Viewing a new theatrical production is always an
intriguing experience. This is
especially true if the offering is a musical and has not had many workshops or
readings. It is in these venues that the
material is tested and adjusted based on reviewer and audience reactions.
“33 1/3”
has been seen once, in a workshop in Canada, but the presentation by
Cleveland’s “off-Broadway” theatre, is the first full staging of the material.
In evaluating a production, a viewer of any musical has
to take into consideration the material (story line, concept development,
clarity and accomplishment of the author’s intent), the music and lyrics, as
well as the staging, acting, musical presentation and technical effects.
“33 1/3”
with book, music and lyrics by Jay Turvey and Paul Sportelli is both a coming-of-age and
coming-out tale.
As
described in the public relations for the production, “It’s 1974 and Jules
finds small-town existence stifling. He lives for listening to the latest
records with his best friend Jill, but dreams of an exciting life in New York
City. While Jules’ mother is in the hospital, his father is trying his best at
home with his only son. Jules encounters Francis, an openly gay, Bowie-loving
young man and romance begins to bloom as Jules slowly discovers and
acknowledges his sexuality. Jules also encounters Victor, an angry young man
from a troubled home who seeks relief by pounding on the drums in his basement. All four young people experience a tumultuous New Year’s Eve and
younger Jules makes a decision that will change his life and all those around
him.”
Jules
decision is to go to New York, leaving Jill and Francis behind him. (No big plot reveal here. This action is obvious from the start.)
The
narrator of the story is Jules, as an adult, who is looking back and explaining
how he got to the place in his life where he presently emotionally and
physically resides.
The
coming out story has been told many, many times. There is nothing extremely unique in this version
of the tale. There are no big surprises, no extremely jolting harassment or
rejection events that make us want to cheer for Jules to succeed. In fact, even as his adult-self tells the story,
we don’t see what real success he has had, other than being out of the small
town and not feeling penned up. That is
progress, but not enough on which to build a compelling musical tale.
The
characters are somewhat underdeveloped.
Jules is a nice guy who we like.
Jill is a math savant who is also likeable. It’s pretty hard to figure out why Victor is
even included other than to illustrate, as is the case of Jules and Jill, that
people in quandary tend to find someplace to hide. In this case, in recordings and the worship
of musicians. Francis is there as a
lover and sexual guide for Jules and to provide a stereotyped gay flamboyant
character.
Not
a bad tale, just not a totally compelling one that keeps us on the edge of our
seats waiting for what trauma or gleeful event is going to come up next. It doesn’t have the holding power of such
coming-out tales as “The Edge of Seventeen” or the charm of “Love Simon.”
As
for the music. The songs tend to blend nicely
into the story, as is the case with the newly developing genre of musical drama.
In
general, the music is unmemorable. As I
sit to write this, less than 12 hours after seeing the show, I can’t hum or
even remember the sound of any of the songs, or the titles or their lyrics. Since
my mind tends to be a trap for musical show tunes, this lack of cognition is
not a good sign. It might have helped if
the titles of the songs were listed somewhere in the program.
I
often found that the songs were too word-loaded, too complex to grasp a major
idea. These are not of the quality of the music found in such recent musical
dramas as “Dear Evan Hansen” or “Next to Normal.”
The
lack of memorable music is a surprise as both Jay Turvey and Paul Portelli are
award-winning authors. Sportelli is also
the Music Director of Canada’s Shaw Festival.
As
for the production of Dobama’s “33 1/3,”
director Matthew Wright keeps the slow developing plot moving along.
The
cast puts out full effort.
Jim
Bray gives an impressive nicely textured performance as both Older Jules, our
guide to the story and also as Jules’ over-whelmed father.
Handsome
Benjamin Richardson-Piche is appealing as Jules, but often lacks the emotional depth
to carry us on his journey. He, as does
Hanna Shykind (Jill), Tyler Tanner (Francis) and Jay Lee (Victor) perform
rather than be. They are actors, playing
roles not real people. All have
pleasant, not Broadway ready voices.
Holly
Handman-Lopez has designed choreography that fits the era and the music. As with the character development, the cast
has some difficulty in making the moves look natural rather than planned and
rehearsed.
The
psychedelic electronic scenic effects visually set the correct moods.
Mathew
Dolan’s musical direction was generally good, though there were times when the
vocals were lost because of the over-zealous pounding of the drums. Musical’s sounds are there to back up the
singers, not over-power them.
“33 1/3” is a work
in progress. Few, if any musicals, make it out of the gate as finished
products. The American musical theater
lore is filled with a number of shows that needed major or minor changes to
help them become viable.
The first performance of
“If/Then” clocked in at over 4 hours, as was the case with “The
Addams Family.” They both had to be
heavily pared down. “Fiddler on the Roof” became a hit when a new
director came in after weeks of frustrating rehearsals and asked what the show
was about. When they decided it was
about tradition and not about a milkman and his daughters, and inserted
“Tradition” as the opening song, the show transformed from a march of members
of the audience to the exits, into one of the genres greatest shows. The same is true of “Funny Thing Happened
on the Way to the Forum” when a pretty love song which was to be the opening
number was pulled and “Comedy Tonight” inserted to set the right tone.
Jules could use an “I
want” song that tells his hopes and dreams and sets his character. A “Noise” song in one or both acts would
“wake” up the audience and texture the musical sounds. A “Next to the Last Scene” acting or musical
number would get the audience ready for what should be a stronger ending that
wraps up the story.
Hopefully the authors
will take the feedback about the script and music and go back to the drawing
board and make some needed changes.
Capsule judgment: “33 1/3,” in its world
premiere at Dobama, is a work in progress.
It will be interesting to see what, if any changes the authors make as
the piece moves forward. You might want
to see it here, so you can say “I saw it in its infancy.”
(Side note: A percentage of the ticket sales from Dobama’s
“33 1/3” will be donated to LGBTQ support causes.)
“33 1/3” runs
through July 14, 2019 at Dobama, 2340 Lee Road, Cleveland Heights. Call
216-932-3396 or http://www.dobama.org/ for
tickets.
