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42nd Street
After seeing the current Broadwaya revival of 42nd Street, I left the Ford Center just barely surviving from the overdose of glitz, glam, glitter, beads, sequins, and loads of tapping. It was a delicious feast of music, dance, and comedy. I fell head over heels for this revival. There are many factors that cause a tour to be altered from its incarnation on Broadway before being sent out on the road, such as money, talent, and logistics. When you see a touring production, you dearly hope that it arrives intact. Sadly, this national tour comes to Dallas missing some of its glorious sets, less ensemble members, and a couple of leads who are simply not up to the level of their Broadway counterparts. 42nd Street is set in 1933; the depression is just outside the stage door as we are brought into a cattle call audition for the new Julian Marsh directed musical, Pretty Lady. From there we meet a grand diva, a girl from Allentown who becomes a star, a rich Texan, a tapping tenor leading man, a tyrant of a director, and a comic duo reminiscent of Comden and Green. The score is fresh and vibrant as ever. The book, on the other hand, needs a tune-up here and there, and the jokes at times feel as flat as the backdrops behind the cast. In the large cast, the star performance belongs to Blair Ross as Dorothy Brock, the aging star who is to headline Pretty Lady. Ross uses her speaking voice like a chameleon. She has a deep and sexy voice that sounds like a gin-soaked Tallulah Bankhead. Among her numerous talents, Ross has ingenious comic timing and delivery. Add her hysterical facial expressions and body language, and you see why she steals the show. She is sorely missed in the second act, in which she only appears once. This classy lady also sings with gusto and shimmering tones. Her dark and lush soprano voice works its magic around "I Only Have Eyes For You" and "About A Quarter To Nine." Catherine Wreford is insouciant as the Allentown native who becomes a star. Wreford wears the triple threat crown proudly. Her work is much more enjoyable than that of Kate Levering, who played Peggy in the Broadway revival. Wreford's tapping technique looks effortless, her lilting soprano voice fits the character like a glove, and her acting craft has the wide-eyed innocence the role requires. She seems to be channeling the tapping glory of both Ruby Keeler and Ann Miller. For comic relief we have Patti Mariano as Maggie Jones. Mariano is a tiny, redheaded spitfire who fills the entire theatre with her resplendent stage presence and perfect vaudevillian approach to comedy. She knows exactly how to get the biggest laughs from her physical comedy and line readings. She is grand. Also delivering outstanding performances are Patrick Ryan Sullivan (Julian Marsh), Dexter Jones (Andy Lee), Tom Judson (Oscar), and Michael Crowley as the Thief in the 42nd street ballet. Frank Root as Bert Berry and Robert Spring as Billy Lawlor, however, come no where near the way their roles should be portrayed. Robert Spring does possess a decent tenor voice, but his tapping technique and acting are mediocre at best. In the Broadway production it was David Elder in the role; he was strong, masculine, darkly handsome - all wrapped around a mega wattage tenor voice that could belt to the back of the massive Ford Center. Elder had the playboy aura that Billy is supposed to have and tapped with fluid, clean movements, always looking fresh and at ease with the difficult choreography.Spring acts a tad too effeminate to make us believe that he is the tenor that all the chorus girls fall for. His acting seems amateurish at best. There are times (such as "Dames" and "We're In The Money") that Spring shows that he simply cannot master the tap choreography set before him. He looks uncomfortable, stiff, and even stressed out at times during these long dance pieces. This becomes even more problematic in the 42nd street ballet. Spring is totally out of breath, thereby not able to belt the ending notes of the song. For Bert Barry, I had the great fortune to see Jonathan Freeman deliver a zany and delightful performance. In this tour we have Frank Root, who is simply out of his league in the role. As was the case with Spring, Root also acts too effeminate. This would not matter in this particular role were it not for the sexy comic romp-fest filled number, "Shuffle Off To Buffalo." In this number Bert is getting married to a sexy babe, then on the train he becomes a horny wolf, going into various compartments that contain scantily dressed gals. Root is just not believable in this number. Instead of coming off like a sex starved honeymooner, he comes off more like Rip Taylor attempting to play a masculine leading man. It just does not work. The ensemble are all superb, brilliant, and amazing dancers, but cannot be called triple threats. Sprinkled throughout the evening they have one liners in book and score, and here is where you see their shortcomings. Some sing with nasal and slightly off pitch vocals, or with hardly any volume at all. Their acting at times is not polished or honest, but instead feels and looks bland and fake. The costumes are dazzling and sumptuous as ever. Roger Kirk's lavish designs are just marvelous. You will love the beaded, pale pastel gowns in "Dames," the flower designed costumes, all the confections that Ross wears as Dorothy, and the finale costumes (in which the tuxes and mini dresses are sequined and beaded to the point that you will need sunglasses to watch). Alas, the same raves cannot be made for some of the scenic design. This is where you can see the numerous cuts that were made to make the tour workable. The "Dames" number tries to pay homage to Busby Berkley, the king of the overhead shot of chorus girls performing kaleidoscope-like choreography. The Ford Center had both a turntable and a humongous mirror to create this sublime effect. Here in the tour we have the mirror, but no turntable. Mind you, the sequence is still a pure pleasure to watch, but the extra visual is missed. Also in this same number, the Maison Des Dames front was an actual 3-D set piece that lit up, here it is just a backdrop. For the finale of "Dames," there was a jaw-dropping art deco, multi sequined backdrop on Broadway; here there is none. In the "We're In The Money" company number, the gold art deco, multilayered set piece in the back is replaced with a painted backdrop of this same design. Another scenic piece is gone in "Sunny Side to Every Situation." At the Ford Center, each company member was seated at individual dressing rooms with makeup tables. You could see row after row of these tiny dressing rooms and tables, almost reaching the ceiling. During the entire number the lights around each dressing table and cubicle lit up in wonderful configurations and designs. It was a marvel to watch! Sadly this was not brought into the tour's version. We have instead the entire chorus singing the song in front of a painted backdrop, with no choreography. Just clumps of performers singing straight out. The number has now become boring and lackluster, to the point that they could have cut the number entirely. Gone also is the tall cylinder set piece in the Regency Hotel scene; another painted backdrop and black platform are used here. And in the big finale, the Broadway version had signs and names of shows and stars of the 1930s all lit up like actual marquees. The tour has instead a painted backdrop. The large staircase in New York was grand, long, and massive. It also looked as if made of glass, and to add more glitz and glam it actually lit up to eye blinding beauty. The tour's staircase is much smaller and looks made of wood painted black, and t does not light up at all. The dancers now look cramped and confined to this mini-me version of the New York production. While you are not supposed to hum the scenery, you cannot help but notice how much the glittery glitz of the revival has been adjusted. It leaves the physical aspect of the show slightly anti-climactic. Regardless, the magnificent dancing of the company for the 42nd Street ballet and all the other numbers deserve standing ovations. This 42nd Street is still a sensational and immensely enjoyable evening of theater, but would be better had they brought along all the bells and whistles that make it so memorable on Broadway. 42nd Street plays at the Music Hall at Fair Park through Sept 1. Tickets may be purchased at all ticketmaster outlets, including The Majestic Theatre, Foley's, Fiesta, Tower Records, and Wherehouse Music Stores or by phone at 214-631-ARTS, or online at: www.ticketmaster.com. 42nd Street |
