REVIEW: ABBA and the Cold War: The History of Chess the Musical: Chapter 3

ABBA and the Cold War: The History of Chess the Musical

Chapter 3: The Endgame

NOTE: Our look at Chapter 2 can be found HERE.

And as the title of this last "chapter" suggests, the genesis of Chess comes to its catastrophic conclusion, its Endgame. As throughout its rocky journey, the end of it is as messy as all the rest. There was enough blame to go around - the new book writer, the set designer, an underused writing team, a critic who wouldn't let it go. But the biggest villain of all seems to be its Broadway director. It is amazing it ran as long as it did.

Link to Chapter 3 HERE.

As the previous chapter set things up, it seems director Trevor Nunn was chiefly to blame for what ended up on the Imperial stage. First, he did everything to remove the specter of Michael Bennett's work, erasing virtually all of the dancing, and with it, a great deal of the show's biggest asset, the score. Second, his virtual blackmail of the Shuberts to get his passion project, a revival The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, on Broadway proved to be a means to take Nunn from the project. Epic and ambitious, that play was an expensive 29 performance flop. Then there was the mysterious disappearance of the man. He was later found in Australia where he was staging an international Les Miserables. The bigger reason he was really there, I'll leave for you to discover, as well as why he refused to answer calls for help with his own production are ultimately what might have turned things around for Chess. Ego is a hell of a thing. 

History, it turns out, was against Chess, too. The show relied heavily on East-West tensions in general, and the Cold War, specifically. The tide was turning on that front with Gorbachev and his glasnost policy thawing things rapidly. Broadway history was deep in a mini-backlash against British mega-musicals of sorts, the opening that same season of The Phantom of the Opera notwithstanding. The leader of that movement, "The Butcher of Broadway" Frank Rich, had it out for Chess with a particularly scathing review, and later, referencing that show in other subsequent reviews.

I also had to laugh at the misguided last-ditch effort at marketing repair, with their inane "Yes, Chess!" campaign. It was, indeed, silly and nonsensical. I laughed because for years, it has been a running joke between Mike and me. Whenever there's a mention of the show, or especially when there's bad advertising we look at each other and say, "Yes! Chess!"

This section of the documentary seemed to fly by, with some juicy tidbits from behind the scenes provided by scapegoat book writer Richard Nelson and several cast members. They recalled the monolithic stage pieces manipulated by stage hands inside them, guided only by black lights and florescent floor paint, and the badge of honor each earned by getting hit by one. I was particularly charmed by their recall of racially insensitive casting that predated the Miss Saigon scandal by several years.

With the advent of the upcoming revival, it seems the story of Chess continues. It promises a refocused book, and, thankfully, a return to more of what makes it so beloved among musical theater fans - the music. Maybe the success of Mamma Mia! has empowered Benny and Bjorn to have more influence over their work, and similarly, the rise of post-Lloyd Webber Tim Rice in the intervening years will combine to bring Broadway the Chess the the Three Knights have always envisioned.

Despite a rather heavy-handed and stretched thin chess metaphor and a few more cheesy graphics, this well-intended piece wraps things up nicely, and is a valuable film for theater buffs and scholars alike. I heartily recommend giving this a watch.

Friday 5: 5 ABBA Songs That Belong in a New Musical

5 ABBA Songs The Belong in a New Musical

With Mamma Mia! back on Broadway, and the high profile revival of Chess coming in next month, its seems that ABBA is all the rage on the Rialto once again. (Really, were they ever out of style?) In recent years, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again was a box office success, and the Swedish super group came out with its newest (and Grammy-nominated) album in decades, Voyage, and went from there to create a new phenomenon, the digital-virtual reality concert/show, called, fittingly, ABBA Voyage. On the Chess front, the show has never really been too far from the public conscience, including the highly successful concert version starring Josh Groban, Adam Pascal, Kerry Ellis and Idina Menzel, and the Kennedy Center staged concert with a revised book, and starring Raul Esparza, Ramin Karimloo, Karen Olivo and Ruthie Ann Miles. It is that version which has progressed to the new Broadway revival starring Aaron Tveit, Nicholas Christopher, Lea Michele and Hannah Cruz.

So, how about a new ABBA scored musical featuring songs that haven't hit the Broadway stage yet? Here are 5 songs from their most recent albums that I think were made for theatricality. And this time, maybe something more dramatic...serious...

 

"The Day Before You Came" from The Visitors (Deluxe Edition)

Scholarly articles have been written about this song (I'm not joking). It deals with serious issues - relationships, feminism - and a purposely vague narrative that could be interpreted in a number of ways (again, I refer you to the articles written about the song). There's plot, defined characters, and devilishly mundane details. Is the narrator talking about life before meeting someone who changed her forever? Or is she being interrogated and giving a minute by minute accounting of her time before the police arrived? Or is it something else entirely? And the song is catchy as hell.

Though it has not been made a part of any ABBA theater work to date, it was included as a bonus track on the Here We Go Again soundtrack, interpreted by no less than Meryl Streep! Here is a lyric video for you to catch every word.

"Don't Shut Me Down" from Voyage

There's setting, plot, flashback, confrontation and transformation. Here we have a narrator at first contemplating what seeing a former lover again could be like, and then how it plays out.

Some of the lyric choices are interesting...Bjorn himself quipped during an album launch interview that the song is told by a robot - an avatar - and sounded funny. Of course, we now live in a post Maybe Happy Ending world. Is it really all that far-fetched?

"Keep an Eye on Dan" from Voyage

Here's another catchy song that lures you in with dramatic possibilities. A mother is leaving her son for a visit with his dad. She is fraught with anxiety and worries what will happen. The titular refrain begs the question: Is her son, Dan, in need of close supervision, and she's imploring her ex to be cautious and observant. And she gives the child reassurances and instructions, too. OR... Is she telling her son to watch out for what his dad, also Dan, might do? Maybe it is both? Neither? Drama abounds with this song.

Be sure to listen to the last notes as the song fades out...

"Two For the Price of One" from The Visitors

Here's a fun, slightly naughty story-song with named characters and a story that builds to a great plot twist. Even a serious musical needs to have its light moments. (No spoilers. Listen for yourself!)

"The Visitors" from The Visitors

Every show needs an enigma song. What is this about? Alien visitors? Ghosts? The musings of a mental patient? A paranoid recluse? The line between hysteria and reality are blurry here. You decide.

BONUS: "Soldiers" from The Visitors

Don't let the catchy, upbeat tune fool you. This is a song that deals with militarism, the human lust for war and our helplessness against it, and the power of propaganda. But there is a warning here, and with it a glimmer of hope. Written in the 80s during the Cold War (like Chess), this song has 2025 all over it.

REVIEW: ABBA and the Cold War: The History of Chess the Musical: Chapter 2

ABBA and the Cold War: The History of Chess the Musical

Chapter 2: The Exchange

NOTE: Our look at Chapter 1 can be found HERE.

In the aptly titled second chapter of this documentary, the genesis of Chess from concept recording to fully staged musical is presented, as "The Exchange" suggests,  as a multi-pronged detailing of triumph and tragedy, infighting and intrigue. In short, the mess that Chess became was probably more interesting than the end result.

Link to Chapter 2 HERE.

The start of this segment provides a lot of interesting material about two men behind the scenes, who today are the namesakes of two Broadway houses on 45th Street - Bernard Jacobs and Gerald Schoenfeld. At the very least it is nice to put a face to the name. By all accounts, these guys ran New York theater (and beyond), ruling with a cutthroat passion. Their other interest was in beating the other big name in town, The Nederlander Organization. With a tone that hovers somewhere between a 60 Minutes think piece and the he said/she said mentality of The National Enquirer, the film makers manage to keep this both informative and entertaining.

Though there is a preponderance of details that are momentarily interesting - Tim Rice gets left behind at a Long Island gas station after wondering off to see a Native American burial ground; Elaine Paige had her car stolen twice during rehearsals, etc etc., the piece gets bogged down, and I found myself looking at the clock more than once. It is when the film gets back to the process of musical making and the politics of the time that it really works.

A large chunk of this chapter details the rise and fall of Michael Bennett, the original director, both professionally and personally. Details of how A Chorus Line single-handedly saved the Shubert Organization from bankruptcy are balanced with the stinging betrayal of Bennett trying to buy a Nederlander theater (the Mark Hellinger). His drinking and drugging are pitted against his creative brilliance. I applaud the filmmakers for trying to paint a whole picture of the man; he was neither a saint nor sinner, not perfect, but still brilliant. 

Toward the end of this segment, there is a sharp look at the politics of journalism and how New York Times reporter Jeremy Gerard and his colleagues were forced to tell half-truths and flat out lies about AIDS, and particularly how Gerard is still anguished about how he had to tell Bennett's story.

The rest of Chapter 2 details the exchange from Bennett to Trevor Nunn, who inherited a piece he didn't believe in and how he hammered out his vision within the framework of Bennett's physical creation. No one involved was left unscathed. Dancers were made to stand on chess squares and not move. Whole pieces of scenery were scrapped. Major things like computer programming screens (184 of them!) and a light up chess board floor and extensive filmed sequences were left until the last minute. The 3 Knights were pretty much left out of the process.

And yet, after some tinkering (and by that I mean a complete rewrite - and tonal shift - of act 2) Chess was a hit in London in spite of itself. Nunn is portrayed as less a savior of the piece, though, when he used his leverage against the Shuberts when a New York transfer was inevitable. What a perfect chess analogy. You'll have to watch to see what he did.

The final moments are taken up with the tragic death of Michael Bennett and the impending doom of an ill-fated Broadway transfer.

Some cheesy visuals - a picture of Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly when Calvin Klein is mentioned, for one - and an increasingly labored overuse of chess (the game) as a metaphor are starting to wear thin, but I still recommend the film to this point. True fans of musical theater will lap this up, and students stand to learn some practical history. (There is life on Broadway before Hamilton!)

COMING SOON: A review of Chapter 3: The Endgame (but of course...)

REVIEW: ABBA and the Cold War: The History of Chess the Musical: Chapter 1

ABBA and the Cold War: The History of Chess the Musical

Chapter 1: The Three Knights

Over the decades I've spent as a student of my favorite artform, musical theater, I've developed an affinity for ambitious works that have flopped. As you probably surmised, the years have been filled with many such pieces. Two of them really have sparked my interest so much so that I have made it my mission to see as many iterations and interpretations of them as I can, always in the hope that finally someone has cracked the code and turned the flop into the big hit that it deserves to be. One of them, Merrily We Roll Along, finally found that success a couple of seasons back. By every reasonable metric, that production was a hit - except one. Mine. My search continues for that show finally being everything I think it can be. Maybe it isn't possible. Maybe it's just that I'll have to be happy that it has one of my favorite scores, and a "perfect" production just isn't out there. 

The other show, which I've seen many versions of may be in the same situation. I adore the score, no matter the iteration, but I've yet to see the "perfect" version. Still, I hope, and that's why I am excited for the upcoming Broadway revival. Will this one be that evasive production of Chess that will solve all of its problems? That remains to be seen, of course, but I know at least that with Tveit, Michele and Christopher singing it, the score will be great to hear.

To prepare for the revival, I started researching to reacquaint myself with the show, and came across a feature-length documentary on the YouTube channel, Wait in the Wings, which has created a few Broadway related films that can be found there. Their most recent effort is the search engine friendly titled ABBA and the Cold War: The History of Chess the Musical. Crowd funded, the film has made the most of the money gathered. The documentary is slickly produced with film clips, archival news footage and "Chessboard Cinematography" by Joel Black, and an original score by Carolee Beck that calls to mind James Bond films. Narrated by WITW founder Brendon Henderson with a confidence born from a solid script and well-documented research, and a voice that calls to mind Mo Rocca, it is a cross between 60 Minutes and a VH1 Behind the Music episode. And with interview segments featuring Michael Riedel, it also has the air of backstage gossip. An interesting, if sometimes jarring, combination.

Speaking of that research, I really appreciate their attention to giving credit where it is due, making special note to recognize Black, Beck, all of the interviewees and Kickstarter donors, and especially Julianna W. Henderson, who is not only a producer and script editor, but also Brendon's wife. Their shared passion is evident throughout.

The film itself is divided into three chapters, each helpfully bookmarked in the notes section of the YouTube page. Chapter 1 (cheekily named The Three Knights) is the first roughly 40 minutes of the film. This covers a lot of ground, from the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Cold War, to the careers of both Tim Rice and ABBA, and a fair amount of tea on the rise and fall of the Rice - Andrew Lloyd Webber collaboration. The juicy bits about Cats and a near lawsuit over the song, "Memory," and how Rice's affair with Elaine Paige figured into it will certainly scratch the itch some Broadway fans may have for gossip. Similarly, though less dish-y, is the background of the rise and fall of one of rock and roll's greatest groups. Then there is the pretty thorough section about the world chess championships concerning American Bobby Fischer and Soviet Boris Spassky, and later, Karpov and Kasparov. The film does a great job explaining the tournament, the political ramifications and the parallels to the musical. 

But it also goes into a bit of the process that went into the now famous Chess concept album, and how the pop kings and the musical theater guy finally gelled, creating the company that would eventually bring them together, forming The Three Knights production company.

As you can see, there is a lot packed into just the third of the movie. In the coming weeks, I'll let you know what I think about the other two "chapters." So far, I can recommend it.

Broadway Games: When Pop Musicians Write Musicals!

 Broadway Games:

When Pop Musicians Write Musicals!

Over the years, many musicians who are famous in the world of popular music have tried their hand at writing original Broadway scores. We are not talking about jukebox musicals, we are talking about full-fledged new scores.

Below are 10 such writers, their 10 Broadway shows, and some of their most famous pop songs. All you have to do is match 'em up! And don't forget to try the bonus questions, too! Good luck! 

Writers/Musicians         Pop Songs             Broadway Show 

1. Cyndi Lauper                        A. "Brave"/"Love Song"    a. Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark

2. Dolly Parton                          B. "King of the Road"        b. The Mystery of Edwin Drood

3. Trey Anastasio (Phish)          C. "Time After Time"        c. AIDA

4. Bono & The Edge (U2)         D. "Girls Chase Boys"        d. Big River

5. Roger Miller                          E. "Pride (In the Name of Love)"      e. Waitress

6. Elton John                            F. "Jolene"                          f. Hands on a Hard Body

7. Sara Bareilles                       G. "Farmhouse"/"Free"       g. Chess

8. Ingrid Michaelson                 H. "Rocketman"                 h. Kinky Boots

9. Rupert Holmes                     I. "Dancing Queen"            i. The Notebook

10. Benny Andersson & Bjorn Ulvaeus        J. "Escape (Pina Colada Song)"   j. 9 to 5

Bonus Questions:

1. Which of the above writer/musicians are Tony Award nominees? Of those, how many took home the trophy?

2. Which of the above writer/musicians have appeared in a Broadway musical? What musicals?

Broadway Games: ABBA Returns!

Yesterday came the announcement that ABBA was coming back with a whole new album, Voyage and a new concert of sorts. To celebrate our favorite Swedish phenomenon, we bring you a new Broadway Game! Good luck!

Broadway Games: ABBA Returns!

Below are 20 songs by Benny and Bjorn of ABBA. Which 10 are NOT from Mamma Mia?

Summer Night City        Knowing Me, Knowing You        Under Attack

Gimmie, Gimmie, Gimmie         Money, Money, Money        Ring Ring

Voulez Vous        Someone Else's Story        I Know Him So Well

Does Your Mother Know        The Day Before You Came

Two For the Price of One            One Night in Bangkok        Super Trouper

Our Last Summer         Lay All Your Love on Me        Angel Eyes

Fernando        Kisses of Fire        Thank You For the Music

#2619

Answers to Last Week's Broadway Games:

The Missing Lyrics of Kander and Ebb

1. Chicago

Come on babe, why don't we PAINT THE TOWN?

And all that jazz

I'm gonna rouge my knees and ROLL MY STOCKINGS DOWN

And all that jazz

2. Kiss of the Spider Woman

When you feel you've gone to hell IN A HANDBASKET

And the world in which you dwell's no paradise

I've some counsel I can give

You need but ask it

I'm so very glad to share THIS GOOD ADVICE

You've got to learn how not to be

WHERE YOU ARE

3. Zorba

Life is what you do while you’re waiting TO DIE,

Life is how the time goes by!

Life is where you wait while you’re waiting TO LEAVE,

Life is where you grin and grieve!

4. 70, Girls, 70

Try to get the curtain to go up,

Then try to get the window TO GO DOWN,

Then try to get the super on the phone,

I've got another leak, oh,

But he's PUERTO RICO.

5. The Scottsboro Boys

Come

And watch them

Sing and DANCE

Come and share

Their tears and joys

Come

This is your FINAL CHANCE

To meet

THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS!

Another ABBA Musical? "Act One"

It is always interesting for me and my best buddy and theatre companion Mike to figure out what we are going to do for that long wait until a 3 o'clock curtain on a Sunday afternoon.  Last time we were in the city, we lingered over a long lunch of Mexican food and margaritas.  And we started talking about how much we both love ABBA.  (There's more to share about our ABBA fascination, which I'll write about next week.)

I know it is en vogue to bash Mamma Mia, but where's the harm in some silly fun?  That said, we both thoroughly agree that there is much more to the works of Benny, Bjorn, Anni-Frid (Frida) and Agnetha than the deceptively bouncy pop of their biggest hits.  But most of their frothy pop hits have a darker, deeper undercurrent to them, and their music, particularly their later efforts, is also much more complex than meets the ear.  There are a few other things we agreed about:

• Most importantly, I guess, we both think there is potential for another musical, this one more serious, perhaps mysterious, using songs from the ABBA catalog.  And without using even one from Mamma Mia!
• Their album, Voulez-Vous, while a lot of fun to listen and dance to, is probably their least accomplished.
• Their final album, The Visitors, is their best, most complex work, and all by itself might work as a musical.
• One of their final songs, "The Day Before You Came," is a brilliant marriage of lyrics and music, a simple tune, orchestrated to enhance the mysterious nature of the lyrics.  In the best musical theatre tradition, this song works on so many levels.  Don't believe me?  Check out the entire Wikipedia article devoted to just that song HERE.  As a result, it is one of the songs we both agreed should be in a new ABBA musical.

Between us, we selected 18 songs.  What follows are the first nine, with the reasons we selected them.  We are not suggesting a specific plot, but, rather, how they might function in a musical. To hear some of the songs, click on the pictures above the description to go to a You Tube video that plays that song.

"The Arrival" (from The Arrival) One of two instrumentals recorded over the course of 8 albums and 1 compilation of unreleased songs, it seems only natural to use this as an overture!

Mike noted a recurring image in several of ABBA's songs: trains.  What a natural locale for a musical - both on the rails and in the station (the video for "The Day Before You Came" takes place on a train platform...)

     

"Another Town, Another Train" and "Nina, Pretty Ballerina" (from Ring Ring, their first album) and "Two for the Price of One" (from The Visitors, their final album) The first certainly creates a setting and situation, while the other two could certainly create characters in that setting/situation.  I think "Two"'s first verse could set up an unhappy, creepy stalker character.  Can he see Nina?

While we are talking about characters, I thought these three songs could introduce three more (besides Nina) different, interesting characters:

       

"Elaine" and "Cassandra" (from the Bonus Tracks compilation CD) and "Hey Hey Helen" (from ABBA) "Elaine" has the urgency of a police siren, and has chase scene and violent victimization imagery.  "Cassandra" is a woman caught in the middle of social upheaval - she knows things she tried to expose, but people didn't listen to - and the pain of loss - her father and sister "are gone" and she is being forced to leave.  "Hey Hey Helen" is about a woman left to fend for herself and her children.  I think it is interesting to note that this song is from an album from the mid-seventies, the era of "I Am Woman," and while today that situation is so commonplace, at the time it was somewhat controversial.

And finally for this first half...

"Happy New Year" (from Super Trouper) Perhaps the most "act one finale" type song either of us picked.  I chose it because it seems like a turning point song, with an interesting juxtaposition of melancholy solo work and more of a group feel to the more optimistic lines.  Then there is the troubling line, "We might as well lay down and die."  Intriguing... and a great way to end a mysterious act keep the audience hungry for more.

Which is where Mike and I will leave you until next week.  Until then, let me know what you think.  Does ABBA have another musical within their oeuvre?  What songs would you include?  We want to hear from you!

Jeff

5.135