Critic’s Notebook
Summer Lyric Theatre (SLT) presented a near perfect production of A Chorus Line at Tulane’s Dixon Hall recently (June 19-22); it probably would’ve been perfect had not some of the mylar on the panels standing in for rehearsal hall mirrors gotten distractingly scrunched up (at least at the performance I attended; I trust that was corrected for the rest of the run).
This Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning musical remains timeless though, of course, all the auditioning hopefuls would now be sporting ear buds and texting/scrolling on their cell phones when not dancing or singing.
For better or worse, unlike some musicals that have recently had major reinterpretations, such as Oklahoma!, Cats, and Sunset Boulevard, Chorus Line doesn’t allow for much revisionism–it’s very much of its time and place (a bare rehearsal room in the mid-1970s); this could also be a contractual issue involving the authors’ estates but that’s another story.
Hence, it seems to me (and I’d like nothing better to be proven wrong), that there’s a right way to present Chorus Line and just about any other approach would be wrong, or at least not true to the script (again, perhaps there’s some director out there who shall contradict this some day).
Fortunately, Director/Choreographer Jauné Buisson got everything–staging, choreography, performances, emotional tone, etc.–just right with a topnotch cast. Buisson, making her SLT directorial debut, also portrayed Cassie, the role originated by Donna McKechnie; normally I’d question someone starring in a production they’re overseeing, but Buisson had enacted the same character, excellently, when SLT last produced Chorus Line in 2014 and she most aptly captured Cassie’s anguished determination without sacrificing any other part of the production.
Among the many cast members were Leslie L. Claverie, deliciously droll as Sheila; Tess Guidry, a wonderful “terrible” singer as Kristine; Leah Holewyne who brought infectious enthusiasm to Diana Morales, the H.S. of Performing Arts student who felt “Nothing”; Garrin Mesa as the tragic Paul; Michael Paternostro who appeared in the 2006 Broadway revival and, here, embodied compassionate, if insistent, professionalism as the director Zach; Bryn Purvis, all wry perkiness as Val (Dance: Ten; Looks: Three); Melissa Goldberg and Victoria Thomas who, touchingly, joined Claverie for At the Ballet; as well as Christian Collins, Patrick Cragin, Daniel Rigamer, Eli Strain, Camille von Hoven, and Aaron Wiggins.
The cast of A Chorus Line
One revelation was Jorden Majeau as Larry, Zach’s assistant who coaches the aspiring chorus kids through the audition routines. In this usually throwaway role with very little dialog, Majeau displayed classical ballet form, arms and legs extended with utmost grace, so that his presence made complete and authoritative sense, in a way Larry’s doesn’t always, i.e., that his was the style that Zach wants the dancers to ultimately achieve. With his lithe figure and cut-glass features, I’d be curious to see Majeau as the Emcee in Cabaret some day.
A few random thoughts on this production and Chorus Line, a show I know so well I was practically singing along with the musical numbers, at least those that were on the original cast album.
–I could’ve done without SLT’s intermission about halfway through. Tho I realize it allows for a bathroom break and concession sales, I think it somewhat breaks the show’s momentum. Chorus Line should be like a roller coaster which, once gotten on, you stay on till the very end.
–Conductor/Musical Director Jose C. Simbulan did a fine job with the orchestra but I wish we could get rid of those original Vegasy, synthy orchestrations that reek of second tier 1970s pop songs. It might’ve seemed au courant fifty years ago but now comes off as kinda tacky. Marvin Hamlisch’s glorious music deserves better.
–One can’t help but think how the world of Chorus Line would be upended in a few years by AIDS which would take the lives of three of its creators (Director/Choreographer Michael Bennett and Bookwriters James Kirkwood & Nicholas Dante) and countless others in the theater community. At the same time, I suspect none of the characters in it, particularly the gay ones and especially Paul, for whom doing drag was a source of shame (if, ultimately, validation), could ever have conceived how drag can now be a legitimate, and quite lucrative, career choice thanks to such models as RuPaul and our very own Bianca Del Rio.
–And my biggest complaint? That at a mere four performances, it’s a shame more people couldn’t have seen and enjoyed this glorious production! How’s about a 5, 6, 7, 8 more performances?!
(Coming up next are Stephen Sondheim’s Company (July 10-13) and Rodgers & Hammerstein‘s Carousel (July 31-August 3). More info at https://liberalarts.tulane.edu/summer-lyric-theatre)
New in New York
Alas, one of the shows I wrote about a few weeks ago, Floyd Collins, has closed and the other two are scheduled to do so shortly, Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends on June 29 and BOOP! The Musical on July 13. Newly crowned Tony winner for Best Musical Maybe Happy Ending is certainly a sweet show and the long-running Titanique is a hoot [Stop the presses–I just discovered that the Céline Dion/Titanic send-up will be playing its last performance on June 29; if you haven’t seen it yet, do try to!], but there’s not much else I can wholeheartedly recommend these days.
Instead, there are a number of museum shows that are well worth seeing in Manhattan with bonus points for being less expensive and getting you out of the summer’s heat for as long as you want.
At The New York Historical, “Fred W. McDarrah: Pride and Protest” (thru July 13) depicts moments in the history of LGBTQ+ civil rights captured by famed Village Voice photographer Fred McDarrah (1926–2007) in the latter half of the 20th century. Featuring more than 60 black-and-white photographs, the images offer unique insights into the triumphs and struggles of LGBTQ+ history, including the Mattachine Society’s “Sip-In” at Julius’ Bar on 10th Street in 1966, the Stonewall Uprising in 1969, and the annual Pride marches that followed.
“Untitled (Tennessee Williams [1911-1983]), New York, New York” (Jan. 30, 1980) by Fred McDarrah (1926–2007)
Two of my favorite photos in it are portraits of the great Charles Ludlam, “The King for the Ridiculous”, wearing nothing but his birthday suit and a strategically placed hat, and of Tennessee Williams sporting a full beard and an all-encompassing fur jacket. Two queer, much-missed theater icons. [https://www.nyhistory.org/]
The Jewish Museum presents “Ben Shahn, On Nonconformity” (thru Oct. 12), the first U.S. retrospective in nearly half a century dedicated to Ben Shahn (1898-1969), anti-fascist, civil rights activist and much more. With 175 artworks and objects from the 1930s to the 1960s, including paintings, mural studies, prints, photographs, commercial designs, and ephemera, this timely, wonderful exhibition highlights the enduring relevance of Shahn’s vital art.
“Blind Accordion Player” (1945) by Ben Shahn (1898-1969)
Among the many powerful images are “Blind Accordion Player” (1945) which was inspired by a photograph from the 1930s, and “The Church is the Union Hall” (1946) which depicts a Black Baptist Church where a sign outside it states that “There will be a Labor Meeting for the Tobacco Workers”. One can only imagine what Shahn would think of things today… [https://thejewishmuseum.org/]
At The Met Fifth Avenue, “Sargent and Paris” (thru Aug. 3) explores the early career of John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), from his arrival in Paris in 1874 as an 18-year-old art student through the mid-1880s, when his infamous portrait of native New Orleanian “Madame X (Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau)” (1883-84) was a scandalous success at the Paris Salon. “Sargent and Paris” reveals, in fascinating detail, the amazing development of this (possibly gay) artist.
“Madame X (Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau)” (1883-84) by John Singer Sargent (1856–1925)
Highlights of this focused, really good exhibit, in addition to “Madame X”, include “Dr. Pozzi at Home” (1881) showing the dashing Samuel Jean Pozzi (1846–1918), an aesthete, collector, and distinguished surgeon & pioneer in the field of gynecology, in a floor length blood red dressing gown, and “La Carmencita” (c. 1890) which captures the Spanish flamenco dancer Carmen Dauset Moreno (1868–1910) in a fantastic yellow costume and confident pose. Olé! [https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/sargent-and-paris]
Also at The Met is this year’s Costume Institute exhibition “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” (thru Oct. 26), a wonderfully overstuffed show examining over 300 years of Black style through the concept of dandyism; I went around thru it 3 times to make sure I didn’t miss anything!
Through a presentation of garments and accessories, paintings, photographs, decorative arts, and more, from the 18th century to today, “Superfine” interprets the concept of dandyism as both an aesthetic and a strategy that allowed for new social and political possibilities.
“Aime” ensemble (autumn-winter 2015-16) by Grace Wales Bonner (1990-)
Highlights of this expansive, really good exhibit include zoot suits; a silk twill jacket worn by the fabulous gender-bending disco singer Sylvester; and a jacket/trousers/headpiece ensemble by Grace Wales Bonner of silk crushed velvet embroidered with cowrie shells, glass pearls, and Swarovski crystals that I wish I could pull off. And how cool to see New Orleans’ own “Uncle” Lionel Batiste (1931-2012) in a 2007 Andy Levin photo portrait of him on his 76th birthday wearing his “birthday suit” with dapper aplomb; unlike Charles Ludlam’s, that’s a natty suit of his pinned with dozens and dozens of bills to celebrate his special day. [https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/superfine-tailoring-black-style]
