March 2012 – Theatre Aficionado at Large

“Sweeney Todd” – West End

There is a revival of Sweeney Todd currently playing London’s West End. If that news alone isn’t enough to get you on the first plane to England, let me explain further: there is a astounding revival of Stephen Sondheim & Hugh Wheeler’s epic Grand Guignol musical currently playing the Adelphi Theatre starring Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton.

Sweeney Todd is in my top three shows of all time; and I’m excited to see any production. And if I could, I would get on the next plane back to London to see this Jonathan Kent directed production again. Dark, unnerving and anchored by two strong central performances, this is a West End revival not to be missed, and a transfer to Broadway should be a no-brainer. The 1979 musical, considered by many (including yours truly), to be Sondheim’s masterpiece tells the story of a vengeful barber who transforms into a blood-thirsty killer, along with his enterprising accomplice and lover, Mrs. Lovett.

Ball is virtually unrecognizable as the deadly barber, both physically and vocally. In fact when he made his first appearance I wasn’t sure whether or not I was seeing an understudy. Admittedly, he wasn’t the draw for me to see the show and my expectations were low but I was more than surprised: Ball is astonishingly good. In the first scenes, we see the “bleeding nobody” brooding with rage, making his mental snap at the end of the first act quite chilling. His “Epiphany” was so intense that for the first time I wasn’t so sure if Mrs. Lovett was going to live to the end of the first act.

Peter Polycarpou plays the Beadle as a social climbing kiss-up rather than some bizarro creep. Peter Howe offers an unsettling portrait of warped piety and deviant sexuality as the Judge. James McConville is absolutely devastating as Toby. Gillian Kirkpatrick scores big as the Beggar Woman. Less effective are Lucy May Barker (think about the name) and Luke Brady as Johanna and Anthony, with lackluster renditions of “Green Finch and Linnet Bird” and “Johanna.”

However, for as good as Ball is in the title role, it is Imelda Staunton who makes this production a must-see. I knew we were in for something different when Staunton whipped out a dirty, empty glass bottle to use as a rolling pin in “The Worst Pies in London.” Her Lovett is unlike any other I’ve ever seen, more naturalistic and pragmatic. She didn’t play up the more comic aspects of the character, but still managed to be funny and find laughs in the most unexpected places. I know the show by heart, and Staunton kept surprising me right to the very end; a performance so indelible I can vividly replay it in my mind. Moments come to mind: her reaction to opening the trunk (which made a delighted audience applaud), the terror on her face during “Epiphany,” the chilling look on her face at the end of “Not While I’m Around,” and the master class of her final scene.

The dynamic between Staunton and Ball was extraordinary, with their scenes together the most memorable. Charged with sexual energy, their showstopping rendition of “A Little Priest” was less music hall romp than full out foreplay. This chemistry makes the finale all the more tragic. When the orchestra played the final chord, I sat there in awe for a good beat before bursting into euphoric applause.

Director Jonathan Kent has set this Sweeney in the 1930s. I’m not sure that the change in time period really adds anything to the piece, but it definitely doesn’t detract. The staging is much more traditional than John Doyle’s recent revival, but I knew as the opening “Ballad” was sung among the characters to each other as working class workplace gossip around London, that we were in for an stellar evening. His production is dark, stark and deliciously violent. Anthony Ward’s set is appropriate dark and eerie, and places the famed factory whistle right on stage. Ward’s costumes evoke the dirt and grime of a seedier side of Fleet Street, and serving the director’s vision quite well.

This production is billed as a strictly limited season, running six months through September 10th. It must be seen to be believed.

A cast album was recorded before performances start and was released in the theatre at or around opening night. Since it wasn’t available anyplace else, I made it a point before seeing the show to pick up a copy. It’s an impressive account of the production, specifically preserving many of Staunton’s finest moments – both spoken and sung. The recording sounds incredible, with some of the show’s sound effects audible (particular the furnace crackling in the final scene, and some truly hair-raising throat slittings). The major flaw is that for some reason the album is one disc. That’s unfortunate, but it doesn’t prevent the album from being a must-have.

Rebecca Caine: “No, No, Cosette!”

What becomes of a light lyric soprano when her personality is, shall we say, a bit darker than that of her repertoire? This was the premise behind Rebecca Caine‘s new cleverly titled cabaret No, No, Cosette!, which played The Pheasantry in London. Caine, who famously created the role of Cosette in the original company of Les Miserables, is a noted singer who has had a hybrid career bouncing back and forth between opera and musical theatre. She is arguably most famous for her performances in Les Mis as well as The Phantom of the Opera, having played Christine Daae in both London and Toronto. However, these two roles are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the soprano’s diverse career.

Ms. Caine started the evening on a literal high note with the tango “Jealousy,” her second note a D above top C. It set the standard for the evening – flawless technique and crystalline tone matched by a coy, subversive sense of humor. In her opening remarks, Caine commented on the disparity between the roles she’s played and who she really is before launching into spirited renditions of Harper and Zippel’s “The Ingenue” and “The Diva’s Lament” from Spamalot (hilariously tossing the line “I’ve no Tony awards!” at her close friend and former Les Mis co-star, Tony-winner Frances Ruffele, in the front row).

The repertoire was eclectic, from operetta to contemporary opera, musical theatre (both British and American) as well as specialties. Among the composers heard were Sondheim, Coward, Novello (someone I feel I need to know more about), Ricky Ian Gordon, Frank Loesser, Maury Yeston, Jerry Herman and Marc Blitzstein. (Ms. Caine also spoke of her admiration for Blitzstein’s Regina, and is perfect for the role of Birdie if anyone should have the forethought to produce this underrated opera).

Following a complex aria from Gordon’s My Life with Albertine, Caine treated the audience to “The Song is You,” one of my favorite Kern-Hammerstein songs (from Music in the Air). An effective pairing of “So in Love” from Kiss Me Kate with “Losing My Mind” from Follies was delivered to devastating effect. Similarly, she combined “I Saw Him Once,” Cosette’s cut number from Les Miserables with a ravishing “Somebody Somewhere” from The Most Happy Fella. Her rendition of Vernon Duke’s “Words Without Music” was utterly enchanting.

Ms. Caine was accompanied by Nathan Martin, who performed “I Hold Your Hand in Mine.” As a team they had great rapport, as he helped her on various numbers throughout the evening. The soprano’s cheekier side shown through with Blitzstein’s “Modest Maid,” Tom Lehrer’s “Masochism Tango,” and infamously, the Lapdancing Aria from Anna Nicole Smith: The Opera. She finished her set with Carlotta’s number “This Place is Mine” from Yeston’s Phantom, culminating in a thrilling high C finish.

The applause was deafening, drawing Ms. Caine and Mr. Martin for an encore, Coward’s “If Love Were All.” If anything, the applause was even more thunderous than before, bringing the duo back out on stage. For a second encore, Caine joked that her husband told her to “sing something they all know,” before the pianist started playing the vamp to “Think of Me,” Christine’s first song from The Phantom of the Opera. I admit, I have very little time for POTO, but will sit up and take notice when Ms. Caine is singing the score. If anything, Ms. Caine’s mellifluous soprano is sounding better than ever, and it was a pleasure to hear such stellar singing.

“Matilda” – West End

Ladies and gentlemen, Matilda the Musical is a hit. A big, beautiful smash hit. The sort of intelligent, literate musical comedy that makes you want to throw your hat in the air and cheer. This is the kind of show that comes around once in a generation, and will likely run into the next one. Simultaneously touching and subversive, Roald Dahl’s story of an unloved prodigy who learns to stand up to the bullies in her life has become a beautifully realized stage property. Matilda is, to quote from its opening number, a miracle.

A child of exceptional mental faculties, Matilda has taught herself to read and has an unlimited capacity for mathematics. Her weekly reading list could fill a college syllabus, and her imagination is limitless. But her garish, vacuous parents think she’s a freak, and her head mistress, Agatha Trunchbull, would rather Matilda went to prison for life without parole. The young child must use the extraordinary gifts of her mind to fight the bullying adults, and in that conflict librettist Dennis Kelly and composer-lyricist Tim Minchin crafted a deliriously tuneful and clever musical with astonishing élan, though I do think there should be a musical button to end the first act. (For my thoughts on the score, here’s my post on the original cast album).

Matilda is far more sophisticated than those other musical theatre children who have come before her (Oliver and Annie come readily to mind), and much to my relief – and key to the show’s triumph – is that the role is written and directed to be played like a normal child, minus all trappings of the affected, cloying child actor. The charming, takes-no-guff Sophia Kiely played the role the night I attended. (Ms. Kiely rotates with three other actresses). The role is exceptionally large, with huge monologues, musical soliloquies and exhausting choreography. Ms. Kiely was utterly superb; I was in her corner from the moment she critiqued Romeo and Juliet for having a “touch of stupidity” in her establishing song “Naughty.”

Bertie Carvel is astonishing as Miss Trunchbull. Playing the enormous bully in panto tradition, Carvel finds so many surprising shades: we see not only her villainy but the insecurities, the craving for attention and her femininity. Almost every line and gesture is laugh inducing, with a distinctive speaking voice that only adds to the overwhelming impact of his performance. His second act number “The Smell of Rebellion,” is a physically grueling showstopper, built around a rigorous exercise regimen complete with a trampoline vault. Carvel executes the number without missing a single breath. It’s a marvel, and I hope Mr. Carvel will be brought over to delight Broadway audiences next year.

As for the rest of the adults, Paul Kaye is Matilda’s father, a dimwitted mean-spirit who espouses the pros of “Telly” during interval. Josie Walker decked out in a garish wig and pink fishnets plays Matilda’s narcissistic, dance-happy mother (and is joined by Gary Watson’s deliriously sleazy Rudolpho for a tribute to vapidity, “Loud”). Lauren Ward is warm and endearing as Miss Honey, the meek teacher who, thanks to Matilda, develops a spine and learns to stand up to the oppressive Trunchbull. Peter Howe was hilarious as Matilda’s dimwitted older brother, punctuating scenes with his inane comatose utterances. Melanie La Barrie adds humanity and humor as Mrs. Phelps, the kind librarian who encourages Matilda’s love of reading and story-telling.

Peter Darling’s choreography is inventive and engaging, from the cleverness of “School Song” to the swings of the irrepressibly nostalgic “When I Grow Up” to the Spring Awakening send-up of “Revolting Children.” Matthew Warchus, who was responsible for my beloved revival of The Norman Conquests several years back, is in peak form with a staging that will rank among his best work. Rob Howell’s set, made up of wooden blocks and offbeat, oversize scrabble tiles that spill into the house is a visual delight, a perfect arena for his off-the-wall costumes.

I was so taken with the musical, I bought a ticket for the Saturday night performance. The second viewing allowed me a closer look at the nuances in the staging and choreography, as well as the details of the set. It also gave me a chance to see an entirely different cast of children, with a witty and wise Eleanor Worthington-Cox as the title character. Comparisons would futile, as both young ladies were equally effective in their distinctive interpretations. Also, Paul Kaye was out and I saw understudy Peter Howe offer his own unique, effective portrayal of Mr. Wormwood. I’m quite impressed how the production celebrates performers’ individuality. No matter which cast you see, the show will be in excellent form.

I’m in London Again

It took eight years, but I have finally returned to England. It started in the fall when I couldn’t stop listening to the cast album of Matilda, and I found myself clamoring to see the show. I have usually waited for the West End smashes to arrive on Broadway in order to experience them. But given how much I appreciated this show, I figured it was time for me to stop waiting and just go. I bought my ticket in December and impatiently played the waiting game. As fate would turn out, for this weekend of theatre, Matilda would mark my first-ever experience seeing a West End show (all previous visits to England were, alas, bereft of theatre). More on that musical hit in another post, I’ll just say that I’m seeing it again tomorrow night.

I left JFK via Virgin Atlantic, but unfortunately was unable to get much sleep on the plane. I rarely can; I don’t sleep well sitting up, and can feel every bit of turbulence. I ended getting about 15 minutes of twilight sleep on what was a 7 hour flight. I took in My Week with Marilyn to pass the time. Michelle Williams was absolutely superb as Marilyn Monroe. Hell, most of the cast was (except Julia Ormond, who didn’t seem to have much of a grasp on Vivien Leigh). The script was a bit rote, but it held my interest throughout. Eddie Redmayne was good as Colin Clark, but Kenneth Branagh walked away with everything with his funny, brittle performance as Sir Laurence Olivier. Special kudos to Dame Judi Dench, whose performance as Dame Sybil Thorndike made me unreasonably happy.

Now, I’ve flown before, but I haven’t been on a train in England since 2000, when I visited by brother in Oxford. And I have never experienced the London Underground. After getting through customs, I made the trek to the tube. The first order of business was getting an Oyster card. I had researched it online several times, but that didn’t quite prep me for the menu options and my sleep deprived self just sort of stared glassy eyed at a screen for a long beat. Fortunately, they had a gentlemen there to assist me. I got on the Piccadilly line with a map of the underground and little knowledge except that I was to meet my hostess after reaching the Whitechapel region (Jack the Ripper’s old haunt).

I got on with my suitcase and laptop bag and sat down. I was in a fog so I failed to realize that it was a Thursday morning and there would be commuters heading into the city for work. It wasn’t long until the train was filled to what seemed to be beyond capacity. Being sleep deprived, I just sort of sat and observed everyone around me. Almost everyone was reading something: a book or newspaper. (One committed gent was deep in a game of Angry Birds). Rapidly, the subway car filled up to capacity, and were I claustrophobic I may have had a break down. Uncertain of what transfer to make, I asked a lovely young woman who was more than happy to help. I switched lines and got to Whitechapel with little incident, where I was handed keys to the house I was staying at.

The London rail system is a marvel of cleanliness and efficiency. And you pay for what you get. The rides are not cheap, especially when compared to the NY subway, but Then I had to get to a different line two blocks away. I am staying in a house in the Canary Wharf area thanks to my pal Vera Chok, actress, producer and artistic director of the London-based theatre company Saltpeter. The house is overlooking the Thames, and about 50 feet from the water itself with a most spectacular view. The O2 Arena is across the water, and in general it’s just a resplendent place. Getting to this house was really no problem, and I opened the door and settled in. After squaring away some minor details, I passed out for several hours.

First on my agenda was the evening’s performance of Matilda. After my nap, I got cleaned up and went out to discover the West End. I have never been through the area in any of my previous trips, so it was all going to be new for me. A couple of rides later, I was out at Leicester Square and wandered around, making my way to the Cambridge Theatre to pick up my seats. Nearby is the famed Dress Circle, so I made a pilgrimage and picked up a couple of London goodies before meeting my Twitter/Facebook friend Rebecca Caine for the first time, and folks she’s even more delightful and funny in person than she is online (and she is one of my favorite presences on Twitter). I was less than a day into my trip, and our meeting is already one of the happiest memories I’ll treasure from this trip. We grabbed a quick bite before the show, then Caine, a West End Eliza, giving me a fast tour of the Covent Garden area before we both went to see Matilda.

As for the show itself, that post is pending as jet lag has gotten the best of me…

“Carrie” @ MCC

It’s a bold move to bring back one of the biggest flops in Broadway history, but MCC has defied the odds with the newly revised Carrie currently playing an extended off-Broadway run. The original was the stuff of the legend (see Ken Mandelbaum’s Not Since Carrie), with a rapid, high profile failure on Broadway in 1988. In the years since, the show’s reputation has only grown. Carrie is back with a vengeance, but in this sanitized and updated revisal, the creators have still not met the potential for a truly remarkable musical.

Based on the Stephen King novel, the musical tells the story of a unique outcast with telekinetic powers sheltered by her religious fanatic mother. When the girl gets her first period in the gym shower, the other girls taunt her which sets this bizarre cautionary tale of bullying into motion, culminating in the prom from hell. I have never really thought of the King novel or film as a horror story, though there are elements (most notably the famous final scene in the film). It’s always felt more like a supernatural drama, with a tortured protagonist who never has a chance at the normalcy she so desperately craves.

The creators of the original musical went back to the drawing board on this revision, first seen in a reading in 2009. The camp excesses that made the original production jaw-dropping to late 80s audiences have been scaled back or removed. (Most notably, the number about killing the pig). Matt Williams’ choreography is more teen-angsty Spring Awakening’s than Debbie Allen jazzercise prom. The script has been updated with contemporary references to Facebook and smart phones. However, the musical spends too much time with people who are not Carrie and that is a problem. The teachers (Wayne Alan Wilcox and an excellent Carmen Cusack) are underdeveloped. The teenagers come across like leftover tropes from 80s high school comedies, and that grows tedious fairly quickly. It is only when the musical focuses on the relationship between Carrie and her mother that the show becomes truly compelling.

Molly Ranson is stunning as Carrie White. The script doesn’t give her much time to establish who she is, but Ranson creates a portrait of teenage loneliness and sadness that my empathy for her increased precipitously as the show went on. Her first number, the title song, comes quite early and, but it feels rushed and early; as though it should be heard at a later point (and it doesn’t seem like Carrie should be belting so much so soon). But Ranson is ultimately devastating, particularly in the second act. Even more impressive is Marin Mazzie, whose naturalistic performance as Margaret White only serves to make her religious eccentricity far more creepy than I would have thought possible. Mazzie takes us from a seemingly carefree, doting mother to a sober puritanical nightmare in her first five minutes onstage, culminating in the unsettling duet “And Eve Was Weak.” In the second act, she all but stopped the show with the devastating “When There’s No One,” as Margaret, resolved to kill her daughter because of her telekinesis, confronts the loneliness that awaits her.

Those hoping for big, over-the-top “They’re all gonna laugh at you/Dirty Pillows” camp and an excessively bloody climax will be disappointed. The musical relies less on grand effects than it does on the audience’s imagination. Carrie as a musical is a far cry from the disaster history would have you believe it was, but the revisions don’t make much of a case for it either. Still, considering its status in theatre history and the fact that I never thought I’d get to see a production of it, I am most grateful for the opportunity.

At Large Elsewhere: The “Newsies” Walking Tour

Many of my blog and twitter friends have been quite abuzz with excitement for the stage adaptation of Newsies, which had its world premiere last fall at the Paper Mill Playhouse and will make its Broadway berth at the Nederlander Theatre later this month. The Disney show is currently scheduled as a 12 week limited engagement (and I’m Joseph Pulitzer) running through Tony Sunday, featuring much of the cast from the New Jersey run.

I must confess, I have never seen Newsies, nor have I ever heard an entire song from the score (film or stage). Apparently I was never home while the film was being shown on TV (where it apparently aired a lot) and we’ve somehow missed each other these last 20 years. The first time I saw Christian Bale onscreen was in American Psycho, so I was surprised to learn that he had headlined a musical, period. That being said, when my pals Patty and Emily put out a request for friends to help them film their latest project, the second in a series of Newsies related videos, I figured, “What the hell?”

I still know very little about Newsies, except that Patrick’s Mother is a Very Important Character. However, that didn’t curb my enjoyment of the four hours I spent roaming lower Manhattan with this motley crew.

Here is the Newsies walking tour (which, incidentally, costs $18.99. Cash only. Exact change). Enjoy.

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