Category: Stage

Ninth in a series of Broadway report

NEW YORK – “Parade” is a conflicted musical by Alfred Uhry (book) and Jason Robert Brown (music), mixing history, political and religious sentiments, racial tension and a justice system that fails.

Yep, these are unlikely themes for a stage musical, but “Parade” – playing at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre – is an important work provoking more questions than answers. The story seems biased, but truth be told, this is a case from a century ago and is based on actual events,  which happened in Southern Georgia . And whoa, the case has not yet been resolved in the courts. That’s what was said in a finale projection.

Thus, should this be called a musical comedy? It’s more of a musical travesty…a mistrial of justice.

Micaela Diamond, left, is Lucille Frank; Ben Platt is Leo Frank, in “Parade.”

Leo Frank (Ben Platt, a Tony winner for “Dear Evan Hansen)”, sings and acts with flair and fortitude here. He is boyish, charming and calm, a supervisor of the National Pencil Co. in Marietta, Georgia, where he settles with wife Lucille (an impressive Micaela Diamond). They are Jewish and feel uncomfortable and targeted.

Frank has moved from Chicago and the prejudicious climate immediately slaps him in the face; he is arrested  and accused of killing a teenage fellow employee, Mary Phagen (Erin Rose Doyle), whose dead body is found in the basement in the morning.

The victim was a nighttime employee, who possibly was last seen by Leo, since she comes to his office to secure a minimal paycheck issued by him. There are other logical suspects, but the residents are determined to convict Leo.

Thus, his discomfort is emphasized when he sings “How Can I Call This Home,” even if there are Southern Jews. His musical lament: “I thought that Jews were Jews, but I was wrong.”
A trial is a major element in the production, but a too-high-raised central set serving primarily as the courtroom where a judge prevails, forces playgoers to crane their necks. Both sides of this elevated “island” is flanked on either side with benches reflecting a courtroom.

An elevated box, intended to be the court, means front patrons must neck-stretch.

The height of the court means neck-stretching for those in orchestra rows 1 to 4, or possibly 5. I was in a side orchestra seat in the fourth row, and it took some heightening of the head to get a good view of the staged action.

Thus, Dane Laffrey’s scenic design is flawed. However, the elevated court has an intermission mission: Platt and his Leo character, clad in spiffy jailbird gear, silently sits through the intermission, alone and peaceful – reminiscent of the between-act sit-down of Old Deutoronomy in the musical “Cats.”

All the authorities appear to jaded and crooked as the news reporter Britt Craig (Jay Armstrong Johnson) who only seeks testimony from racist sources. Ditto, Hugh Dorsey (Paul Alexander Nolan), a lawyer as crooked as a pretzel.

Director  Michael Arden’s direction, from a previously a small-scale endeavor at City Center, brings life and heart in the moments focusing on the besieged and innocent Frank couple. So devoted that she is, Lucille brings lunches and dinners while Leo is in custody, and the inequitable mishandling of the case brings them closer while their woes get out of hand. Their magnetism of love and affection is reflected in composer Brown’s sturdy and compelling tunes like “This Is Not Over Yet.”

Projections of newspaper front pages reflect the bias of South Georgia.

The production  constantly relies on projections by Sven Ortel; not that it matters, but the slides and vintage photographs are of actual people, with projections of newspaper front pages reporting the biases of the case.  

This is not a spoiler, since the fact of the matter is a jury brought on a guilty vote and Leo Frank was hung in 1915 in a questionable lynching.

And again, the vocal dynamics of Platt and Diamond carry the show, making them a new Broadway dream duet for explosive emotional volley, with powerful delivery of  “This Is Not Over Yet” and the romantic “All the Wasted Time,” which brings down the curtain of this devastating story.

There are parade scenes in the opening of the play, midway through the story, and at the conclusion, but has nothing to do with the Leo Frank case. The celebrations reflect the memories of the Southerners’ defeat in the Civil War. …

And that’s Show Biz. ….

‘Parade’

“Parade” is a musical feature a book by Alfred Uhry and music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown, originally directed by Harold Price, directed now by Michael Arden, with music conducted by Tom Murray and choreography by Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant

Playing at the Bernard J. Jacobs Theatre on Broadway

Sixth in a series of Broadway reports

NEW YORK — “Some Like It Hot” is a 2023 musical remake of the popular 1959 Billy Wilder comedy with modern shenanigans and old-world charm.

If you adore vintage choreography, in the spirit of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, trotting non-stop all over the dance floor, and men cavorting in dresses and tresses because they witnessed gangland murders and need disguises to remain safe, then “Some Like It Hot” is your dance ticket, and it’s now playing at the Shubert Theatre on Broadway.

The ensemble, with Tony winner J. Harrison Ghee, as Jerry/Daphne, center right.

For me, “Some Like It Hot” is the best show now, with its special dynamics of motion, music, and manic energy.

It was the most-nominated Tony show this past June — 13 noms and four wins including J. Harrison’s Ghee’s  historic Leading Actor in a Musical award, Best Choreography for Casey Nicholaw, Best Original Score for Charlie Rosen and Bryan Carter, and Best Costume Design for Gregg Barnes).

Scenic Designer Scott Pask didn’t win, but should have earned a Tony, too, since he created a lifelike train car swiftly rolling from right to left in one scene. You practically felt the swoosh of the car passing by.

The cast, too, is choo-choo active, running in and out of closed doors and creating momentum of the rare kind.

Joe/Josephine and Jerry/Daphne become members of a traveling all-girl jazz band, led by Sweet Sue, portrayed by NaTasha Yvette Williams, with Sugar, the lead singer played by Adrianna Hicks (Marilyn Monroe was in the movie), during Prohibition-era times in Chicago and San Diego.

Adrianna Hicks, as Sugar, and Christian Borle, as Joe/Josephine.

The plot includes dizzying rushes in and out of doors, and non-stop prancing and dancing requiring speed and good timing, typical of the slam-dunk maniacal musical comedies of the past. One extreme and unexpected treat comes in a brisk flash of movement – Pask’s roaring train car, zooming across the stage. If you blinked, you’d have missed it. It was that fast.

The show boasts a host of “wow” moments. Ghee’s “You Coulda Knocked Me Over With a Feather” is a revelation – a confirmation that he realizes he is proudly a she and the song and sentiment are exquisitely honest.

And there’s charm and credibility with Osgood, the root beer dude played by Kevin Del Aguilar, who gets the hots for Daphne and why not? He/she is a beaut!

Further, Borle and Hicks manage to tap-tap-tap and sing their hearts out in a joyous staircase number, “Dance the World Away.”

One curiosity, and this was the first time I’ve seen this happen in a show. “Some Like It Hot,” the title tune, closed Act 1, with vocalists Hicks (as Sugar), Williams (as Sue) and Daphne (as Ghee) leading the ensemble to bring down the curtain. As the intermission ended, before the start of Act 2, it was announced that Hicks (Sugar) would be replaced by her understudy, TyNia Rene Brandon , no reason provided …

And that’s Show Biz. …

‘Some Like It Hot’

“Some Like It Hot” is a musical based on the Billy Wilder movie with the same name, with book by Matthew Lopez and Amber Ruffin, music by Marc Shaiman and lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaman, directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw

Playing at the Shubert Theatre on Broadway

Fifth in a series of Broadway reports

NEW YORK — One truly positive thing can be said of “New York, New York:” the title song immortalized separately and specifically by Frank Sinatra and Liza Minnelli has become an awesome theme song for the city that never sleeps.

From that mammoth hit song emerged the phrase, “My Kind of Town,” and clearly New York is everybody’s kind of town.

This show, based on an earlier film, not so much. The powerful title song is not delivered till the finale, which is logical, and the Francine Evans character, (Anna Uzeke) emerges singing the tune with the 20-something musicians wailing and soaring brassy notes on trumpets, trombones, French horns and supported by violin, guitar, viola and more.

If this rousing and soulful number was performed at the very opening of “New York, New York,” everyone would be wholly satisfied. We could all have gone home. The cast could have been dismissed for early dinner and call it a night.

But we had to wait through a mess of wayward subplots, and two acts of inconsequential songs and dancers, with little reward and beaucoup yawning.

This was not my kind of town, nor my kind of play.

This was a prime disappointment in the annals of Broadway musical history – a one-song wonder.

You can’t wholly blame the cast, which stars Colton Ryan as Jimmy Doyle, with standby Mike Cefalo in the performance I saw, Anna Uzeke as Francine Evans, Clyde Alves as Tommy Caggiano, John Clay III as Jesse Webb, Janet Dacal as Sofia Diaz, Ben Davis as Gordon Kendrick, Oliver Prose as Alex Mann, Angel Sigala as Mateo Diaz aka he/him, and Emily Skinner as Madame Veltri. Considering that this behemoth of a stinker – with high anticipation and grim delivery from multi-Tony winner Susan Stroman — is astonishing.

If Lin-Manuel Miranda, himself a Tony veteran, wrote new lyrics and infused Latin rhythms, the credits don’t acknowledge the tunes with cooperation from Broadway veteran John Kander, so even this is a puzzlement.

The script by David Thomas and Sharon Washington attempts to reflect the common notion that New York is a place of opportunity, where dreams can come true, and immigrants can start a new life.

Failure should not be an option in musical theater life, but “New York, New York” staggers and putters with no compass to turn around its misfortune. Some may find pearls and potency in this one, but nada for me. It misses the mark on several levels. …

‘New York, New York’

“New York, New York” is  musical inspired by the motion picture written by Earl M. Rauch, with music and lyrics by John Kander and Fred Ebb, with book by David Thompson co-written by Sharon Washington with additional lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda; directed and choreographed by Susan Stroman

Playing at the St. James Theatre on Broadway

Broadway grosses, for week ending July 2

“Back to the Future,” a new musical based on the popular movie, has shown remarkable box office power in its first few shows: it grossed $1.035 million after it premiered June 30. Not enough to make the Top 10 roster of shows, but just enough for it to join the Million Dollar Club.

We list the Top 7 here, which still is dominated by the long-running productions:

1 – “The Lion King,” $2.485 million.

2—“Hamilton,” $1.892 million.

3—“Wicked,” $1.880 million.

4—“Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” $1.794 million.

5—“Aladdin,” $1.607 million.

6—“MJ, the Michael Jackson Musical,” $1.557 million.

7—“Harry Potter & the Cursed Child,” $1.46 million.

Here’s the full list, courtesy The Broadway League:

And that’s Show Biz. ..

Fourth of a series of Broadway reports

NEW YORK — “Moulin Rouge,” undeniably an expansive and explosive musical unfolding at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre on Broadway, is a monstrous dash of flash. It’s anything you might want it to be: a nightclub, a disco, a non-stop jukebox of hot pop songs, a floor show of can-can girls. Even a state of mind, as noted by Harold Zidler, the owner of the Moulin Rouge club, played by Eric Anderson.

The show – set in Gay Paree’s notable nightclub of the title — begins even before the spectacle opens, with costumed characters descending from sets onto the stage, crawling on the rims of both stage left and right, resembling Cirque du Soleil artists. The regalia — some nostalgic, some brief, some clearly exotic — build anticipation of what’s to come.

Amour is in the air, and when the dazzling melodies start thumping away, showtime means feathers, glitter, gyrations and hearty emotions.

“Lady Marmalade,” certainly the key prevailing anthem in the score, is all action and audience reaction. The cast and the audience members (some quietly, some not) belt out Labelle’s explicit and exquisite lyrics of  Voulez-vous coucher avec moi, and the dance party is officially on.

Director Alex Timbers and choreographer Sonya Tayeh retain the life-is-beautiful spirit of film director Baz Luhrmann and co-writer Craig Pearce, who collaborated on the film, which has been updated and upgraded with lots of oomph and power, with something to appeal to all, straight, gay, or LGBTQ.

Starring Joanna “Jojo” Levesque as Satine, a courtesan fighting tuberculosis, Derek Klena as the lovestruck composer Christian, Eric Anderson as Harold Zidler, Andre Ward as Toulouse-Lautrec, and David Harris as the Duke of Monroth, aka he/him, “Moulin Rouge” treats music as a drug in a sense that it’s easy to get high – with emotion and participation. Songs often are said to be the soundtrack of our lives, and surely, fleeting nostalgic moments of your memories whirl and twirl like a merry-go-round on steroids.

Unfortunately, the Playbill does not collate titles of the music employed during this journey, so you can’t reflect and count ’em. And the tunes are clustered into fast-and-furious medleys that you may not recall the fave you’re grooving to because, um, here comes another fastball.

But since songs are so dominant and definitive in the show, you’re likely to get dizzy with joy when you recognize Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” in a quick mashup with Britney Spears’ “Toxic,” then sooner or later, there’s an extended rendering of Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep,”  roaring out from the lungs of Christian and Santine. One of the shows impactful moment, this.

In case you forget when the charades and parades fade, Katy Perry’s “Fireworks,” Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter” and “You Can’t Get Always Get What You Want” are prominently staged with glorious dances.

There are temptations, visual and aural, all tied to the tempo and choreography, and since this is kind of a Bohemian rhapsody, expect Elton John, Madonna and sundry others to pop in musically.

Be warned: if strobe lights and loud music offend you, you might best order balcony seats to be\some distance away from the pyrotechnics…

And that’s Show Biz. …

‘Moulin Rouge’

“Moulin Rouge” is a musical based on the film written by Baz Luhrmann and Craig Pearce, directed by Luhrmaan, with book by John LoganPlaying at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre

Third in a series of Broadway reports

NEW YORK — Lea Michele has emerged as the belle of the revival of “Funny Girl,” becoming a diva of traditional Broadway musicals fueled by a female superstar.

She put the glee and the whee into the troubled show, which was launched a season ago with Beanie Feldstein in the lead.

Michele succeeded Feldstein on Sept. 6, 2022, earning six standing ovations on her first night, and the roars of approval haven’t stop at the August Wilson Theatre. Clearly, she’s become one of the next-generation’s leading ladies of the genre of traditional stage musicals like “Hello, Dolly!,” “Gypsy,” and “Mame,” and Michele’s appeal has rewarded her the opportunity to be the Fanny Brice voice in the show’s cast album. Also, Michele’s presence has buoyed the show into the Broadway League’s “million dollar club,” meaning that the weekly “Funny Girl” box office grosses have finally logged a slot on the elite list.

Lea Michele, as Fanny Brice in “Funny Girl.”

The fingerprints may be invisible, but there exists the Barbra Streisand aura in the revival – think “hello, gorgeous!” – when Fanny is in front of her dressing room mirror. Streisand’s Broadway debut as Fanny in the 1960s, coupled with the subsequent movie version in the late ‘60s in which she also starred, has been the stuff of legend, but Michele surely will make this her own trademark in the decades ahead. Michele, till now best known as a luminary from the “Glee” TV series, is poised and powerful in delivering she show’s best-known anthems, “People,” “I’m the Greatest Star” and “Don’t Rain on My Parade,” lasting favorites from the score by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill.

The tale, based on a book by Isobel Lennart revised by Harvey Fierstein, tracks the show biz quest of Brice, a Jewish vaudeville wonder from Brooklyn, who becomes a headliner of the famed Ziegfeld Follies, and wife of the production’s honcho, Nicky Arnstein, played by Ramin Karimloo. They have chemistry, notably on “You Are Woman, I Am Man” and “Who Are You Now.”

Naturally, there is a poker-playing Jewish mom, Mrs. Brice, portrayed by the beloved Tovah Feldshuh, who demonstrates her seasoned charm on “Who Taught Her Everything She Knew,” a duet with Jared Grimes as Eddie Ryan. …

And that’s Show Biz. …

‘Funny Girl’

“Funny Girl,” a musical featuring music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Bob Merrill, book by Isobel Lennart, revised book by Harvey Fierstein

Playing at the August Wilson Theatre, through Sept. 3