| Kiss Me, Kate and The Band’s Visit Yesterday | |
| Posted by: BillEadie 09:59 am EST 02/18/19 | |
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| Kiss Me, Kate is revived often enough that I’d be tempted to say its indestructible. But, that’s not true: it’s actually quite a difficult show to pull off. The current Roundabout revival, in early previews at Studio 54, shows why. Sam and Bella Spewack’s book takes off on Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew and places the action backstage and on at a play within the play. One needs at least some knowledge of the plot of the Shakespeare work to enjoy how the simultaneous “shows” work with each other. And there are references to other Shakespeare plays that make the evening much more fun if you get them. “Brush Up Your Shakespeare,” indeed. Fortunately, the additional material credited to Amanda Green helps to mute the sexism inherent in staging this piece. And, it’s a song-and-dance show, which means that the entire cast has to be on their toes (sometimes literally) to make it work. But, the “Petrucchio” and the “Kate” are the driving forces. Fortunately, this production features Will Chase and Kelli O’Hara in the pivotal roles. Mr. Chase charms, in that he doesn’t resort to grumpiness to create his character. Ms. O’Hara plays a sweet woman who is annoyed by what is going on around her - no shrew she. Mr. Chase sings well; Ms. O’Hara even better. Scott Ellis has directed the production to seem loose and to play with the theatre conventions being spoofed. For the most part, these work. In fact, I’d have liked to see more of them. Warren Carlyle’s choreography is still settling in, but “Too Darn Hot,” which opens Act 2, is already exciting to watch and came close to stopping the show at yesterday’s early preview. Other performances are also settling in, and it’s too early to criticize them. I loved how much fun the production was to watch, and I imagine that by opening it will be a hit. I hadn’t planned to see The Band’s Visit, but I noticed that it had a Sunday evening performance, so I did a double for the second day running. I had only recently seen the film on which the show was based, and I found it enjoyable but no more than that. I had trouble seeing how it could be turned into a musical, but David Yazbek’s score charmed me from its opening moments. Katrina Lenk carried the singing in an emotionally satisfying manner. Sasson Gabay brought the same sense of grace and humanity to his role as he did in the film, without make the stage version a carbon copy of his film performance. It’s a lovely musical, and I hope it’s at least as charming on tour. Bill, headed back happy to San Diego |
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