Reviewed 2/24/06
It is one of the musicals from the Golden Age associated with a name. Mame and Dear World had Lansbury, Applause and Woman of the Year had Bacall, Coco had Hepburn, and Jule Styne’s Funny Girl lived because of Barbra. Star vehicles don’t necessarily die without their originators, but mounting them is even more of a challenge than the standard horrors of other musicals. Who can fill Barbra’s…profile? Streisand fit as great early 20th century comedienne Fanny Brice. This was a star turn, and without it, like Coco, Dear World, and other cults of personality, Funny Girl is a script with a few memorable songs and a creaky book stumbling to get the audience to the next tune. The Funny Girl that is currently playing in Mesa’s Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre is a testament to Director M. Seth Reines. She may not be Barbra, but Jillian Nyhan Zygo is damned close and a highlight for a dinner theatre company. She has a lovely voice, pretty spiffy comedic timing, and aces Brice’s character arc. Impressive, too, is Reines’ liberal slicing and dicing of the ponderous script. Save for the regrettable deletion of some of the shading of Brice’s love Nick Arnstein (Nathan Albert), this script now feels only a little long, not like its usual drawn out torment. This musical is just about worth the trip.
As BPDT welcomes aboard new Executive Chef Ryan Barbarisi, I mourn the loss of Clifton Weir. Weir’s buffet, even at its worst, was never quite as unimpressive as the collection of dry, tough, overcooked, and unimaginative fare that Barbarisi is offering for his first time out. Manicotti with a sauce the consistency of thin catsup, beef that I could barely cut with the supplied knife, and bone-dry stuffed crab are not a distinguished introduction.
But then there’s Zygo. Brice’s bio is handled in flashback and
has little conflict, save for the tempestuous relationship between this famed
Jewish comic enabler and her Nicky, a proud man with style, class, and a need
to be the primary breadwinner. Zygo has the accent, the pipes, and the grand
facial expressions necessary to bring Fanny Brice to life. It’s one of
the best performances of the season. She works hard to connect with Albert’s
Arnstein, but it doesn’t occur in the first act. On the first Friday
night, Albert seemed to be going through the paces until halfway into the second
act. Where Arnstein is supposed to be charm personified, dripping with class
and natural sophistication, Albert comes across more as a lower level wiseguy
in the Corleone clan than an international playboy. It’s hard to blame
Albert for what appears to be Reines’ miscasting. To my surprise, just
when I had given up on Albert, he suddenly showed up in the second act when
he took control of the stage during his reprise of “Don’t Rain
on My Parade.” By then, though, it was too little too late.
Reines’ casting is stronger throughout the rest, highlighted by the ever-present, always wonderful Elizabeth Loos as Fanny’s mother. Loos is a natural, and manages to balance her natural stage presence to ensure not overshadowing Zygo, not that the battle of these two women’s abilities wouldn’t be a delightful show all its own. Eddie Schnecker’s performance of best friend Eddie Ryan is full of pep and energetic dancing. Kathi Osborne’s Mrs. Strakosh is broad, blowsy, and bouncy, a hilarious nosy neighbor.
The chorus is a solid collection. There’s nothing overwhelming about them, Reines’ basic blocking, nor Dottie Lester-White’s standard choreography. Much of the lack of interesting staging is unavoidable: the height-challenged stage does not do justice for Ziegfeld Follies recreations, so poor Kristian D. Perry’s set tries to imply stairs, but the result undercuts the potential of the stage pictures. Russell A. Thompson’s lighting is standard with a few flourishes, much like Mary Atkinson’s costumes. In fact, one of the greatest visual moments comes from an Atkinson creation. Beth Burrier’s orchestra is a little overwhelmed by Styne’s score, especially the horn section.
Star vehicles by nature can survive on only one great performance: Zygo proves the greatest star. There are a few other performances that work well, too, which balance the disappointing ones, the by-the-books staging, and the wretched dinner offerings. If you go, be prepared for the greatest star, some good support, and not a lot else.
