“Matilda” – Original Cast Recording

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Every so often, I encounter a new score that captures my ear and imagination, and I find I myself listening to it ad infinitum. There’s something about the way the words and music hit me that I find that I compulsively want to hear the new work again and again. The last time this happened was six years ago on the release of The Light in the Piazza. There have been other scores in the years since that I have greatly admired, but none has bowled me over quite like the original cast album of Matilda. I’ve had this original cast recording for a month now, featuring the show’s original Stratford players, and have been listening to it so often that all of its 17 tracks have entered my top 25 playlist on iTunes. To be frank, I haven’t been this excited/thrilled/over-the-moon about a new musical in years, and if my ear is any indicator, Matilda is going to have a long and healthy life on stage.

Matilda had its world premiere at the Royal Shakespeare Company last December, directed by Matthew Warchus, (the man responsible for the smashing revival of The Norman Conquests). Dennis Kelly has written the book with Australian comedian, singer, songwriter Tim Minchin providing both music and lyrics. The choreography is by Peter Darling. The new musical opened to rave reviews at the Courtyard Theatre, where it played a sold out limited engagement, with the Daily Telegraph declaring it the best musical since Billy Elliot. I’ll take it a step further: Matilda contains the best original British score I’ve heard in ages. Now Matilda is poised to take the West End by storm, with performances starting at the Cambridge Theatre on October 25.

The focus here is on Minchin’s music and lyrics, but I must make mention that Kelly has written a superb libretto from Roald Dahl’s classic children’s novel. Minchin is new to writing musicals, though he has a background in theatre, but he makes an auspicious debut with his first full musical score. What’s so wondrous about this adaptation is that Mr. Minchin not only serves the book, but captures Dahl’s tone, with its mix of dark humor and understated emotion. Unlike most shows with child protagonists (most of which admittedly tend to send me straight for the insulin), Matilda never becomes cloying or irritating.

Matilda Wormwood is extraordinary, though she doesn’t realize it. She’s 5 going on 50 and in that old soul you find a young girl with more brains, compassion and maturity than most of the adults around her. Her parents (hilariously sung by Paul Kaye and Josie Walker) are self-centered pigs who find her affinity for reading repulsive. She meets a kindred spirit, the lovely Miss Honey – the only adult to recognize Matilda’s prodigious aptitude. However, at the same time Matilda encounters her arch nemesis, the evil headmistress Miss Trunchbull, a formidable bully who terrorizes everyone in her path.

The score is tuneful and memorable with inspired lyrics: character-based, witty and often quite clever. The opening number, “Miracle,” perfectly establishes the tone and adds the brilliant touch of Mrs. Wormwood learning of her pregnancy in the ninth month. “The School Song” is ingeniously structured around the 26 letters of the alphabet. “Bruce” is a rally song for the students as the Trunchbull punishes the portly Bruce Bogtrotter by forcing him to eat an entire chocolate cake. (One of my favorite rhymes: “Bruce/You’ll never again be subject to abuse/for your immense caboose/She’ll call a truce, Bruce/With every swallow you are tightening the noose”).

The Stratford cast utilized three actresses as Matilda: Adrianna Bertola, Josie Griffiths, and Kerry Ingram, all superb. All three are present on the cast album (though if I hadn’t known, I would never have realized it). “Naughty” shows us that Matilda is not going to go down without a fight, brilliantly using literary allusions to make her point. Throughout the musical, Matilda visits with the librarian (Melanie La Barrie) and is able to improvise stories off the top of her head. Each story is a chapter in Miss Honey’s life, though she doesn’t realize it toward the end. Musically, it climaxes with the haunting “I’m Here”. Toward the end of the second act, Matilda sings the touching “Quiet,” a soliloquy cued by a harsh diatribe from Trunchbull, in which she describes her mental escape from the unpleasantness around her.

Matilda’s mother is now obsessed with dance competitions instead of bingo, performing “Loud,” an over the top samba in which Mrs. Wormwood instructs Miss Honey on why it’s better to choose looks over books. During the interval, Mr. Wormwood makes an appearance to apologize for Matilda’s promotion of literacy before launching into the delightful “(All I Know I Learned from) Telly,” with a hilarious diatribe against famed British authors. (“Ian McEwan? Ah, I feel like spewin'”). The antidote to the hilariously appalling parents is Miss Honey, who gets the score’s more plaintive ballads, warmly sung by Lauren Ward. Michael Rouse has double duty as the kind obstetrician in the opening number “Miracle,” and as Mrs. Wormwood’s dance coach/partner Rudolpho.

One of Matilda‘s greatest treasures is British actor Bertie Carvel (Leo Frank in the London Parade) as Agatha Trunchbull, an inspired performance combining pure evil with searing wit. Miss Trunchbull gets two major numbers: “The Hammer” and the stunning “The Smell of Rebellion” in the second act, with a raucous fantasia where she imagines a world without children. In a brilliant stroke, Trunchbull is not only the headmistress, but also the Phys Ed teacher. Though she has the two solos, her presence is felt throughout much of the album. Carvel’s creation is quite possibly the greatest thing to happen to musical theatre villains since Dorothy Loudon played Miss Hannigan in the original Annie. I only hope that when the show makes its inevitable trip to Broadway, he comes with it.

The original cast album is available for digital download on iTunes or as a hard copy from the RSC website. The album contains a 28 page booklet including the lyrics. Also, when you hear the album, don’t stop listening after the finale is finished. There’s a special surprise that must be heard to be believed as it one of the most hilarious things I have ever heard on a cast album.

Broadway Originals at Town Hall

On a spur-of-the-moment invite from SarahB, I found myself attending my first Broadway Originals concert today, which also marked my first time inside Town Hall. I’d heard of the concert, but had never gone. SarahB, on the other hand, has gone for several years and is always raving about it, so I figured, why not? It turns out to be a glorious afternoon celebrating those actors who introduced so many great songs to Broadway, as well as original cast members of various revivals.

Each act started with a visit from The Manhattan Rhythm Kings (Brian M. Nalepka, Tripp Hanson and Hal Shane) revisiting their songs from Crazy For You. Lorraine Serabian sang two numbers from Zorba, first Maria Karnilova’s “No Boom Boom” and closing the show with her own “Life Is.” Daisy Eagan joked about having one song, but adding “I’m working on that…” before she sang “The Girl I Mean to Be” from The Secret Garden. Bob Stillman reminded Sarah and I how much we loved him in Grey Gardens with his “Drift Away.” I’ve only been familiar with Sarah Uriarte Berry with her rangy coloratura turn as Franca in The Light in the Piazza, so I was amused to see her rock out to “Safe in the City” from Taboo.

Jeanine Tesori accompanied the original Radio (plus one understudy) for “Salty Tears” from Caroline, or Change. Before the trio sang, Ms. Tesori talked about her experience writing the show, and working with George Wolfe (the director). The afternoon’s performance was dedicated to the late Alice Playten, who was part of the show’s original cast. Andrea Frierson was on hand to sing her beautiful solo “The Human Heart” from Once on This Island.

Alexander Gemignani revisited “Bring Him Home” from Les Miserables, while in a last minute addition, Jesus Garcia and Ben Davis revisited the duet “O Mimì, Tu Più Non Torni” that they sang in Baz Luhrmann’s La Boheme (How last minute? They only rehearsed twenty minutes before the audience was let in; they were unplugged and in glorious voice). Yvonne Constant, decked out as what can best be described as France’s answer to Carol Channing, revisited her number “One of Those Songs” from La Plume de Ma Tante, the obscure ’50s French import that took Broadway by storm for over two years. Ms. Constant first sang the French lyrics, then the more familiar English lyrics with which Jimmy Durante had a huge pop hit. Marianne Tatum, with whom Sarah and I had the loveliest conversation at the Flea Market, treated us to her glorious soprano with “Love Makes Such Fools of Us All” from Barnum and “L’Amour Toujours-L’Amour” from The Three Musketeers, offering us a hilarious story of Barnum star Glenn Close’s quest for motivation.

The longest set of the afternoon came from Marilyn Michaels, who starred in the first national tour of Funny Girl and also appeared on Broadway in the revue Catskills on Broadway. She started her set with Funny Girl’s “Don’t Rain on My Parade,” combining the act one finale with its act two finale reprise. Then we went off the rails a bit with a series of impressions set to “Manhattan.” It was a simultaneously bizarre, funny and fascinating. For her third act, she reprised a bit from Catskills in which she revisited her one person version of The Wizard of Oz, which brought down the house.

The biggest surprise of the afternoon was an appearance by two-time Tony winner Tammy Grimes. Ms. Grimes has been recuperating from surgery and needed the assistance of a walker. (She quipped, “The only new part I’ve been offered recently is a new knee.”) She sang three songs from The Unsinkable Molly Brown, including “My Own Brass Bed,” “I’ll Never Say Know” and “I Ain’t Down Yet.” Her performance was perfection and that one of a kind voice is remarkably unchanged. She dedicated “I’ll Never Say No” to her co-star Harve Presnell, who sang the song in the show, who died two years ago. She said she had always hoped to see him one more time, before offering a beautiful rendition of the song in his memory – and in his key, she boasted.

The concert was directed by Scott Coulter, with musical direction by John Fischer. Scott Siegel, who created the event, sat onstage at a podium and served as the afternoon’s host. I look forward to going back next year and the year after that. And I hope Tammy Grimes is on hand to sing High Spirits’ “Home Sweet Heaven.”

“Give Our Regards to Broadway” – Manhattan School of Music

This past Monday marked my first trip to Morningside Heights. Admittedly, I rarely leave the Midtown/Upper West Side area when in town,  though I do occasionally shoot downtown for a Fringe or Off-Broadway show here and there. However, there was a special concert at the Manhattan School of Music that sounded like it was too good an opportunity to pass up. The school’s Chamber Sinfonia was presenting “Give Our Regards to Broadway,” an evening of Broadway music and overtures under the baton of Paul Gemignani, with special guest artists Kate Baldwin and Alexander Gemignani. The price of admission? $20. How could I resist?

So SarahB, Follies enthusiast Tyler Martins, and I ventured up to the school’s John C. Borden auditorium. General admission had us picking seats in the second row, three on the aisle. Much to my surprise, the program withheld the evening’s line-up; it seemed as though the artists wanted to surprise us and as both Sarah and Tyler can attest, I was pleasantly surprised all evening.

Mr. Gemignani got things started with the South Pacific overture, using the original orchestrations of Robert Russell Bennett. I knew instantly we were in for a whirlwind evening. The students are magnificent. I realize that might sound like an obvious statement as they are attending one of the most prestigious music conservatories in the country, but really, these kids are aces. Bennett’s orchestration for South Pacific is among the finest ever created for a musical, and the arrangement of the overture is absolutely staggering. I found myself as overwhelmed by it as I was at the 2005 Carnegie Hall concert and the opening night of the 2008 Broadway revival.

The only verbal remarks of the evening were made by Mr. Gemignani, as he stressed the importance of introducing students to the music of classic Broadway. For 90 minutes, we were treated to a total of 23 pieces. Six of these were overtures, including Oklahoma!, Fiorello! (I practically fell out of my chair when I heard the siren at the beginning), Funny Girl, Gypsy and the special overture created by Mr. Gemignani and Jonathan Tunick for the famed Sondheim 80th Birthday concert.

Kate Baldwin took us on a journey through leading lady land: ingenue, soubrette, star. Ms. Baldwin used her lush soprano on such classics as “What’s the Use of Wond’rin'” from Carousel, “When Did I Fall in Love?” from Fiorello and “Will He Like Me?” from She Loves Me (the latter two can be found on her essential album “She Loves Him“).  She also sang “On the Steps of the Palace” from Into the Woods, which works better out of context than I would have thought. But the two most surprising moments came when she tore through “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” and “Could I Leave You?” offering the audience a glimpse into two potential star turns in Ms. Baldwin’s future.

Alexander Gemignani made his entrance with the famous a cappella opening of “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'” from Oklahoma, while having a field day with “Where Is the Life That Late I Led?” from Kiss Me, Kate, “Something’s Coming” from West Side Story and “Giants in the Sky” from Into the Woods. His showstopper, though, was a specialty written by Frank Loesser for the Betty Hutton film The Perils of Pauline, called “Rumble, Rumble, Rumble.” The song is about an apartment tenant who needs to move because the neighbor is playing piano night and day. (Tedd Firth was the virtuoso on the piano).

Together, the stars shared a medley from The Pajama Game (he sang “A New Town is a Blue Town, she sang “Hey There”), “Together Wherever We Go” from Gypsy and a spirited “There Once Was a Man,” also from The Pajama Game. One of the more obscure numbers of the evening was “I Want to Be with You,” introduced by Sammy Davis, Jr. and Paula Wayne in Strouse and Adams’ Golden Boy. For an encore, and to the sheer delight of Tyler, they sang “Too Many Mornings,” from Follies.

The musicianship was superb all around. It was a pleasure for me to hear many of these pieces performed with their original orchestration. In many cases, I have only heard experienced the arrangements through the original cast albums. For a mere $20, the Manhattan School of Music gave me the sort of evening I wish I could have every time I see a Broadway musical.

A Look at “Purlie”

Purlie, a musical adaptation of Ossie Davis’ 1964 comedy Purlie Victorious, is about a charismatic and enterprising black preacher who goes head to head with a bigoted plantation owner. The show, with a highly entertaining score by Gary Geld and Peter Udell, opened at the Broadway Theatre in 1970 and ran for 688 performances, winning two Tonys including one for star Cleavon Little. It was revived in 1972, for 14 performances and was ultimately taped for TV in 1981 with several members of the original company, which also included The Jeffersons’ star Sherman Hemsley. Starring in the TV version was Robert Guillaume, who replaced Little in the Broadway company and was making a name for himself as Benson. (The following clips are from said TV version).

However, Purlie opens differently than most musical comedies: the curtain rises on what appears to be a solemn funeral. Kicking off the show was Linda Hopkins, the choir soloist, who leads the congregation in the rousing “Walk Him Up the Stairs,” which stars as a solemn gospel hymn and quickly evolves into a high-octane showstopper:

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Melba Moore, who had made a splash as Dionne in the original Broadway cast of Hair, walked home with the Tony for Best Featured Actress in a Musical as Lutiebelle, Purlie’s love interest. Moore is a vocal powerhouse whose pyrotechnics and stage presence made her the toast of the 1969-70 Broadway season. Here she is strutting her way through the show’s title song:

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The title song went over so well out of town that the creators decided that Moore needed another song. They quickly came up with a showstopper like none other. Starting out plaintive and quiet, “I Got Love” takes off into the stratosphere once Moore sings the word “love.” What followed were vocal pyrotechnics of the highest order and Ms. Moore brought the show to a halt with this powerhouse tour de force (plus encore):

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“Follies” on Broadway

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A timpani drumroll, a series of minor chords and then seemingly out of nowhere, a showgirl appears. This tall, lithe yet shadowy figure seems frozen in time and space, but as the music takes on a dreamlike quality, she starts to move. But slowly, ethereally; as if of another world. This is the first image of Follies and it seems that for the next two hours, I’m holding my breath in theatrical limbo. The evening is supposed to be a happy reunion of members of the Weismann Follies, but the stage of the dilapidated Weismann Theatre becomes an area for delusions to be exorcised, regrets to be revealed and for the uneasy acceptance that life doesn’t always turn out how we want it to.

Bold and beautiful, flawlessly flawed, Follies is a show with a cult following unlike any other musical I can think of (flops need not apply). The 1971 musical all but shocked audiences with its  unsettling portrait of unhappy marriages and the disillusionment of middle age. There are ardent fans and ardent detractors, and it seems that whenever a production comes to NY, it becomes the talk of the town. Every song, character, line, production becomes the source of dissection and debate; comparisons abound. This marks the second time I have seen Follies live, and I realize that every time I have seen or will see the show, it will be at a different point of my life and that will inform my impact on my life. I have seen this production twice now: its first preview and its opening night.

The original Follies was a benchmark in grand production values and pushing the envelope of what a musical could be. Stephen Sondheim’s score has entered the upper echelon of musical theatre, with an astonishing mixture of pastiche and character numbers.  James Goldman’s book, always a bone of contention for many, is like a surreal Altmanesque puzzle. There are characters roaming in and out, some performing their old numbers, while two main couples confront some unfinished business that has left their respective marriages unpleasant.

Bernadette Peters, while not ideal for Sally, offers a fascinating portrait of depression and mental illness. When she enters at the top of the show and timidly tells the waiter, “I’m so glad I came,” you’re not convinced she is. Sally is a tough sell, and always has been: she’s delusional, angry and disappointed at her life. She arrives at the reunion with one goal: to take Ben, for whom she’s held a torch for thirty years, from Phyllis. Peters starts the show in a darker place than anyone else who’s done the part. Jan Maxwell is a couth delight as Phyllis, brittle, sophisticated and yet the only one of the four who is willing to fight for the relationship. She’s less aloof than one usually expects in the role, but delivers exceptionally on the dialogue and especially in the searing “Could I Leave You?” Ron Raines lends his sonorous baritone to the emotionally stunted Ben. Standing out among this main quartet is Danny Burstein, a revelation as Buddy, Sally’s sad-sack husband. His pain and rage come to a head in “The Right Girl” and brings down the house with “Buddy’s Blues,” but even when he’s not speaking he’s saying oh so much. It’s a performance that will not soon be forgotten.

Starry support comes from grande dame Elaine Paige as Carlotta, strutting around the stage in a sexy blue dress and dropping one-liners like Mae West. Ms. Paige delivers the triumphant anthem “I’m Still Here” with an intensity that seethes with anger and defiance, scoring a mammoth showstopper. (One quibble about a lyric change in this particular song: I hate that Brenda Frazier has been replaced by Shirley Temple. The former is a pointed comment about the fleeting nature of fame, while the latter just feels like a cheap shot). Rosalind Elias, the former Metropolitan star is making a spectacular Broadway debut at 82 as Heidi Schiller, offering one of the evening’s most arresting showstoppers in “One More Kiss” (shared with Leah Horowitz).

Lots of old pros are on hand: Terri White, belting to the rafters and schooling the chorines in hoofing, leads the ladies in rousing “Who’s That Woman?” Susan Watson (on Broadway for the first time since No No Nanette), Don Correia, Mary Beth Peil and Jayne Houdyshell deliver a dynamite “Rain on the Roof/Ah Paree/Broadway Baby” montage. Florence Lacey and Colleen Fitzpatrick add color to ensemble.

Then there are the ghosts, the younger versions of the party-goers, showgirls who float in and out ethereally. Nick Verina has a baritone that perfectly complements Raines. Lora Lee Gayer has created a Young Sally who is uncannily similar to her older counterpart. Erin N. Moore makes quite an impression as Young Stella, as does Kiira Schmidt who practically steals “Buddy’s Blues” as Margie (wait for her slide!)

Eric Schaeffer’s direction is simple and too realistic, with a lot of moments placed in-one which tends to be a bit static. Some of his best work involves the ghosts, especially the moments where past and present intermingle or collide. Warren Carlyle’s choreography is stellar, if lacking in invention. “Who’s That Woman?” is a joyous showstopper but “The Story of Lucy and Jessie” doesn’t quite build as it should (though it’s better now than it was at the first preview). Gregg Barnes costumes are eye popping in their period detail and grandeur, contrasting well with Derek McLane’s eerie set. The literal unit set depicting the dilapidated stage is brilliant, but his Loveland motif is a bit underwhelming. McLane also deserves credit for effectively shrouding the gauche Marquis Theatre interior. Natasha Katz’s lighting design is sheer perfection. James Moore leads the dazzling 28 piece orchestra in Jonathan Tunick’s sublime original orchestrations, some of the most beautiful ever arranged for musical theatre. This alone is worth the price of admission.

The production would be better served if it was performed without an intermission: the tension organically simmers throughout the evening until it explodes into “Loveland.” Stopping for fifteen minutes kills that momentum. Also, it would be nice to see a production of Follies that actually uses the full original text. Various lines and pieces that have been excised add more layers to the characters, most especially several illuminating moments for Phyllis and Sally. But any quibbles I may have for this particular production are meaningless. Each time Follies reaches its sobering conclusion, I look forward to the next opportunity to see the show. The revival is currently scheduled as a limited engagement with a closing date of January 22. Whatever you do, do not miss it.

“The Life and Death of King John” – NY Shakespeare Exchange

It’s not often that one gets to see The Life and Death of King John (by William Shakespeare, no less), so when I received the press invite for the New York Shakespeare Exchange’s production, I jumped at the opportunity. The play has a curious history. It’s generally believed to have been written in the mid-1590s and published in 1598. There are accounts of the play’s popularity in the 1600s, but the first known production was in 1737. King John reached its peak popularity during the Victorian Era and has since fallen into considerable obscurity, and makes for a great punch line in the uproarious The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged). The play deals with the reign of King John, and the controversies that surrounded his reign. It’s a bit of a mess, but I am grateful for the opportunity to actually see it onstage.

The New York Shakespeare Exchange was established in 2009 with the intent of fusing Shakespeare with new media and modern technology. King John is their first full production, after several readings and a Shakespearean pub crawl called “ShakesBEER” (where do I sign up?).  Set in a contemporary Manhattan loft, using Skype, smartphones, HDTVs, flip cams and a clever homage to TMZ, the production reflects a modern sensibility in almost every capacity. Artistic director Ross Williams, who adapted the play to meet his directorial concept keeps his entire company within sight of the audience at all times, staging the text at edge of your seat fever pitch that successfully feeds off the tension. Some of the video clips (Kate and William’s wedding, UK riots) go a bit overboard, but it’s still fascinating to see how Williams plays the past and present off each other. 

The strong cast is led by Drama Desk nominee Vince Gatton as John, offering an amusing and spirited exercise in entitlement and narcissism. Carmen Meyers played Eleanor of Aquitaine as if she were a 21st century corporate executive (though much to my disappointment, Shakespeare wasn’t as interested in the character as James Goldman was, but that’s neither here nor there). Another standout is Zac Hoogendyk, who made quite an impression as the Earl of Salisbury. Walking away with the entire show is Leigh Williams, whose titanic performance as Constance is a triumph of nuance and strength. My only disappointment is that the character doesn’t appear in the second act. 

For all its warts, I had a really good time with King John, more than I thought I would. The production, warts and all, made an interesting case for King John. I’m not fully convinced that the high tech concept is necessary for the telling of the story, but it made the evening highly entertaining. Special kudos to the spirited fight choreography by Alicia Rodis, who really had the cast rolling around the apartment set (and in a moment of inspired hilarity, had Eleanor using pepper spray). One quibble, though: I think the production could have benefitted from a larger venue. If this production is any indication, the New York Shakespeare Exchange is going to need one.

Three from Masterworks Broadway

The Saint of Bleecker Street, Gian Carlo Menotti’s penultimate Broadway opera, ran for only 92 performances at the Broadway Theater in 1955. However, the piece garnered enough attention to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical. Set in 1954 Little Italy, the devout but sickly Annina sees visions and suffers the stigmata and neighbors flock her to her sick room thinking she can heal them. Annina, aware that her time is limited, wants only to take the veil, but is met with opposition from her atheist brother Michele, who feels that her visions are hallucinations and that the Church is exploiting her. Emotions run high, and this being Menotti, it doesn’t end well for anyone. The cast consists mostly of unknown performers, but the two leads (Gabrielle Ruggiero and David Poleri) are outstanding, offering passionate performances and some truly glorious singing. Gloria Lane (the Secretary in Menotti’s The Consul) is also briefly on hand as Michele’s ill-fated lover, Desideria. Broadway baritones John Reardon and Reid Shelton were also in the cast. This is the first digital release of this particular album, and makes a great case for re-exploration by opera companies.

Not quite so ready for re-exploration, but a fascinating curio nonetheless, is the off-Broadway production of Half-Past Wednesday, a musical adaptation of Grimm’s Rumpelstiltskin. The show, which played 2 performances in 1962 at the Orpheum Theatre, was recorded by Columbia Records. Dom DeLuise leads the cast of five as the King, with Sean Garrison as the Prince, Audre Johnston as Erelda, Robert Fitch as Grandfather and David Winters (an impish delight) as Rumpelstiltskin. The album plays less like a cast album and more like a children’s recording, the kind that used to include a companion book. Much of the dialogue is included to give the album a sense of story, which is especially unusual for Columbia albums of the era (this was produced by Clifford Snyder, not Goddard Lieberson). The songs, by Robert Corley and Nina Jones, are more notable for their clever lyrics than melodies. DeLuise and Fitch get a fun number in “Grandfathers (Ev’ry Baby’s Best Friend).” The album has been pulled from obscurity and is available for the first time since a 1966 reissue. I think it’s telling that in all three issues of the album, Half-Past Wednesday is overshadowed by the big block letters which state “THE NEW MUSICAL VERSION OF RUMPELSTILTSKIN.” It’s better than its two performance run would indicate, especially for the kids.

When most Broadway shows celebrate an anniversary, there is usually a cake and a photo op. Sometimes even a party. However, when the original production of Hair turned 3, the company celebrated the anniversary with an Episcopalian Eucharist at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on May 9, 1971. (The first two anniversaries had been major celebrations in Central Park). Galt McDermot, Hair’s composer, wrote a Mass which was sung by the Cathedral choir. In place of hymns, songs from the score of Hair were interpolated into the afternoon’s service sung by current cast members. Divine Hair/Mass in F is a live recording of excerpts from the festivities, which includes a chance to hear the Dionne of future Tony-winner Delores Hall. Also among this replacement cast were Allan Nicholls and Dale Soules. It’s a unique experience, as the album includes the welcome from Reverend Canon Edward N. West (who would have made a terrific Starkeeper in Carousel), as well as The Collect, The Epistle and the Gospel (each read by a different priest, one of whom is Gerome Ragni’s brother). There’s also something highly entertaining hearing organist Jack W. Jones perform variations of “Aquarius” on the cathedral’s mammoth pipe organ. It’s not an aurally polished recording, but it presents parts of the Mass in F and songs from Hair in an unusual and fascinating setting. Reverend West provided the original liner notes, which make for a fascinating read.

Under the Wire

I saw the following shows just in the nick of time. It seemed that my schedule might force me to skip them, but my gut instinct told me I had to see them, come hell or highwater. As a result, I saw all three shows on their closing weekends, two of which I attended the final performance. Jerusalem and Master Class both had extended limited engagements on Broadway, while Sammy Gets Mugged was scheduled for a five performance run as part of the New York International Fringe Festival.

Jerusalem – I love big British plays, so Jerusalem had been on my radar for some time when it hit Broadway this spring. Mark Rylance was offering his second tour de force of the season as Johnny “Rooster” Byron, a performance which swept London by storm, and was also incredibly well received here in NY. The play had a surprising effect on me; it was visceral and surprisingly funny in spite of its vulgarity and the generally disagreeable nature of practically everyone on stage. Rylance is just staggering. I marveled at the sheer physicality of his performance. (He thanks his chiropracter and trainer in his bio). I am amazed that a single human being can deliver a performance like this just once, let alone that 8 times a week (and will do another four months in London starting this fall). On top of his physicality, it is a performance of extraordinary range and depth. I was startled by the play’s effect on me; the third act left me quite rattled and I left the theatre literally trembling. Strangely enough, Jerusalem reminded me of E.M. Forster’s Howards End in its exploration of the impact of social and economic change on England. Kudos to director Ian Rickson for staging the play with bravado. Able support was provided by the ensemble, most notably Mackenzie Crook and Geraldine Hughes.

Sammy Gets Mugged – I only saw one Fringe show this year, in my first real visit to the Lower East Side and the Living Theatre. There was supposed to be one more performance of Sammy, but Hurricane Irene made the performance I attended the closing. Playwright Dan Heching’s play is loosely based on his own experience being mugged in Paris a few years ago. Using that traumatic as a stepping stone, Heching explores subjective memory and perception  – and a la Rashomon we see different perspectives on the same incident. The cast of three was nimbly directed by Noah Himmelstein, who staged the play with imagination and clarity. Patrick Byas was simply superb as the Mugger, the most fully realized character in the piece. Stephanie Pope Caffey added grand support and a deft comic touch as the sole witness. Heching himself played Sammy, and while he was charming and likable, I feel that Heching needs to step aside and let another actor play the role in its next incarnation. I look at Sammy Gets Mugged as a work in progress, therefore stepping out of the play will allow Heching, the playwright, to fully realize the scope and potential of the play he has written.

Master Class – I will see Tyne Daly in anything. Mama Tyne, as I like to call her, is one of the most fascinating – and I think underrated – actresses working today. She is not typical casting for La Divina Maria Callas, but then again neither was Zoe Caldwell, who originated the role in 1995. Having seen her play various characters off-Broadway in Love, Loss and What I Wore and her delicious cabaret outing at Feinstein’s, I became convinced that Tyne can do anything. One of the things to remember is that the play is a fantasia on the life of the great opera diva and so those looking for a bioplay should just read a book about her instead. Tyne was in total command of the stage from her entrance to her exit. She was funny, she was scathing and ultimately she was captivating – especially during those two aria like monologues where we step out of the reality of the classroom and into Maria’s memories. She found the humor, pathos and heartbreak (you should have heard the audience sobbing toward the end of act 2) in the myth of a woman who may be the most legendary opera singer. It was fascinating to see her take the students, break them down and build them back up (especially Garrett Sorenson, whose acting may not be the strongest but whose aria brought down the house). Jeremy Cohen had quiet charm as the accompanist, while Clinton Brandhagen scored big laughs as the unimpressed stagehand. It was the final performance, and during the curtain call each actor presented Tyne with an orange, a reference to a gesture at the top of the second act. It was charming and lovely, and a beautiful way for Tyne’s towering performance to top off its acclaimed Broadway run.

“Hamlet” @ HVSF

The esteemed Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary this year, and rather then rest on their laurels they decided to present Hamlet for the very first time. I admit, I was a bit surprised to hear they had never done this play before (as a relative neophyte to the joys of Boscobel, I just assumed they had already done it). However it seems that Terry O’Brien, the artistic director, had been waiting for the right time. And, my God, was this a production worth that wait.

Hamlet is arguably the greatest play ever written. The five hundred year old work still has scholars (dramatic and literary) debating and dissecting the words, the actions and the characters. Even people who have never seen nor read it are familiar with it, as so many of its lines have become part of the colloquial lexicon. I’ve loved the play since I first read it in my 11th grade English class, and through the years my appreciation for the play has only grown. Hamlet suspects his Uncle killed his father, the King, in order to gain the throne of Denmark. His suspicions are confirmed by a visitation from the ghost of his father, which sets the course for revenge in place.

O’Brien’s unrelentingly spare but vivid production doesn’t rely on a trendy concept or revisionist thinking. Stripped of scenic design, and with only a few props, the director and his superlative cast delved deep into the marrow of the play. While I’m still surprised it took HVSF 25 years to get around to Hamlet, the wait was worth it: this is the best production I have seen at Boscobel. And I doubt I’ve ever seen a more focused audience; a pin could drop during the silences and the palpable tension continued to build until the full-throttled denouement.

At the center of the play is Matthew Amendt, an immensely talented young actor who offered a Hamlet of considerable distinction; connecting with the audience in a way that I have never seen before. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen an interpretation of the character that so effortlessly grabbed the audience’s sympathy quite like Amendt. His choices were big and bold, but possessed a clarity and understanding that one usually finds in the most seasoned actors. Amendt’s youth works well for the characterization, and make Hamlet’s vacillation both entertaining and fascinating.

Amendt was also fortunate enough to be surrounded by a top-notch ensemble, with special kudos reserved for Jason O’Connell’s guilt-ridden, uncertain Claudius, Richard Ercole’s perceptive and canny Polonius and Valeri Mudik’s devastating Ophelia. One slight reservation, Gabra Zackman, while ultimately effective, read far too young as Gertrude (in the opening scene, she looked more like Hamlet’s peer than mother).

This was a staggering Hamlet; visceral, pulsating and demanding. The way O’Brien stages the scenes between Hamlet and his dead father hints at an unsettling horror that feels straight out of Tolkien. Even more vivid is O’Brien’s masterstroke that comes after the last line of the play, in which the death beckons forth those killed in the final ten minutes of the play. (I always enjoy the way the directors try to incorporate the vast Boscobel lawn in their productions, this was the most thrilling use of the space I’ve seen). The costumes and heavy metal music added to the overall pulse of the production. I can only hope that HVSF considers a return engagement in the near future because this is a production that needs to be savored as often as possible.