Author: Chris Van Patten

Are you old Mrs. Lovett?

Casting is a funny thing. For every role on screen or stage we see there have been numerous, oftentimes hundreds of choices. You often hear about so-and-so being in the running for a part, or a big star turning down a role that will go onto win an Oscar with some else, etc. The most notable being the search for Scarlett O’Hara in the 1939 adaptation of Gone with the Wind.

There’s so much going in the business that makes casting a curious environment: timing, money, talent, etc. For example, take Mary Martin. She had her due on stage in One Touch of Venus, South Pacific, Kiss Me Kate, Peter Pan and The Sound of Music, but now consider if she had also starred in Oklahoma!, Kiss Me Kate, Fanny, My Fair Lady, Funny Girl and Mame. All those were roles she was originally considered for, and for one reason or another she turned them down or wasn’t available.

Two of my all-time favorite musical theatre leading ladies, Angela Lansbury and Patricia Routledge, are linked to one another through their performances in NYSF’s The Pirates of Penzance (Pat played Central Park in 1980, Angie did the film version in 1983 – both are preserved on video). But here is something you’ve probably never heard before, regarding the original production of Sweeney Todd (taken from Balancing Act: The Authorized Biography of Angela Lansbury by Martin Gottfriend, which is out of print but worth seeking out):

“Despite Sondheim’s preference for Angela, Patricia Routledge remained Harold Prince’s actress of choice to co star with Len Cariou in Sweeney Todd. The director even arranged for Cariou and Routledge to confer by telephone, while he was in Vienna making the movie version of A Little Night Music. In fact, that was the one reason why Sweeney Todd wasn’t being produced in 1976.

Routledge, a splendid actress and a good singer, was not entirely sold on the show, and in fact, had the creeps just thinking about it. “You don’t know what it’s like,” she told Cariou on the phone. “I was raised on that story. I’m not kidding you, it’s scary having anything to do with it. For us that ‘penny dreadful’ is like Grimm’s Fairy Tales. When we were kids, it was always something to be afraid of. Even my parents would say to me, ‘You’d better be careful or we’ll get Sweeney Todd after you.'”

The rest is, as they say, history. I’ve heard the Routledge was offered the opportunity to star in the London production but politely declined (Sheila Hancock did the honors). That said, wouldn’t it be fun to get both Lansbury and Routledge in a vehicle together? They are both solid actresses (and singers) and barring some similarities have very unique personalities that I think would mesh well. The most obvious seems a revival/remake of Arsenic and Old Lace?

Oscar nominations

I’m still in the midst of my annual February screening, so I have no solid opinions yet. However, who are your picks? The Oscars are on March 7. Last year, I was pre-empted because I was en route to the Philippines, but I’ve my normal Academy punditry this season.

Best Motion Picture of the Year:
A Serious Man
An Education
Avatar
The Blind Side
District 9
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
The Hurt Locker
Up
Up in the Air

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role:
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
George Clooney, Up in the Air
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Morgan Freeman, Invictus
Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role:
Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side
Helen Mirren, The Last Station
Carey Mulligan, An Education
Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role:
Matt Damon, Invictus
Woody Harrelson, The Messenger
Christopher Plummer, The Last Station
Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role:
Penelope Cruz, Nine
Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air
Maggie Gyllenhaal, Crazy Heart
Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air
Mo’Nique, Precious

Best Achievement in Directing:
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
James Cameron, Avatar
Lee Daniels, Precious
Jason Reitman, Up in the Air
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen:
Inglourious Basterds – Quentin Tarantino
The Hurt Locker – Mark Boal
The Messenger – Alessandro Camon; Oren Moverman
A Serious Man – Joel Coen; Ethan Coen
Up – Bob Peterson; Pete Docter; Thomas McCarthy

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
District 9 – Neill Blomkamp; Terri Tatchell
An Education – Nick Hornby
In the Loop – Jesse Armstrong; Simon Blackwell; Armando Iannucci; Tony Roche
Precious – Geoffrey Fletcher
Up in the Air– Jason Reitman; Sheldon Turner

Best Achievement in Cinematography:
Avatar – Mauro Fiore
Das weisse Band – Eine deutsche Kindergeschichte – Christian Berger
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – Bruno Delbonnel
Inglourious Basterds – Robert Richardson
The Hurt Locker – Barry Ackroyd

Best Achievement in Art Direction:
Avatar – Rick Carter (art director); Robert Stromberg (art director); Kim Sinclair (set decorator)
Nine – John Myhre (art director); Gordon Sim (set decorator)
Sherlock Holmes – Sarah Greenwood (art director); Katie Spencer (set decorator)
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus – David Warren (art director); Anastasia Masaro (art director); Caroline Smith (set decorator)
The Young Victoria – Patrice Vermette (art director); Maggie Gray (set decorator)

Best Achievement in Costume Design:
Bright Star – Janet Patterson
Coco avant Chanel – Catherine Leterrier
Nine – Colleen Atwood
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus – Monique Prudhomme
The Young Victoria – Sandy Powell

Best Achievement in Sound:
Avatar – Christopher Boyes; Gary Summers; Andy Nelson; Tony Johnson
Inglourious Basterds – Michael Minkler; Tony Lamberti; Mark Ulano
Star Trek – Anna Behlmer; Andy Nelson; Peter J. Devlin
The Hurt Locker – Paul N.J. Ottosson; Ray Beckett
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen – Greg P. Russell; Gary Summers; Geoffrey Patterson

Best Achievement in Editing:
Avatar – Stephen E. Rivkin; John Refoua; James Cameron
District 9 – Julian Clarke
Inglourious Basterds – Sally Menke
Precious – Joe Klotz
The Hurt Locker – Bob Murawski; Chris Innis

Best Achievement in Sound Editing:
Avatar – Christopher Boyes; Gwendolyn Yates Whittle
Inglourious Basterds – Wylie Stateman
Star Trek– Mark P. Stoeckinger; Alan Rankin
The Hurt Locker – Paul N.J. Ottosson
Up – Michael Silvers; Tom Myers

Best Achievement in Visual Effects:
Avatar – Joe Letteri; Stephen Rosenbaum; Richard Baneham; Andy Jones
District 9 – Dan Kaufman; Peter Muyzers; Robert Habros; Matt Aitken
Star Trek – Roger Guyett; Russell Earl; Paul Kavanagh; Burt Dalton

Best Achievement in Makeup:
Il divo – Aldo Signoretti; Vittorio Sodano
Star Trek – Barney Burman; Mindy Hall; Joel Harlow
The Young Victoria – John Henry Gordon; Jenny Shircore

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song:
Crazy Heart – Ryan Bingham; T-Bone Burnett
– For the song “The Weary Kind”
Faubourg 36 – Reinhardt Wagner (music); Frank Thomas (lyrics)
– For the song “Loin de Paname”
Nine – Maury Yeston
– For the song “Take It All”
The Princess and the Frog – Randy Newman
– For the song “Almost There”
The Princess and the Frog – Randy Newman
– For the song “Down in New Orleans”

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score:
Avatar – James Horner
Fantastic Mr. Fox – Alexandre Desplat
Sherlock Holmes – Hans Zimmer
The Hurt Locker – Marco Beltrami; Buck Sanders
Up – Michael Giacchino

Best Short Film, Animated:
French Roast – Fabrice Joubert
Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty – Nicky Phelan; Darragh O’Connell
La dama y la muerte – Javier Recio Gracia
Logorama – Nicolas Schmerkin
Wallace and Gromit in ‘A Matter of Loaf and Death’ – Nick Park

Best Short Film, Live Action:
Istället för abrakadabra – Patrik Eklund; Mathias Fjällström
Kavi – Gregg Helvey
Miracle Fish – Luke Doolan; Drew Bailey
The Door – Juanita Wilson; James Flynn
The New Tenants – Joachim Back; Tivi Magnusson

Best Documentary, Short Subjects:
China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province – Jon Alpert; Matthew O’Neill
Królik po berlinsku – Bartosz Konopka; Anna Wydra
Music by Prudence – Roger Ross Williams; Elinor Burkett
The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner – Daniel Junge; Henry Ansbacher
The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant – Steven Bognar; Julia Reichert

Best Documentary, Features:
Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land – Anders Østergaard; Lise Lense-Møller
Food, Inc. – Robert Kenner; Elise Pearlstein
The Cove – “tbd”
The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers – Judith Ehrlich; Rick Goldsmith
Which Way Home – Rebecca Cammisa

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year:
Ajami – Israel
Das weisse Band – Eine deutsche Kindergeschichte – Germany
El secreto de sus ojos – Argentina.
La teta asustada – Peru
Un prophète – France

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year:
Coraline – Henry Selick
Fantastic Mr. Fox – Wes Anderson
The Princess and the Frog – John Musker; Ron Clements
The Secret of Kells – Tomm Moore
Up – Pete Docter

"Finian’s Rainbow" Revival on CD


When it comes to Broadway cast albums I almost always have a tendency for the original Broadway cast; they are usually definitive, including those made in the aural ice age of the 78 rpm platters or the dawn of the LP in the 1940s. Stereo came into play in 1956, Goddard Lieberson at Columbia was the champion of the original cast recording.

As the art form of the American musical has evolved, the technology with which music is recorded – and played on – has changed precipitously. Time constraints, technological limitations are no longer an issue. When there is money for an album, there is now room for dialogue, bonus material and occasionally a DVD companion. The problem is in the market – the original cast album has gone from one of the most lucrative areas of the music industry in the 1950s and 60s to a niche market. Pirating makes matters even worse. However, the producers take an extra special care in making sure the album released is the best it can be.

That said, I tend to prefer the contemporary recordings of new musicals as opposed to revivals. Perhaps its my ear lacking adjustment or just my personal preference, but in spite of all the great technological advancements, many of the older shows being re-recorded tend to lack the energy that makes the show work in the theatre, or the original cast album come to life in your room. So many of the new revivals sound as though they were recorded in a small studio, whereas the originals contain palpable theatre performance preserved for the ages. Revivals such as South Pacific, Gypsy and Hair were stunners onstage, but their respective albums fail to capture the magic. However, there are many older recordings that do capture that magic, in particular those Columbia albums of the 50s and 60s.

So while I vary my listening – I can have up to as many as 10 recordings of a particular score (and I do make it a point to listen to each to listen for variations in performance, orchestration, relevance, etc) I do find myself preferring to go back to the originals. However, there are always exceptions to the rule.

Finian’s Rainbow is one of those exceptions. I’ve never particularly cared for the 1947 original cast album released by Columbia (it was their second theatre recording; the first was the previous year’s revival of Show Boat). It preserves David Wayne’s Tony-winning performance as Og, but I’m perpetually bothered by the mannerisms of star Ella Logan. I don’t know if she found it charming, or was trying (in vain) to mask her Scottish accent, but her consonant heavy crooning gets on my nerves. A 1960 revival album is better, but lacks star power with the exception of contralto Carol Brice’s rendition of “Necessity.” Then there’s the film adaptation, a bloated anachronism from 1968 that fizzles on impact. A 2004 off-Broadway revival at the Irish Rep also received a delightful recording, but that featured that production’s spare 2 piano reduction.

It was the recent Encores! and Broadway revival that really introduced me to the many joys of its classic whimsy. This dated, “unrevivable” mix of satire and fantasy was suddenly back in fashion, a resounding production that led to its latest cast album, a stunning effort from PS Classics. The new disc is one of the most complete recordings of the score, featuring the glorious original orchestration under the baton of musical director Rob Berman. Everything sparkles from the first notes of “Glocca Mora” in the overture to its bittersweet finale. The overture is presented in its entirety, as well as the entr’acte. Recorded here for the first time is the second act “Dance of the Golden Crock” with its haunting harmonica accompaniment provided by Guy Davis. It’s noteworthy to hear “If This Isn’t Love” in its entirety, dance break and all. It was a showstopper in the theatre, and remains so on disc.

I’ve already exhausted many superlatives on this musical production, which should still be running. Despite some reservations with the book, the ebullient cast and creative team created one of the most beguiling revivals of the year, with stellar performances and the perfect mix of satire and sentiment. I expected the show to receive good notices, but I didn’t anticipate that its old fashioned charm would bring it the best notices of any show to open this season (to date).

Kate Baldwin and Cheyenne Jackson sparkle. She is entrancing from her first note in “How Are Things in Glocca Mora?” Nothing will ever erase the memory of hearing her sing this song for the first time, in the most bewitching deliveries of the ballad I’ve heard. Every element of her performance is captured here: her flirtatiousness, her feistiness and her unique charm. Jackson’s performance comes across better on disc than it did in the theatre. If Woody seemed a bit stiff onstage, his baritenor is perfect for crooning the period score. The chemistry between the two of them here is palpable (particularly on the standard “Old Devil Moon”).

Jim Norton supplies his gruff but lovable Finian, getting to do more singing than most prior actors in the role. Christopher Fitzgerald chews it up as the impish leprechaun Og, who score major points with the eleven o’clocker “When I’m Not Near the Girl I Love.” Terri White’s “Necessity” would bring down the house in the St. James, Carnegie Hall or Giants’ Stadium. Her contralto reverberates like thunder on the horizon – and rightly stopped the show at every performance. Chuck Cooper leads the second quartet “The Begat” with charm and gusto.

For those who are still lamenting its premature closing, much like myself, the recording recalls many fond memories. Those who missed it will get a feel for the treasure they missed. The resulting product is in my estimation the definitive cast recording of Finian’s Rainbow and one that I plan on revisiting time and again.

January Wrap-Up

I can’t really say it’s been an exemplary month in the world of my theatre-going. There were two trips: Ragtime at the beginning and Tyne Daly at Feinstein’s in the middle. The month saw its usual amounts of closings. Ragtime, Finian’s Rainbow, Superior Donuts, Altar Boyz and some other limited engagements ended their runs. It’s a bit tough to look on and see the critically acclaimed work fall short of the financial mark while underwhelming mediocrities walk away with the golden egg. However, like every other year there is always the promise of spring, and there are some high profile productions slated to open in the coming months.

I’ll be back at the Regency for Betty Buckley’s new show For the Love of Broadway next weekend, followed the next day by the Encores! revival of Fanny. I’m particularly excited for both: the former marks the first time I will have ever seen Ms. Buckley live in performance, the latter possesses a score that I have long admired.

The original Broadway production of Fanny was a big hit in 1954, running 888 performances and establishing David Merrick as a producer to be reckoned with. The show was based on Marcel Pagnol’s trilogy of plays which were also popular films in the 1930s.

In an attempt to repeat the success of South Pacific, Merrick went out of his way to bring as many folks on board. Initially Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg were on board, but they passed on the project. Rodgers and Hammerstein were approached, but they were at the point where they were producers of their own work and supposedly Rodgers disliked Merrick. Merrick was able to snag from the South Pacific team director and co-librettist Joshua Logan, singers Ezio Pinza and William Tabbert, scenic and lighting designer Jo Mielziner as well as the Majestic Theatre. At one point they even considered casting Mary Martin in the title role.

Unable to enlist Rodgers and Hammerstein, Merrick hired composer-lyricist Harold Rome. Rome has been known mostly for his revues and a light musical comedy Wish You Were Here. This would prove to be one of his most ambitious scores, often finding itself reaching operatic heights. Walter Slezak (who would win a Tony for his performance) and 20 year old future TV icon Florence Henderson (as Fanny) rounded out the cast. The show opened to positive reviews; there were some issues with the book. But the show proved an audience favorite with its story of young lovers separated; he goes off to sea, and she stays in Marseilles unmarried and pregnant. She marries a kindly older widower because he loves her, and because she knows he will provide her and her child. Melodrama and legit singing ensue. A cast recording was released by RCA. (I’ll go into greater detail on the music when I report on the Encores! production).

Logan and Rome collaborated on the 1961 film adaptation. In a move that would be replicated by the later musical Irma La Douce, the songs were dropped from the feature, and the musical themes adapted as underscoring. The non-musical drama starred Leslie Caron in the title role, Charles Boyer, Maurice Chevalier and Horst Buchholz. The film was a critical and financial success, garnering five Oscar nominations, including one for Best Picture.

2010 brings about numerous birthday celebrations for Stephen Sondheim. Encores! will closed out its season with a rare NYC revival of his beloved cult bomb Anyone Can Whistle with Sutton Foster and (as rumor has it) Harriet Harris as Cora Hoover Hooper. Final word on casting is pending. There will be galas from the NY Philharmonic, Ravinia Festival, City Center, Roundabout’s Broadway run of Sondheim on Sondheim (much better than the alleged original title iSondheim) and many others. And of course, the Broadway revival of A Little Night Music continues to play at the Walter Kerr Theatre. So your options are ample.

I did see A Little Night Music starring the gorgeous Catherine Zeta-Jones and sublime Angela Lansbury. The musical has been long overdue for a Broadway revival. However, this production stumbles from its initial concept. Going for Chekhov off the bat, director Trevor Nunn misses the balance between the light and dark that makes the show a substantial, touching comedy. While I gather this production benefitted from the intimacy of the Menier Chocolate Factory, it is not conducive to plant a production built for a 150 seat theatre into the 990 seat Walter Kerr. The set is ugly, the costumes are drab, the orchestration anemic. I am loathe to place blame on the actors, as the problems with the production all stem from his misguided directorial vision for the musical.

Casting is uneven. Erin Davie is a bit of a mess, playing Charlotte as a victim with far too many tears. Aaron Lazar fares better. Hunter Ryan Herdlicka and Ramona Mallory are projecting a bit too broadly, with Mallory the worse of the two. Leigh Ann Larkin’s accent jumps through three countries in as many scenes. She sings well enough, but there is no directive for “The Miller’s Son” making it stand out more than usual. Alexander Hanson is the epitome of elegance and panache as the aging lawyer Fredrik Egerman.

Catherine Zeta-Jones brings star quality and an eagerness to the role of Desiree Armfeldt. However, in doing so she tends to lose some of the poignancy. There is a tendency for her to oversell her songs, as though trying to prove something. Her performance is far too mannered and comes into some semblance of humanism far too late. She’s gives an adequate performance, but it lacks the spark that has long made the role such a dynamite success for other actors (Glynis Johns, Jean Simmons, and Judi Dench to name a few). Angela Lansbury outdoes her Tony-winning performance in Blithe Spirit with a delicious, understated performance as the disapproving, observant Madame Armfeldt. In the eleventh hour, her character has a reveal so moving I was convinced that the legendary actress is destined for a record sixth Tony. If the rest of the production lived up to her stunning performance, I would say it was worth the ridiculously high ticket price they are asking.

What this revival points out to me is that no matter the production – the book and lyrics of Hugh Wheeler and Sondheim, respectively, can survive even the most inept handling of the material. This revival would have been better served with the Lincoln Center team- Bartlett Sher, Cathy Zuber and Christopher Akerlind – exploring and fine-tuning every nuance and color waiting to be revisited within this glorious musical.

Vocal Selections from "1600 Pennsylvania Avenue"


While I have the vocal score in my possession, I do not have this gem which must be some sort of collector’s item. I find it amusing that a show that played seven performances and folded without a cast album would publish vocal selections, especially since Mr. Bernstein went on to recycle elements of his score into future works. (Bernstein and Lerner made the arrangement with Music of the Times Publishing in November 1974 to publish their collaborative effort). I’m assuming there aren’t many copies of this available, though I did locate several in the NYPL catalogue. Unfortunately if you’re looking to perform the “Duet for One,” that 26 page behemoth has been left out. But there are other hits from the show you can sing around the piano in your living room: “Bright and Black” – “Pity the Poor” – “The President Jefferson Sunday Luncheon Party March” – “The Red, White, and Blues” – “Take Care of This House” – “Seena” – “We Must Have a Ball.”

Ernest in Love

I’ll never forget the first time I heard Ernest in Love, the musical adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest. The cast album CD had just been released by DRG in 2003, and I was familiar with the play from high school and college readings so I was curious to see how it fared on disc. Aside from its overture and two songs, most of it didn’t stick and I didn’t listen to the recording again for some time.

However, once word came that the Irish Repertory Theatre was going to revive the obscurity, I made it a goal to head down to catch a performance. As my Irish luck would have it, I received an invitation from the group itself to cover it. (Add to it, Charlotte Moore, director of the production and Artistic Director of the organization handed me my tickets!) I admit I was excited too because I was bringing Ms. Roxie along with me, Anglophile, Earnest enthusiast and all-around musical theatre fan.

The musical, written by Lee Pockriss and Anne Croswell, was originally an hour long TV musical called Who’s Earnest? which aired on the US Steel Hour in 1957. The expanded version of the show opened off-Broadway in 1960 to positive reviews but closed after 103 performances. (In contrast, The Fantasticks opened off-Broadway the night before… just saying). An original cast album was made, and the show has been available for licensing so it hasn’t fallen completely off the radar.

The major problem with Ernest in Love is that it’s a completely unnecessary musical. There are some songs which are quite good, and others which are quite dull. More importantly, none of the songs has anything to add to one of the most important comic plays of the last hundreds years or so. Pockriss came from the world of pop music with one hit song “Catch a Falling Star” and Croswell was in advertising jingles. Their work is admirable, if nothing that really stands out. The duo would later reunite for the 1963 musical Tovarich (which I admit, I listen to more than Ernest) which won Vivien Leigh a Tony award, but whose offstage drama was more memorable than the show itself.

The Irish Rep is presenting a most charming, elegant production of the show (now playing through February 14) with a cast headlined by Tony nominee Beth Fowler as the imperious Lady Bracknell. Things got off to a it of a shaky start with a sung overture a la Night Music featuring some excessive “swayography,” but once the actual play was up and running, things settled in rather nicely for a warm, enjoyable evening.

Song-and-dance man Noah Racey was a little out of place as Jack Worthing, but managed to overcome his stiffness in the second act. Ian Holcomb is appropriately infuriating as the foppish Algernon Montcrief, who both resembles and channels Wilde himself in his flamboyantly arch characterization. Fowler’s arch Lady Bracknell (always the crowdpleaser) uses the character’s stoicism to great comic effect, and soars with a near showstopping rendition of “A Handbag is Not a Proper Mother” (and yes, she had an excellent delivery of “A handbag?”). Annika Boras was absolute perfection as Gwendolyn; while Katie Fabel scored major laughs as Cecily, though her singing voice didn’t seem quite up to the demands of her major song (“A Wicked Man”).

Moore’s direction is strong, making great use of the venue. I have never been inside the Irish Repertory Theatre before, but it’s a beautiful space perfect for chamber musicals, much like this one. In a larger space, the show couldn’t and mostly likely wouldn’t work as well as it does here. The sets and costumes are charming, even if Algernon’s robe is a trifle too Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat for a period musical. The orchestration consisting of piano, harp and string sits off stage right, is perfection; complementing both the material onstage as well as the performance space.

There aren’t many folks out there clamoring for a production of Ernest in Love, so it’s fortuitous that the Irish Rep has given theatre fans (especially cult musical enthusiasts like myself) the opportunity to see a full-scale production. However, don’t be surprised if you find yourself anticipating the book scenes during the musical numbers – the best of the evening still belongs to Mr. Wilde.

It’s Enough to Make a Fellow Fall in Love


Here’s a press shot of Patricia Routledge in her Tony-winning performance as Alice Challice in the failed Jule Styne-Yip Harburg musical Darling of the Day. The show lasted 31 performances at the George Abbott Theater (now the site of the Michelangelo Hotel) in 1968. In spite of the musical’s fast failure (which lost an astronomical $750,000), there are many merits within the show and score; friends and fellow bloggers know that I have long championed a revival.

Alice Challice is something of an unsung heroine of the musical theatre. She’s warm, vibrant, vivacious and pragmatic – a young widow living quietly in Putney who refuses to conform to the loneliness of widowhood. Endeavoring to get married, she uses a marriage broker to establish a correspondence with a nobleman artist’s valet. The role calls for a sensible, yet fun-loving comic soprano, “youngish,” whose material runs the gamut from tender ballads to raucous music hall numbers. There aren’t too many theatre fans familiar with Alice, but if they were it’s likely they would fall madly in love with her.

The show, which was a troubled vehicle for Vincent Price (!), failed rather miserably. It was based on Arnold Bennett’s comic novel Buried Alive about a shy British artist (Price) who switches identities with his dead valet “get out of the world alive” In doing so, he also takes up the deceased’s association with the Widow Challice, with whom he falls in love. An expectedly convoluted farce ensues where he paints under his pseudonym and is found out by snobbish art dealers, when all hell breaks loose.

Out of town reception was rather bleak, with critical pans in Toronto and Boston (in the latter city, Peter Filichia said it was one of the worst musicals he had ever seen, but much improved when he saw it in NY). There was a lack of steady direction, with four directors, two choreographers and five bookwriters. (Nunnally Johnson removed his name prior to opening night leaving the libretto without a credit). In spite of all this trouble the musical actually received a surprising amount of positive reviews. The only full-out pan was the estimable New York Times. Clive Barnes opted out of reviewing the show for the paper and it went to second stringer Dan Sullivan instead, who filed his wholly negative assessment. Barnes himself actually visited the show shortly thereafter and looked on it favorably. The Times also had Walter Kerr in the show’s corner, offering his Sunday column as a valentine to her many abilities. Kerr gave the leading lady one of my favorite pull-quotes of all time: “If you don’t catch her act now, you’ll someday want to kill yourself.” (He immediately added “I’ll help you.”)

Lying in the rubble of the show was Routledge’s Tony win (an award she shared with Leslie Uggams of Hallelujah, Baby!) is the show’s original cast album, which is a charming delight and showcases two major assets – Routledge and the elegant and vibrant score by Styne and Harburg (Styne considered this his “Lerner & Loewe” score and his second favorite of his own musicals behind Gypsy). The show has been rather well-received recently in a couple of engagements at Mufti, which saw revisions made to the book and score in an attempt to refurbish the vehicle. Those revisions were supervised by Erik Haagensen, playwright and Backstage critic, who also made an attempt to fix Routledge’s other failed Broadway musical, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in the early 1990s.

There was a shoddy live recording made of the show’s opening night performance which plays like a raucous hit. The audience lapped up the stars, doling out entrance applause for the two above the title, as well as character actress Brenda Forbes. The most vociferous reactions were reserved for Routledge, who stopped the show with her first number “It’s Enough to Make a Lady Fall in Love, as well as her reflective “That Something Extra Special” towards the end of the first act. The actress all but reduced the theatre to rubble with her eleven o’clock number “Not on Your Nellie.” During her ovation for the latter (which lasted a full minute), she can be heard very faintly asking incredulously “Is this all for me?” then after a beat pleading the audience “Ladies and gentlemen, if you please.” The audience took this as a cue to give one more cheer before allowing the company to the continue.

As I sit here writing, I realize that the musical opened on this day forty-two years ago. It’s a show that isn’t licensed for stock/amateur performances and has had very few revivals, the RCA cast album has been out of print for many years, but has resurfaced recently via ArkivMusic. The show remains off the beaten path, a lost gem that has brought me a great deal of joy.

Should Encores! (as I want to hear those vibrant orchestrations from Ralph Burns) take up the show, there is only one person in my estimation who should play Alice Challice (and I have Ken Mandelbaum’s agreement on this front) and that is Victoria Clark. What strikes me the most about this particular press shot is the uncanny resemblance between Clark and Routledge, as they share a similar voice type, sensibility and the honor of the Best Actress in a Musical Tony. By extension, I think David Hyde Pierce is ideal for the artist. Then I’d toss in Gavin Lee for the music hall numbers, and Edward Hibbert and Judy Kaye as the noblesse-oblige for good measure.

Darling of the Day is a gem just aching for rediscovery.

The Barn Dance


Seven Brides for Seven Brothers was a rather small-scale film that came out of nowhere in 1954 to become one of the biggest hits of the year. Produced by MGM, the musical found its budget cut and studio bound as the musical unit decided to put its money into lavish film versions of Brigadoon and Rose Marie. Filmed on the soundstage with painted backdrops and a shoestring budget, filming wrapped in 48 days, the suits convinced they had a solid B picture on their hands. What they really had was an unstoppable blockbuster.

Based on Stephen Vincent Benét’s short story “The Sobbin Women,” itself an update of Plutarch’s story of the Sabine (Sabine, Sobbin’, get it?) women in Lives of Romulus, the story deals with seven backwoods brothers in Oregon who take an interest in getting a wife. When eldest Adam hurriedly marries feisty but warm Milly, he inspires the others to get their own wives – by kidnapping their lady friends and holding them at their remote cabin until the winter thaw.

Howard Keel and Jane Powell were signed on for the leads. Gene De Paul supplied the music, Johnny Mercer wrote the lyrics. The film was directed by Stanley Donen, who’d gained clout for his co-direction of On the Town and Singin’ in the Rain with Gene Kelly. Michael Kidd, who won Tony Awards for his choreography of Guys and Dolls and Can-Can, and also supplied dancing for the MGM hit The Band Wagon, was signed on to provide musical staging. Kidd’s choreography on this picture would prove to be some of the most noted of his film career, particularly the Barn Dance during the first half of the picture.

After Milly has cleaned up the men, and taught them how to politely and properly court a girl, they show up at a Barn Raising and there is a dance off between the six remaining brothers and the suitors of their prospective lady friends. (The other six brothers were played by Jeff Richards (professional baseball player), Russ Tamblyn (acrobat), Matt Mattox, Jacques d’Amboise, Marc Platt and Tommy Rall (all dancers). The brides were all professional dancers, the notable standout being young Julie Newmeyer, who change her last name to Newmar and find great success as Catwoman on the 60s Batman series. Kidd’s dancing is legendary. Here is the result:
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers-Barn Dance –

The film became a sleeper hit of the year, outgrossing both Rose Marie and Brigadoon. It ended up a leading contender at the Academy Awards, surprising the studio when it was nominated for Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Screenplay and, of all things, Best Picture. It won for Best Scoring of a Musical Picture.

The property has maintained its popularity over the years – a stage version was commissioned in the late 70s with Lawrence Kashka and David Landay supplemented the score with some new numbers. Powell and Keel reprised their roles for this initial tour, but when the show moved to Broadway Debby Boone and David-James Carroll were in the leads. The musical was a noted flop on Broadway, lasting a mere 5 performances at the Alvin Theatre in 1982. A London company in 1985 was met with considerably more success, and even produced a cast album of the stage score. The stage version was overhauled in 2005 and is currently licensed. The film also inspired a TV series that ran on CBS from 1982-83.

London audiences were quite taken with the stage adaptation, and it has already received a West End revival. This past August, during the broadcast of the famed Proms, conductor Jon Wilson wanted to present some lighter music for audiences from American film musicals. In performing “The Barn Dance,” he find himself at an arduous task for MGM threw out orchestrations for their films once recording was completed. Wilson reconstructed Conrad Salinger’s original orchestrations by piecing together short scores and parts, and even drawing aurally from the film soundtrack. Here is their performance from August 3, 2009:

"Tovah: Out of Her Mind"

Tovah Feldshuh, last seen on Broadway in Irena’s Vow, has a touring show that she has done in concert and cabaret venues. Her musical theatre experience is well documented. She starred in the shortlived Sarava in 1979 (where she sounded exactly like Joan Diener – it’s uncanny) and a few years back in the Paper Mill Playhouse revival of Hello, Dolly! Here’s Tovah living up to her title.