Playwright: Music by Gary Geld, lyrics by Peter Udell, book by James Lee Barrett, Peter Udell and Philip Rose
At: The Marriott Lincolnshire, 10 Marriott, Lincolnshire
Contact: 847-383-7600
Runs through: June 24
BY CATEY SULLIVAN
When it comes time to sign up someone to tackle the role of Inspector Javert in the regional premiere of Les Miserables, the powers that be at the Marriott Lincolnshire need look no further than Shenandoah. Specifically, they need look no further than David Hess, whose soaring voice and epic emotional prowess are powering the Civil War epic running through June 24 at the Marriott.
The rarely-produced musical ( music by Gary Geld, lyrics by Peter Udell, book by Udell, James Lee Barrett and Philip Rose ) ) stands or falls according to the actor playing Charlie Anderson, the patriarch of a large Virginia family. Charlie's myopic and stubborn and while not a pacifist—he's apt to start shooting if his family is threatened—he's adamant in his insistence that the War Between the States has naught to do with him. That arrogant, selfish refusal to take a stand on issues beyond the immediate shadow of his hearth and home ( his live-and-let-live philosophy extends to shrugging his shoulders at slavery, although he doesn't own slaves himself ) all but bleeds Javertian hubris: This is the sort of fierce, uncompromising and misguided morality that inevitably wreaks tragedy.
Creating a compelling, empathetic character from a man whose refusal to listen to others is aggravating at best and enraging at worst is no easy task. There's a machismo to Charlie that you want to see cut down to size, a puffed-up sense of his own righteousness that begs to be deflated. Factor in his tacit approval of slavery and you've got a leading man with the potential to sour the whole show. To keep that from happening, you need an actor of intensely commanding charisma, somebody who seems as propelled by inner fire as much as deeply rooted flaws. In the case of Charlie Anderson, you also need somebody with a booming, three-octave voice and the stamina to burn up the stage for a solid two-and-a-half hours. Charlie's rarely out of sight in Shenandoah. Physically, vocally and emotionally, the role is exhausting. Hess pulls it off, with majesty and energy to spare.
But Hess isn't this sum total of this magnificent ensemble production. Director David Bell crafts a piece of grand historical sweep and gut-wrenching personal revelations. There's the war, casting a pall of death and danger over the bucolic setting and, by extension, over the world entire. And there are the individual lives within that pall: Charlie and his family, the faces of the political revealed on shatteringly personal levels.
Sisters Jessie and Abby Mueller are radiant and full of heart as Anderson's daughter and daughter-in-law ( respectively ) while a joyously energetic ensemble fills up the stage as Anderson's sons. As a young slave, Cory Connor is a poignant emblem of innocence caught up in a difficult, complicated part of history.