A Guide for the Homesick

    By Joseph Cervelli

Despite two outstanding performances, McKinley Belcher III as Teddy and Uly Schlesinger as Jeremy  Ken Urban's "A Guide for the Homesick" at DR2 is a choppy, mess of a play that meanders all over. You also never have any strong feelings for the characters no matter how well both actors each play two different roles.

The action takes place in a hotel room in Amsterdam. Both enter quite jovial and your first thought might be that they are friends though far from it. They are laughing carrying six packs of beer and they have just met a little while ago in the hotel bar. So, what is Jeremy doing in Teddy's room you might wonder. Your  first thought might be that he came up there for sex though Jeremy does firmly insist that he is not gay. It seems that he missed his flight to Boston and has no hotel room. Are we to believe that he expected someone to ask him to share a room? Already this does not make a lot of sense. Teddy seems to be more jittery speaking about a friend of his, the unseen Ed, who left suddenly for the States. It seems Ed was not himself the day before his departure and Teddy is concerned if he even got onto the plane. His phone rings constantly and it is from Ed's fiancee Margo. Why doesn't Teddy answer it as Jeremy asks. His reasoning for not answering it is not to scare her which makes no sense. More like inconsiderateness. 

Teddy who is gay thinks that Jeremy might also be so he casually touches him which Jeremy is repelled by. Teddy thinks it might be because he is Black.  Jeremy assures him that is not the case which is indeed it is not, but more of someone who cannot face his sexuality. Jeremy changes the subject and speaks about his recent year in Uganda as a medical assistant. With the help of Abigail Hoke Brady's lighting which dims a bit there is a flashback of Jeremy helping a gay Ugandan (Nicholas) who has been tested for AIDS (negative). He has a married lover and things are as expected extremely homophobic in that country. Here Belcher III takes the role (excellent African accent) of Nicholas. The action bounces back from Amsterdam to Uganda frequently and as horrific as the conditions are there for gay people the play does not bring forth any new information we are not sadly aware of. It seems the playwright's intent by his interaction with Nicholas,  Jeremy suddenly realizes why his engagement to his fiancée has suddenly ended. Not exactly anything new here and even when Jeremy and Teddy eventually have sex it is hardly surprising.

And then the lighting switches back to the present time but only we are now again in another flashback. Jeremy has taken the role of the manic Ed who may have overdosed on meds and pot. He is jumping all over the room as Teddy is trying to calm him down. Eventually, Jeremy who has been "in the closet" so to speak confronts Teddy about his possibly being in love with his boyhood friend Ed which hastened his departure. 

Belcher III quite good in both "The Royale" and "Death of a Salesman" gave an especially bravura performances in the unforgettable "The Light," a few seasons ago. He again proves he is among our finest actors around. Schlesinger does very well as the confused Jeremy and his role as the unstable Ed is pitch perfect. 

Shira Milikowsky's direction is as good as it can possibly be though she can not make a lot of sense of the absurdly deficient conclusion. 

Speaking of something not making sense, first there is a knock on the door and when Teddy opens it, there are what looks like wash cloths or small towels in an open wooden container. Then later when Jeremy goes out of the room he is soaked by rain you see pouring down. Is the housekeeping service walking around with no overhang and getting soaked? And this being a hotel I would think the corridor would be indoors not like a motel. This was not quite thought out by scenic designer Lawrence Moten III and neither is the play. 

Photos: Russ Rowland

Tickets are available at the DR 2 Theater 103 East 15th Street. Limited engagement ends February 2. 

 Gypsy

By Joseph Cervelli

Having seen all those ladies who portrayed the one and only Madam Rose on Broadway starting with Angela Lansbury, I never thought anyone could match either Lansbury or the more recent one by the galvanizing Patti LuPone. LuPone's interpretation of the penultimate number "Rose's Turn" was an implosion unlike other interpretations with the fury of the ultimate domineering stage mother. But as the line goes, "Here she is boys, here's Rose" and now we have the most incredible and most moving Rose to date. I am speaking of Audra McDonald in the latest production of "Gypsy" at the Majestic Theatre. I was one of those who thought as wonderful an actor and singer as she is, could she as a soprano render those remarkable songs by Julie Styne and Stephen Sondheim in the style they were designed to be done? They wrote those songs fit for a belter not necessarily a soprano. So how does McDonald do it!? She actually infuses her soprano voice with a belting quality. Quite a feat and it works brilliantly. More on McDonald in a bit. 

Let's get to director George C. Wolfe's production of my favorite musical of all time. For me it is the most perfect musical on so many levels. The illustrious score, the book by Arthur Laurents based on the memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, roles that actors can imbue themselves into, etc. Yet, despite the pluses in Wolfe's concept there are several minuses.  First to the postive.   

 

Taking place during the waning days of vaudeville which Rose cannot accept, the variety act she devised for her daughters Baby June (excellently played by understudy Marley Gomes) in the starring role and the older sister Louise (well played by understudy Summer Rae Daney) as part of the ensemble never fully takes off. They travel around the country though never really being successful.  So far things work well with the show under Wolfe's direction. He also makes sure that Rose and the candy salesman Herbie (a wonderful Danny Burstein) who becomes the girls’ agent have a more loving relationship than in other productions of the show. This is the first time that somewhere in the musical I wished the composers had written  a number for him. Burstein would have hit it it "out of the park."

One disappointment is that during the Fourth of July number either Wolfe or choreographer Camille A. Brown decided to do something which falls flat. A small but delightful highlight has always been having the two girls dance in that holiday number with strobe lights on them as they tap to the back of the line transitioning into older versions of themselves. Instead of having June and Louise almost magically appear here they walk out from the strips in the flag. What was always a sparkling occurrence is now uninspired

Brown's choreography is generally fine and Kevin Csolak as Tulsa (the young man whom the teen June leaves with) does a terrific job in the fabulous "All I Need is the Girl." He is joined in the dance number with the now grown Louise (Joy Woods.) 

I admired Woods in "The Notebook" though here I was disappointed. I noticed that her dancing with Csolak just did not work that well. And she was also lackluster in other scenes. Her singing in the  touching "Little Lamb" is just fine but her expression of sadness is not there. But worse yet, and this could be the fault of Wolfe, the problem intensifies. When Rose and the girls go into the Burlesque Theater,  Louise has the opportunity (especially after June departs) to have the one shining moment that Rose wanted for her daughters. Louise is rightfully terrified to break into her stripper number and Woods plays that fear well. But the big problem is that as she travels from one Burlesque Theater to another you see only a moderate change in her personality. She should exude confidence and playfulness, but under Wolfe's unspectacular direction in this part of the show she is sadly quite dull. Her almost halting quality in the role of an established and renowned stripper makes little sense which I am surprised Wolfe was not more attuned to.

The legendary scenic designer Santo Loquasto does a good job in keeping the sets a bit skimpy which falls into place with the demise of vaudeville though there could have been more pizzazz in scenes where Louise performs in larger production numbers as she tours the circuit.  Toni-Leslie James costumes are on target and that long time lighting duo Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer are always tops in their field. 

Those three crowd pleasing strippers--Mazeppa (Lili Thomas), Electra (Mylinda Hull) and especially Tessie Tura (a hilarious Lesli Margherita) do not fail to disappoint. 

As with this and all past productions, you know that Rose loves her daughters and wants to make especially one a big star, but somehow you always had a feeling she was living her own theatrical aspirations through them. But here I never really got the feeling she wanted stardom for herself until the last few moments of her final number which is a refreshing change. When Rose started singing "Rose's Turn" she seemed so unsure of her life. Tears resulting from all the hard work she put into her daughters' careers  (one successful and one not) come flowing with the grateful realization that one of her daughters became a star.  Shortly thereafter in the number frustration that maybe she herself could have had a stage career comes to fruition. The overflowing of all the varied feelings she has during this scene is the most believable and moving I have encountered. 

Despite the reservations in this production, there are none concerning Audra McDonald. She delivers the role with a locomotive determination and yet never over the top. Miss her at your own peril.

PHOTOS: Julieta Cervantes

Tickets are available at the Majestic Theatre 245 West 45th Street. 

 

Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now!

By Joseph Cervelli

If you have seen all the new shows that have recently come in and in need of something different and may I add quite delightful, I urge you to get to New World Stages to see the very enjoyable "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now!" 

The musical runs about 80 or so minutes and you will certainly be very entertained especially more so if you are acquainted with the three wonderful female perfomers. The show stars three of the women who were leads in one of the most joyous Broadway musicals in decades "Hairspray." Of course, I am referring to Marissa Jaret Winokur, Laura Bell Bundy and Kerry Butler. The three also wrote and co-directed  "Mama."  Winokur won a well deserved Tony for that role while the other two were nominated for shows they hadappeared in. I don't know the dynamics of what happens when shows close or whether performers stay in touch or not but these three have been friends for 22 years. 

All three wanted to be stars as youngstersand they have certainly achieved their goals. Bundy started out as a beauty pageant child and was Miss Pee Wee Hemisphere which gets some laughs. She did look quite adorable as you can see in the video screen behind the performers. She speaks about her mother not realizing how those young girls were exploited without any knowledge of that. Bundy is certainly the most athletic with her baton twirling and mimicing among others Judy Garland. Her most famous role for which she rightfully was Tony nominated was in "Legally Blond:  The Musical." I don't recall whom she ran against but she gave a dynamo performance in that not great but fun filled musical. Sorry I missed her in "Ruthless"  for which she was nominated for Outer Critics Circle and Drama Desk awards. She really sings and dances up a storm in her big number from "Blond." She has not lost her abundance of energy. 

Winokur tells three anecdotes about when she was in "Hairspray" and they were a bit upsetting. One dealing with salary, another with the producers and their demands about her clothing and Liza Minelli's backhanded (not intentional) remark about Winokur's weight. Her voice is as strong if not even stronger than when she appeared in that show. She breaks into "Some People" and a few notes from "Rose's Turn." She does more than an admirable job. Maybe, the next "Gypsy" after the current one on Broadway will be one she will audition for. She calls up an audience member whom I am sure was pre-selected to play the character of Linc from "Hairspray" and this young man did a great job. Not sure if he is an actor but might consider audtioning for some roles. 

Butler played in about 12 shows when their Playbill covers were shown on the video screen. And what a difference between all of them. Her voice while excellent is less of a belter than the other two ladies but that is a good counterbalance. I am grateful she sang the more subdued and lovely "Somewhere That's Green" from "Little Shop of Horrors." She was wonderful in that production and she was superlative in both "Xanadu" (Tony Nod) and the underappreciated "Beetlejuice."

Besides singing and dancing (they must have choreographed, wonderfully may I add, since no choreographer is listed) they speak about their friendships and family. Winokur had the very upsetting news about having cancer at the start of "Hairspray" and thankful is now cancer free. It was very sweet to see photos of their children and spouses. 

Near the end of the show they sing a few bars of "Old Friends" and you really believe they most definitely are. You will walk away feeling like they could be your friends, too.

The show happily is now extended till December 21.

PHOTO: Russ Rowland

Tickets are available at New World Stages 340 West 50th Street