TheatreWork's The Music Man
(out
of 
)Mark S.P. Turvin
(home office) (602) 912-0117
I can be reached for comment via e-mail at: mspt@goldfishpublishers.com
Reviewed 2/26/98
(out
of )There are certain musicals that are almost perpetual motion machines in themselves; wind them up, and they're guaranteed to please audiences. Meredith Willson's The Music Man is just one of those musicals. As long as there is at least one solid performance from any of the leads, the show just runs itself. Ordinarily, the play is dependent on a solid Professor Harold Hill to carry the proceedings, but it's important to remember that a wonderful Marian "The Librarian" can also keep the evening running well. Director Gregory Jaye has produced proof of this at TheaterWorks. Put eleven cute children onstage, toss in a generally solid chorus, and add a very talented Marian, then you can overcome a weak Harold Hill.
The Music Man is the show that became the musical definition of Traveling Salesmen. Prof. Harold Hill comes to River City, Iowa, to sell the town on a youth band. With slick pitch and slippery ways, he manages to bedazzle the staid town, and even puts stars into the eyes of its stodgy librarian/music teacher, Marian Paroo.
Mr. Jaye's staging occasionally has some cute and inventive moments. He adds enough original elements to this warhorse show to keep audiences on their toes.
At the heart to the show is the good Professor, performed by TheaterWorks regular Wes Martin. In what can only be considered an off-night, Mr. Martin lacks his usual stage presence. His voice is weak, and he has some hesitations with lines that shows that he is not in his usual form. This part calls for someone who can bamboozle an entire town and make it look easy. This was not the case for Mr. Martin, who looked like he was being overworked by db Bailey, Rachel Cohen and A.J. Huff's simplistic choreography and the several quick costume changes.
Balancing this off, though, was the wonderful performance by Brook Voigt as the chilly Marian. She has a beautiful voice and simple acting style that work well for this misunderstood woman. Ultimately, she is able to carry parts where Mr. Martin faltered, making this an acceptable trade-off.
Also impressive in the cast is Suzanne Hickey as Marian's widowed Irish mother. She is a solid character actress, and her accent never falters. Funny, though difficult to understand for his slurred words, was Bud Hesterman as River City's Mayor Shinn. Also solid and funny was Kendra Merritt as his dance-obsessed wife. Another unfortunately weak performance came from db Bailey as the comic relief Marcellus. He was too quiet, too odd to be seriously funny.
The children of River City faired better overall, as Mikey Bjorlin was "almotht-too-thweet" as the lisping Winthrop, and Jessica Schall was very cute in her role as his lovelorn admirer Amaryllis. Solid performances also came from Matthew Harris as the misunderstood Tommy, and Monica Herman as the perky Zaneeta.
The overall choral work was solid, and though the Barbershop Quartet wasn't always perfect, Eulalie Shinn's girls balanced them off very well. The big chorus numbers, such as "Trouble," "Seventy Six Trombones" and "Wells Fargo Wagon" were enjoyable, if not overwhelming.
Problems arose with Mr. Jaye's imaginative set. He used an interesting postcard motif to suggest the many locations around River City, but while it looked great, it wasn't quite as functional as necessary. The use of many rollers had occasion to drown out the onstage song and dance breaks usually associated with a closed curtain scene. Kimberly Hadfield-Hardt's lighting was better handled, and sometimes impressive. Jacque Collins and Chris Wo's sound design went smoothly. Margret Emerson's usually impressive costume design was even better than normal, placing everyone onstage in believable period costumes.
If you're a sucker for musicals, as I am, while you may be
a bit disappointed with Mr. Martin's performance, Ms. Voigt's
performance and most of the rest of the show makes up for it.
It's a good sign that I still got misty eyed at the right times,
even after having appeared in and seen this musical more times
than I'd care to admit.
Production Details:
The Music Man Book, Music and Lyrics by Meredith Willson,
Story by Meredith Willson and Franklin Lacey
TheaterWorks, Peoria
815-7930
February 13th-March 15th, 1998