Gypsy
NY City Center Encores - July 2007
Review by John Kenrick
After sitting through enough relentless mediocrity, you can begin to
tell yourself that you were wrong -- that musicals never were all that
wonderful, that performances and audiences were not so different in the
days before Broadway turned into Bramson East. Then something like the Encores
revival of Gypsy comes along and proves that your memories are
true, and that nothing beats that lost animal, the New York theatre
audience, celebrating that other lost animal, a real Broadway
musical.
What's that? Am I a New York theatre snob? Hell no! Musical theatre
is a popular art form, and I recognize that a tourist-centered Broadway
must cater to increasingly lower standards of intelligence. But there
are still a few thousand literate theatre goers left, and now and then
something sneaks in to give us cause for rejoicing. Such is this Gypsy.
Oh sure, the material is glorious. Jule Styne's glorious music, and
Stephen Sondheim's polished lyrics are untouched, and librettist Arthur
Laurents has made some minor but wise excisions, while also directing
with a firm, knowledgeable hand. It should be remembered that
three of Broadway's great Rose's have been directed by Laurents --
Lansbury, Daly, and now Patti Lupone. Lupone makes this performance the
culmination of her career so far, a monumental achievement. She has the
vocal and dramatic firepower that Bernadette Peters so miserably lacked
in this role, and throws herself into the role with a fervor that takes
an audience's breath away.
But after some 47 years, Arthur Laurents has finally revealed the
real secret in Gypsy. It is not a one-star show! For this musical
to really take flight, it requires a Louise who is every bit as dazzling
as it's Rose -- and we get that here as Laura Benanti joins Lupone. Ms.
Benanti gives new levels of meaning to this character, biding her time
in the first two thirds of the show as the long-suffering mouse
("Little Lamb" has never been delivered with such quiet,
tragic power before), then roaring to wondrous life as the confident
tigress. Her dressing room confrontation with Rose takes on an intensity
I have never seen before, and it makes for riveting theatre. We
literally see Gypsy taking control of her life from her mother, giving a
new meaning to the nervous breakdown Rose has moments later.
As a result, the much vaunted "Rose's Turn" becomes a new
revelation. After Lupone's searing and wildly vulnerable rendition comes
yet another moment of new truth. As she dismisses her actions by saying
she was just trying out a few things Gypsy might want to try sometime,
we see the great musical stage star of today offering something to the
next generation -- and its staggering.
Few could match the sensitivity and depth that Boyd Gaines brings to
Herbie, so this revival is headlined by a trinity of stellar talents.
Another trinity does its level best to steal the show, and they damn
near do as the irresistible strippers who tell young Gypsy that
"You Gotta Get a Gimmick." Nancy Opel shines as the garish
Mazeppa, Marilyn Caskey is a hoot as a rather short-circuited Electra,
and Alison Fraser is a comic dazzlement as dressy Tessie Turra. In an
equally fine bit of casting, hunky Tony Yazbeck is easily the best Tulsa
ever, giving "All I Need Now Is The Girl" a macho
believability most of his predecessors in this role have painfully
lacked.
Encores offers all of this with only basic set pieces -- which is a
major improvement over the visual vomit that graced the last Broadway
revival. The budget goes into a full-size orchestra, directed by Patrick
Vaccariello with a stylish hand. By the time they finish playing the
hell out of the greatest overture Broadway can lay claim to, you know
you are in for a memorable evening. James Youmans makes the most of
those simple sets, and kudos go to Martin Pakledinaz for handsome
costuming, and to Howell Binkley for outstanding lighting design.
Let's save time -- if you love musicals, the Encores production of Gypsy
is a must see. They will be talking about this one fifty years from now,
just as people still discuss Merman's performance damn near fifty years
ago. Lupone and Benanti are the greatest duo to his Broadway since
Rodgers and Hammerstein. Go, see, and rejoice!
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