Here We Are

B-

Although Stephen Sondheim did not live to see the premiere of his final musical, a mash-up of two surreal Buñuel films -- “The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie” and “The Exterminating Angel" -- co-conceived with book writer David Ives, he did authorize it for production. Nevertheless, I could not escape the feeling that it had not really reached its intended final form. The virtual absence of music for most of the second act is tortuously justified, but remained, for me at least, unsatisfying. For that matter, the amount and quality of the music in the first act seemed to indicate that the music itself had taken a back seat to the lyrics and the book. That being said, I hasten to add that these flaws should not deter anyone from seeing this lavish, star-studded production, now in final previews at The Shed. There is not one weak link in the stellar cast of 11. Francois Battiste, Tracie Bennett, Bobby Canavale, Micaela Diamond, Amber Gray, Jin Ha, Rachel Bay Jones, Denis O’Hare, Steven Pasquale, David Hyde Pierce and Jeremy Shamos are all superb in their roles. One only wishes that there were more opportunities for them to shine. O’Hare practically steals the show with his portrayal of various servants; he has one of the few stand-out numbers, early in the first act. David Zinn’s sets and costumes are major assets to the production, as is Joe Mantello’s assured direction. One must admire Sondheim for taking on the challenge of musicalizing Buñuel even if the results are not all one had hoped for. I do not foresee that Here We Are will ever be considered to be on a par with Sondheim’s finest work, but it is an interesting addition to the canon. Running time: two hours 20 minutes, including intermission.

Hadestown (Broadway)

A-

Anaïs Mitchell's marvelous folk opera about Orpheus and Eurydice has had a long road to Broadway. What began as a simple stage version in 2006 in Vermont evolved into a concept album in 2010 that won many admirers. Not long after that, Rachel Chavkin came aboard to develop and eventually direct a new stage version for New York Theatre Workshop in 2016 that won wide acclaim, including from me. (See https://gotham-playgoer.blogspot.com/2016/05/hadestown.html) The intimacy of that production with the audience surrounding the performers on three sides made a Broadway transfer challenging, but there was probably no one better equipped to meet that challenge than Ms. Chavkin who had solved a similar problem with Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812. After the off-Broadway run, the show moved out of town — way out of town — to Edmonton, Alberta for further work and then, in a smart move, to London’s National Theatre. Now it has finally reached the Walter Kerr Theatre. I was eager to experience the show again and see how it had been adapted for a large proscenium stage. Fortunately, most of the creative team has remained intact. What has been lost in intimacy has been counterbalanced by enhanced production values. The elaborate set by Rachel Hauck (What the Constitution Means to Me, Tiny Beautiful Things), which suggests a New Orleans bar, comes complete with walls that expand and contract and three concentric revolves, the innermost of which both rises and falls. The costumes by Michael Krass (Noises Off, Machinal) vaguely suggesting an earlier time, are more elaborate. The stylized choreography by David Neumann (An Octoroon) has been pumped up. Happily the two cast members who most impressed me before, Peter Page (Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, Casa Valentina) as Hades and Amber Gray (Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812; Oklahoma! at Bard) as Persephone, are back. Eva Noblezada (Miss Saigon) portrays Eurydice as both feisty and wearied by deprivation. The role of Hermes, our narrator and emcee, has been beefed up for Andre De Shields (The Wiz, Ain’t Misbehavin’) who stops just short of chewing the scenery. The three Fates (Jewelle Blackman, Yvette Gonzalez-Nacer, Kay Trinidad) are fine in full Andrews Sisters mode and occasionally even play instruments. The workers chorus is also excellent. The seven onstage musicians are splendid, especially trombonist Brian Drye. If you have been paying close attention, you may have noticed that I have not said anything yet about Orpheus. Alas, Reeve Carney (Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, “Penny Dreadful”), whom I have admired elsewhere, is miscast as Orpheus. Much of the role requires singing falsetto and his falsetto is far from pretty. Furthermore, he does not display much charisma and there is little chemistry between him and Ms. Noblezada. You might think that a miscast lead would be a near-fatal flaw, but the rest of the show is so strong and so enjoyable that it is little more than a lost opportunity of minor consequence. While there are aspects of the plot, such as the nature of Hadestown as an industrial dystopia of indentured workers, that remain a bit murky, the plot is not the big draw. The score, with its New Orleans jazz, gospel and blues accents, is the main attraction. Those expecting a traditional Broadway show (like the couple next to me who fled at intermission) may be disappointed, because it is at heart a through-sung folk opera. The rest of us will be grateful for the opportunity to enjoy something different. Ms. Mitchell must be prescient: a song she wrote at least ten years ago, “Why We Build the Wall,” has taken on new resonance these days. Running time: two hours 25 minutes including intermission.

Hadestown ****

New York Theatre Workshop has pulled out all the stops for its production of Anais Mitchell’s folk opera based on the story of Orpheus and Eurydice. They have completely reconfigured the interior of the theater, building a 3/4 circular wooden amphitheater with room for the musicians in the gap. They brought in one of our finest young directors, Rachel Chavkin (The Royale; Small Mouth Sounds; Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812), to develop the project with Mitchell. The casting is nothing less than superb: Damon Daunno (Curly in Oklahoma! at Bard) as Orpheus, Nabiyah Be (Queen of the Night) as Eurydice, Patrick Page (Spring Awakening, Casa Valentina, Spider-Man) as Hades and Amber Gray (Laurey in Bard’s Oklahoma!) as Persephone. From Daunno’s gorgeous falsetto to Page’s mesmerizing basso, they cover the vocal range admirably. Chris Sullivan is a charismatic Hermes, who serves as our narrator. The Fates — Shaina Taub (Old Hats), Lulu Fall and Jessie Shelton — not only sing well, but break out instruments at key moments. The seven-piece band does right by Mitchell’s outstanding score, a blend of folk, country, gospel, blues and New Orleans jazz. Rachel Hauck’s set features a leafless, gnarly tree that overhangs the performing space. Michael Krass’s costumes are suitable without being showy. David Neumann’s choreography provides needed fluidity to the production. Chavkin's masterful direction holds everything together beautifully. It’s not perfect. Some of the narrative themes, particularly in the first act, were either confusing or underdeveloped. However, it’s one of the rare shows that improves in the second act. I’m not sure the production shakes off its concept album roots sufficiently to qualify as a folk opera, but I’m not going to quibble over category in the face of so much talent. The audience included many young people who were fans of the album. The seating is on a motley array of wooden chairs with cushions thoughtfully provided. I enjoyed the afternoon thoroughly. Running time: 2 hours, 10 minutes including intermission.

Iphigenia in Aulis **

This production of Euripides’s final play, the centerpiece of Classic Stage Company’s Greek Festival, is a decidedly mixed bag. The text is a “transadaptation” (her word, not mine) by Anne Washburn (Mr. Burns and 10 out of 12) that throws in a few modern words like “dynamite” and “centrifuge” for no particular reason. Director Rachel Chavkin (Preludes and Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812) has doubled roles so that there are three actors playing the seven parts in addition to a mixed-gender chorus of seven, dressed as if on their way to a Carmen Miranda look-alike contest. They sing rock songs by The Bengsons and dance vigorously to choreography by Sonya Tayeh. I would comment on the lyrics, but I was unable to make out most of them. Rob Campbell initially shouts too much as Agamemnon, but is stirring in the later scenes. As Achilles, he seems to be aiming for a mixture of Harvey Keitel and Donald Trump. Amber Gray (Oklahoma! at Bard, Natasha, Pierre…) is a fierce Clytemnestra, but having her also play Menelaus was a bad idea. Kristen SIeh, in addition to the title character, plays an old man and a messenger. As Iphigenia, her transition from rage against her fate to acceptance seemed too abrupt. The elegantly simple scenic design by Arnulfo Maldonado depicts a tent and forest in the background with a bare square platform in front. There is a lovely stage effect at the end. Except for the incongruous costumes for the chorus, Normandy Sherwood’s costumes are tasteful. The thrust of the play survives, but this production’s innovations are not improvements. Running time: one hour, 40 minutes; no intermission.

NOTE: The performance was marred by cellphones ringing not just once or twice, but FOUR times, a record I hope I never see broken. The last two times it was clearly the same phone and the culprit, apparently too embarrassed to be identified, let the phone ring — at least twelve rings each time. Both of these occurrences were at key moments of the play when concentration was essential. I don’t know how the actors kept their cool. It was most disruptive.

Oklahoma! — at Bard Summerscape ****

Director Daniel Fish’s concept for this production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s first collaboration is highly original. He has reduced the cast to ten and, with new musical arrangements by Daniel Kluger, cut the musicians to a band of six that includes a mandolin, a banjo, an accordion and a pedal steel guitar. The audience is seated at two tiers of long tables that surround the rectangular space holding  the actors and musicians. On the tables are crockpots of chili that will be served along with cornbread and lemonade at intermission. Colorful foil ribbons hang from the ceiling. Not to be overlooked are the racks of rifles that completely cover one wall. The actors sit on folding chairs inside the rectangle when not performing and occasionally sit on or jump on tables and race around the aisles. Clearly, this is not your grandparents’ “Oklahoma!” Its immersive nature reminded me of the staging of “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812.” The only actor’s name I recognized was Mary Testa, who makes a fine Aunt Eller. Curly is played by Damon Daunno, who looks like a pop star, plays a mean guitar, but is a bit insecure vocally. Amber Gray is a fine Laurey. James Patrick Davis is solid as Will Parker. Allison Strong seemed a bit tepid as Ado Annie. Benj Mirman resists the urge to unduly caricature Ali Hakim. Patrick Vaill is a complex, almost sympathetic Jud. There is much to admire. The scene in the smokehouse begins in total darkness and is then augmented by huge video projections of Jud and Curly in tight closeup. On the minus side, instead of the famous dream ballet to end the first act, we get a strange musical pastiche at the beginning of the second act that is meant to represent Laurey’s dream. It didn’t work for me. My only strong objection is to a drastic revision of the book that occurs a few moments before the end. The final confrontation between Curly and Jud has been completely changed in a manner that casts a new, rather sinister light on everything that has preceded it. I must confess that I am surprised that the powers that control Rodgers and Hammerstein productions allowed it. It was not enough to spoil my appreciation for an otherwise thoroughly engaging show. Running time: 2 hours 40 minutes including intermission.

An Octoroon ****

After showing great promise with his recent play "Appropriate" at the Signature Theatre, Brendan Jacobs-Jenkins has fulfilled that promise -- and then some -- with this new work at Soho Rep. Jacobs-Jenkins is a master at appropriating theatrical tropes and reworking them into something new and more interesting. In the earlier play, he took the Southern dysfunctional family play and turned it inside out. In the current play the object of his deconstruction is "The Octoroon," an antebellum melodrama by Irish playwright Dion Boucicault, that opened at the Winter Garden in 1859 and ran for several years in road companies. The result is a meta-melodrama unlike anything I have seen before. The play opens with a depressed black actor, BJJ (Chris Myers) claiming to be the playwright, in his underwear, discussing a recent session with his therapist, during which he reveals his admiration for Boucicault. Suddenly Boucicault (Danny Wolohan) appears onstage and a shouting match ensues. They are joined by an assistant (Ben Horner) who helps them prepare for the play. BJJ applies whiteface makeup, the white assistant puts on blackface, and Boucicault adds redface, dresses in an Indian (no political correctness here!) costume with an elaborate feather headdress and performs a vigorous dance. Suddenly the rear wall of the stage collapses forward to reveal a bright all-white set with the floor covered with cotton balls, representing the Louisiana plantation Terrebonne where the action takes place. A trio of slaves -- Minnie (Jocelyn Bloh), Dido (Marsha Stephanie Blake) and Grace (Shyko Amos) -- take the place of a Greek chorus, but one that talks trash and contemporary psychobabble. The characters include George (Myers again), the young master who loves his 1/8th black cousin Zoe (Amber Gray), the evil overseer McClosky (Myers yet again) who also desires Zoe, the wealthy heiress Dora (Zoe Winters) who wants to wed George, the old house slave Peter (Horner again), the innocent young slave Paul (Horner once more) and his devoted Indian friend Wahnotee (Wolohan again), the auctioneer LaFouche (Wolohan) and a ship captain (uncredited). They are joined onstage by cellist Lester St. Louis whose music subtly underlines the action. The dialogue blends excerpts from Boucicault's play with Jacobs-Jenkins's inventions. The cast doubling opens clever opportunities such as a one-actor fight scene between George and McClosky. Meandering through the play at several points is an enigmatic Br'er Rabbit figure, a sharply dressed rabbit/man with a cottontail and a very expressive face. (It turns out that he is none other than the playwright himself.) Director Sarah Benson works wonders with the complex material, Mimi Lien's set is amazing, Wade Laboissonniere's costumes are wonderful, as are all other aspects of the production design. My compliments to Soho Rep for mounting such an ambtious play and congratulations to the playwright for his well-deserved Obie. Running time: 2 hours 10 minutes including intermission.