Joseph Planta's Commentary - thecommentary.ca

Sunday, 03 October 2004

Putting Sondheim together

By Joseph Planta

VANCOUVER - Stephen Sondheim, one of the more prolific lyricists and composers in American music, has written the lyrics for legendary works like West Side Story and Gypsy; while on his own, crafted some of the more remarkable musicals of the last quarter of the 20th century: Company, Follies, Sweeney Todd, Passion, Into the Woods, and Sunday in the Park with George, among others. He's also written songs for films including Warren Beatty's Reds, and Dick Tracy, for which he won an Oscar.

On Granville Island now, until the 16th, is an ingenious Sondheim work, a musical review called Putting it Together. It culls together over two dozen of Sondheim's songs, from some of the above listed productions, and weaves together a revue that tells a story. The gift of Sondheim's prolific repertoire is borne in this show, as the songs performed, despite coming from different contexts, seem ingeniously meant for the story told in Putting it Together.

Because this is a revue, the show doesn't have much of a plot, as warns the tuxedoed character played by Kerry O'Donovan, who begins the show with an uproarious adaptation of "Invocation and Instructions to the Audience," which is from Sondheim's A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. The show is about two couples, an older one, played by David Hinton and Jane Leroux; and a younger one portrayed by Michelle Miazga and James Rowley. O'Donovan is an invaluable part of the show, stealing it during one rousing performance in the second act, not to mention the show's opener.

Hinton and Leroux have decent voices, she an accomplished singer on the local scene, and he, a veteran of opera, having performed with the New Orleans and Edmonton Opera companies. They perform inspired Sondheim songs where they review, reflect, determine and reclaim a marriage that's far from perfect. The material that Rowley and Miazga have to work with includes rousing numbers that establish, engage, develop, and work through the romantic foibles that a developing romance goes through. In the end, the romance, though it engages in consummation during the show, is hardly convincing. Rowley seems uncomfortable with the music or unengaged, perhaps the blocking they were directed to do should have been more pronounced as he seems to be wandering through a couple of his numbers. It also didn't suggest much of a relationship between him and Miazga. More convincing was the subtext of a friendly relationship between the two females, however it doesn't make sense what with the rousing catfight had in the second act performance of "There's Always a Woman."

The richness of Sondheim's words and music is evident in the performance of the show. The songs are remarkably complex as they are also sublimely melodic and simple. That's the range of Sondheim, who also utilises complicated lyrics that get to the nub of the emotions portrayed or dramatised. Leroux, whose voice is strong, stumbled with "Getting Married Today," on opening night (or rewrote it), the extremely challenging, complicated, and evocative number from Company. The challenge of both her and Hinton, is that their great singing voices don't lend themselves for musical theatre, where singing is but a third of what's needed to succeed or be convincing. In the first act of the opening night performance, there were some missteps, but by the second act, it was pleasant to see the pathos in her relationship with Hinton, as well as the increased comic pacing of Leroux; as well, Hinton himself was less woodened. And as a personal preference, the entrances of all the performers, at least those who came in from stage left, for the "Putting it Together" number, left something to be desired. You'd think when donning tuxedos and elegant clothing, they could muster a bit more grand of an entrance, rather than merely stepping onto the stage.

Triptych Theatricals, which staged this production is to be commended for staging what is a rich show that works well on a smaller-theatre stage. What Putting it Together yields is an enthusiastic performance of some of Sondheim's inspired and inspiring music, that is at the same time entertaining and affordable on the pocketbook. Tickets are $20.00 and available through the Festival Box Office http://www.festivalboxoffice.com or 604.257.0366.

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