Review: Miss. Saigon at Signature Theatre

When Miss. Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, the production played to 1,700 theatergoers nightly, featured a cast of 40 and a physical production which incorporated a helicopter landing on-stage.    So what would happen if Miss. Saigon was suddenly scaled down to a small regional theater?  Would this epic stage show survive?

That was the question facing Signature Theater when they announced Miss. Saigon as the opener for their 24^th season. The result was astounding.  Not only did Miss. Saigon survive, but 24 years after its world-première in London, I’m thrilled to report that the show has held up unbelievably well in this thrilling new production!

For starters, I can’t stress enough the reduction in the size and scope of this production.  Most musicals are scaled down when they go from Broadway to regional theater, but this reduction was drastic.  Signature’s Max Theater only seats 275 patrons and this revival features a cast of 18, roughly half the size of the original London and New York casts.

One problem with the original Broadway production was that the staging took away from Miss. Saigon’s book, music and lyrics, the heart of any musical.  Whereas with The Phantom of the Opera, audiences could remember both the special effects and the score, with Miss. Saigon it was a different story.  Audiences could remember the helicopter, but none of the songs.  There was no balance between these two storytelling techniques.

In Signature’s production, director Eric Schaeffer has done a remarkable job refocusing the story away from special effects and more towards the love-story at the heart of the show between an American GI and a Vietnamese bar girl during the fall of Saigon in 1975.  Furthermore, Schaeffer’s staging allows the songs to better tell the story.  And luckily for this audience, the score is beautifully performed by a 15 piece orchestra (much larger than many current orchestras on Broadway).

Adding to the chaos and confusion of Miss. Saigon’s war setting is the environmental set design which is at the heart of this production.  The theater is littered with military paraphernalia including an authentic Vietnam-era airplane wing and cockpit.  All of this leads to the question: Is there a helicopter?  Yes, the helicopter does make an appearance.  And while I won’t spoil the moment, I will reveal that it is only used to enhance the scene, not steal it.

A great deal of praise and credit for this production’s success must also be given to the performances of Thom Sesma (the Engineer), Diana Huey (Kim), Jason Michael Evans (Chris) and Erin Driscol (Ellen).  With a well established show like Miss. Saigon, it’s easy to create performances that are carbon copies of the original Broadway cast.  But this cast has indeed created a Miss. Saigon that is their own and the on-stage chemistry is only adding to the excitement of this production.

There is one final aspect of this production which can’t be ignored and that is a new Act II song entitled “Maybe” making its world-début in this production.  In preparation for next year’s 25^th anniversary London revival of Miss. Saigon, the creative team of Claude-Michel Schonberg, Alain Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr. decided to rewrite a scene in Act II causing them to remove one song, and substitute it with “Maybe.”  In an effort to not be a spoiler, I won’t disclose much about the song except to say that it’s terrific.  And for audiences, there’s nothing more exciting then to hear a new song before the rest of the theatrical community.

The fall 2013 DC theater season is just beginning, but as of right now, it’s hard to imagine anything more exciting this year than Signature Theatre’s production of Miss. Saigon.  “Why, God, Why?” is not just a ballad in the first act, it’s the question you’ll be asking if you miss this production!

Miss. Saigon is playing thru September 22.  Tickets maybe purchased here.

My Favorite Things

MarqueePolitics is turning two this month, and this blogger is turning the big 27. With these milestones on the horizon, it got me thinking.

I’m often asked about my favorite performances, and to identify which ones made the biggest impact on me.  With my birthday right around the corner, I thought that this would be an appropriate time to reflect on the performances that have never quite left me.

Phantom/Miss. Saigon/Cats

“Let’s start at the very beginning, a very good place to start.”

All it took was: a crashing chandelier, helicopter landing and dancing cats.  These were first shows I ever saw (ages 3, 6, 7).  Their combination of: high emotions, grand spectacle and memorable pop scores sent my young imagination soaring.  I often call them the holy trinity of musicals, because it was these three shows that introduced me to the great love of my life, the theater.

Evita – 1979 Original Broadway Cast Recording

I had an epiphany in high school, and it was the first time I ever listened to the original Broadway cast recording of Evita.

The rock opera’s themes of politics, revolution and media manipulation hooked this young politico at age 16.  Evita was further electrified by Patti LuPone’s fierce portrayal as Argentina’s First Lady and her ambition to succeed at all costs.  Despite having the album for the 11 years, not a week goes by when LuPone and the original Broadway cast of Evita can been heard from my apartment, giving this show a touch of star quality!

Elaine Stritch at Liberty – 2002 Broadway Production

Rare, intense, humorous, honest and a triumph of the human soul.

I was lucky enough to attend the last Broadway matinee performance of this show.  From that Sunday afternoon, I learned that human’s can triumph over any adversity as long as we don’t stop fighting.  Accompanied by a songbook of classic Broadway hits, Stritch walked the audience thru her: fights with alcoholism, struggles with love, triumphs working with Noel Coward and Stephen Sondheim, and life’s journey from being raised in Detroit to having her name adorn Broadway marquees.

Great actors leave it all out on the stage and Stritch set the bar for generations to come.

 Company – 2006 Broadway Revival

Company, more than any other show, changed my perspective on life.

My parents split when I was very young, and what understanding of marriage I had came from television.  Because of that, I never understood the emotional complexity involved when two people enter into a relationship, and what I did know was very one-sided.   Company threw cold-water on that idea, teaching me that relationships are about sharing your life with somebody, not just some-body.  Theater is often a reflection of life through art, and its through art that we learn so much about ourselves as individuals.

The Audience

The one constant in all these productions is the audience, and I’ve been lucky to have always had a supporting audience of my own.  While I won’t use their names, I want recognize the friends and family who have encouraged my love of the theater: My parents who introduced me to the musical at age 3, grandparents who were always game to see a show on Broadway – even if they didn’t quite “get it”, Chief of Staff, and dear friends living across the country in: New York, Pittsburgh, Rockville, San Diego, Seattle and Washington, DC.  All of which I owe a debt a gratitude for indulging in my life’s great passion!

The cast albums to all shows mentioned above are available on amazon.com.

Furthermore, video productions of: Cats, Company, Elaine Stritch at Liberty and Phantom may also be found at amazon.com.

My Cabbage Patch Doll, The Phantom and I

When I was a kid, the basement of our house used to flood after every major thunderstorm.  Naturally, I would become paranoid that the Phantom of the Opera was going to kidnap me.  This fear was instilled in me at age three when my parents took me to see my first-ever musical, The Phantom of Opera.  Over the weekend, the Broadway production of Phantom celebrated its 25^th anniversary, a remarkable milestone for the show that embedded in me, along with so many others, a love for musical theater.

After the smashing success of Phantom on Broadway and in London, the producers decided to launch two America touring productions and a sit-down production in Toronto, Canada.  In 1989 my parents scored tickets to see the show with its original Canadian cast in Toronto.  Despite only being three, and ignoring the fact that the main character was a deformed madman, my parents decided to introduce me to live theater.  To calm my fears, they bribed me into good behavior by allowing me to bring my cabbage doll named Hannibal (ironically enough, that’s also the name of the first act opera in Phantom).

What my parents failed to tell me was that our seats were two rows from the stage, center orchestra.  Due to the proximity of our seats to the stage, my three-year old self was introduced to live theater by: having a chandelier rise and fall on-top of us, the stage get set on fire, fireballs shot at us from the Phantom himself, the Phantom taking his curtain call without his mask – thus waving at me with his deformed face, and the infamous gondola journey to the underground where he takes Christine to his lair.

Poor Hannibal, he got squashed that evening by me hugging him so tightly.  After that night, and after every rain storm when our basement would flood, I was terrified the Phantom would come and kidnap me, like he did Christine, in his gondola.  Growing up I had numerous sightings of the Phantom in our basement, although none were ever confirmed by my parents.

It wasn’t until the movie version of Phantom came out, when I started re-listening to the cast album and finally decided to revisit the show.  When the tour came to Pittsburgh the next year, my father scored two tickets for my mother and I (Hannibal stayed home).  Same seats, second row, center orchestra, and this time I loved every minute.

Prior to the show, Mom and I went for dinner at a restaurant near the theater.  Sitting at the table next to us was a young boy (age 3) and his mother.  We started chatting with them, and the boy proceeded to talk non-stop about the show, movie and cast album.  This was his first time seeing the show and he could barely contain his excitement.  Leaving dinner, I turned to the woman and said, “You’re not going to believe this, but that was mom and I 15 years ago.”  My mother and I got up and then proceeded to the theater.

I am so proud of Phantom’s 25^th anniversary, and even prouder that it was the first musical I ever saw.  Since originally opening in London in 1986 (three months after I was born), the show has been seen by more than 100 million theatergoers in 150 cities located worldwide in 25 countries.  In a world so wrought with division, Phantom’s success reminds me of the power of the arts to unify us.  We all may have seen the same show, but our takeaways are all different and this allows us to have a dialogue and forge relationships we might have otherwise passed up.

I was unable to attend Phantom’s 25^th anniversary gala in New York City, but could not be happier for their milestone.  With each year that passes, and each performance where the chandelier crashes, I am constantly reminded how special this show is as fellow fans return again, often bringing along their children and continuing the tradition.  The Phantom never did come and kidnap me with his gondola through our flooded basement, but as the years pass I have gone back to the Opera Populaire many times to revisit my old friend and remember how I fell in love with the music of the night.

For tickets to Phantom, please visit: http://www.thephantomoftheopera.com/

The Opera Ghost’s Special Day

This Saturday, January 26 2013, the Broadway production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera will celebrate its 25 anniversary.  Not only is the production the longest running show in Broadway history, but Phantom is also the first production in American theater history to be consistently playing for 25 years.

Phantom’s creative team likes to say, “It’s the Broadway musical all others are measured against,” and they couldn’t be more correct.  It was for a whole generation of thespians (including yours truly), the show that made them fall in love with Broadway.  On Monday, I’ll be posting my tribute to Broadway’s most haunting love story, but for now I’m posting several videos to remind us how we fell in love with the music of the night.

The Overture and Raising of the Chandelier – For sooooo many phans, it was that heart-stopping overture and the raising of the chandelier which forever hooked us to the show.  Below is a clip of both from the show’s 25^th anniversary concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall.

In All Your Fantasies, You Always Knew – What made Phantom great was that the show could be terrifying one minute, and intensely romantic the next.  Combined with the exquisite set design, and chemistry between lead actors Michael Crawford (Phantom) and Sarah Brightman (Christine), it’s easy to see why so many fell in love with the story of a disfigured composer and his muse.  Here’s a clip from the 1988 Tony Awards with Crawford and Brightman.  (Sorry for the bad quality, there was no HD in 1988.)

By The Numbers – This is a wonderful clip made by the producers to highlight the show’s success around the world.  One of my favorite scenes is of a young and beautiful Princess Diana receiving a red rose from the Phantom.

A WORLDWIDE Phenomenon –  A major part of Phantom’s success has been its ability to travel the world, literally.  Early on, producer Cameron Mackintosh made the decision that the same show which played on Broadway, would also tour the world.  This meant that the sets/costumes, special effects and orchestra would all be the same.  The show would not be scaled down.  At the time, this was a revolutionary concept for musical touring productions, and an expensive once.  However, it is safe to say that the show’s investors made their money back.

Below is a great clip from the Chicago Tribune taking phans behind the scenes to see exactly how Phantom tours the world.

Behind the Mask – People tend to forget the struggle to launch Phantom.  The show’s special effects, controversy behind the affair/casting of Lloyd Webber’s wife Sarah Brightman and unflattering coverage by the press almost doomed the musical before its London opening.  In 2008, the BBC did a great hour long documentary called Behind the Mask about the show’s creative process.  Below is part one, with all the other parts available on Youtube.

For tickets to Phantom and more information on the show, please visit: http://www.thephantomoftheopera.com/