"Mr. Herman is usually underrated by everyone but the public." Underrated is kind. Vilified is more like it.
Steven Suskin's writes in MORE OPENING NIGHTS ON BROADWAY: "Herman has been critically trounced over the years." Suskin is certainly not a huge Herman fan, but his facts are correct.
In interviews, Herman has been more than honest that he's been hurt by the hostility hurled at him by many in the theatre community. He's not inventing it.
Here are some of Herman's other reviews for M&M:
Martin Gottfried in the Post: Herman's music is as frustrating as usual." Gottfried and Douglas Watt in the Daily News both took Herman to task for "When Mabel Comes In the Room" being too much like the title songs of Dolly, Mame and Dear World. Watt: "Everything about Mack and Mabel is designed to please, with the unfortunate exception of the book and the songs." Walter Kerr in the NYT puts blame on Stewart's book--there's nothing particularly complimentary about Herman.
The reviews for Herman's work in Dear World are mostly nasty. Kerr and Norman Nadel in the World Journal were dismissive of his work in Mame.
I love Mack and Mabel's score. I've never seen a production of the show, so I have no idea if it can be fixed. |
