Heated Rivalry (c) Matthew Murphy
Theater: Heated Rivalry: The Unauthorized Musical Parody
At Culture Club
When it was announced that there was already an unauthorized musical written of Hidden Rivalry not long after the last episode aired, hopes weren’t high that it wouldn’t be just a quick cash grab on the popularity of the TV series about closeted gay hockey players. But credit writer Dylan MarcAurele for actually writing a smart and funny take on the show, which doesn’t make fun of the material as it does celebrate the silliness of the fandom of gay men, straight women and, yes, even the curious straight sports fan. With a cast of five and practical but super creative direction by Alan Kliffer, most of the series’ highlights are represented in this Unauthorized Musical Parody, although the show’s copious amount of sex scenes have been reduced to just enough to not be shut down by the city. Jay Armstrong Johnson is convincingly pouty and alpha male as the Russian Ilya Rozanov, but the show’s real stand-out is Jimin Moon as the Canadian Shane Hollander—goofy, naïve and terminally the good boy. Their first real meeting in the hotel gym is hysterically sweaty and lusty. The rest of the characters are ably played with quick-change precision, without missing a laugh. Ryan Duncan’s major role is Kip, one half of the show’s other gay couple, and while that storyline does get the brunt of the musical’s plot cut, there is a fun scene surrounding Kip and his closeted hockey player (who plays Scott Hunter is a surprise I won’t spoil here). I saw the extremely talented understudy Shelby Acosta playing most of the major female characters, including Shane’s incredibly judgy mom; Maria, Kip’s co-worker (“Gurl!”), as well as the always exotic Svetlana. The hysterical Ryann Redmond’s main role is Susan, and if you’re wondering who Susan was in the tv show, she wasn’t. She’s the musical’s (very) Canadian narrator and stand-in for the many straight women in the audience who read and made Rachel Reed’s novels the hit that they are. Redmond captured the spirit of all the Susans out there. And thanks to the stellar work of the entire cast and director Kliffer, Heated Rivalry: The Unauthorized Musical Parody is the perfect gay pride night out.
Jerome (c) Maria Baranova
Theater: Jerome
At Playwrights Horizons
The conventional wisdom is that if the topic of a throuple arises in a marriage, it is more a sign of a last gasp rather than a jump-start of a stagnant relationship. But, in the small, ever-shrinking town of Jerome, Arizona, in the early 1990s (when AIDS is on everyone’s mind), for an older gay couple, it couldn’t hurt. Con (Stephen Spinella) and Doane (Jeorge Bennett Watson) have been together since their stint in the army over 30 years ago, and while they clearly still love each other, Con believes his long-term illness is taking a toll on Doane. So, when they spy a cute blonde at the town’s annual gay Halloween party, Con convinces Doane to make the first move. That man turns out to be Bruin (Ken Barnett), a recent transplant from San Francisco who works at the local diner. Hunky and receptive to their advances, Bruin, as with everything in John J. Caswell’s new play, turns out to be haunted by something in his past that won’t let him be in the present. The most interesting thing about Jerome is the focus on older gay men in a relatively healthy relationship. Both Spinella and Watson are convincingly in love, as witnessed by their character’s commitment to holiday traditions, including when Christmas decorations are allowed to be put up and Thanksgiving dinner being whatever they catch in the lake that morning. Barnett has the harder part as he has to play both a convincing third wheel and a catalyst for the play’s themes of loneliness, lifetime commitment and lost dreams. Caswell and Dustin Wills (doing double duty as both director and set designer) stack the deck against the three, setting the majority of the play in an effective, if too oppressive haunted house of a set. The images Wills create is striking and bold, especially the first act finale, as well as the representation of the lake. Only in the last scene of the play, where Jerome provides the slightest glimmer of hope, does the play give us a glimpse of what it could have been: a gay positive, age-appropriate love story for audiences to embrace. The spontaneity in this scene feels lacking in the rest of the play.
Romeo & Juliet (c) Joan Marcus
Theater Review: Romeo & Juliet
At the Delacorte Theater
At intermission of the Saheem Ali ambitious and mostly successful take on Romeo & Juliet, I overheard a couple talk about how much they were enjoying this season’s first entry of the Shakespeare in the Park season, but they didn’t understand the Spanish. Literally. Ali has set his Verona as a border town next to the wall between the U.S. and Mexico, and while it isn’t explicitly said the feud between mostly American-born Capulets and the Latin-coded Montagues is about race, there is enough hinted at from Ali and his excellent design team (scenic and lighting designer Maruti Evans and costume designer Oana Botez) that this is an “ancient grudge.” And with the occasional Spanglish dropped throughout the play, Juliet’s (Ra’Mya Latiah Aikens) love for the language comes through whenever she and Romeo (Daniel Bravo Hernández) converse, in Spanish (translated by Alfredo Michel Modenessi). It is Shakespeare’s most well-known play and even without Aikens and Hernández’s emphasis on important words, most people will understand what’s going on with even a passing knowledge of the story (done on Broadway a few seasons ago), the movies (the production’s opening image makes a passing reference to Baz Luhrmann’s film) or the musical adaptation (most recently, Spielberg’s version). The two young actors are really appealing here, although the Delacorte has never been hospitable to intimate two-people scenes. A trio of Tony-winners are the highlights of the acting ensemble with LaChanze being a fierce Lady Capulet, Deirdre O’Connell as the flighty Nurse and the always reliable Frances Jue as a particularly funny Friar, even adding the Chinese “ai-ya” exclamation for some extra umph. In smaller roles, I especially liked Rachel Crowl as the Apothecary and Martin K. Lewis as an unexpectedly endearing Paris. Even with the occasional reference to ICE and the weaponizing of the American flag, Ali doesn’t overemphasize the parallels with current administration. Still, at over two-and-a -half hour, Ali included a lot of passages that are usually cut; his take on the deaths of Tybalt and Mercutio feel rushed (robbing us the line, “you shall find me a grave man”), and the death of Juliet unforgivably bloodless. Despite the mostly languid pacing, I enjoyed this production, especially the excellent song adaptations by Michael Thurber, and the audience I was with, despite the language barrier, was very much engaged.
La Cage aux Folles (c) Joan Marcus
Theater Review: La Cage aux Folles
At Encores! New York City Center
There was a lot of excitement when Encores! announced the first commercial New York City production of La Cage aux Folles with two openly gay marquee names headlining an all-black cast. And while the final product is a bit lumpier and less focused than I had hoped, the production certainly benefits from the star-power of Tony Award-winner Billy Porter and TV personality Wayne Brady as longtime partners, in life as well as in business, with Georges (Brady) running the popular, titled drag nightclub where Albin (Porter) performs, as her alter-ego, Zaza. Every time they are on stage together, the energy and chemistry are off the charts, especially an unscripted moment on opening night when Brady teased Porter for messing up a line. Porter as Albin is a match made in theater heaven, and while he seemed a little shaky (the actor has fought a long illness), he brought It when It needed, seemingly summoning the spirit of Judy Garland in the powerhouse first act finale, “I Am What I Am.” Brady is the surprise as Georges. His comic line readings are spot-on, and his rendition of the show’s big romantic ballad, "Song of the Sands,” very effective. Unfortunately, the production around the two stars is a bit lacking. Director Robert O’Hara doesn’t have a strong hand in keeping the tone consistent. The chorus of Les Cagelles, which usually gives the production its wow factor, seems to rely on the same ballroom drag tropes that make Cats: The Jellicle Ball so special, but without the infectious energy. The club itself feels less Saint-Tropez, France, and more Saint Augustine, Florida. Except for the French names and the inexplicable French accent by the otherwise fantastic Tonya Pinkins as Jacqueline, the show might as well be set anywhere. In no production of this musical has Georges’ biological son Jean-Michel (Alaman Diadhiou) ever come off as anything but the real villain, and here he is just as selfish and petulant, although Brady brilliantly handles Georges’ voracious defense and love for Albin with his son (“Look Over There”). Although everyone knows and loves the songs by legendary Jerry Herman (if I have to hear a reprise of “The Best of Times” one more time…), it’s Harvey Fierstein’s hysterical script that stands out with Porter deliciously drawing out “If that woman comes…You die.” Maybe with a bit more rehearsal and “A Little More Mascara,” this production would have found its high-heeled footing, but thankfully, Porter and Brady are worth seeing regardless.
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