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- [00:02]
Narrator/Actor in Drama Segment
Now, Tam, my brave boy. Our long wait has ended. Smile, Tam, for you have a father
- [00:23]
Jan Simpson
at last.
- [00:26]
Narrator/Actor in Drama Segment
He has come to take you home. All I dream for you, you do, you're still mine. But I can't go along. Don't be sad Though I'm far away? I'll be watching you. This is the hour I swore I'd see? I alone can tell? But the end must be. They think they'll decide your life. No, it will be me.
- [01:27]
James Marino
Hello and welcome to Broadway Radios, this week on Broadway for Sunday, March 29, 2026. My name is James Marino, and in the broadcast today, we have a whole lineup. Jenna Tessa Fox, Michael Portantier, and Jan Simpson. Jenna has written about theater for many publications, including Playbill, Broadway World, timeout, and Towel Round. She's the member of the League of Professional Theater Women and the Drama Desk, is a contributor to Broadway Radio. And Jenna, just releasing a new episode, Spotlight. You talk to Michael John.
- [02:07]
Jenna Tessa Fox
Lechusa Lachiusa.
- [02:13]
James Marino
I chewed on that. So give us a preview. You know, what did Michael John say?
- [02:21]
Jenna Tessa Fox
Oh, we got to talk about the Wild Party, which is running at Encores for another five minutes, and I'm hoping we'll transfer somewhere because beautiful, beautiful production. Really enjoyed it and talked about creating the show, about looking back on a piece a quarter of a century after it premiered and how theater evolves over decades at how one piece can change and keep growing. It's a living art form. So that was really fun. And I made a huge mistake in the interview. I completely forgot to mention George C. Wolf's contributions to the piece. I didn't mention his name at all. And I am truly sorry for that. I only realized after I had signed off and stopped recording that I completely left out a rather important part of the creation of the Wild Party. So my apologies to Mr. Wolf, and hopefully I can talk with him one day about creating the show, hopefully when it transfers somewhere and everyone can come see it again and appreciate how great it is.
- [03:31]
James Marino
I was just gonna say you weren't talking to George C. Wolfe. You were talking to Michael Jon. And so maybe, you know, we great minds think al are. You were thinking the same thing I was. Let's get George C. Wolfe to have a discussion about this.
- [03:45]
Jenna Tessa Fox
I would love that. I really would love that, actually. That would be a lot of fun. So, yes, fingers crossed, we can make that happen.
- [03:53]
James Marino
Also with us is Michael Portantier. Michael has been a theater journalist for more than 50 years. He is the founder and editor of CastAlbumReviews.com and also a theatrical photographer whose photos have appeared in the New York Times and other publications. And he writes reviews of cabaret shows For Nightly Life exchange.com Additionally, Michael is known as a producer and director of shows at 54 below and the Laurie Beachman Theater as well as other venues. So, Michael, welcome back ashore.
- [04:26]
Michael Portantier
Thank you.
- [04:28]
James Marino
You were out on a cruise ship last week, but you're back just in time to talk with us this morning. And also because on Tuesday night, March 31, you're going to be at the Laurie Beechman Theater, do producing and directing An Evening with Charles Bush. And it's also going to have a live stream for folks who are out of town. Tell us about this.
- [04:52]
Michael Portantier
Yes, yes. The the tickets for the live show in person are only 25 plus fees, plus the $25 minimum food and drink at the Lori Beachman. But the live stream tickets are only $15. So if you can't make it, I think that's, I think it's going great evening. Charles is such a raconteur, so charming and funny and has had an amazing career and he himself is providing most of all of the clips we're going to show. So there's at least one that I would say is very rare and I think people are going to love to see that. And plus, in addition to the interview and the clips, then Charles is going to sing two or three songs live. So I think it's going to be a very, very nice evening.
- [05:48]
James Marino
All right. We have a link to the evening in our show notes, so you can get over there and get all the information. Also with us is Jan Simpson. Jan's a theater journalist who writes the blog Broadway and Me and hosts the Broadway radio podcasts, Stagecraft and all the drama. She has thrice served as a Pulitzer Prize juror. Hello, Jane.
- [06:10]
Jan Simpson
Hi.
- [06:11]
Michael Portantier
Hello.
- [06:13]
James Marino
So Peter is away this week, but he will be joining us at the end of the broadcast to give us brain teaser answers and questions in that order. So stay tuned for that. And he'll be back next week. Just a little bit of Patreon update. Patreon reports to me that they have fixed the issue with feed for those who were having this problem. If you are still having a problem with this or you have any other Patreon type of issue or any other Broadway radio issue, please email me so I can get on top of that for you. First up in our review section, Jenna and Jan have seen the recent opening on Broadway, the play called Giant. So, Jenna, why don't you get us started on Giant Sure.
- [07:16]
Jenna Tessa Fox
Thank you. Yeah. Giant is Mark Rosenblatt's new play. It feels depressingly timely given current arguments about Israel's role in the Middle east and the Jewish community's connection to Israel. And casting John Lithgow as Roald Dahl, the iconic English, British, I should say he was Welsh. Norwegian. Children's author seems even more on the nose as people are also debating the challenges of separating a writer's personal views from their work. The play unfolds in real time. It covers a meeting between Roald Dahl and representatives of both his American and British publishers after he publishes a book review that is very critical of Israel and of Jews in general. The representatives are both Jewish themselves. They want polite apologies to be issued. Roald Dahl wants to say whatever he wants. He does not want to be criticized for it. So they spend two and a half hours butting heads. Cue the drama. Problem is, the play doesn't seem to be about Dahl at all. And it doesn't even seem to be about discussing or debating a terribly complex and nuanced situation. It feels like Rosenblatt had a point to make rather than a story to tell. And the play becomes. It feels increasingly preachy and the characters become less nuanced as it goes on. And it's really disappointing since the issues he raises are definitely complex. And incorporating real people adds yet another layer of complexity. As opposed to. I was reminded of Itamar Moses, the Ally, which ran at the Public Theater two years ago. It tackled the same issues through completely fictional characters. The characters in this play, both real and fictional, just feel increasingly two dimensional as the play goes on, and their debates feel increasingly like sound bites. Lithgow, not surprising anyone, is absolutely brilliant as Doll. He makes the character very charismatic. But as I was walking out and thinking how charismatic his performance was, I also thought, well, yes, Ted Bundy was also supposed to be very charismatic too. It seems like it's the same charisma that would just lure someone right into a web. He's arrogant with a frightening superiority complex, and his success has only fed his ego and egoism. Lithgow conveys all of that with a really terrifying skill and makes the character like a giant that is stomping everywhere. Rachel Sterling gets painfully little to do as Felicity, Doll's fiance, besides try to encourage restraint as Doll goes on his rants. She gets some very good moments, but I really wish Rosenblatt had given her more to do than be exasperated and frustrated. And for the record, no, this play does not pass the Bechdel test, which was Disappointing. Elliot Levy is very complex as Tom, a very assimilated Jew who escaped Germany as a child and has grown so accustomed to British anti Semitism that it hardly occurs to him to confront it. And his increasing frustration with the situation and growing realization that maybe the way things are isn't the way they should be is very powerful to watch. Aya Cash Cash Cash Cash, I guess gives a really great performance as Jessie Stone. Fans of the TV series the Boys can really appreciate her range as a performer given her role here as a conflicted Jewish businesswoman and her scenery chewing Nazi supervillain on the TV series. Really appreciated the difference there. She balances strength and determination with real vulnerability and concern with great skill. It's a very understated performance, but very, very powerful. Stella Everett deserves a lot of praise for her performance as Doll's New Zealand born housekeeper. She doesn't have an awful lot to do, mostly coming on stage and clearing away dishes or helping with a bit of exposition for what's happening. But in one scene towards the end of the play, she really holds her own with Lithgow and she doesn't even say a word. She sits there silently reacting as she listens to him talk on a phone. Lithgow is such a magnetic performer, it's hard to take your eyes off him when he's doing his job. But I kept looking back to see her reaction as she just sat there not moving. And I think that says an awful lot about her and her talent as a performer. I'm very excited to see what else she does. If she can convey so much emotion while sitting completely still, she can do an awful lot. David Manis only gets one scene as the groundskeeper who is also the inspiration for Dahl's Big Friendly Giant. But the moment that he's on stage lets us see how the people around Dahl have enabled his ego and supported him rather than encourage him to see things differently or be kinder. It's a very small part, but it really helps us understand the world that has made Dahl into the very cruel person that we see. Nicholas Heitner's direction is fine. He definitely understands British sentiment and humor. He keeps the pace consistent. Bob Crowley's scenic design and Adol Watson's lighting design are fine, very realistic. Crowley's costumes really stand out with primary colors really nicely indicating emotion and mindsets. The play touches on a lot of very complex issues that deserve really deep dives and careful analyses. I don't think this play really provides either and I think it's weaker for it.
- [13:46]
James Marino
Okay, Jan, what did you think?
- [13:50]
Jan Simpson
We have a lot of shows to get to, and so I'm going to try and be really quick. This was the show I was most looking forward to seeing this season, and like Jenna, I was very disappointed. It has, obviously John Lithgow, Nicholas Heitner, on whom I've had a crush for the last three decades, the playwright Mark Rosenblatt. This is his first play. His career has mainly been in directing, and he and the play won just about everything in Britain when the play was done on London. It's very repetitive. The arguments are made over and over again, and a lot of it just doesn't work. Internal logic. There is no way in the world that the woman, the American who is a fictional character, would have stayed there as long as she did with the way that the doll character is treating her. The character that Elliot Levy plays is a real person. He was a real British publisher. I'm imagining that Rosenbach was trying to recreate what he thought that experience was like. And maybe because the Brits had followed it when it happened more closely than we did, they were able to fill in parts of it that I, at least, just wasn't. And so, I'm very sad to say, a big disappointment for me. However, my husband, who doesn't go to the theater with me very much, opted to see this one, and he really enjoyed Lithgow's performance. The play, not so much, but was really moved by Lithgow. And of course, it's hard not to be moved or impressed by Lithgow's talent. So if you want to see John Lithgow on stage, go. Otherwise, I don't know, Wikipedia the whole argument.
- [16:31]
James Marino
He, your husband is like Peter's Linda.
- [16:34]
Jan Simpson
Although, yeah, he doesn't even go to leave.
- [16:40]
James Marino
You know, we have to find out if Giant was.
- [16:43]
Michael Portantier
If.
- [16:43]
James Marino
If Linda went to Giant and stayed. So we'll have to ask Peter next week. So. All right, so Giant is at the Music Box Theater. It is scheduled through June 28, 2026, and we'll have a link to that in the show notes. Jan, you and Jenna were probably not together, but possibly together over at the Hudson Theater to see every brilliant Thing. Our friend Daniel Radcliffe is. Is. Is just amazing. The house is there. So what was your take on every brilliant Thing?
- [17:23]
Jan Simpson
Well, this is a lesson in expectations. I was really looking forward to seeing Giant. I was disappointed. I was sort of foot dragging my way into the Hudson to see every Brilliant Thing and was really kind of wowed by it. I had seen the production. I Guess what is it like 10, 15 years ago when it played downtown, I think at the Greenwich house, not with Daniel Radcliffe. And this play, which is ostensibly, and I'm using air quotes, a one person play has been done around the world. It was Written by Duncan McMillan with Johnny Donahoe and is as many one person shows are, was based on a personal experience. When, and I'm not sure which one, I think it's Donoho's mother, when he was a boy, attempted suicide. He was a very little kid, six or seven. And when his mother came home from the hospital, this little kid drew up a list of things that he thought made life worth living and gave to his mother. The first item is ice cream. And it goes. It was a list of, I don't know, maybe two dozen things. He continued with this list over the course of his life. There were other attempts by his mother, other suicide attempts by his mother. There were periods of depression of his own. And this list graduated, grew to close to and maybe even 1 million things. 1 million reasons that life is worth living. Every brilliant thing. The way the show works is that before it begins, members of the audience are given. Some of them are given slips of paper that are numbered from this list. And during the course of the show, the actor who is telling us this story calls out numbers and people yell out the number of the thing that's on the piece of paper they've been given. Other people, before the show begins, are recruited to play characters in the storyteller's life. A teacher who was very helpful to him or her. Sometimes the role has been played by a woman, the father of the character, just a couple of other characters. The partner, the romantic partner of the main storyteller. I was suspicious of whether or not someone as famous as Daniel Radcliffe could do this. I don't mean in terms of his talent as an actor, although that has. I think we've really seen that grow and develop over the course of the shows he's done here in New York. From Equus to how to Succeed and of course Merrily and now this. But just was he really going to be able to interact with just regular people? Well, the answer is yes. He is so totally charming and disarming when you come into the theater, he's running around handing out cards to people, talking to people, and after a while, a very short while, it's not Daniel Radcliffe, Harry Potter movie star. It's just this guy who's putting together a show and you want to be helpful and he is brilliant at it. And one of the real challenges of the play is that he does have to interact with these people. He's chosen to be part to be characters, and some of the people are going to be good and some are not. And he's going to help those who aren't while remembering how to keep the narrative going. It is. Well, I'm going to just go ahead and, you know, be predictable. It is a brilliant performance.
- [22:41]
James Marino
Okay, Jenna, what'd you think?
- [22:44]
Jenna Tessa Fox
I agree wholeheartedly. Everything she said and then some. I have. I've missed this. This play. When it was off Broadway, I missed the HBO special. So really glad I got to see this now, especially when it really feels like the world needs a list of reasons to keep going. I'm pretty sure that was the title of a Neil LaBute play that got scrapped early in development. Yes, I agree with everything Jan just said and with everything Michael and Peter said when they reviewed it two weeks ago. I will also say that as people in the audience are either stepping up to perform the scenes that they've been selected to participate in or just shouting out the reason they've been given at the key moment, it means they have to pay attention. There's no sense that the audience is not with the performer or not engaged. Everyone is listening and everyone is paying attention because when their numbers is called, they need to participate. They need to shout out their line. And it is such a wonderful vibe to be in that room full of people who are so engaged and focused on what is happening, that in this day and age with attention spans that last less than 30 seconds, it's really wonderful to just feel that kind of energy. It was brilliant. It is fun. It is interactive and poignant and dramatic. It's such a moving piece of theater. I really appreciate that it acknowledges mental illness and that there are reasons to be sad. That's another labute play I'm sure was in development.
- [24:33]
Michael Portantier
That sounds like a title of one, right?
- [24:36]
Jenna Tessa Fox
I'm positive that's upcoming, but it's never judgmental, and I really appreciated that. It offers reasons for hope without being Pollyanna. Ish. And that is a really tricky balance. Macmillan and Donahoe pull it off very, very nicely. I agree with everyone who's praised Radcliffe's performance. He just gets better and better every time he's on stage. I'm so glad he's been focusing on theater. I'm even more glad he's focusing on it here rather than in the uk. Pardon me. He has a really wonderful stage presence and a very easy rapport. With the audience. And I think that really matters in an interactive piece like this. I didn't notice anybody who was participating in the interactive moments giggling nervously or indicating that this was in any way awkward for them. And that really helps keep the mood where it needed to be. I think a lot of that ease and that sense of comfort really has to do how comfortable Radcliffe is engaging and interacting with the audience before the curtain goes up, or metaphorically speaking, of course. And throughout the performance. Jeremy Heron directs the play along with macmillan. Lots of energy, lots of humor, nicely balancing the more poignant moments with the organized chaos of the audience participation. Vicki Mortimer's set and costume design. The costume design for Radcliffe is very nice, understated, but the set incorporates the onstage seating that not only helps make the audience participation much easier, but it also lets us see the protagonist surrounded by people. And many of those people are the ones who are tapped to support him throughout the play, which really gives the piece a no one is alone kind of element. That I thought was very nice. Tom Gibbons sound design also deserves a lot of praise. I didn't know until two weeks ago with the. The review about the microphones throughout the house, so that when people are yelling out their brilliant things, that we can hear them. So very skillfully done. It's just such a lovely play. It really helped brighten my mood when I saw it in really chaotic times. It's nice to remember all the good things that make life worth living.
- [27:07]
James Marino
All right, so Every Brilliant Thing is at the Hudson Theater, scheduled right now through May 24, and we'll have a link to that in the show notes. Michael, were you a pirate king last week?
- [27:23]
Michael Portantier
And it is a glorious thing to be a pirate King.
- [27:27]
James Marino
To be a pirate king. You were on a cruise for the last week or so. So you ran out right after we recorded the show last week to jump on a ship on. On the west side piers. Where is that embarked from? Which cruise line Was it Norwegian? It was Norwegian, Yes.
- [27:52]
Michael Portantier
And actually just got back this morning at 8 and walked. Fortunately, I have it like a 15 minute walk home from the ship to my apartment. So here I am.
- [28:04]
James Marino
Did you have sea legs?
- [28:06]
Michael Portantier
Yeah, I had. Yeah, I did, yeah.
- [28:08]
James Marino
A little bit of sea legs there.
- [28:09]
Michael Portantier
Yeah.
- [28:11]
James Marino
So while you were on the Norwegian, which. Which. Which ship was it on the Norwegian line?
- [28:18]
Michael Portantier
The Breakaway.
- [28:19]
James Marino
The Breakaway, yes. So they had live entertainment on board and you saw a handful of things. Tell us about that.
- [28:29]
Michael Portantier
Yeah, they. I think I. I'm told that they're moving away from larger shows, which is unfortunate. But they still have some for the, you know, for the time being. And, and the best one I saw was called Burn the Floor, which is a really fantastic dance show. You know, no, no real concept or theme to it. Just a, A bunch of incredible dance numbers of all genres of music performed by a really. And then there was a show called Red, White and British, which also had a lot of dancing and singing. And that was about, you know, as you might guess, the, the British invasion of pop, beginning with the Beatles. And then, you know, right up kind of till the present day. There was a really fun James Bond theme section in that. I really enjoyed that. And the third thing was actually, in a way, what I enjoyed most did a concert version of the, the album Rumors by Fleetwood Mac, which was even more interesting to me now than it would have been a few years ago because having seen Stereophonic, the play on Broadway, which is loosely, but not now, loosely based on the creation of that album. And I actually don't know the album that well, the actual album that well, and I was amazed that I knew almost every song on it. I mean, what an incredible album that is. Just one hit after another. And the quality of the vocalists, also the tech, the sound and lighting, really just world class lighting. So I loved all three of the shows and on the nights that there was nothing to do, there was karaoke. So I got up and did my own thing. And I seem to have made a hit with two songs, New York, New York and Sweet Caroline. So, yeah, I mean, I really recommend Cruising for, for those who haven't done it. Some people who haven't done it think, oh, I don't want to be cooped up on a ship, you know, for a week. But they're like, they literally are the size of floating cities. You know, you. It's hard to feel claustrophobic on the ship.
- [30:57]
James Marino
I was, I was going to say I pulled up a picture of the Breakaway and Holy Floating City, which if you're a Broadway insider, you know that Floating City was the Titanic's sort of side gig for some of the cast, right.
- [31:17]
Michael Portantier
And these aren't even. The Norwegian ships aren't, I think, aren't even remotely close to the largest ships that exist, you know, other cruise slides. I don't know if I'd want to be on anything bigger than this. I think this is quite big enough. I mean, it's got everything. It's got water slides, pools, it's got a library, it's got a spa. It's got everything. You know, they're really, really great.
- [31:44]
James Marino
So says Google, says Norwegian Breakaway is 1,145,000 ton, 3,903 guest cruise ship. It is, it's like the size of Chelsea, you know.
- [32:04]
Michael Portantier
How many, how many guests again?
- [32:06]
James Marino
3,000. Just under 4,000 guests.
- [32:09]
Michael Portantier
That's interesting because I thought when we left today, one of the women, one of the staff told us that they had 4, 800 people coming up.
- [32:16]
Jenna Tessa Fox
Oh,
- [32:19]
Michael Portantier
so that's going to be kind of crowded.
- [32:22]
James Marino
Yeah, well, you know, Google can be wrong, so we'll see. But welcome back and glad that you had such a, such an entertaining time, you know. Can you tell me, does thunder only happen when it's raining? So
- [32:40]
Michael Portantier
we had, we had good weather. We were lucky.
- [32:43]
James Marino
All right, so next up, Jan, you were over on West 57th Street. Were you walking up and down the block wondering where Masquerade is?
- [32:58]
Jan Simpson
No, no, no, no. Because I knew the old Lee's Art Shop, which is where Masquerade, the new immersive production of the Phantom of the Opera is playing. And as I think Peter explained recently, it very similarly to Sleep no More plays out over several floors. And it's great fun. It's just, I don't know what else to say about it except that it is a real experience. They divide you in the starting times are sort of stack. So you come in at 7 or 7:15 or 7:30 and so on, and you're in groups of maybe 50 to 60 people. They have what we usually call ushers, but here they're called butlers who take you around. So it's not exactly like Sleep no More where you wandered around on your own, but they take you from scene to scene. The way that they are able to orchestrate this whole thing is just amazing because you don't hear what's going on in other rooms. It's as though just you and your little cohort are moving around and watching the adventures of the Phantom and Christine and Andre. And they have different casts. The opening night cast was six well known people who have worked on Broadway. I have to say we didn't have any of those. We had Jeremy Stoll who was wonderful as the Phantom. It's just, I don't know how else to say is just great fun. You're encouraged, strongly encouraged to dress up. And so people were in evening dress and long dresses and tuxedos. You're also encouraged to bring your own mas. If you don't, they have fancy masks for you to wear there. The tickets are, I gather, very, very expensive. I was lucky enough to be given press tickets. But it is such an adventure that it's doing very well. And it has extended several times. And I think it's extended all the right now into the fall. And so for something different to do a treat for people who love theater, love musical, love the Phantom of the Opera, I would, I would encourage people to do this. You leave with a smile on your face and you start off with a glass of champagne.
- [36:36]
James Marino
All right, so as Jan mentioned, Masquerade has yet again extended since we talked about it with Peter. Back in Peter's day, it was just extended till July. Now it's extended to September 13th. We'll have a link to that in the show notes. Jan, What was your feeling about the original production on Broadway?
- [37:06]
Jan Simpson
That is so funny. I didn't see the original production on Broadway until about a month before it closed.
- [37:14]
Jenna Tessa Fox
Wow.
- [37:15]
Jan Simpson
I had taken great pride in saying I've never seen the Phantom of the Opera.
- [37:20]
James Marino
That's because you're in your early 20s.
- [37:23]
Michael Portantier
Yeah.
- [37:23]
James Marino
You know, you can't expect it.
- [37:25]
Jan Simpson
And then when I heard it was closing, I thought, I think you better go see the fan.
- [37:30]
James Marino
Yeah.
- [37:31]
Jan Simpson
And so I did. And obviously, 35 years later, it wasn't what I imagined it was when it first in its first few years, but I could see why it was special and why it lasted 35 years. And I don't know that this totally captures. Recreates that kind of spectacle. Although there is a chandelier that falls. But it's its own thing, its own experience. Although obviously the music is there. It's beautifully sung, at least by our cast, the cast that my friend and I saw. And the detail with the production design is just incredible. Just. Diane Paulus, I think everyone knows, is really the captain of this ship and she and her extensive team. And one of the things that's wonderful is you get this sort of old fashioned looking playbill. And everybody is credited, the butlers are credited, the crew is credited. And when I talk about the production design, they recruited all kinds of people to contribute to the artifacts that you see in the various rooms, the various scenes. They have the performance artist, Marina Abramovic contributed. Bob Dylan contributed. It's. It's just an experience.
- [39:29]
James Marino
All right, so as I mentioned, it is running through September 13th, and we'll have a link to that in the show notes. Jenna, you were over at the Darrow Roth Theater in Union Square to see the reopening of Mexodus. Was Mexicus at Dera Roth before? No, it was somewhere else before.
- [39:59]
Jan Simpson
It was Minetta Lane.
- [40:00]
James Marino
It was at Minetta Lane. That's right.
- [40:02]
Jenna Tessa Fox
Yeah.
- [40:02]
Jan Simpson
It's an audible production.
- [40:04]
James Marino
That's right.
- [40:05]
Michael Portantier
Right.
- [40:06]
James Marino
So, Jenna, tell us about Mexico.
- [40:09]
Jenna Tessa Fox
Yes, I missed the show when it was at the Minetta Lane, which I really regret. But I'm very glad I got to see it this past week at the Daryl Roth because this is the perfect Passover show. Michael and Peter reviewed it in October when it was at Manetta Lane. So I won't rehash the premise too much. Brian Quijada and Nigel D. Robinson both wrote and perform in this two person show. They start out playing themselves and then gradually become two separate characters whose lives intersect as they both try to fight for a better life in pre Civil War Texas and Mexico. When the piece turns fictional, it follows an enslaved man in Texas who goes south to Mexico rather than north to Canada to find freedom. Once across the border, he is assisted by a Mexican man who is also trying to make a life for himself as a farmer. So it's a very important story to tell, of course, since most of us only think about enslaved people heading north to Canada. What makes Mexic so brilliant, beyond important is how Quijada and Robinson tell the story themselves. They create all of the music live on stage, through live performance, and then through looping the sound. Big shout out to Mikhail Fiskel's looping system and sound design, which is really brilliant and deserves a lot of recognition. Once a word, Season really gets going and side tangent. Kihada, Robinson and Vixel are also credited as the orchestrators. And I wonder if this is the first time a show's sound design, composers, librettists and actors all collaborated on the orchestrations. So in any case, it's definitely a remarkable achievement. The two performers not only narrate the story, they are creating it themselves in very real time. It gives the piece a very unique sense of urgency that I'm not really used to seeing in traditional theater. David Mendizabal's direction, please forgive me if I mispronounced that. And he also saw costume design, incidentally, is very fun. It's energetic, but it also balances the humor with some really powerful, stressful, tense elements and moments that are really beautifully balanced. Rue Raquel Chan's set looks very southwestern and rural. It's also at the same time very urban and very modern. All of the instruments acoustic and technical, and the recording equipment is all on stage and the performers play lots of instruments over the course of the show. Mexli Kusen's lighting does a great job of creating atmosphere and mood. But it also separates the fictional historical story from Robinson and Quijata's own side stories about their lives and how racism has affected them in different ways. Could argue that incorporating the personal histories from the creators and performers into this fictional narrative also really raises that sense of urgency. I really agree with Michael and Peter about how how brilliant the show is. And Passover is the perfect week to see it. I'd really recommend people see it before they sit down to their Seder tables. Cause this is something to discuss during the Seder.
- [43:51]
James Marino
Okay. Mexico is running through June 14th. We'll have a link to that in the show notes. Jan, you were over to the theater at St. Jean's to see the York Theater production of Monte Cristo. So tell us about this.
- [44:12]
Jan Simpson
I'm actually going to tell you about my day when I saw that.
- [44:16]
James Marino
Okay.
- [44:16]
Jan Simpson
Because I had a double header day and I I started at the Marjorie S. Dean Little Theater on the Upper west side where I saw Maltby and Shires. About time. And then I bust my way over to the east side and the York theaters Theater at St. Jean's and saw Monte Cristo. And the reason I wanted to talk about both of them together is that both of these shows in a way, have a particular demographic in mind. And I guess the briefest way to describe that demographic is anybody who has an AARP cart. The check.
- [45:15]
Jenna Tessa Fox
I'm getting there. I'm getting there.
- [45:18]
Jan Simpson
The Malby and Shire show, which was directed by Richard Maltby, and he was there at the performance that I attended. And I sort of get a sense that he hangs around there a lot. It is a review, and it is a review that they intentionally designed to be the third in the sort of triptych of reviews they've done. The first being Starting Here, Starting now, which they wrote back in 1977 about young people and what it's like to be literally starting out. Then a decade or so later, they did closer than ever. What it's like when you're settling down with children and into marriages. And this show about time is really about growing older and what it's like to be a person who's in your 60s, 70s, and beyond. And they recruited six veteran performers, Allison K. Daniel, Darius De Haas, Daniel Jenkins, Eddie Corbich, Sally Wilford and Lynn Wintersteller, to perform these songs that they've written that cover the gamut. And one of the things that is always makes me nervous when people are doing shows about older people is are the older people going to be really Cutesy is the show going to condescend to them? There are some moments of cutesy ness here where, like, somebody doesn't know how to work their computer. Everybody now knows how to work.
- [47:40]
Michael Portantier
Don't speak so fast.
- [47:42]
Jenna Tessa Fox
I can argue that one.
- [47:48]
Jan Simpson
All right. Almost everyone. But the songs are tuneful. They're very well performed. I mean, these are all seasoned performers. They're just. There's no connecting narrative. It's a review. And so each song exists in its own moment. There's. But there's enough information, enough context for you to understand the song. Some of them are very fun. Honey. Vroom, Vroom Vroom is about older guys who go out and buy motorcycles so that they can show they're still viral. Overripe Fruit is a song that a trio of women sing about how maybe their bodies aren't as firm as they were, but they're still juicy. And then there are some more serious songs. Darius Nahas does a song called what Do I Tell the Children? Talking about the world that people, baby boomers, let's say, have created and are now turning over to the next generation. The positive things, but also the mistakes that were made, the challenges that this younger generation is going to face. I don't know how the show would play outside its demographic to audiences outside its demographic. Just about everyone in the audience
- [49:29]
Jenna Tessa Fox
at
- [49:30]
Jan Simpson
the performance I attended was in that demographic and was enjoying it completely. So there's that. The reason I pair it with Monte Cristo is not just because I happen to see the two of them on the same day, but that I think that people who really like old fashioned musicals will enjoy this. Now, before we started recording, I think somebody was mentioning that the word on the street is that it's not a really great show and it isn't a great show, but it's an enjoyable show. If you're looking for that old fashioned kind of show where there's a romantic couple who are kept apart, there are dastardly villains, there's a second comic couple that offer comic relief. And of course, it is based on the classic Alexandre Dumas novel, the Count of Monte Cristo. And that book has endured. And so the story is a familiar one. It's one that plays well of this man who is wrongly sent to a prison, escapes, finds a fortune and comes back to Paris and then tries to seek revenge against the people who put him in this terrible prison in an island far away. The show is going to draw comparisons and unfavorable comparisons to Les Mis and even to Sweeney Todd. I mean, We've got a guy who was put away coming back, seeking revenge. It's not going to live up to those shows, but in its own modest, you know, profile, it's. It satisfies. Is the music memorable? The music, the book and lyrics are by Peter Kellogg. The music by Stephen Miner. I would have to say no. But again, it's a pleasant show. Now, what focuses attention on this particular production is the people that they were able to recruit to come come to this small theater of about 200 seats and perform. The Count is played by Adam Jacobs. The love of his life is. People may remember him as the original Aladdin. The love of his life is played by Sierra Boggess. I don't think she needs production. One of the people who put the Count away is played by Norm Lewis. And the comic relief is supplied by Karen Ziemba and Danny Rutigliano. And Danny Rutigliano may. Some people may remember him. They did the most recent production of Fiorello at Encores. He played the title role. They're all terrific. Well, you know, surprise. These people would be terrific. They're all terrific. The tickets over at the theater at St. Jean's which is on East 76th street, are not that expensive, relatively speaking. And again, I just emphasize it is a pleasant, pleasant evening. And if you're looking for just again, a good old fashioned time performed by some really talented people, then you might enjoy this show.
- [54:13]
James Marino
Okay, so the York Theater production of Monte Cristo at The theater at St. Jean's is running through April 5, and we'll have a link to that in the show notes. And also the Malpeonshire About Time at Marjorie S. Dean Little Theater is also running through April 5th, and we'll have a link to that in the show notes. Finally, in our last review this morning, Jenna, you were down in the borough of Brooklyn to see a production of Hamlet at Theater for a New Audience. So tell us about this.
- [54:53]
Jenna Tessa Fox
So it really seems to be the season for shows that are sort of about Hamlet, but not really about Hamlet. Thinking especially in terms of Hamnet, which I know there's a play adaptation, I hope that comes to New York soon. So on the heels of Hamnet being a big fat cinematic hit, Teatro La Plaza has brought its production of Hamlet to Theater for a new Audience. This is not any kind of traditional production, though. It's written and directed by Cielo de Ferrari. It's more of a multimedia performance piece than a traditional play. For the record, I am not usually a big fan of performance art. I Absolutely loved the show. I'd consider going again if I can. If it extends, I will be back out there. The play is performed in Spanish with English supertitles by eight actors, all of whom have down syndrome. They play with Shakespeare's text and incorporate their own experiences into to the 400 plus year old words. So, for example, Polonius warns Ophelia that she can't make choices for her own life because she has an extra chromosome, so she can't possibly know what's best for her. Claudius tells his subjects that he had to seize his brother's throne because Hamlet is too disabled to be a leader. And the famous line, wherefore wouldst thou be a breeder of sinners? Becomes why wouldst thou be a breeder of an ableist slur that I'm not going to repeat. That got a good bunch of gasps from the audience. The actors incorporate music and dance and video into the production. They even recreate Laurence Olivier's To Be or Not To Be seen from the 1948 film version. And all of it works together to show how much the performers can accomplish and how little people respect their abilities. Instead of grief and despair, this Hamlet emphasizes joy and creativity and success. The cast of eight, and please forgive me if I mispronounce names, Octavio Bernaza, Jaime Cruz, Cristina Leon Barrad, Diaran Diana Gutierrez, Lucas de Marchi, Alvaro Toledo, Manuel Garcia, Jimena Rodriguez. They all play multiple roles. They all play Hamlet at one point or another in the show. Their performances are just excellent and they work very well together as a team. Sheyla de Ferrari's direction, it's very fast paced for it's a 90 minute show, so this is not a huge time commitment. And she keeps the energy up all throughout it. She balances humor and wit with moments of genuine poignancy. Lucho Soldavea's visuals, Jesus Reyes his lighting work very well to complement the text and to emphasize the points that the actors are making at different moments. And total side tangent. I really love that this production is right across the street from Dam, where the National Theaters production of Hamlet is going to be running next month. So it feels like we could have another Astroplace riot out in Brooklyn. If people want to get something organized, we could have some fun with this. The show is running at theater for a new audience through April 4th. As I said, unless it extends, and I really hope it does, it has been touring the world for a few years now. With any luck, it will go to a lot more cities so a lot more people can see It.
- [58:39]
James Marino
All right, so that is Hamlet at the theater for a new audience in Brooklyn. And we'll have a link to that in the show notes. So, you know, we're running really late, but the only thing we can't skip over because we're all groffies. Everyone is a groffy, is that today is Jonathan Grof's last performance for Just in Time, less performance at Circle in the Square, I'd imagine. So, Michael, any last thoughts about Grof?
- [59:19]
Michael Portantier
Yes, and the timing is kind of neat because Jonathan's birthday was Thursday. I'm sure lots of love is coming his way these days. And I mean, it's just such a wonderful, wonderful performance and a total triumph. And he really is, as many people have made the point, an example of someone who really has become a true theater star. You know, prime, overwhelmingly because of his theater work. He certainly, you know, has done film and tv, including a sort of obscure little film or two called Frozen and Frozen two. You know, but, but yeah, it's. He, he really is a creature of the theater. And I, we. We don't get that many of them anymore, so that makes it all the more miraculous. And also, you know, on a personal note, the fact that he seems to be doing so spectacularly well despite being openly gay just has not seemed to have hurt his career at all. So that's another thing to be happy about. Just win, win, win all around and just really, really great.
- [60:38]
James Marino
Well, there is also a. Another small film called the Matrix that he was in, so.
- [60:45]
Michael Portantier
Oh, yeah, Yeah. I didn't mention.
- [60:50]
James Marino
He does have his tentacles far and wide. So we're all excited to see what we see him in next.
- [60:59]
Jan Simpson
I just feel sorry for the guys who are going to have to try to fill his shoes. Really talented men. Really, really talented guys. Guys. But I think they'll.
- [61:11]
Jenna Tessa Fox
They'll bring their, their own energy to the piece. I'd kind of like to see it again with both of them and see what they incorporate.
- [61:20]
Michael Portantier
Yes.
- [61:22]
Jenna Tessa Fox
You know, great.
- [61:24]
James Marino
You, you often have to feel bad for folks who have to replace in such iconic roles like King George or Hamilton or, or, you know, the folks who followed Michael Crawford in Phantom or, you know, it's, you know, it's a rough business. It's a rough business.
- [61:46]
Jenna Tessa Fox
I'm meeting up with a friend this afternoon who is seeing Operation Mincemeat and she's. I'm eager to hear how the new cast is doing. I'm dying to see what they bring to it. I've heard one little spoiler about what they do at the end now that they couldn't do with the original cast.
- [62:04]
Michael Portantier
Oh, okay.
- [62:06]
Jenna Tessa Fox
Eager to hear that's accurate.
- [62:08]
Michael Portantier
Oh, I'm gonna get. I'm gonna guess, but.
- [62:10]
James Marino
Well, I won't guess, but has, you know, has Operation Mincemeat finally killed the concept of an open run? Does everybody say, oh, we're gonna run until September. Oh, we're gonna run and we're gonna run until January. Oh, we're gonna run until June. Oh, we're gon September and you know it. Operation Mincemeat's been so well at extended and extending. Extending. Whereas it used to be just like we're on Broadway, we're in an open run. You know, can you imagine if. If Wicked had to announce extensions?
- [62:50]
Michael Portantier
You know, that is a. That's an excellent point. I'm not sure if they are the very first one that's done.
- [62:56]
James Marino
No, no, no.
- [62:56]
Michael Portantier
But.
- [62:57]
James Marino
But I feel like was the bookend that.
- [63:01]
Michael Portantier
Yes, now.
- [63:01]
James Marino
Yes, now everybody's sort of doing that. That they're just announcing limited runs. Limited runs.
- [63:08]
Michael Portantier
You know who else is doing it is. Is Ragtime.
- [63:11]
James Marino
Yeah. Yeah.
- [63:12]
Michael Portantier
That's one more example a little bit
- [63:16]
James Marino
different for, you know, a subscription house like Lincoln Center Theater, things like that. If they had. If they were in a commercial house, then.
- [63:25]
Michael Portantier
Right. That is different. You're right.
- [63:28]
James Marino
All right, so that wraps it up for today. Before we get on to our brain teaser and our musical moment, I want to remind everybody that you can subscribe to these broadcasts by going to the front page of broadwayradio.com. there's a subscribe link that way each and every time this new episode of this Week on Broadway be automatically downloaded to Apple podcasts for you. Of course, you don't have to get us in. Apple podcasts use many ways to get us. Patreon is one way. P A t r e o-n.com Broadwayradio is where you can support all of Broadway radio's shows and get us a little bit early and get a few extra bonuses. Contact information for Jenna, for Jana, for Michael, for me, for Peter can be found in the show notes@broadwayradio.com as well as links to some of the things we've talked about today. So, Peter, do you have an answer to last week's brain teaser?
- [64:24]
Peter Felicia
Chicago, the Color Purple Hair, into the Woods, Once on this Island Parade and Pippin were all Tony nominated best musical losers. But what else do they have in common? Well, when they returned to Broadway, each won the best musical revival Tony. And Speaking of Tony, Mr. Janicki was again first, followed by Sean Logan, Paul Witty, Josh Israel, Lee Klaun, Greg Blazer, Juliet Green, Colin Welter, Jeffrey Cohen, John Petrakovic, Mike Meaney, Steven Sogoloff, Eric Henwood, Greer Avery Clements, Jeff Falenger, Spencer Cuomo, Jeff Hosenfeld, Ray Ustra, Brigad, and Fred Abramowitz. Wow, I'm excited.
- [65:08]
James Marino
Those, all the names, you know,
- [65:12]
Jenna Tessa Fox
they
- [65:12]
Peter Felicia
add up, don't they? We'll see how many answer this week's question. If the four main characters in a certain Sondheim musical were to go skiing, where would be the most apt place for them to do it?
- [65:28]
James Marino
Okay, if you have an answer to this, send us an email@triviaroadrayradio.com we'll let you know if you're on the right track. So, Michael, what do we have in this week's musical moments?
- [65:46]
Michael Portantier
Well, I recently went back to see Madame Butterfly at the Metropolitan Opera, which is one of my all time favorite operas. And I was, I was struck again. The Met, you know, the Meta certainly had its troubles recently, as we, yeah, I'm sure we've, we're all aware, but you know, when they, when they do it right, it, there's just nothing like it. It's a beautiful production by Anthony Minghella that they've been doing for years now, and they keep bringing it back because everyone loves it. And so the production is wonderful. The direction, the design, and then the music is just absolutely heavenly and the story is so power. And I was thinking as I was, you know, it was deep into Act. Well, they break it up differently, but let's say it was deep into the end part of the story. And I could sense that everyone in the entire audience was absolutely wrapped, caught up in the story and the beauty of the music. And I flashback to how much I can't stand Miss Saigon. And I thought, you know, I mean, it's not a revelation, but I, I think the actual adaptation of, of Miss Saigon as far as the story, you know, and adapting it, changing the setting from Nagasaki in 1904 to Saigon during the middle of the, you know, the ending of the Vietnam War, I think that was really quite brilliant. So there, no problem there. But to me, the music is just so awful, so pedestrian and so, so lackluster and, and a lot of notes spinning and I, that I just, I, I get dispirited every time I even hear a note or two of that. So to demonstrate what I'm talking about, I thought we would use our musical moments for this, this podcast the opener is a little bit of a song called Little God of My Heart from Miss Saigon. This is a recording featuring Ava Noblezada, not the original Broadway cast recording. And this is the moment at the end where Kim decides that she's going to kill herself and give her child up to her lover to bring back to America to raise with his American wife. Which is exactly the same thing that happens in Madame Butterfly, except, as I said, a different time in a different setting. And the closer is the. Is the equivalent aria from Madame Butterfly, which is called Tutu Piccollo. And this is from a recording sung by Leontine Price. And so, you know, make your own judgment, listen to both of them, and maybe at least some of you all will agree with what I mean. I think the Miss Saigon starts out with a very, very pedestrian, repetitious melody. And then it finally does get to that really nice melody. But unfortunately, that melody is taken directly from the song Tom Dooley, hang down your head, Tom Dooley. So lack of inspiration there. Whereas the music in Madame Butterfly is just, as I said, just absolute, absolutely glorious. So my little tribute to Madame butterfly, which I can't 100 remember if it's in the repertory for the Met next season, nor can I remember if they have any more left this season. I, I forgot to check that out. But they, they do it frequently, so do try to treat the yourself to that at some point.
- [69:50]
James Marino
All right, so on behalf of Michael Portonier, Jan Simpson, Jenna Tessa Fox, and Peter Felicia, this is James Marino saying thanks so much for listening to Broadway videos this week on Broadway.
- [70:03]
Michael Portantier
Bye bye bye.
- [70:12]
Narrator/Actor in Drama Segment
Ra.
- [70:38]
Jan Simpson
Ram.
- [71:08]
Narrator/Actor in Drama Segment
Joking.