.jpg)
There are shows that change the way you think about things. There are shows that make you feel good about life. Merrily We Roll Along is neither of those. Don't get me wrong. I'm glad I saw it, but I think I'm done with this show for awhile. While this production is the first to be an actual financial hit, it has mostly to do with the principal cast, and not much else.
Technically, the show is, well, utilitarian and uninspired. Kai Harada's sound design is good, you could hear almost every word from the last row of the balcony where we sat, though he has no control over actors who mumble their lines. Amith Chandrashaker's lighting is serviceable, but hardly notable, and the occasional use of spotlights was distracting. While Soutra Gilmour's costumes were mostly clever (and occasionally silly to the point of distracting), her unit set is dull and reminiscent of the family room in The Brady Bunch.
At the performance I saw, very close to the end of act one, all of a sudden a black curtain slowly descended. We sat in confusion. Was it time for intermission? If so, why stop mid-song? Then, after many people were already headed to the bars and bathrooms, a voice announced we were in a hold for a technical difficulty, and the show would resume shortly. And so we sat. The curtain came up the lights came back up and the stage manager called the company to the stage. The audience goes wild, the cast applauds us. And they started the last number over about a verse back from where they stopped. Then, as if by some miracle, the show had a burst of energy, the cast seemed fully engaged. Two minutes later it was over and (a very long) intermission began.
As we sat there, it clicked for me. We had been seeing a cast that was good, doing everything as directed, but with mid-run doldrums. It happens. It's just harder to swallow at premium prices. But that stoppage lit a spark in them all, and it stopped dragging, my mind stayed focused for the rest of the show, Again, they weren't bad at the start, they were... meh. Now, they were an enthusiastic company giving us the hit of the season as advertised.
The ensemble does a lot of scenery moving and walking around. The blob, indeed. There were a couple of standouts, though - Talia Simone Robinson was an interesting Meg - the next girl to catch Frank's eye, and Evan Alexander Smith was terrific in several small roles.
Brady Wagner was appropriately adorable as Frank, Jr., and Reg Rogers made a decent case for liking Joe, the producer with questionable taste in projects and even more questionable taste in wives.
As the two women in Franklin's life, Katie Rose Clarke (as Beth, the first wife, above left) and Krystal Joy Brown (as Gussie, the second wife, above right) are a study in two extremes. Even before the show pause, Ms. Clarke was a welcome breath of fresh air, who, even at her character's lowest point, was completely captivating, and she was even more impressive in act two. Her rendition of "Not a Day Goes By" was a heartbreaking highlight, and her contribution to the nightclub act sequence was delightful. On the other hand, Ms. Brown - an actress I list among my favorites - was a disappointing mess of scenery chewing and bizarre overacting and cartoon-y affectations. Didn't that "Broadway Star" stereotype become passe after All About Eve? She made me notice Gussie more than I ever have before, and that's not a good thing.
Oddly, the one actor of the trio that I was least worried about, Jonathan Groff, was the one I liked the least. While I wouldn't exactly say that his turn was one-note, it was damned close. Even as we eventually get to see Franklin at his most hopeful and optimistic, Groff is somehow still cold and not entirely sympathetic. Up until the stoppage, he actually seemed bored and going through the motions. I mean, there's low-key and then there's uninterested. Many times, he sounded like Michael Keaton in Batman, still other times his delivery was indiscernible mumbling.
Thankfully, the last scene was just about the three of them, and we got to see what the whole thing could have been. Their "Our Time" was as emotionally satisfying as I've ever seen it. Clearly, they look forward to that scene, we are the fortunate recipients of their love for it and the relationship they portray.
I'm kicking myself for believing the hype for this production - a sure recipe for disappointment. I should have revisited my review of the filmed version of this same production from just over a decade ago. At least then, I might have tempered my expectations.
📸: M. Murphy
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
