Miss Saigon
The sound of a helicopter's blades slicing the air, a disturbing type of music, shatters the silence. It is a sound that is as symbolic of the war in Vietnam as any other sound, and it is the first thing you hear at the opening of Miss Saigon's final tour in Chicago.
When I first saw Miss Saigon in March of 1993, I went with trepidation. As someone who is not an admirer of Les Miserables, Miss Saigon co-creators Boublil and Schonberg's previous musical sensation, I was prepared not to like Miss Saigon. As it turns out, I liked the show so much that I still consider it to be one of my personal favorite musicals.
This current production is every bit as good as the production I saw seven years ago, but for different reasons. For example, Mika Nishida, the actress playing Kim, the innocent young woman forced into prostitution who falls in love with the American G.I Chris, gives a better performance than the previous actress. However, Jarrod Emick, who played Chris in the previous production, was a better actor, with a stronger singing voice, than Will Swenson, the actor currently playing Chris. As The Engineer, the pimp and entrepreneur desperate for an American visa, Joseph Anthony Foronda brings the right amount of sleaze to the character, yet makes him as human as any man with big dreams trying to survive the brutal environment of a war. He is a constant presence in the show, and his big numbers, "If You Want To Die In Bed" ( in the first act ) and "The American Dream" ( the show stopper in act two ) , are among the most memorable in the play.
The supporting cast, including Eugene Barry-Hill ( as Chris's fellow soldier John, who introduces Chris to Kim, and then later takes on the cause of the Amer-Asian children conceived during the war ) , Christine Allocca ( as Ellen, Chris's post-war American wife ) , and Johnny Fernandez ( as Thuy, the man to whom Kim was betrothed when they were children, who rises in the ranks of the military to become a commissar ) are all also first-rate.
Most importantly, the songs that are central to the play's story and forward movement still sound as good as they did the first time I heard them. Ironically, most of the best songs are in the first act. "The Movie In My Mind," sung by the prostitutes before the Miss Saigon "pageant" in 1975, shortly before the fall of Saigon, is a bittersweet song, while "The Ceremony," sung to celebrate the love and commitment Chris and Kim feel for each other following their night together, conjures a makeshift religious ceremony. Perhaps the best known songs from Miss Saigon are the love songs, and "The Last Night of the World" ( sung by Chris and Kim ) , "I Still Believe" ( sung by Kim and Ellen ) , "You Will Not Touch Him" ( sung by Kim to Thuy in regards to her and Chris's son Tam ) , and "I'd Give My Life For You" ( sung by Kim about her love for her son Tam ) , have stood the test of time, and probably will for many years to come.
The choreography, by Jodi Moccia, incorporates movement that successfully suggests both the dances of the Vietnam era and the more traditional dances of the region. The production design by John Napier, which includes both the landing and take-off of an airlift helicopter and a dream-sequence Cadillac, is as dazzling as I remembered it to be. Even something as seemingly simple as the use of rice-paper bamboo shades takes on new significance in the production. The occasionally muddy sound detracted a bit, and problems with follow spots were also a nuisance.
However, I will miss Miss Saigon when it leaves. "A-" At the Auditorium Theater, ( 312 ) 902-1500 , through July 23.
The Odd Couple
Live theater owners in Chicago, and the "organizations" and producers that book plays into those venues, must think people in Chicago are pretty unsavvy. Why else would we perpetually have to sit through second-rate artists performing in tired touring companies of shows ( does anybody else remember Terri Hatcher in Cabaret? ) . At least in cities such as Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., audiences get to see shows in their pre-Broadway productions. Last year's Aida functioned in that way for Chicago audiences, but it was a long time coming. This fall promises to be different with the Broadway In Chicago series of plays.
As for now, we have Barbara Eden in The Odd Couple, which is a perfect example of what I'm talking ( ranting! ) about. Are Chicago theatergoers really that starved for celebrities on-stage that they would subject themselves to a dated Neil Simon play starring an actress best known for playing a genie in a sitcom from the '60s? Apparently so.
A major disappointment on so many levels, The Odd Couple does boast a supporting cast that succeeds in making Simon's script sound funny and lively. As the board-game-playing friends, Mickey ( Jacqueline Williams ) , Vera ( Rose Abdoo ) , Sylvie ( Kristie Berger ) , and Renee ( Judy Blue ) , these four actresses electrify the stage with their bantering, bickering, and bonding. The second act is saved by the presence of the Costazuela brothers, Manolo ( George Bernhard ) and Jesus ( Larry Dahlke ) , who provide some comic relief via a language barrier.
Did anyone involved in this production realize how dated the play is? If it was supposed to take place in the present day ( and nothing, including Barbara White and Stephanie DePhillipo's costume design indicated otherwise ) , then why did they leave the Spiro Agnew reference in the script? Calling it the "female version" sounded like they were making an excuse for Simon's subtle anti-feminist rhetoric. And never have two actresses, Barbara Eden ( as Florence Unger ) and Rita McKenzie ( as Olive Madison ) been more miscast. Their discomfort with the production was obvious by the way they flubbed lines. It almost made me wish I had seen Sally Struthers and Rita Moreno, respectively, in the roles when it was done in a "female version" in the '80s.
To my surprise, the most enthusiastic audience response occurred during one of the set changes. When the dining room table was cleared, it was lifted up to reveal that it was all one piece. Scenic designer Tom Buderwitz should take a bow, he deserves it.
"D" At the Apollo Theater, ( 773 ) 935-6100, through Aug. 13.
Charlie & The Fiction Factory
Improvisational theater is always a gamble and The Free Associates have raised the stakes considerably by adding an 11-year-old cast member to their adult troupe for their latest production, Charlie & the Fiction Factory: Roald Dahl Unscripted. The payoff, however, is extremely good.
As with previous shows, The Free Associates have chosen a familiar theme ( for example, the TV show Dark Shadows or Tennessee Williams for Cast On A Hot Tin Roof ) and built an evening of comedic improvisation around it. For Charlie & the Fiction Factory, The Free Associates ( under the direction of Susan Gaspar ) , along with the aid of the audience, took a few liberties with the work of Roald Dahl ( author of the beloved children's books Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, Matilda and James & The Giant Peach ) . A few constants from Dahl's work remain, such as the child in peril, the evil adults in the child's life, the child's wish for escape, the magical character who will assist the child, and the "British" tone of the work.
On the night that I attended, Charlie ( who was renamed Emily for the performance ) was played by young Marley Sarmiento who capably held her own among her adult cast members in a very impressive manner. As Emily's evil Aunt Blister and Dr. Karma, the sadistic dentist with the third eye, Diana Boos and Adrienne Smith respectively, kept the mostly adult-oriented comedy coming and the movement of the improvised plot at a decent pace. John Gawlik's postman Mr. Piffle was as surreal as Dahl himself ever got, and Todd Guill, in the dual roles of Oswald and the colorfully dressed man who runs the safe-haven of the rutabaga factory, was very funny. Tasha Anne James's skills as a narrator may have been lacking, but she more than made up for it with her portrayal of Shelly, a classmate of Emily's. By the time Emily's wish is granted, the audiences spirits were soaring nearly as high as the character herself.
"A-" At the Ivanhoe Theater, ( 773 ) 975-7171, through Aug. 27.
