Bonnie & Clyde

The latest installment in the category of new musicals is taking aim Broadway this month.  Bonnie & Clyde takes up residence at the Schoenfeld Theatre and is aiming for a bulls-eye right on the hearts of its audiences.

Two very talented, up-and-coming (i bet they hate that term) Broadway stars-in-the making take the driver's seat in hopes of winning over audience after audiences to see things their gun-slinging way.  Laura Osnes is a captivating actress with the vocal prowess to back her up from start to finish.  She nails Bonnie's desires and dreams all the while falling in love and getting sucked into Clyde's growing world of crime and guns.   Jeremy Jordan, who is possibly the sexiest man on Broadway today, allows us to see Clyde's tender, human side (and plenty of skin along with that big Broadway smile) as well as his penchant for mischief and his endless dream of being remembered as somebody.

Bonnie & Clyde's book by Ivan Menchell should be a top contender for a Tony this year.  He's taken a classic American story, poured his heart into additional research about people behind the legends and laid it out in a swift flowing love story that unfolds neatly over 2 1/2 hours.   Don Black (Lyrics) and Frank Wildhorn (Music) have taken a little country music, a whole lot of Broadway, added some some pop-like vocals and blended them all together to aptly accompany the book.  The result, at its core, is a fantastic love story that has, what most would not realize, is a happy ending for the two characters.

Technically - all around - the show was magnificent - Sets and costumes by Tobin Ost were completely immersed in the period - including the "curtains" of wood posts and slats that continually revealed and hit the upstage scenes and actors; The lighting by Michael Gilliam, of course, had to contain the requisite strobes and flashes of the guns, but he used every square inch of the downstage and upstage to display a complete repertoire of lighting effects that appropriately highlighted and hid the action;  Sound by John Shivers provided for ricocheting bullets around the theatre and almost entirely naturally amplified the vocals and dialogue throughout the theatre.  This show also naturally lends itself to the use of video projections - by Aaron Rhyne.  Real newspaper headlines and WANTED posters were often flashed on walls.  And the characters often snapped pictures of themselves on stage in a certain pose with an old fashioned camera - and then instantly the same authentic old photograph of the subjects (in the same positions) would get projected on the backdrop on stage.  Which brings me back to costumes (Tobin Ost), Hair and Wigs (Charles LaPointe), Makeup (Ashley Ryan) - I lost count of how many times I saw the detail that went into the craft - such as Bonnie's dress, her hairstyle, and just how remarkably similar the actors looked to the real-life historic photographs of the characters they were portraying.  Projections can sometimes be distracting.  In this case, Bravo Aaron Rhyne and director Jeff Calhoun for an appropriate dispatch of the technology.

With all this technical and performing brilliance, there is one note I'd like to give to the director.  Shorten it up!  Mr. Menchell's book may be thorough, but he's got too much exposition and repeated themes.  The opening scene was brilliantly brief.  In under 10 minutes we were acclimated to the storyline, setting, time, and provided the general character and plot exposition.  Use that technique more throughout the play.  Cut the repeated love scenes (and at least one or two numbers from each act) and focus on keeping the story moving.  Shorten Act I and speed up Act II.  Get this thing moving at a quicker pace and you'll have happier audiences who leave the theatre saying "Great show" instead of "Great show, but too long.  Trim it down to 120 minutes including the intermission and you, sir, will have hit the target with a bulls-eye.

Next To Normal

 
It's not too often that I revisit a show - but a Broadway transfer is usually worth the 2nd visit.  I saw the original off-Broadway run at Second Stage Theatre a while back.  It packed a significant punch for me then and I was hopeful it would again.

Part of the transfer process included tightening up the book significantly.  Most of the ancillary plot lines have been removed - in favor of a razor sharp focus on the main issue. Gone is the Frankenstein-like electro-shock scene and many others too. A first time viewer will certainly be very happy with the results.  To someone revisiting the show, you might miss a scene or two here or there.   One i missed in particular was the supermarket scene (crazy mom goes shopping).   It was probably too "campy" for the newer, sharper focus, but I liked it.  However, i see the need for the changes for a commercial run; I see the benefits; and respect the results. 

The staging remains the same - a sparse modern 2 story, steel frame representing a house illuminated with colored back lighting. Alice Ripley remains in the cast.  She's perfect for the role - but I thought she acquired some sort of affected English/Irish accent at times.  Very odd.  All the other originals have changed out - and not for the better, i regret to say.  Brian D'Arcy James (rumored to be returning this summer) was a much stronger Henry than Adam Chanler-Berat - both vocally and physically.  Kyle Dean Massey was a fairly equal replacement for Aaron Tveit but Aaron seemed to belt it out and display a bit more angst, anger, and emotion (they're both adorably cute, don't worry).

Today's family problems (suburban or otherwise) are increasingly the subject matter for stage productions (e.g. August Osage County, Next Fall).  The show remains a powerhouse - well worth the price of the ticket - and it's fresh and new - and (still) not your mother's old musical - for sure.  And I'm going to guess that a significant majority of the audience each night is probably looking directly in a mirror.