 play have been staged as written and in adaptations.  Two of my more recent takes were Christopher Durang’s hilarious Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike and a witty off-Broadway gem Life Sucks.  Heidi Schreck (What the Constitution Means To Me) has provide this new version of Uncle Vanya.  This one is a hard pass.

All of the angst is present.  A few baubles for your pleasure.  “Why does the sound of my voice sound so unpleasant to you?”  Uncle Vanya is “so mad at myself for pissing away all that time in my life”.  He comments that it’s “nice weather for hanging yourself”.  One more you ask?  “Why do we get drunk?”  The answer is “so I can pretend to be alive”.

In the right production these amusing asides could entertain.  Lila Neugebauer is a theater director I have greatly admired for The Wolves, Appropriate, The Antipodes and Miles for Mary to name a few.  The misfire here, therefore, is fairly shocking.  I do not believe I am alone in that opinion as the number of intermission walkouts were noticeable.

The cast is marooned on distant locations across a vast stage at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theater.  The pace of the direction is very, very slow as if the previous line had to traverse the void and be heard by another character.  I presume the tempo is supposed to amp up the droll angsty humor but everything just came across flat and, frankly, quite boring.

Two actors manage to shine.  Alison Pill is always a treat to watch and her unrequited love for Astrov (William Jackson Harper) is painfully real.  Their scene together is the high point of the play by far.  Interactions between everyone else seem less interesting.  While believability might not be a goal, there needs to be some emotional connection to the plot machinations transpiring.

Steve Carell is making his Broadway debut as Uncle Vanya.  The part promises a good fit but the gloom and doom guy does not have enough dimensions here for us to care or even laugh in recognition.  At the end of the play he notes “my suffering is at an end finally”.  We feel it too, unfortunately.

Uncle Vanya is playing at the Vivian Beaumont Theater through June 16, 2024.

www.vanyabroadway.com

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Mary Jane

Depending where you sit, the hospital bed can be seen from the living room.  Today’s immediate crisis involves the plumbing and the building’s Super is working through the commonplace problem.  The world of Mary Jane is much like everyone’s but with the added reality of a very ill child who needs round the clock care.

The heartbreak and self-sacrifice of motherhood is a key theme explored in this quietly devastating drama.  Nurses are ever present in this home.  Mary Jane will interact with four women in the two halves of this play.  Each brings perspective from a different point of view.  Feelings are explored with gentle compassion.  We come to grips with mom’s surprising and impressively sunny demeanor.

Good natured Mary Jane counsels another mom who is just beginning to deal with her own similar circumstance.  Ideas learned from caring for her own son are casually tossed off as if a recipe.  Our peek into her seemingly unclouded world foreshadows pain ahead.

The riveting center of this beautifully constructed story involves two mothers sitting at a table in the hospital.  Susan Pourfar’s Chaya is a Jewish Orthodox woman dealing with her own child’s health issues.  These two mothers converse having just met but the intersection illuminates a shared humanity.  The scene is breathtaking for its simplicity and its realness.

Academy Award nominee Rachel McAdams (Spotlight) plays the title character and she is excellent.  There is no hysterical moment for Mary Jane.  Life is a slow burn to be managed.  Her pain is barely evident underneath the dutiful exterior.  A visit from a hospital chaplain will allow her and us to ponder a spiritual view.

Anne Kauffman directed this soft-spoken masterwork in which we eavesdrop on what could have been a movie-of-the-week tale.  Instead, unconnected scenes from life unfold and we witness the never ending cycle of a parental burden which overtakes their lives.  The pain is understandable and possibly even recognizable.  That doesn’t make it hurt less or give undue hopefulness.

In the first scene the Super (Brenda Wehle) remarks that the apartment’s window guards are missing which is illegal.  Mary Jane took them off so her son could see outside since he cannot often go there.  This play is much like that little side conversation.  Playwright Amy Herzog has taken the safety bars down so we can peer into this world without manufactured barriers.  The result is a nuanced heartbreaker filled to the brim with both love and sadness.

Performances for Mary Jane are scheduled through June 2, 2024 at the Manhattan Theatre Club’s Samuel J. Friedman’s Broadway theater.

www.manhattantheatreclub.com

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Patriots

The rise of Vladimir Putin is the history being recounted in the always interesting yet slightly overbaked Patriots.  As an analysis on the corruptive forces that come with power, this intricately plotted exposé is a juicy political soap opera.  The production features technological flourishes which are both visually cool and effectively menacing.

Boris Berezovsky is the puppeteer in this potboiler.  The oligarchs operating in post-USSR are driving up their portfolios in a country where people are struggling economically.  Boris Yeltsin is a buffoonish clown (hilariously portrayed by Paul Kynman).  Greed is good seems to be the motivator.  The government needs to get out of the way.  A cynic might sense a wild swipe at capitalism and the West here as giant personal yachts are a connective desire no matter where the riches are hoarded.

Mr. Berezovsky finds a low ranking, politically unknown deputy and elevates his stature.  Putin is sure to do what he is told.  As we all know, however, that man has different ideas.  The evolution of this relationship and its inevitable power shift is the meat and potatoes of this play.

There is no attempt to gloss over the ruthlessness of businessmen in the wild west that is the 1990s era post-Communist oligarchy.  Nor is there any attempt to sanitize the violent tendencies of Vladimir Putin’s rule.  The battle for control is real and palpable tension is created.  The puppet master fails to maintain control of his so-called puppet.  Major events unfold and power is wrested.  Our current world is the end result.

There is a theory posited in Peter Morgan’s incisive yet sometime unfocused play.  Perhaps the “West” is also to blame for the rise of this textbook authoritarian.  Why was Russia told to get in line to join NATO behind far smaller countries?  We know how thin skinned wannabe dictators can be, just look at our American version(s).  Did the West miss an opportunity to send the world on a different, perhaps better, trajectory?

That tidbit is a little sidebar in this overall well-staged drama.  The play covers ground that many will know.  Details colorfully fill in the blanks.  Rupert Gold’s direction keeps the quickly moving action clear.  Minor set and lighting changes along with striking wall projections set the locations.  When Mr. Putin sits at his desk on a mostly empty stage there is a real sense of how significantly powerful he has become.

Will Keen’s portrayal of Putin is riveting.  From chip-on-the-shoulder bureaucrat to murderous thug, Mr. Keen’s sinister intensity makes one’s blood curl.  This is villain as phoenix rising from the chaos of an impotent government and its economic missteps.  The play gives enough background to make this ascension understandable.  Indirectly we wonder if this is the model being followed by others with similar needs for unchecked power in modern day monarchies.

Luke Thallon plays Roman Abramovich, a lesser oligarch who befriends Berezovski on his way up the food chain.  His ability to recognize and benefit from shifting winds provides another view into the political process.  Nothing is about morality despite the pretenses on display.  The driving force is strategic alignment with the eventual and unchallengeable winner.  Mr. Thallon is excellent in this role, perhaps realistically evolving more than any other character.

Michael Stuhlbarg is a huge presence in the leading role of Boris Berezovsky.  This larger than life person flails all over the place awash in their ego.  Success has created an insufferable maniac who is overly sure of his abilities and alliances.  I found Mr. Stuhlbarg’s performance to be a bit too broad if very entertaining.  His expansiveness colored the person with bold brushstrokes but sometimes the excesses seemed like acting with a capital A.

Patriots has a very large cast and there are meaningful smaller roles and scenes which paint the overall picture without unneeded exposition.  This play can be recommended for those who want to immerse themselves in a drama where moral degeneracy meets political power.  That we are still in this era while considering how we got here is the real gift of this play.

Patriots is running on Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre through June 23, 2024.

www.patriotsbroadway.com

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Fanatical Optimism & Joy Ride (NYC Fringe, Part 6)

New York City Fringe (formally the FRIGID Fringe Festival) is an open, lottery-based theater festival that gives artists an opportunity to let their ingenuity thrive in an environment that values freedom of expression and artistic determination.  In true support of the Indie Theater Community, 100% of box office proceeds go directly to the artists whose work is being presented.

Fanatical Optimism

“Welcome to the land of debris and the home of decay”.  The title of Adam LeBow’s extremely detailed rant Fanatical Optimism might seem incongruous with his material.  Climate change, defense spending, AI, racism, cultural appropriation, “Ronald fucking Reagan”, corporate greed, religion and drag queens are some of the many hot buttons pressed.  I would love to see this show taped and watched by families during holiday get togethers.  Discussion would most certainly ensue.

For those with open eyes and ears, much of the territory covered will be sadly familiar.  “Nukes are back!”  America is consumed by the “same old tired imperial proxy war circus”.  Our economy based on “vast profit accumulation and wage suppression” is labeled “inflation”.  Revoking the Fairness Doctrine enabling broadcast media to stop presenting alternative points of view.

Artificial Intelligence is likened to the human race having bought the farm, sung Old MacDonald style:  “AI, AI, oh”.  The threat is our complacency.  We are letting AI take all of our jobs.  Cue Arnold Schwarzenegger jokes.  The problem is dauntingly large.  Mr. LeBow’s worries about “millions of unemployed people scared and pissed off in a country awash in guns”.

Midway through this tirade is a section where a long list of everything that’s worrisome is belched in an extraordinary summation.  It made me ill but I wanted to have a copy of the list because it felt so complete.  I have to say that I don’t necessary see all of the connections made and agree with every position taken (i.e., the influence of Gordon Gecko).  That doesn’t matter.  He ended a jaw dropping end-of-the-world list with “Beyoncé made a country album”.  There is some funny in here to keep us from jumping off the bridge.

Fanatical Optimism looks inward as well.  That strengthens the show and gives us all a chance to consider our individual arcs in conjunction with the changes around us.  People born in the 1960s were the beneficiaries of social, political and cultural currents.  Their soil was planted hearing songs which said “a child is black / a child is white / together they grow to see the light”.  Today the Bible is used to “subjugate the threatening other”.

The material here is heavy stuff and points to the “rancid, reeking, sewage sludge we are all dealing with”.  Mr. LeBow references “all the stuff I’ve talked about and what I haven’t”.  What could possibly be missing?  He does attempt to end these proceedings on a happy note so that his show won’t be called depressing and “be banished from the cultural landscape”.

Is there a path forward to address the “impotent rage of a dying aristocracy?”  He asks “How much would we do to save the world?”  We are people who “lose our shit when we can’t get Wi-Fi” so the disheartening conclusion is “probably not much”.  This polemic is packed full of anger and told by a smiling Boomer/Gen X hybrid who wields a large smile and a heavy heart.

Joy Ride

A 2006 Toyota Sienna minivan with a “super high tech” six CD spinner is the setting for a family Joy Ride.  Meredith Brandt’s one woman show recounts personal stories using song parodies from tunes she heard over and over again.  Apparently the discs were “stuck” in the player so they were fully implanted in the brain.

The conceit is a winning one.  A sleepover in first grade results in a desire to come home.  “On My Own” from Les Misérables is rewritten as “Get Me Home”.  The tone is light and the memories recalled are warmly presented.

A Barbra Streisand compilation Essential Babs provides the lyrical high point in this show.  “Don’t Rain On My Parade is coopted while recounting her father’s driving.  “Dad hits the gas vroom” made me laugh but the whole song is clever.  Joy Ride is pleasant enough because the idea is soundly developed.  Adding in a Bonus Track was inspired.  Some funnier lyrics in all the song parodies would sharpen and enhance the joy in this sweetly concocted ride.

The New York City Fringe concluded its run on April 21, 2024.  This blog reviewed fourteen of the nearly four dozen works staged.

www.frigid.nyc/festivals

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Dad Girl, A Little Bit Pregnant & Brokeneck Girls (NYC Fringe, Part 5)

New York City Fringe (formally the FRIGID Fringe Festival) is an open, lottery-based theater festival that gives artists an opportunity to let their ingenuity thrive in an environment that values freedom of expression and artistic determination.  In true support of the Indie Theater Community, 100% of box office proceeds go directly to the artists whose work is being presented.

Dad Girl

Emily Walsh is a straight woman.  Watching Harrison Ford in Air Force One confirmed that.  She does, however, own enough hammers to “have a favorite one”.  This self-proclaimed Dad Girl embraces her womanhood but acknowledges the need to dress like the dad.

This stand up comic monologue covers a good deal of ground.  Gender labels provide laughs.  Toddler girls play with dolls and change their diapers “while still wearing diapers”.  Ms. Walsh notes that she not a lesbian but admits “I know I would be a good one”.  The beginning of this show firmly establishes her Dad Girl persona.

We then learn about her sweetheart of a nerdy husband.  A question is posed.  “How did this happy little puppy find this sea witch?”  She describes her marriage as one to Belle from Beauty and the Beast.  He “goes walking through the town smiling” and “I walk behind him as one of the townspeople”.  The vivid imagery created in this storytelling is very entertaining.

Advancing age brings up the kid conundrum.  To have or have not.  She’s been a “vigilant goalie” for decades.  Now she wonders why “I’m supposed to give shooting tips.”  There is quite a bit of lighthearted fare in her breezy delivery before things get deeper, a little darker and more serious.

That’s the reaction from the audience anyway.  Her relationship to her deceased Dad takes center stage.  Ms. Walsh has an edgy sense of humor but her jokes about death created some startled silences from the audience which she pointed out a few times.  Her surprising sense of humor (which not everyone will embrace) is clearly an asset.  Dad Girl is an interesting, fun, real character in comedic development.  Plunging unapologetically into the depths, however uncomfortable for some, is a jolting breath of fresh air.

Good jokes are numerous throughout.  She covers her fashion sense, bad boyfriends, perfect husband Danny, Vietnam Vet father and her IUD.  Will she ever have a child?  That would be another chapter in this character’s arc worth a listen.  In the meantime if it gets quiet “you can hear my uterus singing “Closing Time”.

 

A Little Bit Pregnant

If Dad Girl isn’t sure whether or not she wants a baby, Tasha finds herself pregnant at the start of the four character study A Little Bit Pregnant.  “Guess what?  I’m not dying” she informs her boyfriend as a way of easing into her announcement.  The surprise pregnancy clichés appear early and this show begins a bit stale.

Another young couple lives in the building and they desperately want a child.  They cannot get pregnant and are considering other options but their situation truly stings.  The tension which then develops gives the story more depth and conflict.  “If I were you I would be on cloud nine”.  A big revelation will ratchet up the wildly different dynamics between these two couples.

Kate Lavut’s short play ponders the question of whether two people in an imperfect relationship should take the plunge into parenthood.  There is a good scene between the newly pregnant Tasha and her male friend whose wife is thus far unlucky.  Both of their significant others are fuming with circumstances that are not necessarily under their control.  This quiet counseling moment between two friends provides some needed perspective and helps us sympathize with an age old dilemma.

Brokeneck Girls: The Murder Ballad Musical

In a western town located somewhere in America, a mayor’s wife tiptoes into a public tavern.  She’s annoyed today because her husband wanted her to perform her “womanly duties”.  In this case that means washing the dishes.  Harmless man bashing kicks off the female empowerment wild west kitchen sink casserole entitled Brokeneck Girls: The Murder Ballad Musical.

A trio (violin, guitar, banjo) will play tunes throughout this semi-plotted excavation of the evils men do.  A young girl named Polly went missing.  A wolf attack is blamed.  The song suggests otherwise.  “Into the grave Polly must go” then “debt to the devil, Willie must pay”.  Accountability is a theme well-developed in this show.

The town’s female Sheriff arrives and informs the ladies in the tavern that no one can leave until the coast is clear.  Train robber Railroad Bill is in town and up to no good.  “Does this mean we can’t go to the hanging tonight?”  Willie was apprehended.  Sadly these whisky drinkers will miss the fun for their own safety.

There are other murders to consider in this “murder ballad musical”.  Some may even involve those inside this tavern.  A talking bird is an unfortunate eyewitness and needs to go back in their cage so secrets will not gush forth.  A song laments “just wanted a kiss from Henry Lee / little bird what did you see / don’t tell a tale on me”.  A disturbingly violent episode is shared but the “violin softened it”.  Little snippets of humor do appear in this show which is aggressively all over the place.  The racism subplot, for example, is an extraneous add on.

Revenge is a dish best served folksy.  The trio asks “kill or be killed” and “which one will it be?”  There is a hard but welcome turn from folksy to MAGA level rage.  Crimes against women are not something to forgive.  The barkeep confesses “sometimes I like to do things that make men die”.  By that she means kill themselves or each other.

The balance between tongue-in-cheek humor and bloody dark vengeance flips back and forth.  “Let’s see if we can name all the girls that have been murdered since Christmas” precedes a call to “shove men off cliffs”.  A harder commitment to blinding rage and brutal retaliation could make Brokeneck Girls a very memorable feminist rant.

Toe tapping along with the trio in between frequent songs diminishes their clearly articulated fury.  “Kill all of them that seem dangerous” and “tiny killings on the side are fine” are unapologetically sharp hot-tempered mantras.  The final song drives the point home.  “There’s no such thing as justice / that’s why we sing this song”.

The New York City Fringe runs through April 21, 2024 at three locations: The Wild Project, 14Y Theater and UNDER St. Mark’s.  Most shows are also livestreamed.

www.frigid.nyc/festivals

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Stereophonic

A rock band’s one year odyssey to create a classic album is culled into a four act, three hour play.  Stereophonic is a brilliant synthesis of fictionalized documentary, raw human emotions, impressive theatrical staging and an intelligent, wide-eyed glimpse into the creative process.  The journey is arduous and the rewards are abundant.

The template is Fleetwood Mac and the album is Rumours, one of the biggest from the 1970’s.  David Adjmi has set his play entirely within a recording studio.  The engineering booth is in the foreground and the glass enclosing recording studio is behind.  This story will traverse both locations covering everything from life’s minutiae to artistic conflicts mid-recording.

How closely does this monitor the Fleetwood Mac story?  The five piece band consists of two couples and a drummer.  Keyboardist Holly (Juliana Canfield) and bassist Reg (Will Brill) are British like Christine and John McVie.  Guitarist and self-anointed king Peter (Tom Pecinka) and writer extraordinaire Diana (Sarah Pidgeon) mirror the long dating American duo Lindsay Buckingham and Stevie Nicks.  Then there’s the Dad figure Simon (Chris Stack) who plays drums ala Mick Fleetwood and whose wife and children are back home in England.

This outline was also used as the basis for the novel and television series Daisy Jones and the Six.  I read that book and enjoyed much of the series.  This foray into familiar territory is far more claustrophobic.  It is not necessary to know the real backgrounds being referenced but nostalgic gratification is a bonus for those who have a deep connection to this music and the period.

Mr. Adjmi’s play adds an engineer (Eli Gelb) and his assistant Charlie (Andrew R. Butler) to the proceedings.  They are trying to manage the creative chaos.  Grover lied about his resume to get the job so the power dynamic rests, at least initially, entirely with the band.  The assistant is a good natured, slightly vapid guy.  Both struggle to keep these recording sessions on track.  That is no easy feat.

The brilliance of this play lies in the realistic naturalism of everyday conversations juxtaposed against the tensions of relationships.  The setting allows for detailed character moments in between laying down new music.  A good portion of the play takes place in the studio.  Will Butler of Arcade Fire penned the original music and they amazingly capture the sound of this band and that album.

Songs are performed but sometimes in snippets.  The fits and starts of dealing with technical issues and vocal adjustments are concerns.  Five individuals and their unique visions are equally tension generators.  You know this album will get made over this year long process and, remarkably, you witness this passage of time.  Songs get cut and added, fixed and improved.  Watching this musical evolution is as much a treat as immersing oneself into the character conflicts brought to vibrant life with superb and highly nuanced acting performances.

Daniel Aukin directed this superlative cast and every performer inhabits a fully realized character.  The play’s arc covers a great deal of territory.  Different combinations allow for scenes in larger groups and smaller subsets.  The pot scene between the three male band members is both very funny and hugely relatable.  The success of this play is in the realistic details effortlessly conveyed.  Substance abuse, egos, snare drum screwups and dust on the monitor all factor into the mix.

David Zinn’s scenic design is a two level marvel (I wanted to steal the lamp on stage right).  Enver Chakartash’s costumes are a never ending parade of pitch perfect fashions of the era.  The sound design from Ryan Rumery is the critical element elevating the entire production.  Studio and engineering booth have to be heard differently which occurs beautifully and often simultaneously.  Musical moments are so fantastically staged (and sung) that the line between fiction and documentary gets blurry.

Most of the cast in Stereophonic are making their Broadway debuts following a successful mounting of this play last fall at Playwrights Horizons.  Mr. Adjmi has written memorably for all of them.  Like everyone, these people have flaws and dreams.  The real life Rumours album was a watershed moment for the band Fleetwood Mac.  Stereophonic ponders the hows and whys, the highs and lows, and the magical happenstance which afforded these people the opportunity to create a masterpiece.  This fascinatingly complex and totally satisfying play is an achievement at that level.

www.stereophonic.com

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No Bones About It & A Drag is Born (NYC Fringe, Part 4)

New York City Fringe (formally the FRIGID Fringe Festival) is an open, lottery-based theater festival that gives artists an opportunity to let their ingenuity thrive in an environment that values freedom of expression and artistic determination.  In true support of the Indie Theater Community, 100% of box office proceeds go directly to the artists whose work is being presented.

No Bones About It

Writer and performer Matt Storrs is obsessed with dinosaurs.  As a child he sent dino themed Valentine’s Day cards.  No Bones About It wraps his infatuation into a monologue beginning as a child who now looks back “to see how healthy it really was”.

One Valentine was sent to a girl he liked with a special note written to her.  She ripped it up.  Another later one results in a friendship that is still lasting.  Mr. Storrs asks, and we want to know, “Have I been diagnosed with anything?”  The answer is yes.  He has been diagnosed with a love of dinosaurs.

Favorite one?  Dilophosaurus.  You know.  The one in Jurassic Park that has those crazy head flaps and spits acid.  That movie franchise has taken a few liberties in their characterizations of these beloved creatures.  These falsehoods “caused a lot of problems”.  There is no denying Mr. Storrs has dinosaurs on the brain.

This good natured narrator weaves a light tale recalling some of his dino related diversions and what it means to him.  His particular mania gives him “something to focus on whatever is going on in his life”.  Some fun facts are interspersed between bits of biographical stories.

My favorite sections were the ones that were quirky and very specific.  As a child he was advocating for a carnivorous dinosaur, his favorite one, to be the state dinosaur of Arizona.  A religion lesson in middle school teaches the Earth was created in 4004 BC on October 23rd at 9:00 am.  How does one reconcile that with the fossil record?

Tales of celebrities trading in bones, the illegal collectors market and commentary on museum collections and their questionable provenance are the more serious topics gently discussed.  A sorority party and a drug dealer further solidifies how closely he identifies with these beasts.  The world, after all, is inhospitable.

No Bones About It meanders down a genial path but the impact lessens as the monologue continues.  A winning smile helps Mr. Storr engage with his audience and there are some amusing asides to enjoy.  Who actually collects these bones?  “Rich white men with a history of relationships that failed.” he quips.

Finally, and incredibly, this is my third source in the past few weeks (and second in the festival) to reference Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville restaurant.  I’m starting to wonder if there is a new obsession forming amongst comedic white men.  This establishment, appropriately, is in a Jurassic themed amusement park.  For Mr. Storrs that must really be a “Cheeseburger in Paradise”.

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A Drag is Born

Fanfare is played.  Lights are flashing.  Yet no entrance is made.  The audience dutifully claps.  Then a repeat.  More fanfare, etc.  A reluctant individual timidly walks on stage but skirts the spotlight.  The microphone is approached.  “Hello” precedes “can your hear me?”  From this tentative beginning, A Drag is Born.

Sweats and a backpack will transform into an outfit.  A “Broadway Baby” dances and twirls in a crazy red dress.  The spinning reminded me exactly of the mascot Christmas tree for Stanford University.  Both are insane and both embrace that insanity head on.  Another morph follows and the silhouette is now Bea Arthur.

Edu Diaz is the man thrust into the spotlight for his drag debut.  His characterization is clearly newbie to the scene.  The show promises clowning and magical realism.  A tongue-in-cheek warning also notes “with advanced age, abundant body hair and limited talents, he is an unlikely candidate”.

A Drag is Born is wordless.  There are a series of costume changes and reveals.  When one leg of the track suit will not cooperate, there is a funny mishap played to the hilt.  Clothing no longer needed is unceremoniously flung off-stage.  Early on we hear crashing noises backstage.  The goofy staging ideas are the most entertaining aspect of this debutante ball.

Pacing is unhurried as exemplified by how long it takes to put on heels.  That is probably commentary on the work drag requires but the length of time (after a very slow start) stretches that bit too far.  At this point, however, we move into drag show performance complete with lip synching and assorted reveals.  The presentation appears to be intentionally manic.  The show has the rough around the edges vibe of an amateur drag show performed in a friend’s basement.

There are a few messages touched upon in this mostly mimed performance.  I did hear a “Yes!” when Mr. Diaz donned a red feather headdress replete with cape during a Carnivalesque number.  Nutty onstage antics were not enough to sustain my undivided interest throughout this hour long solo piece.  The wings and heart pendant surely had meaning but I found it difficult to join the celebration as the show never really took flight.

The New York City Fringe runs through April 21, 2024 at three locations: The Wild Project, 14Y Theater and UNDER St. Mark’s.  Most shows are also livestreamed.

www.frigid.nyc/festivals

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The Wiz

My first Broadway show was with friends on a middle school trip to see The Wiz.  The tornado dance was a brilliant introduction to creative stagecraft and the allurement of live theater.  I still remember the show vividly, including Stephanie Mill’s knockout rendition of “Home”.  Much time and many changes to musicals happened from 1975 to 2024.  How will this chestnut hold up?

When I started this blog in 2017, I began watching archival footage of shows at the New York Public Library.  The Wiz was the first one.  This Tony winning Best Musical retold L. Frank Baum’s children’s novel through a then contemporary African American cultural perspective.  The show showed its age most notably in the book.  Jokes were wildly dated but the songs still worked.

In my blog post I wondered if the book could be fixed.  Amber Ruffin has used her magic wand to reorganize and enhance William F. Brown’s original.  Even the good witches are impressed.  “I have heard of houses and I have heard of murder… but to combine the two!”  When our band of misfits finally reach the city gates the guards simply dismiss them as “talking trash and a dusty cat”.

This rewrite certainly links old jokes but instead of using the slum descriptor “projects” the reference becomes the “housing market”.  The book was never the most important element since nearly everyone knows the story of Dorothy and her trip to see the wizard of Oz.  All of the fun is still intact and a significant number of truly memorable scenes can be had if you just follow that yellow brick road.

Filling Stephanie Mills’ legendary ruby slippers is a tall order and Nichelle Lewis makes the role her own.  She’s both a stabilizing presence in a world of outrageous inventions as well as a vocal powerhouse.  The “Home” finale, which everyone in the audience waited for with bated breath, is better than one could hope for.  Ms. Lewis put her spin on these songs but always let Charlie Smalls’ music and lyrics shine.  She has a big, beautiful voice but there is no bombast obstructing the melodies or her gorgeous vocal stylings.

The cast is entertaining throughout.  There is usually a battle between the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion for favorite sidekick.  Phillip Johnson Richardson has far different ideas.  His Tinman is a scene stealing wonder from his entrance song “Slide Some Oil to Me” to his second act showstopper “What Would I Do If I Could Feel?”  That song is typically a middling moment in a lesser second act.  Mr. Richardson turns the moment into solid gold. (I wanted to say Tin Pan Alley showstopper but that pun is both dated and far too silly.)

Understudy Allyson Kaye Daniel played Aunt Em and Evillene the night I caught The Wiz.  Her witchy “Don’t Nobody Bring Me No Bad News” remains a high point.  Glinda (Deborah Cox) belted “Believe In Yourself” a little too strongly which smothered the words but it was certainly rousing.

Along with the enjoyable performers is a staging concept that was inspired.  Schele Williams has directed The Wiz with a nod to 1970’s variety shows.  Jaquel Knight’s choreography definitely references that period but also, and ingeniously, takes these highly memorable and admired tunes and gives them a modern kick.  The Wiz bridges 1970’s disco movement with hip hop and other more recent dance styles.  Many shows try this but do not exceed at this high level.

If all of that is not enough goodness, the visuals on stage are a technicolor fantasia.  Sets (Hannah Beachler) and video projections (Daniel Brodie) are superlative, both old school and bursting with color.  The harken back to this century old story is nicely glossed with a futuristic flourish.  Evillene’s Palace is a particular visual treat.  Forest transitions are elegant and varied.  Ryan J. O’Gara’s lighting design makes this kaleidoscope of color an eye-popping feast.  Even the show’s curtain is alive.

Costumes are hugely important and Sharen Davis has given the characters and this talented ensemble an array of clever designs.  The Poppies and the Yellow Brick Road crew are two excellent examples.  The Scarecrow (Avery Wilson), Lion (Kyle Ramar Freeman) and Tinman outfits are all expertly realized.

This musical has been reworked and reorganized to great effect.  The lagging second half has been restructured to guarantee entertaining moments throughout.  The first act now closes with “Be A Lion,” one of the show’s best numbers.  If you have never seen this show or want to relive an appealing, popular score from yesteryear, simply ease on down the road to the Marquis Theatre.  Green sequins seem to be the perfect fashion choice for a number of attendees.

I have always found the ending of the Wizard of Oz to be a bit sad.  Saying goodbye to new friends who have bonded in a life changing and life affirming adventure.  The final reprise of “Ease on Down the Road” here is stunningly poignant and truly lovely.  This technicolor spectacle even knows how to pause and conjure touching intimacy.

The Wiz is for theatergoers who connect with this material in any of its many incarnations.  The Wiz is also for people excited to see a well staged, memorably sung, big Broadway musical.  Isn’t that nearly all of us?  “Can you feel a brand new day?”  I can and did.

www.wizmusical.com

theaterreviewsfrommyseat/thewiz(Retrospective Series)

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Lempicka

Tamara de Lempicka was an Art Deco artist who gained fame for her highly stylized nude portraits.  Her work is described as refined cubism combined with neoclassical.  Her entire story is fascinating.  This musical based on her life is not.

All of the historical ingredients are there.  Born in Warsaw she married a Russian dignitary in 1917 as the projections will dutifully inform.  Immediately following it’s 1918 and the Russian Revolution has changed life forever.  She flees to Paris after arranging for her incarcerated husband’s freedom.  They need money, she likes to paint and an artist is born.

She discovers her bisexuality while ogling a carefree prostitute whom she paints.  Her fame comes at a major Parisienne art expo with 1932’s Adam and Eve painting, one of few which contain a male nude.  In this telling Adam is her husband and Eve is her lover/muse.  On and on it plods along.  An interesting story turned into a dull musical.  You know a show is falling flat when the too frequent belting numbers pause for extended ovations which do not come.

The sets and look of Lempicka seem to have little to do with her or the Art Deco style.  There is an Eiffel Tower like structure providing stairs and platforms which remains through the whole show.  People traverse these elevated platforms here and there.  For what purpose is the obvious question.

There are indeed some cool lighting effects in certain scenes such as when she discovers lady love in a beautifully lit smoky fade out.  Other time the lights are just harsh or weird.  Nothing says cheap like the depiction of the nightclub Le Monocle.  Speaking of gay, the men in the ensemble are directed and choreographed to be effete caricatures which seemed overly exaggerated.

The house and the studio (same set platform) slides on and off stage awkwardly and frequently.  It lumbers more than glides.  Go see The Who’s Tommy or The Outsiders to get a glimpse of well designed and directed transitions.  To make matters worse, people enter and exit at odd times.  During Rafaela’s love ballad, Tamara departs the platform mid-song for no apparent reason.

Not all is lost.  There are several supporting performances worth mentioning.  Marinetti is one of Tamara’s teachers.  George Abud delivers big in each of his scene stealing numbers.  Beth Leavel is the Baroness who is an early supporter of Lempicka’s art.  Everything Ms. Leavel does is right for the characterization.  “Just This Way” is sung near the end of Act II and the song deservedly receives an extended ovation.  The show finally has something memorable to say.

Amber Iman is believable and even charming as the model/whore stereotype.  As the husband, Andrew Samonsky is not given a great deal to do but the growth of the person makes sense.  As the titular star, Eden Espinosa is enjoyable.  The show surrounding her takes so much focus off her that she is overshadowed by the theatrical excess.  Multiple supporting characters overshadow the protagonist.

Rachel Chavkin (Hadestown) staged Lempicka and the direction seems to be the show’s most glaring flaw.  A great history about an inventive artist for sure.  A decent Broadway musical, however, this is not.

Lempicka is playing at the Longacre Theatre.

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Miami Madness & Stroke of Genius (NYC Fringe, Part 3)

New York City Fringe (formally the FRIGID Fringe Festival) is an open, lottery-based theater festival that gives artists an opportunity to let their ingenuity thrive in an environment that values freedom of expression and artistic determination.  In true support of the Indie Theater Community, 100% of box office proceeds go directly to the artists whose work is being presented.

Miami Madness

My first and last experience in the fabled city of Miami involved my hotel room being robbed and my wallet pickpocketed.  When I went to board a plane and explain to the TSA agent why I had no identification he said, “that’s Miami”.  Did I need to go back and immerse myself once again in Miami Madness?  Thanks to writer and performer Dennis Rodwin the answer is a resounding yes.

His story begins over a year ago.  Mr. Rodwin is asked to write a musical about the history of Miami.  This show will take place on a boat.  What follows is a one man monologue jam packed with jokes, historical tidbits, danger, sexy conquistadores, a lesson in first class upgrades and offensive Native American costume design.

We learn about a funny religion called “commercial theater producers”.  They believe they can make money.  Our host has spent a career in this world and wouldn’t mind making a few bucks.  He is approached by a deal making, probably shady foreign accented wheeler and dealer.  He has some bizarre ideas for this show (which would be both amusing and revolting to see).

This grand adventure begins on a plane flight to Miami.  Should he take this gig?  Is Oleg on the up and up?  A desire to contribute something to the theatrical community is a driving force.  His producer wants to create the “most successful musical ever made” in a very short timeframe.  Costumes are made before there is a script.

Side adventures take place in a car, in the ocean and at hotels.  Every diversion is entertaining.  The show is one hour long.  An impressively dense story feels whimsical and moves along swiftly.  The twists and turns never fail to surprise and captivate.  Little side trips are funny and silly scary.  Has Mr. Rodwin embellished (or fabricated) some or all of this story?  If so, his madness is our gain.

Research is obviously required to write a musical about sunny Miami Beach where there’s “always a view, never a Jew”.  The rampant antisemitism prevalent during the development of this area provides commentary on our country’s racial injustices without ever launching into preachiness.  The litany of examples cited led me to learn more from Google.

The large Cuban population is also covered.  I did not know that Desi Arnaz from television’s landmark series I Love Lucy is credited with introducing the conga line to the United States.  That brief description is vividly memorable.  The storytelling here is meticulously organized and confidently told.  The journey is endlessly fascinating and equally idiotic, an ideal combination.

Quite a few confessions are made.  Mr. Rodwin likes Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville restaurant chain.  Apparently it is surprisingly good.  Two weeks ago I listened to Colin Jost’s memoir.  In it, he also exclaims the joys of this establishment.  I’m going to give in and grab a cheeseburger in paradise.  Hopefully I will savor its juicy delights as much as I did with Miami Madness.

Stroke of Genius

Dr. Walter Winkworth-Perez is academia’s foremost authority on Pantomime Masturbation theory and practicum.  Puns like that appear non-stop during this lecture on such theory throughout performing arts history.  Stroke of Genius is a good natured lightly raunchy trip spanning imagery from 3,000 year old pottery shards featuring large penises to 1920’s silent film star Ira K. Goldsmith, aka “The Spankin’ Shyster”.

The professor tells us that his field of study is admittedly eccentric.  We are told that we are allowed to laugh.  He banters with his students in a fill in the blanks section.  Riffs include ridiculous asides (“hand to gland combat”) and more aggressively vulgar ones (“making stomach pancakes”).

Through the ages this lecture travels.  Shakespeare parodies include “Much A Goo About Nothing.”  This comic idea is relentless in its focus.  Unfortunately the jokes proffered do not garner the expected laughs so the silences are awkward.

Numerous well-made film clips feature phallic excess from famous films of yesteryear.  Frankenstein is an example using “monster-bation tropes”.  In the shipboard clip Friggin’ the Riggin’ our seaman is “quite the jolly Roger”.  DW Griffith and Jules Verne get a rewrite as well.  Charlie Chaplin is an obvious influence.  He played The Great Dictator after all.

Stroke of Genius is conceptually a great idea for a farcical sex comedy about a taboo topic not normally given an uninterrupted hour of analysis.  Shane Mayforth plays our droll professor and writer Vulva Va-Voom (also in this festival’s TransMasculine Cabaret) pulls dual duty as writer and film star.  Both are game clowns, serious and stupid.

Comedy is, to put it bluntly, hard.  The material in this show is underpumped so the expected climaxes of hilarity are muted.  I do think this show could be coaxed into becoming a playful bit of burlesque-y bar stage fun.  Maybe as part of a drag show. An inebriated audience craving potty humor might be the target demographic.

Whatever the future holds (get it?) there will be women in the audience.  Presumably masturbation is more universal?  Perhaps a nod to the ladies is advisable.  Movie idea:  Inside Daisy’s Clover.  The gem of an idea has been sown.  The reaping of endless laughter will require some more tilling.

The New York City Fringe runs through April 21, 2024 at three locations: The Wild Project, 14Y Theater and UNDER St. Mark’s.  Most shows are also livestreamed.

www.frigid.nyc/festivals