Emerging out of the blue late in the season comes this dark horse of a musical that is clearly destined for lots of awards and a long run. The creators are an unlikely combo — Karey Kirkpatrick, a Hollywood based screenwriter/director/songwriter with no theatrical credits; his brother Wayne Kirkpatrick, a Nashville-based songwriter; and John O’Farrell, a British satirist. The brothers are jointly credited with the music, lyrics and concept, while Karey and O’Farrell wrote the book. The only person on the creative side with name recognition is award-winning director-choreographer Casey Nicholaw The topic and setting are equally unlikely — the invention of the musical in 1595 London. The Bottom brothers, Nick (Brian d’Arcy James) and Nigel (John Cariani) are struggling to keep their theatrical company afloat. To his regret, Nick had previously urged a certain actor whose initials are W.S. to leave the troupe and take up playwriting. Christian Borle plays The Bard as the rock star of his age with a nasty habit of stealing material. Nick, unable to come up with a plot that Shakespeare didn’t get to first, consults soothsayer Nostradamus (Brad Oscar) to find out what will be the “next big thing” and what will be Shakespeare’s best play. Unfortunately Nostradamus never gets things quite right, with the result that Nick sets out to write the world’s first musical — “Omelet.” Nick’s wife Bea (Heidi Blickenstaff) is a proto-feminist. Nigel falls in love with Portia (Kate Reinders), daughter of leading Puritan Brother Jeremiah (Brad Ashmanskas) who thinks theater and music are the devil’s work. An uncharacteristically restrained Peter Bartlett appears in the dual roles of Lord Clapham and the Minister of Justice. The more familiar you are with the Shakespearean canon and the musicals of the last 60 years, the more you will enjoy the show. Running through the show are snippets from the bard and signature lines from virtually every musical you can think of, each received with delighted recognition by the audience. The music, in a variety of styles, works well within the context of the show. Midway through the first act there’s a show-stopping number (“A Musical”) that brought the loudest, longest applause I have ever witnessed in a theater. The uniformly strong cast seemed to be enjoying themselves.The scenic design by Scott Pask and the costumes by Gregg Barnes are top-notch. The show is entertaining, relentlessly so. I sometimes felt that it was trying too hard to amuse. For me, its clever conceits were stretched beyond their potential. As so often happens, the second act did not live up to the promise of the first. The dance numbers, while lively, were monotonously alike. Despite these reservations, I had a good time. The wildly enthusiastic audience portends a successful run. Running time: 2 hours 25 minutes including intermission.
Showing posts with label Gregg Barnes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gregg Barnes. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Kinky Boots ****
(Please click on the title to see the complete review.)
The industrial decline of Britain has been a promising topic for movies that were then turned into musicals. In 1997 we got "The Full Monty," in 2000 along came "Billy Elliot." In 2005 a lesser known film, "Kinky Boots," developed mainly as a vehicle for the talented Chiwetel Ejiofor, arrived on the screen. Despite a mixed reception from American critics, it became a cult film in some circles. Now, with music and lyrics by Cyndi Lauper, a book by Harvey Fierstein and direction and choreography by Jerry Mitchell, "Kinky Boots" has arrived on Broadway. The reputation of its creators and the buzz from the sold-out Chicago run have raised expectations very high, perhaps too high. Although I enjoyed the show thoroughly, I will confess that it did not quite live up to all the hype. The fine cast is led by Stark Sands as Charlie Price, the young man who is suddenly burdened with responsibility for the family's moribund shoe factory, and Billy Porter as Lola (a/k/a Simon), the black drag queen who inspires him to replace the factory's men's dress shoe line with a niche product -- glamorous boots for transvestites. There are problems along the way with Charlie's unsupportive fiancee, homophobic employees, financial difficulties and the self-doubt that Charlie and Lola share. In addition to a strong cast that includes The Angels, Lola's six back-up drag performers, there is a terrific factory set by David Rockwell and marvelous costumes by Gregg Barnes. The book is witty, but the score is merely serviceable and the lyrics rarely rise above the banal. There is one touching number "I'm Not My Father's Son," during which Charlie and Lola/Simon bond. The choreography of the first act finale is wonderfully inventive, with clever use of conveyer belts and other factory equipment. The show's closing number is also a winner, with everyone donning the kinky boots for a blowout finale. Although not everything was as fantastic as I had hoped, these two numbers went a long way to winning me over. I left with a big smile. Running time: 2 hours, 20 minutes including intermission.
The industrial decline of Britain has been a promising topic for movies that were then turned into musicals. In 1997 we got "The Full Monty," in 2000 along came "Billy Elliot." In 2005 a lesser known film, "Kinky Boots," developed mainly as a vehicle for the talented Chiwetel Ejiofor, arrived on the screen. Despite a mixed reception from American critics, it became a cult film in some circles. Now, with music and lyrics by Cyndi Lauper, a book by Harvey Fierstein and direction and choreography by Jerry Mitchell, "Kinky Boots" has arrived on Broadway. The reputation of its creators and the buzz from the sold-out Chicago run have raised expectations very high, perhaps too high. Although I enjoyed the show thoroughly, I will confess that it did not quite live up to all the hype. The fine cast is led by Stark Sands as Charlie Price, the young man who is suddenly burdened with responsibility for the family's moribund shoe factory, and Billy Porter as Lola (a/k/a Simon), the black drag queen who inspires him to replace the factory's men's dress shoe line with a niche product -- glamorous boots for transvestites. There are problems along the way with Charlie's unsupportive fiancee, homophobic employees, financial difficulties and the self-doubt that Charlie and Lola share. In addition to a strong cast that includes The Angels, Lola's six back-up drag performers, there is a terrific factory set by David Rockwell and marvelous costumes by Gregg Barnes. The book is witty, but the score is merely serviceable and the lyrics rarely rise above the banal. There is one touching number "I'm Not My Father's Son," during which Charlie and Lola/Simon bond. The choreography of the first act finale is wonderfully inventive, with clever use of conveyer belts and other factory equipment. The show's closing number is also a winner, with everyone donning the kinky boots for a blowout finale. Although not everything was as fantastic as I had hoped, these two numbers went a long way to winning me over. I left with a big smile. Running time: 2 hours, 20 minutes including intermission.
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