Pictured Loving Repeating.
Playwright: Stephen Flaherty ( music ) ; Gertrude Stein ( lyrics, adapted by Frank Galati )
At: About Face Theatre at Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago
Phone: ( 312 ) 397-4010; $20-$40
Runs through: March 12
Gertrude Stein once said, 'A masterpiece may be unwelcome … but it is never dull.' Happily, applying her quote to this world premiere musical by Stephen Flaherty and Frank Galati removes any notion of the unwelcome. This masterpiece is many things, and it's never, ever dull. Thank you, Gertrude, for providing my opening for this review, and thank you, Gertrude, for providing the playful, thought-provoking, and joyous language around which this new musical has been composed.
Adapter Frank Galati used an actual lecture Stein delivered at the University of Chicago in 1934 ( when Stein was 60 ) as the framework for the play, which allows us to traverse with one of the twentieth century's most daring and inspired writers through most of her life, from her student days, to her friendships with such literary luminaries as T.S. Eliot, to her legendary love with her long-time partner, Alice B. Toklas. Stein's poetry and prose is used extensively here and it's wonderful how the joy she found in language comes across ( she was a true literary stylist, using repetition, fragmentation, and abstraction ) both in terms of musical potential and exposition. The wonderful thing about it is how Galati has adapted Stein's writing to make you share in the sheer joy of the English language and how something fresh and original can be created within its framework. Stephen Flaherty's score is the perfect match for Stein's writing. His compositions parallel Stein's innovativeness when it comes to language and take the audience on a changing musical journey, marked by styles as diverse as Victorian parlor music, vaudeville-inspired songs, and even opera.
Everything about this production is polished to perfection. Reviews like this aren't easy, because there's nothing to pick apart. Everyone connected with this production is a true theatrical artist working at the top of his or her game. Cindy Gold, in particular, creates a totally believable and extremely lovable Stein. You forget that this is an actress playing a role. The remainder of the cast is dazzling, including Jenny Powers ( in fine voice as Alice B. Toklas ) and Christine Mild ( anything but as the young Gertrude ) . Jack Magaw's Picasso-inspired set perfectly suits the material and is so visually arresting, it's worth the price of the ticket alone; and Michelle Tesdall's lovely period costumes are detailed and evocative.
But it's the loving marriage of score with language that really makes Loving Repeating a masterpiece and not for one moment dull.