Wednesday, July 09, 2008

Broadway Preview: 13

Broadway Preview: 13

Last time I checked in with a report on Jason Robert Brown's new musical 13 was just over 13 months ago.

At the time, I noted that the tuner about thirteen 13 year olds was being prepped for a Broadway bow sometime in early 2008. Of course, that time frame came and went.

But since then, the show was presented by Goodspeed Musicals' Norma Terris Theatre in Chester, Connecticut from May 9 through June 8. And the show has been announced for a Broadway berth.

Originally directed on year ago January by Todd Graff at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, a significantly revised version produced at Goodspeed was directed by Jeremy Sams and choreography from Christopher Gattelli. Dan Elish wrote 13's book.

On Jason Robert Brown's own blog, the award-winning composer takes note of how dramatically 13 evolved from its final performance on the Left Coast to its first on the East Coast:

The show is substantially different, in every respect, from the version produced in Los Angeles last year. First of all, just in terms of the writing itself, we've replaced more than half of the songs, re-focussed the story, added a half-hour of running time (and with it, an intermission), and probably changed every single line of the book except for four really good jokes. Paradoxically, the show is longer because it's leaner and tighter, and there is now a much straighter line from the beginning to the end. A lesson I learned this year with both 13 and the London revision of Parade is that it's all too easy to let a secondary character hijack the show. I know we solved it in Parade by cutting down Britt Craig's role; I think we've now solved it in 13.
Brown also discusses the difference a director makes:

Most importantly, we have a new director, Jeremy Sams, who has been invaluable both in his ability to cut the fat away from the story and in his understanding of the way music functions in the show. The fact that Jeremy is a formidable musician in his own right doesn't hurt. In fact, Jeremy is a terrifying polymath; a quick look at his résumé shows that he has directed successful plays and musicals on Broadway and the West End, as well as having written film scores, lyrics and books of musicals, and translations and adaptations of classic and obscure plays (from several different languages, all of which he speaks fluently). Dan and I are convinced that in the event of some horrible catastrophe, Jeremy is perfectly equipped to take over any and all jobs on the show, ours included.
Brown acknowledges the show's most unique aspect: casting child actors and a "kid band":

None of that would matter if we didn't have the talent onstage to bring this show to life, and I'm over the moon about the cast and band that we hired. Assembling the cast took a long time, and the final group that's going into rehearsal in two weeks comes from all over the country -- New York and the tri-state area, of course, but also Los Angeles, Texas, and Florida -- and while some of the kids have résumés longer than mine, others have never done a professional production before.

The band is an equally amazing group, and the band audition day was the most fun I've had in a long time; sixty-five awesomely gifted teenagers showed up and made glorious music together for seven hours. The hardest part was figuring out who to send home; all of the grownups in the room felt that we could have randomly picked five kids at any given time and ended up with a superb band. Needless to say, the five that made it to the end are exceptional. I know that kid musicians are not as used to the arbitrary and bizarre process of auditioning as kid actors are, so I wanted to take this space to thank all the musicians for coming out and playing so beautifully and rolling with the experience. Having a "kid band" is a huge experiment for a Broadway musical, but I know it's going to pay off handsomely.
Of course, that blog post was all the way back on March 24. Although 13 has been announced for Broadway's Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, with previews tentatively slated to begin September 16, there's been precious little additional information out there regarding the show.

Is that unlucky? Only for the countless Jason Robert Brown fans like me who can't wait to finally see this talented composer's next effort. The good news is that folks like Chris Caggiano (Everything I Know I Learned From Musicals) had decent things to say about the Goodspeed mounting (Chris called the tuner "promising").

I'm looking forward to our collective fortunes improving in the weeks ahead as more information is announced.

This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).

Related Stories:
Broadway Preview: Speed-The-Plow (July 8, 2008)
Broadway Preview: Billy Elliot - The Musical (July 7, 2008)
Broadway Preview: Godspell (July 6, 2008)
Broadway Preview: All My Sons (July 5, 2008)
Broadway Preview: A Man For All Seasons (July 3, 2008)
Broadway Preview: To Be Or Not To Be (July 2, 2008)
Broadway Preview: The Seagull (July 1, 2008)
Broadway Preview: Equus (June 30, 2008)
Broadway Preview: A Tale Of Two Cities (June 28, 2008)
Broadway Preview: for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf (June 25, 2008)
Broadway Preview: [title of show] (June 24, 2008)
Broadway: What's Next (June 20, 2008)
Not Unlucky: 13 Headed To Broadway (May 25, 2007)
Was 13 Lucky With Critics? (January 9, 2007)
Jason Robert Brown + Mark Taper Forum = 13 (January 7, 2007)
Flashback: Best of 2002-03 (May 25, 2006)
"13" Reasons to Take in LA Theatre This Winter (May 5, 2006)

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posted by Steve On Broadway (SOB) @ Wednesday, July 09, 2008 7 comments

Friday, March 30, 2007

Easter Parade (The SOB Review)

Easter Parade (The SOB Review) - Main Stage, Chanhassen Dinner Theatres, Chanhassen, MN

**1/2 (out of ****)

On paper, it at least seems like an intriguing idea.

Given the recent commercial success of the stage adaptation of White Christmas, it's no wonder The Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization that controls the rights to Irving Berlin's Easter Parade was eager to move forward with developing a live version of the classic 1948 Fred Astaire-Judy Garland film.

One year to the day after The Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization announced they'd be co-developing Easter Parade with Minnesota's Chanhassen Dinner Theatres -- the same theatres where Laura Osnes portrayed Sandy in its version of Grease prior to being vaulted to national stardom via "Grease: You're The One That I Want" -- I took in the world premiere production of Easter Parade, which they've dubbed, "The Happiest Musical Ever Made."

Just like a big old fashioned Easter egg, this musical rolls along with a terrific color-coated sheen. For the most part, this surprisingly hard-boiled show goes over easy. But scratch beneath that appealing veneer and you'll find more than a few cracks, including the somewhat scrambled book by Tom Briggs (who previously took State Fair to the Broadway stage), particularly where the happy ending is dramatically altered from the silver screen version.

Set in 1910 and 1911, this pygmalion-like story begins with vaudeville dance partners Don Hewes (a dashing and debonair Michael Gruber) and Nadine Hale (a strong, forceful Michelle Barber) splitting up their act so Hale can join the Broadway cast of a show called, "Way Down South," which in this version really goes way down south, far beyond the Rio Grande and all the way to Rio in its outlandish, yet riveting retelling of the dance number, "Shaking The Blues Away."

Depressed, Hewes nurses his wounds with a trip to a nearby dancehall and wagers with his best buddy Johnny Moore (a terrific, self-effacing Keith Rice) that he can turn any of the dancers into his next partner. Out stumbles a bumbling Hannah Brown (gifted musical comedy actress Ann Michels, who possesses a lovely singing voice), who ultimately accepts Don's entreaties.

Predictably, Don sets out to make Nadine jealous by initially trying to recast Hannah in his former partner's image. Both Hannah and Don realize independently that it's just not working and that Hannah just needs to be herself (ironically, Michels really just needs to be herself instead of continually trying to mimic the speaking voice of Judy Garland). Their epiphany gives way to a song and dance act allowing Hannah to primarily sing while Don concentrates on the dancing. One of the show's best numbers, "When The Midnight Choo-Choo Leaves For Alabam," hints at the potential that this Easter Parade could have been. From there, we get hints that love is in bloom between Don and Hannah.

Where Briggs' book should have been clarified, along with more precise direction from Michael Brindisi, is in the second act. Yes, there are many terrific production numbers, particularly "Steppin' Out With My Baby" featuring Don and the chorus, as well as a lovely "Mr. Monotony" sung as a duet by Nadine and Hannah (both of which underscore the timeless genius of Irving Berlin), but there's no clarity around why Don would be performing without Hannah, or why Hannah would be singing with Nadine. As I indicated earlier, it's quite scrambled.

But nowhere does this production end up with egg on its face more than in the surprise ending. I won't give it away here, but let's just say if you loved the movie and you're a purist, you'll probably be very disappointed by what happens to the show's lovebirds. Yes, new books can and should take liberties with source material to move the story along and clarify points, but Briggs has, in my opinion, tinkered a bit too much. And unfortunately, I found the "Easter Parade" finale number a few steps short of rousing.

Make no mistake, the cast is exceptional, and there's plenty of romantic chemistry among the lead actors. Indeed, there's also a sweet sidebar love story between Nadine's dresser Essie (a wonderfully sassy Angela Timberman) and Mr. Johnson (comic deadpan Jay Albright, Timberman's real-life husband).

But while Tamara Kangas' choreography has touches of brilliance, I found myself missing the movie's dazzling dance moves from Fred Astaire and Ann Miller (I couldn't help but wonder what a Noah Racey and Charlotte d'Amboise would do in the Don and Nadine roles if given the chance). That, coupled with the misfires in the book, left me understanding why this occasionally entertaining parade ultimately passed me by.

This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).

Click here for tickets.
Related Stories:
Irving Berlin’s White Christmas (The SOB Review) – Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, Main Hall, St. Paul, MN (December 6, 2006)

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posted by Steve On Broadway (SOB) @ Friday, March 30, 2007 0 comments

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