The Fantasticks

Great musical at Soulpepper

performances through June 2011

reviewed by Ron Singer

No grand theatrics or spectacular technical effects here. A Spider Man, Turn Off The Dark, thankfully, it ain’t. In fact, it couldn’t be more different.

The Fantasticks is a small, intimate musical. And what exactly does that mean? Well, there are only eight cast members, two musicians (a brilliantly energetic Lily Ling on piano and a delightful Erica Goodman on harp), no major dance numbers and one very simple old fashioned, but relevant set (Christina Poddubiak). And yet, this show has the joyful impact of a successful, very-expensive Broadway musical.

The plot, music and lyrics are melodramatic, sweet and corny at certain moments and yet, they work, because like everything else in this production, directed by Joseph Ziegler, they are highly appropriate to the subject matter and they’re also beautifully simple without being simplistic. There is obviously nothing sensational here. Yet, the cumulative affect is absolutely sensational.

The Fantasticks is one of the longest running plays anywhere in the world, and seeing this production at Soulpepper led me to better understand why it can endure. I believe that it talks to old and young alike, it has an excellent balance of drama, comedy and intellect and it pushes the perfect emotional buttons for most people. It sure did for me.

The story centres primarily around two fathers (beautifully played by two stalwart pros, Michael Hanrahan and William Webster) who plot to have their respective son and daughter (very ideally cast with Jeff Lillco and Krystin Pellerin) become enamoured of one another and ultimately marry. The fathers’ thinking is, “If we order them to fall in love, they’ll never listen to us and they’re sure to do the opposite. So, let’s work at preventing them from dating and the odds are they’ll do everything in their power to disobey us in order to get together.” Does this plan work? Come find out.

Clearly, a play about young lovers is bound to deal with an abundance of youthful hormones and it’s also guaranteed to have its fair share of love songs. And it does.

For those of you familiar with the world of musical theatre, you’ll no doubt recognize the names of the superb writing team of Tom Jones (book and lyrics) and Harvey Schmidt who wrote excellently-crafted, if not always memorable, tunes for this play. However, the song that did make it big and that many in the audience will recall fondly, is Try to Remember. And Soon It’s Gonna Rain, may also be a song that generates positive memories for many. Additionally, the script tosses in references to Shakespeare and an ample number of philosophical quips to satisfy many who want more than an evening of song and dance.

The Soulpepper’s Artistic Director, Albert Schultz, seems to be having a grand old time playing the part of the Narrator who occasionally lapses into song and Michael Simpson and Oliver Dennis deliver outstanding, highly inventive comic relief.

Vocally, the cast is very capable. But then again, this play doesn’t need brilliant singers to succeed, as much as it needs strong acting. In fact, it’s the acting that takes this production to great heights. In the final analysis, I unhesitatingly call this a thoroughly gratifying piece of must-see theatre and I heap high praise on the extremely talented group of artists involved in its creation.

And as a P.S. This is the second time I’ve heard Albert Schultz sing (first time at a Tom Waits concert) and darn it, for an actor, he’s a bloody good singer. In fact, by the end of the final act, Albert and the production had me and the entire audience exactly where they wanted us. Most of us, I’d wager, were absolutely moved to tears when Albert, eventually joined by the entire cast, launched into Try to Remember, the show’s most moving at memorable tune.

South Pacific

Comfortably cheesey

at Toronto Centre for the Arts until April 10

reviewed by Tina Rogers

Directed by Bartlett Sher for Dancap, this celebrated production of Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein’s prize-winning musical SOUTH PACIFIC, completely revivalist and “earning unprecedented raves this past summer from Toronto critics”, opened at the Toronto Centre for the Arts in February 2011. Lead performers David Pittsinger as Emile de Becque and Carmen Cusack as Ensign Nellie Forbush returned to Toronto for this engagement, and were two of three performance highlights in this throwback from 1949.

Based on James A. Michener’s Pulitzer Prize winning book Tales of the South Pacific, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s SOUTH PACIFIC has music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Oscar Hammerstein II and Joshua Logan.  Set in an island paradise during World War II, two parallel love stories bloom amidst the trappings of war and prejudice. The show’s score includes such classic songs as “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair,” “There is Nothin’ Like A Dame,” and “Some Enchanted Evening.”

As Pittsinger (in this role until Jason Howard returns in March) and Cusak lilt into “Some Enchanted Evening” in the opening scene, it’s like slipping into an old pair of slippers – it feels that comfortable and predictable. And this theme of comfort and predictability resonates throughout what can only be described as a sleepy production. Truly, the set is commendable, the large cast well-managed and on their marks, and the adherence to the traditional South Pacific is like SuperGlue.  But, and it’s a big ‘but’, there was no apparent attempt to improve or update the old to bring it into the 21st century. The production ranked as ‘good’, but not spectacular.

Keeping it all traditional – or perhaps being only the fourth night after opening – made for an extremely slow and turgid pace. Nothwithstanding the great talents of David Pittsinger (superb bass-baritone) and Carmen Cusack who together carry the show, the commitment to character displayed by Timothy Gulan playing Luther Billis, and the superb musical performance by the orchestra, this was an anachronism of a production that was screaming for an update. Apart from Gulan, the performers were stiff, the (French and Arkansas) accents were appalling, and the material – lacking stellar performances by the crew – was seriously outdated. It left me convinced it was deliberately hammy’ to parallel the performance styles of 1949.

So much do I love live performances of almost any kind including musicals, that this has never happened to me before: I’m ashamed to admit I nodded off. Not the head back wide open drooling mouth kind of sleep on airplanes, but the head-nodding slip into temporary unconsciousness with a quick wrench back to a more or less awake state. S-L-O-W.

If the cast can whip through the material faster, with fewer uncomfortable/sleepy pauses, commit to their dramatic performances not just the musical side, and convince the audience that they are having the best of times on stage, this would help to enliven a solid musical brimming over with nostalgia, especially for baby boomers.