This weekend has been one of discovery for me theatrically, and yesterday evening I was fortunate enough to be able to watch a live recording of the Broadway musical, Bandstand, thanks to a new theatre service on our virtual horizon, Stream.Theatre.
Recorded at the Bernard B Jacobs Theatre on New York's Broadway, this was a true all-American musical which had everything a musical should have in oodles. Has this musical come over to the UK yet? I've not seen it advertsied if it has.. but it really ought to, and I'd be first in the queue for tickets!
The story surrounds a young GI (Donny Novitski) who comes back home to Cleveland, Ohio after serving in the Second World War in the Far East. He had seen his best friend die under enemy fire, and had made a promise to him that if he made it back home he would check up on his friend's widow (Julia Trojan) and make sure she was OK. Donny is a pianist, singer and composer and once home tries to get back in on the club circuit he left, but finds that his place has been taken by younger chaps, and he spirals into depression. That is until he hears on the radio that a National competition for the ultimate 'Tribute To Our Troops' song is launched and he hatches the idea of writing and entering his song.
The rest of the musical takes us through his recruiting a band and their rehearsing, as well as his blossoming relationship with Julia, who he also recruited to sing with the band. There are the usual ups and downs with predictable plot twists, and of course they finally do come out on top and win the whole event.
The music (Richard Oberacker) is wonderful; very reminiscent of the era in which the musical is set (1940s) but it also sounds new and fresh too; whilst the set is mostly minimal, it works very well and allows the actors and the brilliant choreography (Andy Blankenbuehler) to shine. Effective lighting and underplayed direction (again by Blankenbuehler) really helped too.
The stellar cast are all multi-talented and were superbly chosen. Corey Cott made for a slightly arrogant and brazen young man with a dream who mellows with understanding as we follow him on his journey of leading a band of disparate ex-servicemen to victory on the bandstand. Laura Osnes was the perfect love interest, and her voice was just incredible as it journeyed from sugar-sweet religious lyricism through to husky blues and jazz for the finale. The band members were in themselves excellent characters too, and each with their own story and character. James Nathan Hopkins (Jimmy on saxophone and clarinet), Brandon J Ellis (Davy on bass), Joey Pero (Nick on trumpet), Geoff Packard (Wayne on trombone), and Joe Carroll (Johnny on drums). And a little light relief, but certainly not over-the-top was found in the fussy Jewish mother of Julie, played by Beth Leavel.
In general the Muscial was kept quite light and fluid, meaning those moments of sadness or tragedy had a much bigger impact and this was carefully and expertly realised. And although the Muscial was, for the most part, highly predictable with a simple single story - it is for that very reason that this musical hits all the right notes (excuse the pun!). It was unfussy, easy to follow, and one was able to fully invest in the protagonist as well as follow the subplots of the side characters with interest without losing sight of what this musical was about. It was effective and empathetic; and with my watching the musical on Remembrance Sunday it added an even further emotive dimension to it as well. I don't mind admitting to shedding a sympathetic tear or two, especially during the final song, 'Welcome Home'.
This was a modern musical written the way musicals used to be written before Sondheim and Lin Manuel Miranda came on the scene, and it is absolutely glorious: an emotional rollercoaster, unashamedly so, and I was blown away by it completely.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 8/11/20
No comments:
Post a Comment