January 19, 2023
“Company” in London: The Gender-Bent Revival of Sondheim’s Classic that Everyone (Else) is Raving Aboutby Randi / October 11, 2018
It’s Theatre Thursday! Today’s show is Eugenius!, which ends its run at London’s The Other Palace on Sunday, October 21.
Amid all this dreariness, both from the weather getting grayer and Britain’s (slash the world’s) prospects looking bleaker, a goofy superhero musical is exactly what the doctor ordered. (Unless your doctor has actually prescribed you medicine, then take that. (Hooray for universal healthcare.)) Leaning heavily on the spoof side of things, Eugenius! is an easy to enjoy ‘80s-set romp of a familiar comic book story – dorky boy sketches out his feelings and desires in fantastical comic form, proves he has talent, is more than just a dork – but with a clever and, yes, ‘eunique’ (their word) take. From creators Chris Wilkins and Ben Adams, this amusing, cheerful musical needs work before its next incarnation, but what’s there now is happy, silly fun.
Amid all this dreariness, both from the weather getting grayer and Britain’s (slash the world’s) prospects looking bleaker, a goofy superhero musical is exactly what the doctor ordered. (Unless your doctor has actually prescribed you medicine, then take that. (Hooray for universal healthcare.)) Leaning heavily on the spoof side of things, Eugenius! is an easy to enjoy ‘80s-set romp of a familiar comic book story – dorky boy sketches out his feelings and desires in fantastical comic form, proves he has talent, is more than just a dork – but with a clever and, yes, ‘eunique’ (their word) take. From creators Chris Wilkins and Ben Adams, this amusing, cheerful musical needs work before its next incarnation, but what’s there now is happy, silly fun.
Eugenius! (must I use the exclamation point every time? I think it’s really the title so yes!) tells of teenage geek (not nerd; nerds like numbers, geeks like gadgets, we’re told (although ‘geeks like superhero stuff’ would have been more appropriate because they never used gadgets but go on)) Eugene, a supposedly nondescript boy living in 1980s Ohio, spending his days trying to hide from your typical high school bullies and getting out his feels by drawing original comics. Eugene (Rob Houchen), pale and skinny (at least he looks it in clothes – kudos to whoever costumed him and hid alla that til the surprise end), reeks of chronic teenage geek. He doesn’t think he’ll ever be good enough but aspires to greatness nonetheless. His friends believe in him though, and when an opportunity to bring his creative work to a big stage presents itself, they make sure Eugene takes his chance.
As friends/sidekicks/featured actors in musicals go, Eugene’s are pretty wonderful. Feris (Daniel Buckley) is a sweaty goofball with only one ‘r’ but with nonstop ‘80s references and an impeccable Yoda impression to match his Sloth one. Janey (Laura Baldwin) is a supportive, sweet girl who loves Eugene but is scared she’s stuck in the friend zone. I loved that they had the cliche story of a friend in love with another friend who is always complaining about being in the friend zone, but switched the typical pattern and made it a girl. It’s much sweeter than way and not gross like all guys complaining about the zone are.
When a Hollywood studio sends minions around America to find the next big thing, and they inexplicably go to high schools and beg students to just say something, Janey and Feris urge Eugene to present his work. The rep loves it and flies Eugene straight to Hollywood. I thought this part was going to be a dream but then the rest of the show is in Hollywood so it’s the kind of show you just roll with, okay. My least favorite part of the show was the intro to Hollywood song dedicated to the big studio executive (really the most annoying part of the show (well, tied for first; you’ll see)) about how you have to kiss his ass to get anywhere. It’s called “A Little Kiss Ass” and it does not work musically. I spent those five minutes wishing that they had paid for the rights to the most amazing Hollywood executive introduction song, Shaiman and Wittman’s one from Smash – “Don’t Say Yes Until I Finish Talking” – and then I sang it in my head instead. And we liked it and we loved it.
As friends/sidekicks/featured actors in musicals go, Eugene’s are pretty wonderful. Feris (Daniel Buckley) is a sweaty goofball with only one ‘r’ but with nonstop ‘80s references and an impeccable Yoda impression to match his Sloth one. Janey (Laura Baldwin) is a supportive, sweet girl who loves Eugene but is scared she’s stuck in the friend zone. I loved that they had the cliche story of a friend in love with another friend who is always complaining about being in the friend zone, but switched the typical pattern and made it a girl. It’s much sweeter than way and not gross like all guys complaining about the zone are.
When a Hollywood studio sends minions around America to find the next big thing, and they inexplicably go to high schools and beg students to just say something, Janey and Feris urge Eugene to present his work. The rep loves it and flies Eugene straight to Hollywood. I thought this part was going to be a dream but then the rest of the show is in Hollywood so it’s the kind of show you just roll with, okay. My least favorite part of the show was the intro to Hollywood song dedicated to the big studio executive (really the most annoying part of the show (well, tied for first; you’ll see)) about how you have to kiss his ass to get anywhere. It’s called “A Little Kiss Ass” and it does not work musically. I spent those five minutes wishing that they had paid for the rights to the most amazing Hollywood executive introduction song, Shaiman and Wittman’s one from Smash – “Don’t Say Yes Until I Finish Talking” – and then I sang it in my head instead. And we liked it and we loved it.
Honestly all future productions should cut this song or pay to use the Smash one. (It’s so damn good.) To have the executive then order that all the girls coming in for casting should be sent directly to his office was clearly supposed to be a topical joke, but it also really horribly does not work at all. If you are going to make jokes about that situation, you need to do better and actually have it be clever, not just exist for its own sake.
So they’re making a big movie about Eugene’s comic book story, which is about a superhero called Tough Man. On a faraway planet called Itsaballoon, the rulers were welcoming a new baby, but it turned out to be two, which was bad luck because a prophecy declared that twins would destroy their planet or something. So they sent the weaker one (determined during a truly hilarious bit), named Hector, out into space with a robot, but this kid would grow up with the sole aim of destroying his luckier twin brother, Tough Man. But Tough Man – ‘tough but fair’ – would make sure that justice always won out. And he would make sure that his sidekick Super Hot Lady (it IS a teenage boy’s work, after all) never touched him because that would weaken him.
But plot twist of all plot twists, as they’re making Eugene’s movie, Evil Lord Hector (Neil McDermott, amazing) hears the dumbest actor ever proclaim that he’s Tough Man on set, and he sets course for the Hollywood studio. Yes, Hector is real, and really looking for his brother. Dun dun dunnnn! I loved this twist (and the others to come!), but the book was messy in act two. The characters never showed any real realization or coming to terms with the fact that Hector was actually real, and it wasn’t clear that they realized Eugene had dreamt up a true story. Also, there is too much unnecessary stuff in the second half, and it drags whenever Hector isn’t around (he really is the best). And while it ended all well and good, I wish they made a bigger show of pointing out why Eugene had been dreaming of this story. Using his dad more effectively would help with Eugene’s arc, especially if clarified whether he was who we now assume he was.
That aforementioned ‘unnecessary stuff’ in act two is also the aforementioned ‘most annoying part of the show’. Feris, the stereotypical loony and kind of gross sidekick, has a love song with the actress cast as Super Hot Lady in the movie, and it’s called ‘The No Pants Dance’, and they need to completely cut the song and everything mentioned about the two of them together. It’s infuriating to have a clever show fall back on THE MOST annoying, tired trope there is – the messy overweight boy catching the eye of a, well, a super hot lady. First of all, he is a HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT, so probably underage so COME ON. Second, Kevin James has already tired out all variations on this theme and we’re all tired of it so everyone from now on please cut it out and stop feeling the need to ‘gift’ a hot woman onto a non-hot boy like he deserves it for being not cool or something. It’s beyond irritating, and it’s actually offensive I think to every kind of person, hot or not.
Other than my two big gripes, it’s a pleasant, amiable show. While there’s no real need to set it in America, I was impressed by all the leads’ solid mid-Western accents. Of course there were some wonky accents. The school bully was doing a full-on New York mobster one, while Eugene’s father was a southerner? It was distracting. And they clearly didn’t have an American go over the book, because everyone kept saying ‘whilst’ instead of ‘while’ and using plural verbs for mass nouns (ugh). Just let me go over all books, guys. But anyway, I love that it’s set in the ‘80s, and they really make it clear with the great lighting and the music. Some of the music was very catchy, but I am concerned that several songs are direct copies of famous ‘80s power ballads. Janey and Eugene’s 11 o’clock number was hundo p Celine’s “Where Does My Heart Beat Now”, while the big Act I ender used the exact instrumentals of “King of Wishful Thinking”. It’s unclear if this was accidental infringement from trying to achieve classic ‘80s sounds, or if these were purposeful ‘homages’. Whichever it is, they need to be clearer about it, because with the line so blurry I’d be worried about people getting the wrong idea (*cough* like lawyers who used to do IP *cough*).
The best numbers go to Janey and Eugene, as they should. Both actors are perfectly cast, and while I wish their nerd personalities, voices, and overall affects were more pronounced so that their transformations stood out more drastically, they were great. I was ready to complain about Janey’s too-sincere Act One ballad not fitting with the mood of the work, but then it turned into a hilarious and perfect ‘80s power ballad, complete with wind machine treatment. Nailing the right tone of the piece with a move like that helps this show succeed, and fixing all the parts where the tone is off would make it amazing.
Hmm, I feel like I’ve complained a lot, but you know what I (and Coach from ‘Love and Basketball’) say. With a few fixes, I think this show could be really great, and it should be a staple in high schools and colleges. As it is, it’s tons of fun and I’m so happy I saw it. They are using that small stage so well, and having something so fresh and exciting in London theatre is a treat.
So they’re making a big movie about Eugene’s comic book story, which is about a superhero called Tough Man. On a faraway planet called Itsaballoon, the rulers were welcoming a new baby, but it turned out to be two, which was bad luck because a prophecy declared that twins would destroy their planet or something. So they sent the weaker one (determined during a truly hilarious bit), named Hector, out into space with a robot, but this kid would grow up with the sole aim of destroying his luckier twin brother, Tough Man. But Tough Man – ‘tough but fair’ – would make sure that justice always won out. And he would make sure that his sidekick Super Hot Lady (it IS a teenage boy’s work, after all) never touched him because that would weaken him.
But plot twist of all plot twists, as they’re making Eugene’s movie, Evil Lord Hector (Neil McDermott, amazing) hears the dumbest actor ever proclaim that he’s Tough Man on set, and he sets course for the Hollywood studio. Yes, Hector is real, and really looking for his brother. Dun dun dunnnn! I loved this twist (and the others to come!), but the book was messy in act two. The characters never showed any real realization or coming to terms with the fact that Hector was actually real, and it wasn’t clear that they realized Eugene had dreamt up a true story. Also, there is too much unnecessary stuff in the second half, and it drags whenever Hector isn’t around (he really is the best). And while it ended all well and good, I wish they made a bigger show of pointing out why Eugene had been dreaming of this story. Using his dad more effectively would help with Eugene’s arc, especially if clarified whether he was who we now assume he was.
That aforementioned ‘unnecessary stuff’ in act two is also the aforementioned ‘most annoying part of the show’. Feris, the stereotypical loony and kind of gross sidekick, has a love song with the actress cast as Super Hot Lady in the movie, and it’s called ‘The No Pants Dance’, and they need to completely cut the song and everything mentioned about the two of them together. It’s infuriating to have a clever show fall back on THE MOST annoying, tired trope there is – the messy overweight boy catching the eye of a, well, a super hot lady. First of all, he is a HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT, so probably underage so COME ON. Second, Kevin James has already tired out all variations on this theme and we’re all tired of it so everyone from now on please cut it out and stop feeling the need to ‘gift’ a hot woman onto a non-hot boy like he deserves it for being not cool or something. It’s beyond irritating, and it’s actually offensive I think to every kind of person, hot or not.
Other than my two big gripes, it’s a pleasant, amiable show. While there’s no real need to set it in America, I was impressed by all the leads’ solid mid-Western accents. Of course there were some wonky accents. The school bully was doing a full-on New York mobster one, while Eugene’s father was a southerner? It was distracting. And they clearly didn’t have an American go over the book, because everyone kept saying ‘whilst’ instead of ‘while’ and using plural verbs for mass nouns (ugh). Just let me go over all books, guys. But anyway, I love that it’s set in the ‘80s, and they really make it clear with the great lighting and the music. Some of the music was very catchy, but I am concerned that several songs are direct copies of famous ‘80s power ballads. Janey and Eugene’s 11 o’clock number was hundo p Celine’s “Where Does My Heart Beat Now”, while the big Act I ender used the exact instrumentals of “King of Wishful Thinking”. It’s unclear if this was accidental infringement from trying to achieve classic ‘80s sounds, or if these were purposeful ‘homages’. Whichever it is, they need to be clearer about it, because with the line so blurry I’d be worried about people getting the wrong idea (*cough* like lawyers who used to do IP *cough*).
The best numbers go to Janey and Eugene, as they should. Both actors are perfectly cast, and while I wish their nerd personalities, voices, and overall affects were more pronounced so that their transformations stood out more drastically, they were great. I was ready to complain about Janey’s too-sincere Act One ballad not fitting with the mood of the work, but then it turned into a hilarious and perfect ‘80s power ballad, complete with wind machine treatment. Nailing the right tone of the piece with a move like that helps this show succeed, and fixing all the parts where the tone is off would make it amazing.
Hmm, I feel like I’ve complained a lot, but you know what I (and Coach from ‘Love and Basketball’) say. With a few fixes, I think this show could be really great, and it should be a staple in high schools and colleges. As it is, it’s tons of fun and I’m so happy I saw it. They are using that small stage so well, and having something so fresh and exciting in London theatre is a treat.
INFORMATION
Eugenius! closes at The Other Palace on Sunday, so if you are in London go quick. It was supposed to transfer to the West End, but they just announced that that fell through due to an investor pulling out (so it won’t get preeeeeegnannnnnnnnnnnnt). I hope they get another chance to hit the West End in the future – maybe after taking the above suggestions into account.
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“Company” in London: The Gender-Bent Revival of Sondheim’s Classic that Everyone (Else) is Raving About
It’s Theatre Thursday! Today’s show is ‘Company’ in the West End, playing at the Gielgud Theatre until (at least) December 22.
Not to sound too much like Stefan, but London’s hottest show right now is ‘Company’. It’s got everything: gorgeous sets, impeccable lighting, that IKEA chair everyone has that looks expensive, Patti LuPone, red dresses, untz-untz-untz music, a guy sitting next to you (me) burping up cheese (I almost vomited in front of Patti LuPone), and, most notably, a gender-switched lead character. In this modern revival of Stephen Sondheim’s classic 1970 musical, Bobby, the 35-year-old bachelor who enjoys juggling women and being the envy of his married friends, is now Bobbie, a 35-year-old bachelorette who dates and has lots of married friends and is thinking a bit about what she wants out of life. The buzz around this revival is off the charts, and yet the show itself lacks any sense of life driving it forward.
While ‘Company’ wants us to believe that Bobbie’s having some sort of existential crisis about being single at this age, Bobbie doesn’t seem to be in much need to change her life, because this is now 2018 and it’s not a big deal that a 35-year-old woman, especially in NYC, is single. She seems fine. She dates cute guys, she wears cute dresses, she has a bunch of friends who care enough about her to always invite her over and call her and throw her birthday parties. Who has friends that throw birthday parties anymore?! Her life rocks. So while a female lead is interesting and buzzworthy, the show’s whole main concept now fails as a piece of modern theatre, because the whole ‘erma gerd a 35-year-old person in 2018 is unmarried alert the church elders’ subject matter is so outdated and irrelevant to our lives that despite the truly gorgeous visuals of this production, and the mostly great performances, you’re left thinking, ‘wait but why though?’
Maybe it’s because I am in Bobbie’s demographic, so I have lots of Bobbie-friends in my life who are Living Their Best Life, but I think I found the female characterization of Bobbie less compelling than the male. Stereotypically, women think about marriage and getting to spinster age more than men do, right? Older single men are more socially acceptable than older single women, because yay misogyny. So if this is true, a female Bobbie isn’t anything of note. It’s merely a woman who still has her entire life ahead of her thinking, hmm maybe do want to get married someday. COOL. That’s not exactly the most compelling dramaz. Whereas, with a male Bobby, especially when he’s played with a little coldness towards his romantic conquests, it feels a little more moving to watch him realize that maybe he wants to settle down one day, because it wasn’t expected, and he’s not expected to really care about that. Bobby having an emotional journey is more compelling than Bobbie, well, just staying the same.
And maybe I found the female Bobbie less compelling because it wasn’t acted well. Unfortunately, I saw this show on the night when the lead, Rosalie Craig, was sick, and Jennifer Saayeng, who usually plays Jenny, was on as Bobbie. Saayeng should be commended for getting through the show without any mistakes, but this is a West End professional production, and her performance was sadly not up to standards. She seemed unable to control her breath, which resulted in weak voice, unable to be sustained. It was a shame that Bobbie’s big musical moments – “Marry Me A Little”, “Someone is Waiting”, and of course “Being Alive” – were laborious, tedious, awkward moments that you yearned to be over instead of relishing. It was a big disappointment, and I’m shocked that a production of this caliber doesn’t have a better suited standby for Bobbie. Her acting portrayal left me cold as well, so perhaps Craig does show Bobbie as going on an emotional journey, but Saayeng did not. It’s the fault of the director, Marianne Elliot, for not ensuring that that necessary journey always remains a part of the show no matter who is playing the role, and it’s the fault of the producers for not having a standby or understudy ready to portray it. When I last saw ‘Company’ live, it was the 2006 Broadway revival with Raul Esparza, and his Bobby was one of the most incredible performances I’ve ever seen in my entire life. People say that Bobby/Bobbie doesn’t require a powerhouse vocalist, but hell if hearing Raul blow the roof off the theatre with his definitive ‘Being Alive’ didn’t transform the entire emotional message of that song and subsequently the play as a whole. He actually felt the pressure from his married friends and was grappling with his own desires, whereas in this production, I didn’t notice anyone making Bobbie feel uncomfortable with her status at all. And for good reason – like I said, she seemed to be doing fine. But the whole point of a musical is to show emotion through song, which Bobbie did not do.
Aside from Bobbie, the rest of the characters were mostly great. ‘Company’ is told through a series of vignettes in no apparent chronological order, with returns to Bobbie’s surprise 35th birthday party scattered in here and there and as bookends. The first of Bobbie’s married friends were wonderful – Mel Giedroyc and Gavin Spokes as Sarah and Harry, who are trying to give up their vices and end up fully fighting each other while ‘demonstrating’ jujitsu, which Giedroyc hilariously pronounces like Ross Gellar says ‘karate’. Some of my favorite comic timing in ‘Company’ comes when Joanne enters the fray and sings to the audience “The Little Things You Do Together”, and Patti did exactly what was needed here, hysterically. The scene, which ends with the lovely-sad “Sorry-Grateful”, was as pitch-perfect as the set design was. Jenny and David, the couple who smokes weed with Bobbie and has some truly provocative dialogue, were also great. Jamie Pruden was on as Jenny with Saayeng swung up to Bobbie, and I honestly couldn’t believe that she wasn’t the regular Jenny. She and her husband, played by an affable Richard Henders, seemed perfectly suited to their parts. Lastly, Daisy Maywood and Ashley Campbell as Susan and Peter were great as well, with their interesting portrayal of a couple that is finally happy with each other once they get divorced.
But no one and nothing in the shows beats Bobbie’s gay friends Jamie and Paul. Jonathan Bailey stops the show and steals it with his incredible “Getting Married Today”, which is honestly the best reason to see this show. This is the one gender switch in the production that makes much more sense now. When a woman sings this song, it’s funny but just normal cold feet. With a man singing it, his jab of “Just because we can get married doesn’t mean we should” takes on a much more potent meaning, and his joke about being pregnant is actually funny. The staging is just as good as his performance, down to his leap onto the kitchen counter and the choirgirl disappearing into the fridge. It’s a tour de force and I will bet right now that Bailey wins an Olivier this year for it.
While Richard Fleeshman’s Andy, the idiot flight attendant formerly known as Amy, is fantastic, the other two boyfriends don’t fare as well. Theo (formerly Kathy) barely makes a dent, while PJ (formerly Marta) is so poorly redone as to be kind of maddening. Before, Marta was this cool liberal girl who revels in the city’s diverse wonders, but PJ seems to be just like some skanky Brit who spends all his time doing drugs in clubs. What this production does to “Another Hundred People” is a crime.
And Patti, while always great, didn’t really connect to the character. Maybe it’s because she doesn’t have to – the audience, screaming and cheering for her every single word, no matter what it was, would apparently scream and cheer for her if she said eat my farts instead of her lines. Joanne’s big song “Ladies who Lunch” is set in a modern club with house music thumping, which as you know is my nightmare, and there’s just no way this old lady would be at this club with all these young people dancing. The new book scenes given to Joanne before and after her big song are honestly weird. Whatever they were trying to accomplish by shocking Bobbie with Joanne’s untoward suggestions about sleeping with her husband &c. was not achieved. Instead, you’re left just kind of giving the stage the side-stink-eye like that gif of the little blonde toddler. If I am forced to give it some weight, I guess Joanne was trying to scandalize Bobbie into feeling something at all, and betting that her reaction would be the realization that she wants to settle down, but it felt unnatural and actually bizarre.
Sondheim has said that he hates hearing theories that Bobby was a gay man, because that’s an entirely different issue that the character would be dealing with. Bobby’s story is that of the quintessential straight white man with no real problems, and this is the one case I can think of where the story is best suited to that kind of man. Making him a woman diminishes the potency of his story the same way Sondheim feared making him gay would. And Bobbie doesn’t seem to have a problem here at all. Her friends don’t seem to be pressuring her to settle down as they seem to have in past productions. And you’d think that the gender-switch would bring along a new kind of pressure from the friends and from Bobbie’s own acknowledgement of her aging – the time she has left to have babies. I assumed this production would be all over that with a female Bobbie. But this obvious issue is left strangely unmentioned, the one thing that actually would make a compelling argument for a female lead. So, instead of the story of a cold, insular, lonely man who realizes how badly he wants someone to love him, we see the story of a middle class, mid-30s woman who has lots of friends, a great apartment, an active romantic life, and a birthday cake all to herself. I don’t see a problem.
INFORMATION
‘Company’ is playing at the Gielgud Theatre until December 22, but I am positive that either an extension or a Broadway transfer is coming, given the hugely positive reception it’s getting. Rush tickets are available on TodayTix.
Show Boat on the West End: Top-Notch Production of a Classic Show
Lol I used the phrase ‘top-notch’ that proves that this is a) a really old show I’m gonna talk about and b) in England.
Here’s a confession for you. I didn’t really know “Show Boat” before I saw this production in London. Of course I knew it was an old classic show; this is my jam after all. And of course I knew the song “Bill” was from it, because I have everything Audra McDonald ever sang in my DNA (it’s on her album How Glory Goes). And of course I knew it was about an acting troupe on a boat and they put on shows because I read the title. But really, I never saw it before, and never listened to non-Audra recordings of the music. I’m sure I knew at one point that both “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” and “Old Man River”, super famous songs that I’m sure all of you are familiar with, are also in this show; I guess I just forgot. What an idiot! Such great songs!
Here’s a confession for you. I didn’t really know “Show Boat” before I saw this production in London. Of course I knew it was an old classic show; this is my jam after all. And of course I knew the song “Bill” was from it, because I have everything Audra McDonald ever sang in my DNA (it’s on her album How Glory Goes). And of course I knew it was about an acting troupe on a boat and they put on shows because I read the title. But really, I never saw it before, and never listened to non-Audra recordings of the music. I’m sure I knew at one point that both “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” and “Old Man River”, super famous songs that I’m sure all of you are familiar with, are also in this show; I guess I just forgot. What an idiot! Such great songs!
“Show Boat” is a very good show, a fantastic show if you account for the fact that it first opened on Broadway in 1927 and still plays well. NOT A TYPO. 1927. That is insanely long ago, so the fact that this show keeps playing today and drawing loving audiences is a huge achievement and testament to its quality. However, yeah, it is 90 years old and so I have some big issues with the book, mostly because women are painted as just needing a man. But like that’s still common in art today, like 90% of it is about that, so really, I guess “Show Boat” was 90 years ahead of its time.
So it tells the story of a troupe of performers on a riverboat down south called the Cotton Blossom, which is an absolutely smashing name for a boat down south. The captain of the boat, the jovial Santa of a man Captain Andy (Malcolm Sinclair, great), runs everything – the boat, the show, the troupe – with his domineering stern wife Parthy Ann (oof with that name) (oy with the poodles). Actually I think it has to be Cap’n Andy. Their daughter Magnolia (Gina Beck) yearns to be an actress but is not allowed because she is too innocent and lovely and young to be in acting, said while fanning themselves. Her best friend in the whole world is Julie La Verne (Rebecca Trehearn), the leading lady in the troupe, whose husband is the leading man. You know that Julie has a past and a disreputable character because Magnolia’s parents don’t like her spending time with Julie, scared she’ll become ruined or get her clothes dirty or something. The rest of the acting troupe is solid, with the cheeky blonde comedienne (I hate that gendered word but it is appropriate here because she was totally old-fashioned ‘20s-style ‘comedienne’, and she’s told many, many times that that is what she was) Ellie May and her nimble suitor Frank (Danny Collins, a dead ringer for Ethan Embry in that graduation party movie) making me like them more than I expected. Alex Young’s Ellie seemed over the top at first but she quickly grew on me and like, that’s how the character is. While the troupe troupes it up onboard, the black dock workers do literally backbreaking work, never resting, getting underpaid to say the least. With Queenie, the cook, and Joe, her husband and one of the workers, the cast is pretty large and full of interesting characters who could each have a show about them. We don’t know much about Joe, but he is the one who sings “Old Man River”, which was a truly magical moment, hearing that in the theatre. I was really eager to see Emmanuel Kojo as Joe, but he was out (as was Sandra Marvin as Queenie), so I was disappointed at first. But both of those understudies were fabulous, and I really can’t imagine Old Man River being more moving. Pretty great actors all around, which you know I rarely say.
While docked in Southern Town, a mysterious stranger approaches the deck while Magnolia is like standing around or something in the moonlight. Naturally they fall in love because Magnolia is like ‘oh boy there’s a boy on my deck!’ and this super shadowy but intriguing figure is like ‘oh my there’s a girl who is young and pretty’ and they sing lovely soaring songs about how much they love each other before he has to go. I am pretty sure they don’t say his name yet? That’s love. Magnolia goes into the kitchen to hang with her friends, Julie and the black servants, and they have a gay old time singing “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” and it was swonderful. Truly.
Then, in the middle of a rehearsal, the sheriff or some other fake drunk-with-power armed law enforcement comes into the room and shouts about how there’s rumors of illegal miscegenation floating around and hoo boy we can’t have that. The alleged criminal is Julie La Verne herself, the leading lady and ostensibly white lady married to a white man. It’s a pretty brutal scene with everyone crying as Julie admits that she is actually mixed, but then her husband says that he is too, so it’s fine. He’s obviously not, but everyone in the company lies for him/them and the sheriff lets them go if they leave town, which sucks but beats being shot. The scene is distressing for everyone, especially America, and especially for Julie and Magnolia, whose sisterly bond was one of the few things the other had to count on. Luckily for Magnolia, mysterious stranger shows up to be the new leading man! and Magnolia is going to take Julie’s place since she already knows all the lines, so it’s like a tragedy became a fairy tale for her! No more tears because the handsome stranger you have a crush on is here, so who cares about your old friend and institutionalized racism! I mean she is a teenager, Magnolia, so you expect flightiness but freal, there are 5 seconds between her crying and her flirting. Oh child.
So Julie’s gone pretty early, and then we see her for ONE SONG in the second act. Granted, it’s the best song, but – I’m gonna state it – Julie la Verne is the most wasted great character in musical theatre. She has the two best songs in the show, she has such an interesting backstory and regular story, and yet those two songs are pretty much all she does. We don’t see her in Act II except for “Bill”. Don’t get me wrong, her “Bill” is a reason to see this show, most critics say the main reason because it is that good. But without a story to go with her current situation, I wasn’t all the way involved. Granted, I always thought this song was sung about a person named Bill in the show that the character was actually in love with, and not a forced ‘rehearsal for the cabaret tonight’ shoehorning into the plot. But still, it’s clear enough that the song is applicable to her current situation, we just don’t see any of it and it’s a shame because she’s so darn interesting. Did anyone write a spinoff show about her? Because I would see that.
Anyway, back in main plotland, the two lovebirds learn each other’s names and unfortunately his happens to be Gaylord Ravenal. I know. They wisely mainly refer to him as just Ravenal. They fall in love and get married like the next day or some such, and then they move to Chicago and have a baby. Sounds like a smart plan that you fully thought through.
So Gaylord turns out to be a gambler, Magnolia quickly learns, soon after she learns his name and that oh he’s her husband. He disappears a great deal, losing their money so frequently that they have to rent their rooms out. Kim, their daughter, grows up with hero worship on her father even though she saw him maybe 5 times during her childhood in convent school (sounds fun). Gaylord finally disappears for good, leaving Magnolia via a LETTER that she gets while ELLIE MAY AND FRANK are WITH HER and they have become super successful Hollywood stars and it’s SO EMBARRASSING for poor Magnolia and hot damn, did she get the shit end of the stick. Ellie helps her get a job at a cabaret singing, which is where Julie is, but while Julie sees Magnolia, Julie doesn’t let Magnolia see her. It’s all very sad and, again, worthy of MORE ATTENTION. Anyway. No use in trying to change a book that is 90 years old. Stuck in its ways and all that.
I don’t usually talk in detail about endings (or do I) because I don’t want to spoil things but the ending of this was done so well that I have to. Also its spoiler warning period expired 85 years ago. Things happen because like, 20 or 30 years pass or some such craziness? and Magnolia and a now grown-up Kim are on the Cotton Blossom because Kim is performing. She’s a performer now too. As Magnolia stands atop the boat, looking down, Gaylord appears. Because he’s a man and it was (and is) allowed for men to be total shits, everyone is ecstatic welcoming him back. Magnolia is the only one who is reserved, silent, while Kim runs to her father with open arms. Everyone else is totally fine with him. I would have said fuck you and the horse you rode in on. And that would probably be the only time I ever said that when the person really likely would have actually been on a horse. I mean, okay, so it’s 90 years old but even so, a story where a man abandons his wife and daughter because he’s a gambler and a shit and then comes back to open arms after 30 years is bullshit. Ugh I was like TURN HIM AWAY, QUEENIE.
Gaylord Ravenal I believe was the inspiration for naming Ben Stiller’s character in the “Meet the Parents” movies because man alive was he a focker. I did not see it coming that he was gonna be such a gaylord focker, either, so I was like dayummm she shoulda never met this focker. Ravenal was excellently played by Chris Peluso, who the programme tells me just graduated from U Michigan…so he is an American (USA! USA!) but also a child. Oh and he’s from Pennsylvania so at least there’s one more person in London who knows what Groundhog Day is. More importantly, he was really quite good. He looked strikingly like the Stark boy from Game of Sexist Violence, what’s his name? Rob! He looks like Rob Stark, so much that I just kind of accepted that it was him, actually. I should have known then that things wouldn’t go well. I mean, not that they don’t go well for him, he’s the man causing all the trouble so he’s fine, happy ever after as per uzh, but he’s just a dick for everyone else’s lives. Mostly women’s, so who cares!
I’m not sure if we are supposed to revile him along with Magnolia or feel pity for her or agree with Kim and rejoice at his return for her sake. Luckily, Gina Beck is so flinging flanging incredible as Magnolia that she makes everything okay: Magnolia stands atop the scene the whole time, and when she makes eye contact with Gaylord, she tells him that she’s fine, that she doesn’t despise him any more, that it’s okay that he’s back but just for Kim’s sake. But she doesn’t say any of that with words. All she does is make a little nod of reluctant acceptance, standing at top of boat watching over them, the slightest movement. It was right before blackout and reminded me of Eliza’s gasp that ends “Hamilton” (sorry spoiler!) and was so powerful that I gasp-cried at how perfect it was. Gina Beck was f-ing phenomenal. It was the best leading lady performance I’ve seen in London in a really long time, and I was shocked. I’ve seen her quite a few times in other shows, but this was beyond anything I could have expected of her. Just absolutely the role she was born to play. Her voice was perfect on this score, and p.s., it was a weekday matinee. Sometimes people hold back a little on those to save their voice and energy for the big shows. Nopers. She gave it everything.
Damn I’m still feeling that ending. So good but so devastating. At least no one gets killed. I was mixing up the plot of Carousel and other southerny shows in my head so I kept waiting for someone nice to get killed, Julie or Joe or someone tragic. Yay it didn’t happen! Just abandonment of a family and institutional racism! Even with all that, “Show Boat” is one of the classics and it’s such a special experience to see live in a big production, with such a stellar cast. Everything was done well in this production.
Oh I learned afterwards that the song “I Have the Room Above Her”, which I know and love because of Mandy Patinkin’s album Oscar & Steve, wasn’t included in this revival. It’s not actually part of the original score, as it was written for the 1936 movie and not the 1927 theatre production, but come on it was still written by Kern & Hammerstein AND included in the last Broadway revival AND Mandy Patinkin sang it. I guess really I would have been disappointed that Mandy wasn’t singing it if they did include it here but still, such a lovely song.
The show is closing by the end of the month because people are stupid so SEE IT GODAMMIT SEE IT NOW.
AUDIENCE
The audience was fine from my vantage point, which is astounding considering it was 99% white hair, which usually means phones that don’t get turned off. Aside from awful perfume, it was actually a really good audience. One thing that bothered me though, about the New London theatre, is that the programmes were $6 instead of the usual $4. I’m already paying for my programme and now you’re gonna charge extra? BUH-LERGH.
STAGEDOOR
I didn’t! But people seemed to be coming out to meet their friends as I was walking home.
So it tells the story of a troupe of performers on a riverboat down south called the Cotton Blossom, which is an absolutely smashing name for a boat down south. The captain of the boat, the jovial Santa of a man Captain Andy (Malcolm Sinclair, great), runs everything – the boat, the show, the troupe – with his domineering stern wife Parthy Ann (oof with that name) (oy with the poodles). Actually I think it has to be Cap’n Andy. Their daughter Magnolia (Gina Beck) yearns to be an actress but is not allowed because she is too innocent and lovely and young to be in acting, said while fanning themselves. Her best friend in the whole world is Julie La Verne (Rebecca Trehearn), the leading lady in the troupe, whose husband is the leading man. You know that Julie has a past and a disreputable character because Magnolia’s parents don’t like her spending time with Julie, scared she’ll become ruined or get her clothes dirty or something. The rest of the acting troupe is solid, with the cheeky blonde comedienne (I hate that gendered word but it is appropriate here because she was totally old-fashioned ‘20s-style ‘comedienne’, and she’s told many, many times that that is what she was) Ellie May and her nimble suitor Frank (Danny Collins, a dead ringer for Ethan Embry in that graduation party movie) making me like them more than I expected. Alex Young’s Ellie seemed over the top at first but she quickly grew on me and like, that’s how the character is. While the troupe troupes it up onboard, the black dock workers do literally backbreaking work, never resting, getting underpaid to say the least. With Queenie, the cook, and Joe, her husband and one of the workers, the cast is pretty large and full of interesting characters who could each have a show about them. We don’t know much about Joe, but he is the one who sings “Old Man River”, which was a truly magical moment, hearing that in the theatre. I was really eager to see Emmanuel Kojo as Joe, but he was out (as was Sandra Marvin as Queenie), so I was disappointed at first. But both of those understudies were fabulous, and I really can’t imagine Old Man River being more moving. Pretty great actors all around, which you know I rarely say.
While docked in Southern Town, a mysterious stranger approaches the deck while Magnolia is like standing around or something in the moonlight. Naturally they fall in love because Magnolia is like ‘oh boy there’s a boy on my deck!’ and this super shadowy but intriguing figure is like ‘oh my there’s a girl who is young and pretty’ and they sing lovely soaring songs about how much they love each other before he has to go. I am pretty sure they don’t say his name yet? That’s love. Magnolia goes into the kitchen to hang with her friends, Julie and the black servants, and they have a gay old time singing “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” and it was swonderful. Truly.
Then, in the middle of a rehearsal, the sheriff or some other fake drunk-with-power armed law enforcement comes into the room and shouts about how there’s rumors of illegal miscegenation floating around and hoo boy we can’t have that. The alleged criminal is Julie La Verne herself, the leading lady and ostensibly white lady married to a white man. It’s a pretty brutal scene with everyone crying as Julie admits that she is actually mixed, but then her husband says that he is too, so it’s fine. He’s obviously not, but everyone in the company lies for him/them and the sheriff lets them go if they leave town, which sucks but beats being shot. The scene is distressing for everyone, especially America, and especially for Julie and Magnolia, whose sisterly bond was one of the few things the other had to count on. Luckily for Magnolia, mysterious stranger shows up to be the new leading man! and Magnolia is going to take Julie’s place since she already knows all the lines, so it’s like a tragedy became a fairy tale for her! No more tears because the handsome stranger you have a crush on is here, so who cares about your old friend and institutionalized racism! I mean she is a teenager, Magnolia, so you expect flightiness but freal, there are 5 seconds between her crying and her flirting. Oh child.
So Julie’s gone pretty early, and then we see her for ONE SONG in the second act. Granted, it’s the best song, but – I’m gonna state it – Julie la Verne is the most wasted great character in musical theatre. She has the two best songs in the show, she has such an interesting backstory and regular story, and yet those two songs are pretty much all she does. We don’t see her in Act II except for “Bill”. Don’t get me wrong, her “Bill” is a reason to see this show, most critics say the main reason because it is that good. But without a story to go with her current situation, I wasn’t all the way involved. Granted, I always thought this song was sung about a person named Bill in the show that the character was actually in love with, and not a forced ‘rehearsal for the cabaret tonight’ shoehorning into the plot. But still, it’s clear enough that the song is applicable to her current situation, we just don’t see any of it and it’s a shame because she’s so darn interesting. Did anyone write a spinoff show about her? Because I would see that.
Anyway, back in main plotland, the two lovebirds learn each other’s names and unfortunately his happens to be Gaylord Ravenal. I know. They wisely mainly refer to him as just Ravenal. They fall in love and get married like the next day or some such, and then they move to Chicago and have a baby. Sounds like a smart plan that you fully thought through.
So Gaylord turns out to be a gambler, Magnolia quickly learns, soon after she learns his name and that oh he’s her husband. He disappears a great deal, losing their money so frequently that they have to rent their rooms out. Kim, their daughter, grows up with hero worship on her father even though she saw him maybe 5 times during her childhood in convent school (sounds fun). Gaylord finally disappears for good, leaving Magnolia via a LETTER that she gets while ELLIE MAY AND FRANK are WITH HER and they have become super successful Hollywood stars and it’s SO EMBARRASSING for poor Magnolia and hot damn, did she get the shit end of the stick. Ellie helps her get a job at a cabaret singing, which is where Julie is, but while Julie sees Magnolia, Julie doesn’t let Magnolia see her. It’s all very sad and, again, worthy of MORE ATTENTION. Anyway. No use in trying to change a book that is 90 years old. Stuck in its ways and all that.
I don’t usually talk in detail about endings (or do I) because I don’t want to spoil things but the ending of this was done so well that I have to. Also its spoiler warning period expired 85 years ago. Things happen because like, 20 or 30 years pass or some such craziness? and Magnolia and a now grown-up Kim are on the Cotton Blossom because Kim is performing. She’s a performer now too. As Magnolia stands atop the boat, looking down, Gaylord appears. Because he’s a man and it was (and is) allowed for men to be total shits, everyone is ecstatic welcoming him back. Magnolia is the only one who is reserved, silent, while Kim runs to her father with open arms. Everyone else is totally fine with him. I would have said fuck you and the horse you rode in on. And that would probably be the only time I ever said that when the person really likely would have actually been on a horse. I mean, okay, so it’s 90 years old but even so, a story where a man abandons his wife and daughter because he’s a gambler and a shit and then comes back to open arms after 30 years is bullshit. Ugh I was like TURN HIM AWAY, QUEENIE.
Gaylord Ravenal I believe was the inspiration for naming Ben Stiller’s character in the “Meet the Parents” movies because man alive was he a focker. I did not see it coming that he was gonna be such a gaylord focker, either, so I was like dayummm she shoulda never met this focker. Ravenal was excellently played by Chris Peluso, who the programme tells me just graduated from U Michigan…so he is an American (USA! USA!) but also a child. Oh and he’s from Pennsylvania so at least there’s one more person in London who knows what Groundhog Day is. More importantly, he was really quite good. He looked strikingly like the Stark boy from Game of Sexist Violence, what’s his name? Rob! He looks like Rob Stark, so much that I just kind of accepted that it was him, actually. I should have known then that things wouldn’t go well. I mean, not that they don’t go well for him, he’s the man causing all the trouble so he’s fine, happy ever after as per uzh, but he’s just a dick for everyone else’s lives. Mostly women’s, so who cares!
I’m not sure if we are supposed to revile him along with Magnolia or feel pity for her or agree with Kim and rejoice at his return for her sake. Luckily, Gina Beck is so flinging flanging incredible as Magnolia that she makes everything okay: Magnolia stands atop the scene the whole time, and when she makes eye contact with Gaylord, she tells him that she’s fine, that she doesn’t despise him any more, that it’s okay that he’s back but just for Kim’s sake. But she doesn’t say any of that with words. All she does is make a little nod of reluctant acceptance, standing at top of boat watching over them, the slightest movement. It was right before blackout and reminded me of Eliza’s gasp that ends “Hamilton” (sorry spoiler!) and was so powerful that I gasp-cried at how perfect it was. Gina Beck was f-ing phenomenal. It was the best leading lady performance I’ve seen in London in a really long time, and I was shocked. I’ve seen her quite a few times in other shows, but this was beyond anything I could have expected of her. Just absolutely the role she was born to play. Her voice was perfect on this score, and p.s., it was a weekday matinee. Sometimes people hold back a little on those to save their voice and energy for the big shows. Nopers. She gave it everything.
Damn I’m still feeling that ending. So good but so devastating. At least no one gets killed. I was mixing up the plot of Carousel and other southerny shows in my head so I kept waiting for someone nice to get killed, Julie or Joe or someone tragic. Yay it didn’t happen! Just abandonment of a family and institutional racism! Even with all that, “Show Boat” is one of the classics and it’s such a special experience to see live in a big production, with such a stellar cast. Everything was done well in this production.
Oh I learned afterwards that the song “I Have the Room Above Her”, which I know and love because of Mandy Patinkin’s album Oscar & Steve, wasn’t included in this revival. It’s not actually part of the original score, as it was written for the 1936 movie and not the 1927 theatre production, but come on it was still written by Kern & Hammerstein AND included in the last Broadway revival AND Mandy Patinkin sang it. I guess really I would have been disappointed that Mandy wasn’t singing it if they did include it here but still, such a lovely song.
The show is closing by the end of the month because people are stupid so SEE IT GODAMMIT SEE IT NOW.
AUDIENCE
The audience was fine from my vantage point, which is astounding considering it was 99% white hair, which usually means phones that don’t get turned off. Aside from awful perfume, it was actually a really good audience. One thing that bothered me though, about the New London theatre, is that the programmes were $6 instead of the usual $4. I’m already paying for my programme and now you’re gonna charge extra? BUH-LERGH.
STAGEDOOR
I didn’t! But people seemed to be coming out to meet their friends as I was walking home.
