Sunday Showtunes

WEATHER OR NOT

My “official” first show of the trip (remember “Lovemusik” before the cruise was an unplanned bonus) is “110 in the Shade,” which by the way, also describes the weather today.  It’s the revival of the 1963 flop written by Tom Jones & Harvey Schmidt, whose only hit was “The Fantasticks.”  It’s based on the play “The Rainmaker” and for the most part is quite different in style from “The Fantasticks” – the music and structure is more traditional, yet at the same time often evoking Aaron Copland in feel.  It does have one similar theme to “Fantasticks” which is about trying to discover your true self and finding love despite obstacles while a mysterious stranger acts as a catalyst.  And yes, it does rain at the end – rather spectacularly so; I haven’t seen people get this wet on stage since “Bombay Dreams.”  They even hand out towels to the front row!

I liked the show and found it surprisingly moving.  Audra McDonald stars as the main character, Lizzie, and sometimes I found her shrill but for the most part thought she did a nice performance.  Her performance of “Raunchy” brought the house down; on the Tonys it seemed too big to me but live in the theatre it wasn’t.  John Collum (who gets a lot of work; seems I see him in something nearly every trip!) was perfect as the father.  I didn’t like the actor playing Starbuck, the mysterious rainmaker (Steve Kazee, a relative newcomer) but I thought he and McDonald had good chemistry and their big consummation scene where he helps her break through her negative self-image was very romantic.  I didn’t like the set, which used a giant turntable, and allowed us to see costumed stagehands striking pieces behind the sets each time it revolved.  I thought for a Broadway show that seemed rather low-tech – I can watch onstage furniture being lifted and carried off in community theatre! 

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