The Grass Harp - A Family Affair
Musicals in Mufti - York Theatre Company, NYC
January 2003
Reviewed by John Kenrick
The Grass Harp
The York Theatre Company's Musicals in Mufti series operates on a
refreshingly simple premise. They select worthy but overlooked musicals,
gather a Broadway quality cast, and stage them in basic concert form
after five short days of rehearsal. The word "Mufti" means
that its all done in street clothes, with minimal set pieces, scripts
still in hand, and minimal piano accompaniment.
The results have been delighting musical theatre buffs since 1994,
giving long overdue re-hearings to dozens of beloved flops. They have
covered a wide range of shows, including many fine shows inexplicably
overlooked by the folks at City Center's Encores. After nine
years, the Mufti team has returned to the show they started the whole project
with, The Grass Harp. If you have a passion for musical theatre
and do not already know this show, it is high time you met up with it.
The Grass Harp is based on an autobiographical comic novel by
Truman Capote. It tells the tale of a Southern family torn apart by
trivial greed, only to reconcile in the end. Capote eventually
adapted it into an unsuccessful stage play,
but took no part in the musical adaptation. Composer Claibe Richardson
and librettist Kenwald Elmslie had no previous experience writing
musicals, but they did such an effective job in capturing the quirky
charm of the original story that their show gradually worked its way
from Providence Rhode Island to Broadway. But "charming"
musicals don't tend to sell many tickets, and despite a cast that
included Barbara Cook, Ruth Ford and Karen Morrow, the 1971 production
got poor reviews and closed in a week. But all was not lost. The cast
recording kept memories of the show alive, and over time The Grass Harp
has developed a small but dedicated cult following. There have been
occasional productions, including a full revival at the York Theatre
Company in 1979, and the York's first-ever Mufti concert in 1994.
The authors made some changes in recent years, so this concert staging
includes two songs never heard in New York before – "Brazil"
and "Dark Night of My Soul." Sadly, composer Claide Richardson died
only days before rehearsals began, so he was not on hand to hear the
enthusiastic reception these numbers received. In fact, the entire score
remains one of the most oddly enchanting scores of its time, blending a
genuine Broadway sound with touches of country, folk and traditional
spirituals. It certainly adds immeasurable power to the slight story. It
helps that Elmslie's lyrics are in exactly the right spirit, and his
libretto is far more effective than I had been led to believe. In fact,
this musical version of The Grass Harp is far better than any of
the non-musical dramatizations I have seen.
Although the story is rather simple, the score is quite complex – so
it is a wonder to hear what the Mufti cast was able to do with a mere 30
hours of rehearsal. Special credit to York's Artistic Director James
Morgan and Broadway veteran musical director Jack Lee for
pulling all this together. This was a polished showcase, giving every
member of the cast a chance to do their best. Jeanne Lehman was
endearing as Dollyheart, the spiritually attuned spinster with a secret
dropsy cure recipe and a heart of pure gold. Her creamy soprano made the
most of many a fine moment, stopping the show with a shimmering
rendition of "Chain of Love." Sandy Duncan might seem
an unlikely choice to play Verena, the grasping sister who will stop at
nothing to steal Dollyheart's recipe – but Duncan set the place afire,
reminding everyone present that she is one hell of an actor. She turned
"What Do I Do Now" into a searing moment that I will not soon
forget, and was equally adept at winning laughs like the pro that she
is. What a joy it is to see such a superb talent at work.
The delightful B.J. Crosby had some hilarious moments as
Catherine, the Black maid who insists she is actually a Choctaw. With
more rehearsal time, show could easily have crafted this into a show
stealing performance. Jason Dula was handsome and disarming as
Collin, the adopted nephew who faces his first romance as his family
collapses around him, and Kim Blair was fine as his love
interest. The talented Guy Stroman did not have quite enough time
to make the most of the smarmy Dr. Ritz, and Jeff Cyronek as
Judge Cool was still gamely finding his way in the role. Barbara
Tyrell certainly has the high-powered pipes required to play the
evangelistic Babylove, but could not offer the star power needed to make
her solo moments sparkle. The entire ensemble acquitted itself well, but
it was all too easy to see why this show has proven so problematic. Yes,
The Grass Harp is better written than a lot of what we have seen
on Broadway in recent years, but it would take a superb cast and
production to make the most of such an eccentric set of characters in
such a gentle story.
A Family Affair
There's nothing quite like seeing a flop live down to its reputation. A
Family Affair is everything a bad 1960's musical should be, with a
whole lot of show business talent doing its damnedest to accomplish darn
near nothing. But we do get a fun song or two, and the only instance I
know of a Broadway musical using "mishpokhe" in a lyric. Of
course, if you are not familiar with that word (Yiddish for "extended
family"), you might find this story a little difficult to access. The
book by playwright brothers James and William Goldman is certainly a
professional effort, offering some rich comic moments as two upper middle
class Jewish families go to war over who will plan a wedding. But the plot
line peters out early on in Act Two, leaving some potentially interesting
characters with nowhere to go. And the depiction of both families is so
unpleasant that some audience members might take offense. The score,
with music by a young John Kander and lyrics by Kander
and James Goldman, is mostly forgettable formula material. It puts songs
in all the required places, giving each lead their required amount of
solo time, but too many of these songs have essentially nothing to say.
The exceptions are two songs that have delighted show buffs on the
rather rare cast album for the past forty years – the sweet love song
"There's a Room in My House" for the engaged couple, and the
raucous showstopper "Harmony" sung by a conniving wedding
consultant and her minions as they play the battling families against
each other. Not surprisingly, these songs speak right to the
emotions that lie hopelessly buried inside this show – young love and
the unthinking egos that threaten to tear that love apart. These numbers
clearly won the lion's share of applause in this Mufti presentation, but
they were not enough to make this anything less than a good performance
of a hopeless show.
A flop musical usually has at least one "nervous
breakdown," a moment when it is clear that the creative team was
utterly lost and settled for throwing something hopeless at the
audience. A Family Affair has two breakdowns – an idiotic first
act finale and a desperate second act number about "Revenge."
Each of these moments is embarrassing to watch, since no cast on earth
could help feeling ridiculous performing them. It is particularly
disquieting when the cast in question has as much undeniable talent as
this one.
Director Richard Sabellico and musical director John Mulcahey had
certainly done the best a mere thirty hours of rehearsal could allow.
Whatever the material's weaknesses, the performers generously poured
themselves out to make the most of it. Blake Hackler and Leslie
Kritzer were perfect as the prospective newlyweds – Kritzer in
particular scored with a crystalline soprano and a giddy comic tantrum.
As the relentless mother of the groom, Alix Korey kept the laughs
coming all night long, and David Margulies was so right as her
long-harried husband that you would swear the role had been written for
him. My heart went out to Richard Ziman, who had the unenviable
task of playing the bride's uncle – the role was so specifically
tailored for comic Shelley Berman that I seriously doubt that anyone
(other than, perhaps, Nathan Lane) could make the part work today. The
small but polished ensemble handled several roles each, with standout
performances by Broadway musical veterans Eddie Korbich and Nora
Mae Lyng.
It is great to get the chance to see A Family Affair on its
feet. But it is all too easy to see why the show failed, and why it
never really had a hope of succeeding. The York Theatre's artistic
director (the witty and discerning James Morgan) introduced the
performance by suggesting a parallel with the recent hit movie My Big
Fat Greek Wedding. But everything that charming comedy did right,
this musical gets wrong. So maybe John Kander and his current lyricist
Fred Ebb should consider a new screen-to-stage adaptation?
All criticisms aside, it is delightful it is to
see these almost forgotten shows get such top quality showcases. Here's
hoping the York's Musical in Mufti series continues for many years to come!
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