War Paint

C

Take the librettist (Doug Wright), composer (Scott Frankel), lyricist (Michael Korie), Tony-winning star (Christine Ebersole) and director (Michael Greif) of a much-loved musical (Grey Gardens); for good measure, add another Tony-winning diva (Patti Lupone), throw in Tony winners for choreography (Christopher Gatelli) and costume design (Catherine Zuber) plus the scenic designer of Hamilton (David Korins), and you should have all the ingredients of a wonderful show. And don't forget to include plot points that will appeal to Jews and gays, two staples of the Broadway audience. Unfortunately, this new musical about Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden, now in previews at the Nederlander Theatre, does not fully deliver on its promise. While there is much to admire — the two leads, a sumptuous production, some good songs with intelligent lyrics — there is little to love. The story of the parallel careers of these two cosmetic giants, while instructive about an interesting aspect of American social history, is a bit bloodless. There were very few moments when I was moved. John Dossett plays Arden’s husband and sales manager. Douglas Sills plays Rubenstein’s closeted business manager and companion. Their switcheroo seemed a bit too formulaic. Some judicious trimming is in order. At two hours 45 minutes including intermission, it risks wearing out its welcome. It’s far from terrible, but with all that talent involved, the results are disappointing.

The King and I ****

Lincoln Center Theater has revived this Rodgers and Hammerstein musical in a lavish production directed by Bartlett Sher. While it doesn’t reach the dizzying heights of his “South Pacific” at LCT, it is still very good indeed. It should come as no surprise that Kelli O’Hara is superb as Anna. Ken Watanabe, with the unenviable task of playing a role virtually owned by Yul Brynner, acquits himself quite honorably. Ashley Park and Conrad Ricamora are fine as the young lovers. Ruth Ann Miles is an exemplary Lady Thiang. Paul Nakauchi is good as the prime minister, as is Jon Viktor Corpuz as the young prince. The children could not be any cuter. Xiaochuan XIe is excellent as Eliza in “The Small House of Uncle Thomas” ballet. Christopher Gatelli’s choreography, based on Jerome Robbins’s original, is quite good. The costumes by Catherine Zuber are very attractive. I have mixed feelings about Michael Yeargen’s scenic design. The arrival of the ship in Bangkok harbor is quite a spectacle, but his treatment of the palace is unconventionally bland. Except for ornate carvings on the pillars, the set is extremely plain, dominated by an ominous grey wall across the back. I thought the wall symbolized how cut off the palace was from the world, but then it lifted briefly for no apparent reason during the second act. The music retains all its appeal and the plot still tugs at the heartstrings. While I think about 10 minutes of judicious cuts would be a good idea, the length isn’t really a problem. It was a treat to see it again so lovingly produced. Running time: 2 hours 55 minutes including intermission.

Dogfight ***

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The latest entry in the seemingly endless parade of movie to musical adaptations is this production now in previews at Second Stage. The source is a 1991 movie starring River Phoenix and Lili Taylor that did not do well at the box office. This dogfight has nothing to do with aerial combat; it is the name of a cruel game played by a group of marines in San Francisco on the night before they ship out for Vietnam in 1963. They pool their money to throw a party at which the guy bringing the ugliest date wins the game and the cash. Their dates are obviously not in on the joke. Eddie Birdlace (Derek Klena) meets Rose (Lindsay Mendez), a waitress in a coffee shop, and invites her to the party. As they say, complications arise. The ensemble cast of 11 is uniformly strong; Josh Segarra as Boland, the lead Marine, and Annaleigh Ashford as Marcie, the prostitute, are standouts. The music and lyrics, jointly credited to Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, are mostly quite good and well-integrated into the book. The first act is tightly knit and satisfying. Alas, Peter Duchan's book loses momentum after intermission and never fully recovers. David Zinn's set design and costumes are admirable. What Christopher Gattelli, this year's "go-to" choreographer, offers is more stylized movement than dancing, but it is nonetheless effective. Joe Mantello's direction, except for the doldrums midway through act two, holds everything together well. I hope they work out the second act problems, because the show has much to offer. Among the many things that it gets right is showing the gap between Vietnam veterans' expectations for their welcome home and the one they actually received. Running time: 2 hours including intermission. Note: Most of the audience was under 35, a refreshing change from the usual.

Newsies ***

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What I should have been more aware of about Newsies is that it is a Disney production, with all that implies -- family-friendly, squeaky clean, lavishly produced, slick, inoffensive, bland. The audience was filled with busloads of teenaged girls who wildly cheered just about everything when they weren't texting. Jeremy Jordan shines as Jack Kelly, leader of the 1899 NYC newsboys' strike. Kara Lindsay is perky as Katherine, the love interest that has been added in Harvey Fierstein's adaptation of the Disney film. The music and lyrics by Alan Menken and Jack Feldman, respectively, are unmemorably efficient. The athletic choreography by Christopher Gattelli is performed with brio by a prodigiously talented ensemble. The huge metal multilevel set by Tobin Ost calls too much attention to itself: it moves back and forth, spins and reconfigures itself restlessly. Jess Goldstein's period costumes are fine. Jeff Calhoun directed. If you go expecting something on the level of The Lion King or Beauty and the Beast, you will be disappointed, but, if you have a young person in your life, by all means take him or her to Newsies -- it's the perfect starter musical. Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes including intermission.

Silence! The Musical **

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When the "unauthorized parody" of Silence of the Lambs now playing at PS 122 turned up on TDF, I decided to give it a try. I knew it would be raunchy, but it was even coarser than I expected. I would blush to repeat the name of Dr. Lecter's big number. Wine and beer are available to bring into the theater -- with a few drinks, it might be more entertaining. As it was, I was growing weary of it long before its 90 minutes were over. The uncomfortable seats didn't help. An earlier version ran for two hours; I was glad I didn't have to sit through that. Jenn Harris's Clarice Starling is delightfully over the top and David Garrison is fine as Hannibal Lecter. The rest of the cast is good too: Annie Funke and Deidre Goodwin can really belt out a song. Ashlee Dupré and Callan Bergmann's dance number as the dream versions of Clarice and Hannibal is hilarious. The songs by Jon and Al Kaplan are serviceable at best. Hunter Bell's book manages to hit most of the film's highlights. Christopher Gattelli's choreography was consistently clever. He also directed. Unless you are a big fan of the movie and have a high tolerance for raunch as well as camp, this is one to skip.