| My review of “WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?” at NYTW -- Kyle Riabko believes in love | |
| Posted by: | jesse21 03:44 pm EST 12/05/13 |
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| - “What the world needs now is love, sweet love / No, not just for some but for everyone.” Kyle Riabko begins What’s It All About?: Bacharach Reimagined, his captivating ninety-minute musical excursion into Burt Bacharach’s song catalogue, by simply explaining its genesis. The talented 26-year-old Canadian musician tells the audience how he met the legendary composer and received his blessing to rearrange his music for performance by himself and a group of other Millennials. From then on, there’s no more dialogue. The resulting show, opening tonight Off Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop, lets the songs do all the talking. The piece is not a collection of hit parade singles from the past. Although a few songs are given an individual treatment, Mr. Riabko’s haunting arrangements more often than not combine songs to create a specific musical sequence. Additionally, he employs such techniques as punctuating a moment from time to time by singing out the show’s title. Then, only at the end does he fully perform and play on guitar “Alfie” as a plaintiff ballad (outstanding, by the way). In case you’re wondering, this is by no means a rocked-out concert with earsplitting volume. Even though there are plugged-in instruments and plenty of microphones, Clive Goodwin (Tony for Once) has designed the sound to reach the ears felicitously and with the clarity of an acoustical presentation. There is an overall mood to this show. The look of love here is distinctly rueful. Those accustomed to hearing the Hal David lyrics in more upbeat tempos by Dionne Warwick might be surprised at just how often the content is melancholy, over and over lamenting a love affair gone sour (“I’ll Never Fall in Love Again,” “There’s Always Something There to Remind Me,” “Walk on By”). While Mr. Riabko (replacement lead in Spring Awakening on Broadway and then in the first road company) is in all ways the star, he is joined onstage by other singer/actor/musicians: two women (Laura Dreyfus and Nathaly Lopez) and four men (Daniel Bailen, James Nathan Hopkins, James Williams and Daniel Woods), all fresh faces abounding with talent. Then there’s the abundant staging by Steven Hoggett, known for his choreography/movement in shows like Once, Black Watch and the current Glass Menagerie. His trademark of inventing bits of stylized action flows non-stop here (sometimes too freely). An example of his direction that works despite the obviousness: At one point a group of assorted chairs revolve on a turntable and are picked up as props to accompany the lyrics (you guessed it): “But a chair is not a house / And a house is not a home.” The production is elaborately designed by Christine Jones (Tony for American Idiot) and Brett J. Banakis. There seem to be more Persian-patterned rugs on stage than on Bloomingdale’s fifth floor, plus all sorts of bric-a-brac that also hangs on the side walls of the theatre. The design suggests a basement or garage chock full of household items stored or discarded, a place of faded sofas and extra odd chairs where teens or twenty-somethings put a band together. A highlight is Japhy Weideman’s lighting which is elaborate and showy, as if it had been created for a Broadway spectacle. The good news is how well the lighting effects capture the moods of the music. Even though I was all ears for every note and lyric in Mr. Riabko’s show, I still kept wondering what was so specific here to young adults other than the fact that the material is being performed by them. Matter of fact, I wondered if a Generation X Riabko at age 40 or a Baby Boomer Riabko at age 60 would come up with the same arrangements and the same show. Nevertheless, there are times -- and this is one of them -- to put such thematic thoughts aside for the simple reason that the music making in What’s It All About? is so damn polished and entertaining. (Oh, and if you go, make sure to hurry out of the theatre after the curtain call for a surprise encore outdoors.) ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ - Jesse SONGS (lyrics other than Hal David noted): Alfie Any Day Now (Mack David) Anyone Who Had a Heart Arthur’s Theme (Carole Bayer Sager, Christopher Cross & Peter Allen) Baby, It’s You (Mack David & Barney Williams) Do You Know the Way to San Jose? Don’t Make Me Over A House is Not a Home I Come to You I Just Don’t Know What to Do With Myself I Say a Little Prayer I’ll Never Fall in Love Again The Look of Love Making Love (Carole Bayer Sager & Bruce Roberts) Magic Moments Make it Easy on Yourself Message to Michael Mexican Divorce (Frank Hilliard) On My Own (Carole Bayer Sager) One Less Bell to Answer Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head Reach Out For Me The Sundance Kid (no lyrics) That’s What Friends Are For (Carole Bayer Sager) (There’s) Always Something There to Remind Me (They Long to Be) Close to You This Guy’s in Love With You Trains and Boats and Planes Walk on By What the World Needs Now is Love What’s New Pussycat Wishin’ and Hopin’ The Windows of the World You’ll Never Get to Heaven (If You Break My Heart) SIDEBAR: “WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?: BACARACH REIMAGINED” opens Thursday, December 5, 2013, at New York Theatre Workshop (NYTW), 79 East 4th Street (Between Bowery & Second Avenue), New York City. Box Office: 212-460-5475. Seen at a preview on Dec. 1 (started 7:07pm; ended 8:35pm). Running time: 90 minutes. No intermission. Limited engagement. Tickets currently on sale through January 5. Link to website. - | |
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| Plaintive vs plaintiff | |
| Posted by: | lordofspeech 05:48 pm EST 12/05/13 |
| In reply to: | My review of “WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?” at NYTW -- Kyle Riabko believes in love - jesse21 03:44 pm EST 12/05/13 |
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| Plaintive is the adjective connoting yearning and sadness. Plaintiff is a noun, someone in a legal case. | |
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| re: My review of “WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?” at NYTW -- Kyle Riabko believes in love | |
| Posted by: | summertheater 03:53 pm EST 12/05/13 |
| In reply to: | My review of “WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?” at NYTW -- Kyle Riabko believes in love - jesse21 03:44 pm EST 12/05/13 |
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| Thank you for posting the accurate time that people are "out on the street". The extra 5 minutes (90 minutes versus 95 minutes) can make a big difference if people are trying to coordinate a train and/or get to another show immediately afterward. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
| re: My review of “WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?” at NYTW -- Kyle Riabko believes in love | |
| Posted by: | gad90210 05:08 pm EST 12/05/13 |
| In reply to: | re: My review of “WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?” at NYTW -- Kyle Riabko believes in love - summertheater 03:53 pm EST 12/05/13 |
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| I thought the arrangements were too melancholy and downbeat. I would have preferred more of a mix. Many times, the melodies got lost in the shuffle. But i do agree the sound design was wonderful. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
| re: My review of “WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?” at NYTW -- Kyle Riabko believes in love | |
| Posted by: | enoch10 06:04 pm EST 12/05/13 |
| In reply to: | re: My review of “WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?” at NYTW -- Kyle Riabko believes in love - gad90210 05:08 pm EST 12/05/13 |
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| i think the arrangements are the strongest aspect of this show. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
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