At four years old, little Lucie Pohl’s teeth are black from eating too much candy, she’s obsessed with Hitler, and she spends her nights watching her father channel Zarah Leander – while performing in full drag.  Lucie doesn’t know it yet, but she’s the typical American Kid.

Don’t believe me?  By eight years old little Lucie’s very artistic, very non-traditional German-Jewish family heads from Hamburg to New York City. From then on, nothing is the same for her again.

Actress, comedian & writer Lucie Pohl takes her show Hi, Hitler (directed by Jessi D. Hill) to 59E59 Theatre before making her Edinburgh Festival debut.  With only one show left tomorrow afternoon, I was happy to catch this performance before it set off for the tour.

Pohl’s transition from German kid to New York City transplant is a story that can resonate with any person living here. Even if your trek started from the Midwest, chances are you arrived with the same wide-eyed shock when confronted with the unique rhythm of The Big Apple.  You probably had the same “Now What?” moments and struggled to find your spot in a city where ‘finding a spot’ is a myth for some, a birthright for others – and for those brave enough to accept the challenge – a dare that determines how everything else will fall into place.  Some thrive on it.  Some are beaten back by it.  But it all starts with that search to fit into an already over-crowded metropolis.

Perhaps the only difference between Lucie and you is your point of origin, and the fact that one of the last things Lucie did before coming to America was rock out at a David Hasselhoff  concert.  Those Germans sure love the Hoff.

As she describes it, Pohl’s childhood was filled with emotional souvenirs from her homeland – but whose isn’t?  Lucie’s mother may not have been traditional, but she invented and reinforced the concept of The Pohl Family Circus – not an actual circus, but real-life performance art where the drama of their family was played out on the stage of their new home.  At the Circus the Pohls were allowed to be as dramatic, as quirky, as unique and as peculiar as they want to be.

The melodrama of growing up with father Klaus Pohl (a heavy-drinking tortured playwright) and mother Sandra Weigl (a free spirited singer and the niece of Bertolt Brecht) is captured brilliantly in lines like  “I stood in front of the mirror to watch myself cry.  Because that is what you do in a theatrical family”.

As resistant as she was to the idea, nine year old Lucie fits in beautifully, as all eccentric, bizarre, unique kids fit into this city of immigrants.  And while it may have taken a while for her particular brand of crazy to catch on, once it did she found for herself that eventually all those strange inclinations are what make new kids on the block sparkle, causing them to be embraced and even prized.

Pohl – whose normal voice has not a trace of any accent besides good ole All-American – has a gift for accents and intonations.  Not only is she able to switch between her native German-speaking-younger-self to her English-speaking-present-self without dropping a beat, she also consummately takes on her European-accented relatives while  voicing everything from an Indian cab driver to a Chinese landlord.   What really stands out is the mishmash of German-with-Peurto-Rican swagger she and her German friend adopt and dub (among other things) “German-icano”.

Pohl is dramatic – and this is obvious from the first moment she bounds onto the stage.  She’s a proud German, a proud Jew, a proud New Yorker and a proud performer.  These facts are telegraphed boldly throughout every moment of the play.  She’s an amalgam of far-flung nuances and all that chemistry can’t help but bubble up and create an enticing cocktail of humor, storytelling and tireless physical pantomime.

Her volume starts at – and stays at – 11.  And while it takes a good five minutes to adjust to the speed of her roller coaster, Pohl’s performance gives you that same giddy payoff, worth every second of the ride.

Director Jessi D. Hill understands the fizzy burst of Pohl’s innate intensity.  Hill guides the force, sometimes shaking up the bottle and letting Pohl’s natural energy and exuberance burst all over the stage, and sometimes slowing down Pohl’s natural inclinations in order to underline the more thoughtful, sincere moments of the play.

Pohl’s off to Edinburgh, but I’m relatively sure she’ll be back in the states soon enough performing this firecracker of a show.  So if you weren’t able to catch it this time around, make sure to keep an eye out for Hi, Hitler.  This is defintely a case where audiences will benefit by history repeating itself.

~~~

Hi, Hitler

Click Here for tickets

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For the Brady Kids it’s a beautiful morning and it’s gonna be a beautiful day.  And why not?  It’s 1974, they’re movin’ and groovin’ all through the night, and The Partridge Family is getting hot under the collar as the Bradys tread on their turf — a sure sign that they’re worthy competitors.  But in seventies sitcom land one does not simply unseat the royals.  Tracy Partridge, get your triangle … there’s gonna be a musical throw down.

Brady Kids of THE BARDY BUNCH [photo by Katie Settel]

Welcome to The Bardy Bunch: The War of the Families Partridge and Brady, and if you’ve been here before – welcome back!  In 2011 playwright Stephen Garvey showed Fringe audiences what happens when you take a little bit of The Brady Bunch canon, A little bit of The Partridge Family canon, and handfuls from the Shakespeare buffet and shake them all up together.  The result is one giant molded-salad of puns, quotes and interlocking story lines all set against a vivid avocado and burnt orange background.   “This is one show I wish I could go back and see again,” I’d said in my 2011 Fringe review and now, thanks to the good sense of the theatre gods, my wish came true.

In the hands of Garvey The Bardy Bunch is musical comedy genius, and watching this reboot now playing at the Theatre at St. Clements was like settling in to watch a re-run of a beloved show. There was a rush of familiarity coupled with a tingle of expectation at what I’d remember.  I was also excited to see some new scenes added in that only made the show better.

Choreographer Lorna Ventura once again sets up the show with a powerhouse number of both nostalgic and new moves.  Ventura faithfully recreates the Bradys’ iconic twirls as they fly down the road in their makeshift Model T A – so familiar that you are doing the moves along side them in your head. But then quick as a wink the Partridge kids bear down and Ventura swirls the warring kids up in a West-Side-Story rumble that ignited the audience and set the pace for the entire night.

From here on in it’s Brady verses Partridge at every turn with shades of Macbeth, Hamlet and Romeo & Juliet ringing the big bells with a few other Shakespearean references tinkling throughout.  You’ll be tickled regardless of  how extensive your knowledge of the Bard’s body of work.  And rest assured, in case you miss a reference there’s bound to be a show-off  in the audience ready to point it out by laughing loudly at an allusion you might have missed.  That’s okay – there’s plenty of fun to go around and everyone’s there to have a good time.

Director Jay Stern (who also directed Bardy at Fringe 2011)  knows the material well – pulling just the right moments of silliness and fun to warm the fans of the corny TV shows while still understanding when to control the effect of the Shakespearean references in order to have them hit their mark. Stern’s balanced hand ensures that Bardy is a delicate melange rather than a chaotic jumble – something that easily could have happened in the hands of a less perceptive director.  This is most evident when Stern succeeds in making a brutal bloodbath work as it plays out behind a crooning love song – no small feat, but just what the Bard ordered.

The cast is effervescent and fresh – despite simultaneously being spot-on in their retro interpretation.  Shag haircuts and far-out clothes can’t disguise the dynamic exuberance they bring to every number.  With several alums from the original Fringe cast it’s obvious that this show is as fun to perform as it is to watch.  All involved – from Brady Kids to Partridge Family and even Rubin and Alice come together in big numbers like the showstopping “(You’ve Got The)Sunshine In Your Hands/Think I’ll Go For A Walk Outside” arranged by musical director Logan Medland.  Moments like this one – and there were many – had the audience clapping along exuberantly and whooping at the end of the number.

Partridge Kids of THE BARDY BUNCH [photo by Katie Settel]

The entire show is written with a wink to the audience, both a love letter to the shows of childhood as well as a lampooning of the hackneyed, rehashed plots favored by both shows.  But as the Bard himself said in “As You Like It”  - ”I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it”.   Corny?  Yes.  Sappy?  Definitely.  But we like that mid-century modern place that Mr. Brady designed.  We like that Mondrian-painted bus that Mrs. Partridge drove around.  We willingly waste our time in the corridor of 1970s land where Marcia is lovely, Keith Partridge is dreamy, and everything is groovy on a daily basis.  If you didn’t have the chance to spend some time with this bunch a few years ago … now is the time to catch it and willingly waste some time of your own.  You’ll be glad  you did.

~~~

The Bardy Bunch: The War of the Families Partridge and Brady

Written by Stephen Garvey
Directed by Jay Stern

March 20-April 13, 2014

Theatre at St. Clements
423 West 46th Street
New York, NY 10036

CLICK HERE for tickets

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No matter your age or where you are in life, chances are you can identify with sixteen year old Jasper.  Seems his world is a cacophony of tweets and gossip and shout outs and “don’t forget to”s that ring hollow from people who barely have their own lives together.   There’s so much over stimulation in Jasper’s life that it’s impossible for him to hear his own thoughts, let alone sort out his own path.  So is it any wonder he’s anxious to escape all the noise and just get to where he feels the safest?  Dodge the warring parents, the nosy classmates, the bombastic crowds and just float underwater where it’s all just blissful?

If only it were that easy.  Cue best-friend-not-girlfriend Agnes who professes her love for Jasper and then does what any teen does when she’s rejected:  she makes a simultaneous cry for attention and leap of faith and dramatic gesture. She emulates his aquatic skills and dives off a cliff.  Did she survive? Maybe.  That’s for Jasper to find out.

And so begins Hunter Foster and Ryan Scott Oliver‘s musical Jasper In Deadland, currently playing at the West End Theater and running until April 13th.

Matt Doyle as Jasper | JASPER IN DEADLAND [ photo by Matthew Murphy]

If Jasper was seeking out peace, it’s unfortunately illusive.  Deadland, it seems, is just as bustling – if not more-so – than the world he left uptop. It comes replete with its own infrastructure of denizens as well as neophytes. For those who are feeling a little lost, one need only follow helpful tour guide Gretchen. Eager to help Jasper navigate the whirls and pops and find  his Agnes, Gretchen gives him a run-down of what he’s got in store. (AS EACH MEMORY ERASES, THE PHOTOS OF FAMILIAR FACES SMUDGE AND BLOT— BUT YOU WON’T CARE A LOT; YOU’LL FORGET YOU FORGOT.)

Not only is Jasper up against unbelievable odds (“There’s like a billion-trillion souls in Deadland”) but he also must race against time … for the longer he stays below the more his memory of all that was above begins to erode.   Plus, he’s having trouble navigating the town without being followed.  In the short time he’s been in Deadland he’s been making headline news as “A Living Soul Among Us!” and everyone wants to touch the boy who can bring back a flash of their undead life with just a bump, a grasp or a graze.  As he gamely dodges thrill seekers and moves from one hot spot to another, sub plots begin to bubble up and thicken the plot. Lurking in between everything is the evil Mr. Lethe who keeps Deadland in his clutches through advertising, mass production and despicable dosing. Of course he does.

Foster and Oliver leave no moment in the play unused – in between the large bricks of the grand quest, the battle between good and evil and the star-crossed lovers the team has taken care to use a cement of humor, and mythological allusions galore.  If at times it seems a bit crowded, plot wise, it’s at least an enjoyable crush.

In a cast this small there is no room for weak links – and there are none.  Lead by the boyishly charming Matt Doyle with a winning and engaging Allison Scagliotti by his side, each actor on stage is in turn funny, magnetic and powerfully spirited.  The cast of nine is dynamic and bursting with talent – all but Doyle and Scagliotti  play numerous roles and will often switch characters with head-spinning alacrity.   This consummate cast magically doubles and triples their output –  there is often so much energy, so much vocal power and so much artistry that during many of the musical numbers they will fool you into thinking they number in the dozens.

Matt Doyle and Allison Scagliotti in “Living Dead” [photo by Matthew Murphy]

Director Brandon Ivie’s staging is often a bit frenetic yet seems to be intentionally so – and serves the story line.  How else to explain the safety of living inside another person’s life than to show the chaos that exists without it?

Herrick Goldman’s lighting design and Ed Chapman’s sound design embrace the magic and innovation of independent theatre – many of the more powerful moments sit squarely on the scaffolding of the lighting and sound design which beautifully intensifies the emotional impact of many of the more ethereal scenes in Deadland.

Jasper In Deadland, with its high-octane cast, stunning visuals and whimsical staging knocks it out of the park.  This may be an age-old story, but it’s filled with up-to-the-moment flourishes that will delight you from start to finish.  I say dive on in.

~~

JASPER IN DEADLAND
Book by Hunter Foster and Ryan Scott Oliver
Music and Lyrics by Ryan Scott Oliver

Directed by Brandon Ivie

March 16 – April 13, 2014

West End Theater
in the Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew
(263 West 86th St., NYC)
$50 regular seating, $65 premium

To purchase CLICK HERE or call 212-352-3101

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There’s not too much that’s quiet about Pat Kinevane’s performance in his self-authored, one man play, Silent, now playing at the Donaghy Theatre in the Irish Arts Center. This is a piece that has shown some legs since it’s development through 2010 and performances in 2011, when it won prizes at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Brighton’s Argus Angel Awards, and accolades around Ireland. Energized by an electrifying performance from Kinevane, and a richly theatrical dramatization from both performer/author and his director Jim Culleton, it’s not difficult to see why it works so successfully as fine entertainment with a dark twist.

It emerges against a background of contemporary Irish theatre works that show a marked inclination toward the dramatically dark comedy. Stifling social mores work hand in hand with smothering familial circumstances, producing situations so bad that – well, you’ve got to laugh, haven’t you? In this bleak tale our narrator, Tino McGoldrig, a homeless wino on the Dublin streets, recounts his sorry history and the story of his tragic older brother, Pearse. Set in the present, as Tino tells it, there was a sustained small-town roughness, a narrow-mindedness to their upbringing in the picturesque town of Cobh, Co. Cork. We’re back in the world of Brinsley MacNamara’s Valley of the Squinting Windows, where the residents have little to do but shame and one-up each other, ever watchful for anything that might not conform to a coveted normalcy. Pearse, alas, is recognizably light in the loafers from an early age, and soon attracts the scorn and ridicule of his community. He is, however, surpassingly beautiful, and wins the attentions of a merchant seaman. Discovery and public disgrace follow soon after and from then on he is hounded, suffering threats of humiliation and  physical violence at every turn. Young Tino observes all fretfully, but silently, happy in his own evasion of attention or accusation. Isolated and hectored, Pearse gives up in his teen years and commences a series of suicide attempts as coarsely comical as they are pitilessly unsuccessful. Stigma and shame attaches to the family and even though Tino struggles towards a blameless normal existence – marriage, and a child, and denial – guilt and depression overtake him and he succumbs to alcoholism and a downward spiral. He is thrown out of his home, debarred, and eventually institutionalized, ending up on the streets of the capital.

It’s baroque stuff, with a whiff of melodrama, but all retold in a caustic, unsentimental manner, swinging from the anecdotally ridiculous to the inflatedly operatic. The lost romance of the silent movie era is given some play – Tino and his father having been named in honor of Rudolf Valentino – and there are arresting sequences of old-school actorly projecting – smoldering dumb shows with opulent lighting effects and text placards. These passages are nicely foiled by Tino’s more natural, direct stage address, comprising elements of contemporary stand-up, satirical impersonation, and loquacious bar stool Blarney. Everything is punctuated by the recorded tinkle of a coin dropping into Tino’s pavement begging bowl, recalling us to the here and now, and Tino to his present predicament – the need to ‘perform’ for his supper.

Kinevane as Tino is mesmerizing, both to watch and to listen to. This is a performer as fully adept with traditions of physical theatre – mime, dance, voguing – as he is with vocal modulation – pitch, expression, mimicry. He even works in some audience interaction, relaxing the dramatic tension, just as easily as he can sharpen it, never losing control. This is a considerable asset, as in the final analysis, there is something over-long in the telling – a tendency to meander off on a riff that proves as compelling as the main narrative itself. If it’s possible for the teller to upstage his tale, then perhaps Kinevane is a bit guilty here. Tino’s life has been devoured by Pearse’s story, but Kinevane’s performance, in some measure, overwhelms his narrative. Whether you agree or not, it’s something to see.

In dramatic visualization, director and co-developer, Jim Culleton, displays insight and authority. Along with Kinevane, Culleton devised the lighting design. One wonderful scene – at a moment of high drama - deploys shadows thrown up on a backdrop as separate stage presences, heightening mood and tension. This high degree of imaginative thoughtfulness is consistent in Catherine Condell‘s simple, but supple costuming, and in the evocative sound design by Denis Clohessy. Taking a compelling lead from Kinevane, this condensed company have produced a work of elaborate theatricality, sounding a bold and refreshing note for theatre as theatre.

Running Time: 80 minutes

Admission: $30 non-members / $24 members

Click Here for tickets

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Broadway Week, September 4 – 16, with 99% of plays and musicals offered in a 2-4-1 bonanza, is always eagerly anticipated. The Fall discounts include nearly 20 shows, including some hard-to-get-tickets-to blockbusters.  In addition, 25 Theatre District restaurants are offering a free dessert when a ticket stub from participating shows is presented.

“The only thing better than seeing a Broadway show is the opportunity to get two tickets for the price of one,” said Charlotte St. Martin, executive director, the Broadway League. “Thanks to NYC & Company, we’re thrilled to offer this exciting opportunity again to  theatergoers.”
Productions participating in Fall’s Broadway Week are Bring It On, Chaplin, Chicago, An Enemy of the People, Evita, 2012 Tony-winning Best Revival [in its last weeks on Broadway] Porgy and Bess, Tony-winning  Jersey Boys, Tony-winning The Lion King, Mamma Mia!, Mary Poppins, Newsies, Nice Work If You Can Get It, 2012 Tony winning Best Musical Once, Peter and the Starcatcher, Tony-winning long-run champion The Phantom of the Opera, Rock of Ages, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, Tony-winning War Horse, and Tony-winning Wicked.  All are subject to availability and blackout dates may apply. Use the code BWAYWEEK at theatre box offices to save a bundle in service charges.

Participating restaurants are B. Smith’s, Ca Va Brasserie, FireBird, the Russian Tea Room, Shun Lee West, and Sky Room Times Square. To book tickets for a Broadway Week show and for the complete list of participating restaurants, visit nycgo.com/broadwayweek.
Amtrak Guest Rewards members earn 100 points or more for tickets purchased to participating shows by registering their account with Audience Rewards before purchase.
Broadway Week is produced by NYC & Company, the Broadway League, AARP, Amtrak, NBC-4, and The New York Times. For more information, to make online purchases, and a full list of restaurants, visit nycgo.com/broadwayweek.

Happy 100^th!

World dance impresario, Hungarian-born Paul Szilard is 100 (August 24). Many of the world’s ballet companies owe their current renaissance or, in fact, wouldn’t exist today without his amazing largesse. In June, at Paris’ Theatre du Chatelet, on the opening night of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater season, he was was decorated by the French Ministry of Culture for his years of bringing great dance to France and for his contributions to French culture.

Mr. Szilard has presented not only Alvin Ailey, but also New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theater, Martha Graham Dance Company, Madrid’s Ballet Víctor Ullate, and, among others, Universal Ballet and such artists as Mikhail Baryshnikov and Judith Jamison here and throughout the world. The first English-language Broadway show presented in Japan, West Side Story, was presented by Mr. Szilard.

As a leading dancer, Mr. Szilard performed throughout the world. Under My Wings: My Life as an Impresario, his autobiography, was published in 2002.

Kipling’s Jungle Book Onstage

Theatre East presents a new adaptation of Kipling’s classic The Jungle Book by Megan O’Brien, Off Broadway beginning September 1 for a limited engagement at the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre [416 West 42^nd Street, between Ninth and Ten Avenues].  Dina Epshteyn directs. This tale of a lost boy being adopted by the animals of the jungle is told through the eyes of young Alex, who through the pages of the story uses his imagination to bring the book to life. Through shadow puppetry, and new staging this is a show the entire family will enjoy. For more information, visit www.junglebooktheplay.org.

Tickets are $25; $20, for groups of 10 or more. They’re on sale at the box office and through Ticket Central, (212) 279-4200 or www.ticketcentral.com, where you can find the performance schedule.

Celebrating Brazil

Millions will throng Sixth Avenue, in the vicinity of Little Brazil, West 46^th Street, between Sixth and Fifth Avenues for the 28^th annual Brazil Day festivities. They lead off with a parade and music festival on Sixth Avenue on Saturday, September 1. Then, the next day, 25 streets of the surrounding area become New York’s largest street fair. The stage at 42^nd Street and Sixth will showcase some of Brazil’s hottest musicians and entertainers will be in a Samba-madness mode, along with visiting soccer stars. Since Brazil will host the 2016 Olympic Summer Games, you can expect even more enthusiasm this year. For more information, visit www.brazilianday.com.

Sponsors include Brazil’s TV Globo and the newspaper The Brasilians and BACC Travel, owned by Honorary Little Brazil Mayor  João de Matos.
For authentic Brazilian delicacies and famed all-you-can-eat meats from dozens of skewers, visit the classic steakhouses Churrascaria Plataforma on West 49^th Street, between Eighth and Ninth Avenues, and the Churrascaria Plataforma in Tribecca; and Brazil Grill, Eighth Avenue and 48^th Street.

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It’s that time of year loyal lovers of theater dread. Shows that have been struggling to make it, will be closing. The light at the end of the tunnel, as is always the case with Broadway, is that new, and some are quite exciting, shows will be taking their place.

The musical Ghost, based on the 1990 smash film, gave up the ghost Saturday [August 17]. The End of the Rainbow, with [whether you believe the arc of the play to be factual or fiction] a commanding performance by Tracie Bennett, heads out to tour soon [and will be adapted for the screen] and, as of Sunday, there’s no Judy, Judy, Judy on Broadway. On August 29, the curtain rings down on glitzy Sister Act.

Closing it’s limited engagement on September 1 is the New York Shakespeare Festival’s revival of Sondheim’s Into the Woods, playing Central Park’s Delacorte Theatre [free admission], and starring Oscar winner Amy Adams and Tony winner Donna Murphy.

September 2 we must say cheerio to one of this season best entertainments, One Man, Two Guvnors, starring 2012 Best Actor, the incomparable James Corden. It’s a laugh riot and should be at the top of your Must See list. Also closing the same day is this year’s Best Play, Bruce Norris’s Clybourne Park, also a Pulitzer Prize honoree and Olivier Award winner.
The acclaimed 2012 Tony-winning revival of George and Ira Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess,starring Audra McDonald

Porgy and Bess (Audra McDonald and Norm Lewis | Photo by Michael J. Lutch)

[except August 21-23], Norm Lewis, and David Alan Grier, has posted September 23 for its final performance. Rumor has it heading to the big screen, directed by Spike Lee.

Off Broadway, you can catch the last performances of the popular farce, Potted Potter, which presents all seven Harry Potter books in 70 minutes.

Still holding strong Off Broadway is Nina Raine’s must-see family drama Tribes, one of the best plays of this or any recent season.

In previews or soon to open are the play Grace, co-starring Paul Rudd and Ed Asner; the musical Chaplin, based on the life of filmdom’s silent era king, the Tramp; one of Broadway’s biggest blockbusters, the Tony-winning Annie; Roundabout Theater Company’s revival of Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac and Rupert Holmes’ Tony-winning The Mystery of Edwin Drood, based on Dickens’ incomplete last novel and co-starring legendary Broadway favorite Chita Rivera; and Chicago’s Steppenwolf’s revival of Edward Albee’s landmark play, the scorching Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf? 

Also in the good news department, a brand new edition of Gerard Alessandrini’s wickedly funny send-up Forbidden Broadway, Alive and Kicking! has arrived.

PBS Specials

PBS regularly airs performances of the Metropolitan Opera and a variety of the best in classical and pop concerts. Coming up is a superb example of the former.

Verdi’s La Traviata gets a contemporary design that’s both off-putting and provocative on August 23 at 9 P.M. and August 26 at Noon in Willy Decker’s production that might not satisfy loyalists but breathes new breath into a classic. Celebrated French soprano Natalie Dessay delivers a staggering portrayal of Violetta. Matthew Polenzani is Alfredo, with acclaimed Russian bass Dmitri Hvorostovsky’s magnificent portrayal of Giorgio. The Met’s Fabio Luisi conducts.

Upcoming: Vienna Philharmonic Summer Night Concert, Great Performances, August 31, 9 P.M.; Paul McCartney, Live Kisses, September 7, 9 P.M.

On the Record

Tony winner and two-time Grammy nominee Betty Buckley’s new solo album, Ah, Men! The Boys of Broadway [Palmetto Records] features tunes from her acclaimed 2011 concert, “songs,” she says, “we gals never got to sing. It’s my take on some of the soaring melodies the men got to sing.” The 14 tracks include Irving Berlin’s “My Defenses Are Down,” Annie Get Your Gun; Bernstein/Sondheim’s “Maria,” West Side Story; Frank Loesser’s “Luck Be a Lady,” Guys and Dolls; and a suite from Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd.

Raissa Katon Bennett, cabaret award winner and a later Christine in Andrew Lloyd Webber and Charles Hart’s Phantom of the Opera, has released Another Kind of Light [LML Records]. The 15 tracks include Broadway, pop, and jazz. Among the highlights is “Ordinary Miracles” by Marvin Hamlisch and Alan and Marilyn Bergman, Cole Porter’s “I Concentrate on You,” and the rarely-recorded “How Could I Not?” by Alan Menken and David Spencer from the musical adaptation of The
Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz. Bennett  performs songs from the album August 21-25 at Feinstein’s at Loews Regency. To book, click here.

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Gone much too soon! Shockwaves permeated throughout the industry on news of the death of one of the business’ most beloved people: Pulitzer Prize, Oscar [nine nominations; two wins], Tony, Drama Desk, Emmy [six nominations; two wins], Grammy [four nominations; one win], and Golden Globe-winning composer Marvin Hamlisch, 68. He was one of a handful of “four handicappers” who Oscars, Tony, Emmy, and Grammy. Hamlisch was also an in-demand arranger, orchestrator, and was soon to take up new conducting duties

Hamlisch was born into a musical family, and began playing piano at five. At seven, he was the youngest accepted at Juiliard. He began as a rehearsal pianist for Broadway shows; and, in the mid-60s, was writing for film and TV. Not exactly well known was the fact he composed scores for the original Batman and Brady Bunch series; and, for six seasons in the 90s, Mystery Science Theater.  In the early 70s, his first major job was playing for Groucho Marx at Carnegie Hall in An Evening with Groucho.

He made history in 1974 when he became the first to win three Oscars for Song ["The Way We Were," co-written with Marilyn and Alan Bergman], Score [The Way We Were],   and Adapted Score [Scott Joplin's ragtime for The Sting.]
Marvin Hamlisch won the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Tony, and Drama Desk for the landmark musical A Chorus Line, collaborating with Nicholas Dante, Michael Bennett, James Kirkwood Jr., and Ed Kleban.

The Fringe Marathon 

The flood gates have opened. The 16^th New York International Fringe Festival, North America’s largest theater and dance festival, is off and running through August 26.  There’ll be 1,000 performances by 187 emerging theater and dance troupes from 10 countries and 20 U.S. states in 20 Lower Manhattan venues – at least a dozen are dance shows ranging from flamenco to hip hop to a Persian folk tale [Oasis] and an opera based on the Tarot.

At $15 per ticket, FringeNYC is one of the world’s remaining bargains. Shows are selling out faster than you can say 16^th New York International Fringe Festival. Attendance is expected to top 75,000, so get tickets now.

Early buzz is on Tail! Spin! [already sold out] starring The Daily Show’s Mo Rocca, Saturday Night Live’s Rachel Dratch, and TV and film actor Sean Duggan); Naked & Crazy, the folk-rock musical Independents;  5 Lesbians Eating a Quiche; Standby – the Musical; I <3 Revolution, with Chris Lowell [The Help; TV’s Private Practice, Veronica Mars]; MisSpelled; Have I Got a Girl for You; the musical Grimm; I Married a Nun; the one-woman Iranian comedy, Mahmoud [winner, Best of Fringe, Toronto]; two one-act comedies, An Evening with Kirk Douglas [he won’t be onstage]; and Pieces, a who/why-done-it about the brutal murder of a gay Hollywood power player.

FringeNYC shows are: $15 in advance at www.FringeNYC.org or (866) 468-7619; $18 at the door, subject to availability. Multiple show discounts include the $70 Fiver, $120 Flex Pass [10 shows], and the $500 all-you-can-see Lunatic. Information, schedules, and venues available at the website.  A Fringe guide is included in this week’s Onion newspaper.

Cheerleaders on Broadway

How about some exhilarating entertainment to relieve the Dog Days of Summer? Sit back, relax, and enjoy the incredible company of acrobatic dancers in Bring It On: The Musical who’re giving the ensemble of Disney’s hit Newies a bit of competition in the over-the-top explosive dance and aerial stunts.

Inspired by the Universal Studios film, it’s the story of bonds formed through the thrill of extreme competition. The show features quite a pedigree of creators: book by Avenue Q’s Tony-winning Jeff Whitty; and a score by In the Heights Tony-winning composer Lin-Manuel Miranda and Pulitzer Prize and Tony-winning Tom Kitt (Next to Normal) and Amanda Green
(High Fidelity). Director/choreographer is Tony-winning Andy Blankenbuehler (In the Heights).
A limited number of $35 rush tickets [cash only; limit of two] are available for performance, purchased at the St. James Theatre box office beginning at 10 A.M. day of performance. For more information, visit: bringitonmusical.com.

Ballet That’s Not Ballet

August 13 – 18, the acclaimed Smuin Ballet returns to the Joyce Theatre with an exhilarating program of its signature bold, sexy, and innovative dance. Three programs include founder Michael Smuin’s Medea, created during his tenure as artistic director of San Francisco Ballet; and New York premieres by Trey McIntryre, music by indie-rockers The Shins and Amy Seiwert, music from the Grammy-winning Kronos Quartet’s Pieces of Africa.
Performances are Monday-Wednesday at 7:30 P.M.; Thursday-Saturday at 8; and matinees at 2 on Wednesday and Saturday. Tickets are $10-$49 and available at  the box office, JoyceCharge (212) 242-0800, and www.joyce.org.

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The key to Josephine Baker’s success was simple: she was unique, magnetic, and unlike anything that audiences had ever experienced before.  While her talents were really rather standard it was her personality that was incomparable  and that’s what made her a star – one whose light is still felt almost 40 years after her death.

The trick, then, to portraying someone like Baker is to capture that spark, that “it”, that je ne sais quoi.   Cheryl Howard, who wrote and performs in the solo show The Sensational Josephine Baker, is undoubtedly talented as she shines brilliantly from stage – a triple threat of dancer, singer and actress – but her immense talent is still not enough to work the magic needed to weave a story that will do justice to Ms. Baker.

The Sensational Josephine Baker highlights the life of the famed, groundbreaking, exotic young woman who took Paris by storm simply by being herself.   The show begins with an aging, frightened, down-on-her luck Baker shrieking in despair at the thought of losing her home which houses not just herself but her many (adopted) children.  Loren Van Brenk’s ”Eighty-Three Million Francs,” comes off a bit like Rose begging her father for eighty-eight bucks in Gypsy, but it does set a tone of a strong woman with great resolve who will do whatever it takes to survive.  With shades of Garland packing up her kids and hitting the road – Baker is off to put on a show despite being panicked about returning to the stage.  Brenk’s other original songs interspersed with Baker’s oeuvre (““I’m Just Wild About Harry”  ”Who” ”Don’t Touch Me Tomato“) definitely define this as a musical, but never quite connect the themes, and often the songs feel dropped in.

We are immediately tossed to the past into Baker’s childhood to witness Josephine as the wild child of a wild mother –  the daughter of a mean drunk.  Howard’s portrayal of Baker’s mother is devastating and raw, she is so dismissive and loathsome that one is immediately amazed that Baker managed to make her way in the world at all, let alone manage to become so immensely successful. Though her mother harshly throws her daughter out to fend for herself, Josephine finds comfort and caring from her devoted grandmother who gives “Tumpy” a quarter – and a song filled with purpose – and encourages the young girl to go follow her dream.  Once again, Howard shows her suburb talent and range – though she is the only one on stage the actual relationship between grandmother and granddaughter was palpable.

Cheryl Howard in The Sensational Josephine Baker (Photo by Carol Rosegg)

From there we follow Josephine as she quickly takes advantage of the opportunities when they present themselves; though she is a dresser for The Dixie Steppers she makes sure to learn the routines and has no problem taking the place of one of the dancers when the other girl’s unfortunate circumstance forces her to quit.  Baker’s wild antics on stage which include eye rolling, comic steps, wild mugging and general scene stealing captures the eye of a benefactress who brings her to Paris where her skills were soon undressed in order to accommodate a “Savage” theme.  Thus Baker finds herself physically and emotionally bare.  Howard, however, chooses to stay clothed.

While so many of the moments of The Sensational Josephine Baker showcased Howard’s amazing abilities the show’s story lacked a clear through line.  It seemed to be a pastiche of  snapshots meant to tell a broad story quickly, which, unfortunately, left all the elements on equal footing.  Important turns come off as footnotes and interesting moments are cut short to give time to rather bland production numbers.  And while Howard is often riveting when embodying the people who lived in Baker’s world – specifically Miss Lydia Jones whose dismissive jealousy is deliciously sharp - her Baker is somewhat lackluster.  By definition it’s almost impossible to duplicate the talent of someone whose flair was so specifically unmatched.  The passing of the decades does a bit of damage as well: much of Baker’s groundbreaking and shocking behavior of the time simply comes off as quaint.   Other moments however –  facing prejudice when returning to the States with her caucasian lover – which might have been deeply effective to examine were left disappointingly unexplored. To perhaps focus on moments such as those in this woman’s life, rather than attempt to give a cradle-to-grave retrospective might have been a more interesting way to tell Baker’s story while still being true to the deep spirt of this fascinating woman.

Howard’s appreciation for Baker’s moxie, vibrancy and tenacity is obvious and her desire to showcase her subject from as many angles as possible is admirable.  However, in giving us Josephine the young girl, Josephine the ingenue, Joesphine the toast of Paris, Josephine the force to be reckoned with and Josephine the comeback queen Howard gives us a story which diverges into too many paths.  Despite strong moments I never quite made the emotional connection which allowed the final scene to deliver the triumphant blast that was intended. Howard seems to connect to the audience best when exploring the personal and intimate moments of Baker’s life rather than stepping into her larger-than-life persona.

Josephine Baker was sensational.  Cheryl Howard is sensational.  But bigger isn’t always better, and The Sensational Josephine Baker showed that much of what made Baker truly exceptional was not what she exposed so freely, but what she kept hidden.  Show more of that, and this show will live up to its name.

 ~~~

Click Here for tickets

Tuesday @ 7pm
Wednesday @ 2pm
Thursday & Friday @ 7pm
Saturday @ 2pm & 7pm
Sunday @ 3pm

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New York City is host to two concurrently running productions of Shakespeare’s Macbeth this Spring: Aquila Theatre‘s presentation at the Gym at Judson (April 18th – May 6th), and Epic Theatre Ensemble‘s interpretation at the 47th Street Theatre (April 20 – May 26th). A stable of many a theatrical company’s portfolio, apart from its matchless, vivid language, Macbeth as drama has much to attract aspiring ensembles, not least the challenge presented in portraying two of Shakespeare’s most unsympathetic lead roles. We watch as Macbeth and his wife are enticed into evil by the lure of power and then, as good stage villains, are punished for their crimes. The trick, however, is in making them into more than stage villains, for in that resides the case for tragedy and its capacity to ennoble human existence. It is a tricky bit of the equation as both of these productions can testify.

Aquila Theatre is devoted to the classics of western theatre, in restating their claim to preeminence as timeless pieces, triumphs of human artistry and culture. As such they tend toward language focused productions that are light on the use of contemporary stagecraft elaborations. For their Macbeth Desiree Sanchez wears both directorial and production designer hats. She is spare in her approach. A minimum of props are deployed in the expansive and lofty space  Judson’s Gym theatre offers. There is an economy and subtlety at work in the way she groups the action about the squared arena. An innovative, momentary introductory prelude scene which highlights a blood-soaked, battle worn Macbeth in one corner, and a bereft Lady Macbeth on bloodied bed sheets following unsuccessful labor in the opposite corner, acts as a startling, punched signature of this director’s suggestion for the fatal couple’s motivations. The Macbeths are traumatized people, destabilized, estranged, in search of a project into which they can pour themselves, erase the past, and reunite. This prelude dispatched in an instant, there is little other tinkering with the body of the play and all unfolds to order.

The performances are vigorous, emotive, well spoken and, most importantly, psychologically grounded. If you have an ear for Shakespeare this is a wonderful production to hear his words delivered eloquently and with conviction. Rebecca Reaney as Lady Mabeth is nuanced and bold, spectacularly benefiting from Peter Meineck‘s well-judged lighting, which is at once lavishly theatrical and self-disciplined. Guy Oliver-Watts, working to uncover an aspect of post traumatic stress disorder in the role of Macbeth, has a more complex part. He is thoroughly convincing, but in so doing projects a weakened, dependent quality in the man who would be king and, strangely, this deflates the character somewhat, puncturing the fullness of the play’s tragic reach. He is doing well what he has been directed to do but herein lies the rub, and a very fine rub it is for the measure of what might be deemed tragic theatre. The rest of the cast are for the most part assured in their roles, with Peter F. Gardiner, (Banquo), James Lavender (Macduff), and Rachel Barrington (Lady Macduff) especially commendable.

Coincidentally the notion that the Macbeths, and especially Lady Macbeth, are grieving former parents, is made central in Epic Theatre’s version of the play. This idea is evident in the presence on stage of a small shrine with a framed photograph of a toddler, to which Lady Macbeth touchingly returns for some of her scenes. Also, it is manifest in the large projected photo image of the Macbeths, tenderly converging about a drowsy infant, which is thrown up on the broken surface of the rear wall. This projection is relentless, hanging like a grey cloud above the proceedings, at once lugubrious and sentimental. Interpretation, with a capital I, is the strategy of this production. Set in a more contemporary world, we are treated to off-stage electronic voices in ear pieces, and a video screen displaying action elsewhere. The Weird Sisters are a heterogeneous mix of sexes and ethnicities, and hang about the stage throughout the action on overhead ladders and walkways, like jaded demi-gods, stonily unmoved by the unfolding drama below. Innovation appears one of director Ron Russell‘s chief concerns with his production. In the banquet scene where a guilty Macbeth is plagued with visions of the murdered Banquo, the bloodied apparition is suddenly encountered in a dance embrace by the newly crowned king. This shift works dramatically, as do some of the other re-imaginings. Richard Easton as Duncan, hailing from the video monitor, is a treat as a telegenic royal talking head, at once hammy and calculating. However, a growing awareness dawns as it becomes plain that Russell as director, engaged with innovation it seems for innovation’s sake, completely loses the plot in the finest sense. This might have been more immediately evident if I had read the production’s publicity notes which describe the play as “a brutal and darkly funny exploration of the banality of evil.” Really? Macbeth? Funny? If the line had been offered by Mel Brooks I might have taken closer note, but otherwise it seems merely, but utterly, wrong-headed. And how wrong-headed becomes dismayingly clear in due course as Russell stokes up moments of sour humor (one of the witches sings her lines in a borrowed tutu as a karaoke turn) and rubbishes any solemnity. It’s as if the idea of theatrical tragedy is unknown to him. The most damaging turn occurs amidst some rapid fire scene shifts toward the conclusion which require one actor to change swiftly between two characters. This is done on stage by the actor (James Wallert) taping and un-taping a fringe of hair to his brow to distinguish between roles. In the duration a cry is heard off stage. Jumping from left to right, Wallert, fringed one moment, un-fringed the next, delivers the news of Lady Macbeth’s death. It is, richly, a Mel Brooks moment, and there was more than one chuckle in the audience.

Can Russell actually hear the language Shakespeare is putting in his characters’ mouths? The evidence is scarce and the actors suffer from the inability to sound as if they mean their words. Who is to blame them if the director has no feeling for the real emotion of the play? Apart from Easton in the role of Duncan, and Julian Rozzell, Jr. (with presence to burn) as one of the witches, everyone seems merely focused on unburdening themselves as rapidly and succinctly as possible of their Shakespearean metre. Russell is not the director who can marry them to their lines. As Macbeth, Ty Jones actually commences the soliloquy – “Is this a dagger I see before me?” – with his back to the audience. No chance here for an actor to convey facially the extremity of the moment. Russell, it seems, is not interested in psychological subtleties (witness the never-changing backdrop projection) merely the chance of creating something different. Well sad to say, something different definitely this way comes, but you’ll be lucky if the pricking you feel is confined to your thumbs.

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