Friday Dance Party: Red And Green For The Color Purple

There's an interesting kerfuffle happening on the DC theatre scene this week. A local musical is causing some to see red, and others to feel green. 


The annual Helen Hayes Award nominations were announced last week, and a local production of The Color Purple made the biggest haul. 

The Color Purple at Toby's Dinner Theatre

I'm not sure why, but the musical nominations, and ultimate awards, seem to cause a whole lot more consternation than the straight play categories.  Perhaps that's true everywhere, I don't know.  But the big concern this year seems to be that The Color Purple was produced at a dinner theatre.

Located well out in the Maryland suburbs, Toby's produces lots of "comfort theatre," interspersed with fare a bit more unusual.  For every Oklahoma or Sound of Music, there may also be a Jekyll and Hyde or The Color Purple.

Toby's Dinner Theatre has a long history of Helen Hayes nominations, which seems to cause chagrin for the other musical houses in the area.  Particularly when they win.  This year, for example, they are in direct competition with a production of Dreamgirls over at DC's premiere musical theatre, Signature.  Dreamgirls received only one less nomination than did The Color Purple, so in essence, they are competing neck-and-neck.

The critic in question is a big cheerleader for DC theatre, unless dinner is served.  He was properly asked if he had actually seen The Color Purple at Toby's Dinner Theatre. No, he hadn't.

Earlier this week, the leading theatre critic from DC's newspaper of note tweeted a rather snarky comment:  

"You cannot credibly make claim to being America's no. 2 theater town if most nommed musical comes from dinner theater."

It should be noted that the critic in question, a former writer for the NY Times, has often been accused of being too NY-centric in his theatre coverage here.  He does seem to care a great deal about how DC is viewed, as a theatre town, by the rest of the country (or at least by Manhattan).

Linda Levy Grossman, the president and CEO of TheatreWashington, who sponsors the Helen Hayes Awards, responded with a very well-considered blog, which I encourage you to read here. 

Linda Levy-Grossman defends
the multiple HH noms awarded
to dinner theatre.

She suspects that it really doesn't matter where art is made, that the building does not influence the quality of the work.  On that point, no one can really disagree.  It seems that our critic's comment was concerned with how our region is perceived.  I think it's time our region stopped trying so hard to impress New York and got on with making our own kind of theatre.  Hell, our region is home to THREE theatres which have won the Regional Theatre Tony Award;  we've already been recognized by the New York theatre establishment for our own homegrown work.  I think we can agree that DC theatre has arrived.

Signature Theatre, one of our Tony-winning theaters, had its beginnings in very humble surroundings.  For years, they produced award-worthy work in a converted garage with faulty plumbing, bad floors, and a neighborhood which smelled of gas and oil.

I mentioned last year that I felt the Helen Hayes Awards are guilty of this obsession with national perception, at least a bit.  Several of our Helen Hayes Awards are reserved for productions which only visit the area.  This made sense decades ago, when DC was struggling with its own theatrical identity and it was beneficial to recognize productions which appeared here but originated elsewhere.  These days, though, I think those awards are a waste of time, and deflect the true reason for the Hayzies, which is to honor our own theatrical excellence.

Our story does not end with Ms. Grossman's note.  Others in the local community have piped up, some pointing out that, as Toby's Dinner Theatre is non-union and a dinner theatre, its credibility as a producer of award-worthy work is questionable.  Others have pointed out that Toby's has always been, and continues to be, a great training ground for musical talent which has gone on to higher profile venues (several former performers are currently on Broadway).  The aforementioned Signature Theatre has a close-knit stable of musical actors which they use over and over again in their productions, actors who spent time and gained exposure at Toby's.  Are we to suggest that those actors were not talented enough to create worthy theatre until they left the dinner theatre?

Toby's productions are in the round.

It's an interesting discussion which will probably continue as long as this competition survives.  I did not see the show which ignited this year's controversy, in fact, I've only seen two shows at Toby's Dinner Theatre, plus a performance for kids. 

The Purple gang may be disappointed. The original film
earned a whopping 11 Oscar nominations, losing them all.

There is a pretty lousy clip out there of The Color Purple in rehearsal, which I bet does not do the finished product much justice, so for this week's Dance Party, we turn back to the source material for the musical, the acclaimed Spielberg film which introduced us to Whoopie Goldberg.  That film was not a musical, but as it includes a musical sequence, let's take a look.

Theatre Droppings: Princess Puffer Takes A Powder

I popped up to the New York Branch of my life last week, as I had not been there in almost a month.  My current Neil Simon gig in Annapolis has kept me too busy to take care of Big Apple Business.  But last week, I had more than a few days off, and took the opportunity to return to Manhattan Plaza.  There was success and failure there.

I'm crying too. My Les Miz screener never showed.

My mailbox was pretty full, but not at all overflowing, as one might expect from being unattended for so many weeks.  In particular, I was looking forward to receiving my SAG Award screeners, since SAG thinks I live in New York full time. 

I dislike Les Miz, but nevertheless was looking forward to
seeing it, with the luxury of a fast-forward button.

I received Argo (which I had seen in the theatres) and Silver Linings Playbook, but did not receive the third film which my union was sending: Les Miserables.  I have a hunch that the inefficient postal employee who spends so many hours sorting the mail for the 800 apts in my building made a mistake, and delivered my DVD to someone else.  And that someone else decided to keep it.  FAIL.

Though I am thoroughly incompetent to do so, I once again assembled a piece of furniture. 

I've used this tall director's chair to enjoy
my NY view for over a year. It's now
been replaced by a leather model.

Since taking possession of my apt on Halloween, 2011, I have enjoyed sitting in my huge picture window, gazing out the 29th floor.  I have a new stool with which to indulge my prying eyes;  I ordered a leather barstool from Costco, and uncommonly, put it together in about half an hour.  It is quite comfy and is a welcome addition to my limited decor.  SUCCESS.

This new stool will afford me countless hours of Jimmy Stewart-type Rear Window viewing.

My old friend Caitlin O'Connell is appearing on Broadway, in The Heiress.  Her limited run has been well-attended, due to the presence in her cast of Jessica Chastain (garnering lots of awards right now for her work in Zero Dark Thirty) and Dan Stevens, who is the swoony romantic lead in TV's current Brit hit, Downton Abbey. 

My buddy Caitlin, far left, shares the stage
with a Downton dude and an Oscar nom.
Tix are hard to come by.

I tried to see the show Wednesday, schlepping up to the theatre's box office as soon as it opened.  The line for tickets was hanging out the door, so I gave up.  FAIL.

But I had a big success with my next attempt to see something on the boards.  I remembered that I had an online coupon for a discounted ticket to the revival of The Mystery of Edwin Drood.  I snagged a seat for only 40 bucks, which is a steal for any show on Broadway, let alone a musical.  SUCCESS.

I was thrilled that Jesse Mueller was in the cast, as I saw
her Broadway debut only a year ago in the eviscerated revamp
of On A Clear Day... I wrote about that here. SUCCESS.

The show is one about which I have been curious for years, though I have never seen a production nor heard any of the music.  But knowing it takes place in a British Music Hall was enough for me to finally hunt down a production to take a look.

 

The biggest celebrity in this revival is not one of the leading characters, though she is billed as such.  The role of Princess Puffer, madam of a den of iniquity, is solidly supporting, but as Broadway legend Chita Rivera is playing the role, it's been given the star treatment, with the final curtain call and such. 

I saw Rivera decades ago in the first
Chicago, and hoped to see her again.
She was a no show for her matinee.
FAIL.

I was surprised, considering Chita's work ethic, that she was absent on the Wednesday matinee, so I saw a perfectly acceptable understudy.  I'm never disappointed with an understudy's performance, so I settled in to enjoy the show.

I acted as The Chairman (the MC) in a Christmas show taking place in a British Music Hall, so The Mystery of Edwin Drood's framing device of a British Music Hall held interest for me.

Edwin Drood contains two aspects of shows which I generally dislike, because they are often mishandled.  First, the audience is "warmed up" by the actors, before the play itself begins. 

Ensemble member Eric Sciotto was our "warm-up guy,"
and he was terrific. I later discovered he is one of
Broadway's leading dancers, and has worn the Gypsy Robe
several times, reserved for the most experienced of
Broadway's chorus members.

Since this is a fairly large Broadway theatre, with a balcony and such, this process takes all the ensemble members, who each take a section of the house and work the crowd.  I was surprised that I enjoyed this;  the actors were genuinely excited about the show and were able to translate that to the onlookers.  SUCCESS.

That second aspect of certain shows which I dislike also concerns forced audience participation.  One of the things which sets Edwin Drood apart from other musicals is the fact that the audience is polled to determine the ending.  I know how very smoothly such a thing can go, as I spent some time in the granddaddy of all audience participation shows, Shear Madness.  But I also know how such things can go terribly awry (there's a story of one of the great Dorothy Loudon's many flops, during which she was forced to auction off a chicken during the show).  Once again, this revival confounded my expectations, as the voting process was handled with great humor.

The voting process is handled with aplomb, humor, and swiftness. SUCCESS.

This production of The Mystery of Edwin Drood is scheduled to close in about a month, before the Tony nominations are announced.  It will surely receive a few.  I was fully charmed by the production, and returned to the DC Branch pleased that I had spent several of my NY hours enjoying the Music Hall at Studio 54.

Friday Dance Party: Don't Tell Lou Ann

Lou Ann Poovie was Gomer Pyle's girlfriend in
the series. We now know why they never got
further than holding hands.

Coming short on the heels of the "so what?" coming out of Victor Garber, this week's Dance Party star finally confirmed the rumors he's been ducking his entire career.

Don't ask, don't tell.

Jim Nabors has faded from view in recent decades;  it seems like no one has seen nor heard from him much since he was a part of Burt Reynolds's ad hoc rep company, appearing in several forgettable films in the 1980s. 

Nabors worked with Burt Reynolds in Cannonball II,
Stroker Ace, and Best Little Whorehouse... in the mid-80s.
They ended Jim's film career.

He has spent most of the past few decades living quietly in Hawaii, with his partner of 38 years, a former firefighter who is 15 years his junior.  But back in the 1960s and 70s, Nabors was a recognized celebrity with what must be described as an open secret.

Their gay-themed prank exploded. The annual party of middle-aged gay men of Huntington Beach announced the planned wedding of Rock Hudson and "Gomer Pyle," after which Hudson would become known as Rock Pyle. Somebody blabbed about the gag, and rumors circulated that the two were actually a couple.  Both men scurried back into the closet and never spoke to each other again.

I remember the rumors which were repeated about Jim and Rock Hudson, as a couple no less!  There doesn't seem to be much evidence that those two stars ever had a relationship (we now know Hudson was into blond boytoys), though they lived close to each other at the beach and apparently were friends.  

Hudson, Nabors, and flame dame Burnett, before the
glitter hit the fan.

The story goes that, as a joke, Jim and Rock invited all their gay friends to a mock wedding between Hudson and Gomer Pyle.  The stunt did not remain as private as the two stars may have wished, and it gave way to those rumors of an actual romance between the two stars.  Nabors now claims that he never hid his homosexuality, but that does not ring quite true to my memory of the time.  No matter, it's terrific that he has now married his partner.

Certainly best known for his title role in Gomer Pyle, USMC, the show was one of a number of rural-themed sitcoms of the mid-60s.  Producers were granted use of military sites and equipment, in hopes the show's upbeat tone would improve the image of the Marine Corps.  Despite taking place at the height of the carnage in Vietnam, the war was never mentioned.

I confess that Jim Nabors was not a particular favorite of mine, but I certainly watched him during his sitcom years. 

Nitwit Gomer first worked at "the fillin' station"
in The Andy Griffith Show's Mayberry.
Somebody smelled a spinoff.

Gomer Pyle, USMC showcased his downhome persona quite well, but I never got used to the occasions when his country hick accent would give way to the operatic singing voice. 

When goofball Gomer started to sing, it was a bit
creepy.

Jim had a rich baritone voice, but seeing that voice come out of the Gawlee facial expressions of Gomer Pyle gave me the willies.

Carol Burnett and her good luck charm, who guested on her first show every season.

This week's Dance Party comes from Gomer Pyle, but it just as easily could have come from the TV series helmed by the other star of this clip.  Carol Burnett maintained a lifelong friendship with Nabors;  he appeared as a guest on the first episode of her variety series, and she considered him a good luck charm, resulting in his appearing in the first episode of all eleven seasons of her show. 


 

 

She guested on his sitcom several times, in episodes which always included musical sequences.  Despite the annoying choice of songs in this medley (I'm not a fan of rounds), I enjoy the easy chemistry between the two stars.  In honor of Jim Nabors and his recent marriage, enjoy! 

Friday Dance Party: That Aspirin From United Drug

The star of this week's Dance Party is going to need some of that aspirin.

Chita Rivera turned 80 this week, on a two-show day.  Her cast surprised her with cake at the curtain call.

Rivera has turned her current supporting
role in Edwin Drood into a star part.

The old gal is still kicking, though perhaps not as high, as she is finishing up a limited run in the Broadway revival of The Mystery of Edwin Drood.  Expect her 10th Tony nomination to be announced later this spring.

Chita is on my radar this week for another reason, in addition to her birthday.  She was the star attraction at one of the myriad inaugural events which peppered the DC landscape last weekend. 

Don't recognize this dude? He played the geeky
foreigner with the indeterminable accent on
That 70s Show, now all hunky and grown up.

The event was a celebration of President Obama's contributions to the American Latino community, and was held at the Kennedy Center.  The Big Guy did not attend (though VP Joe Biden did), but that did not damper the enthusiasm of the Latino stars who took the stage.  Eva Longoria both hosted and produced the affair, which included appearances by Jose Feliciano, Broadway's Raul Esparza, and singer Marc Anthony.

Mario Lopez also appeared at the event.
He was quite presentable in his tux.
But why hire Mario Lopez for a gig
which requires him to be fully clothed?

The centerpiece of the show, in my humble opinion, was the duet performed by those duelling Anitas, Chita Rivera and Rita Moreno.  Everybody knows, of course, that Chita created the role of firecracker Anita in West Side Story, only to lose the role to Rita for the film.  Rita won the Oscar and went on to a pretty illustrious career which included a Tony, Emmy, and Grammy. 


Our Chita received the Kennedy Center Honor
in 2002, along with James Earl Jones,
Paul Simon, and Elizabeth Taylor. In 2009, she
also won the Presidential Medal of Freedom,
along with Sandra Day O'Connor,
Stephen Hawking, and Harvey Milk.

Our Chita remained, for the most part, on stage, creating many memorable roles and winning several Tonys. 

The announcer of last week's event proclaimed that it was the first time Rita Moreno and Chita Rivera had ever performed together.  Not so.  They helped Bette Midler open the Jay Monahan Center for Gastrointestinal Health in  November of 2002.

I did not attend the Latins Love Obama concert, but it was streamed live on Univision's website.  My Internet connection is pretty lousy at my DC Branch, so the picture quality was poor, and because Univision is the Spanish network, all the narration was in that language.  I would not even have known about this event had it not been for a couple of my young buddies in the DC theatre community, who were chosen to be part of the backup singer/dancers for the Chita/Rita Show. 

The Latina Bosom Buddies were backed up by a male chorus which proved more limber and more on-key than our stars.  The first two guys from left to right are the lovely and talented Kurt Boehm and Vinny Kempski, who played two of my sons in Joe's Coat several years ago.

Neither of the old broads moved all that much, and Rita in particular was croaking her notes, but nobody cared.

There was a supposed rivalry between Chita and Rita throughout their careers, but I never found any evidence of it.  These Latina Grande Dames were the hit of their inaugural party.

Rita has appeared twice on the Dance Party, as West Side Story has provided two clips (so far).  Go here for the Dance At The Gym, and here for some rooftop shenanigans.  Rivera has danced only once in these pages, back when Tom Bosley died. Surely it's Chita's turn again.  This particular clip comes from  some concert or other, and our heroine, though clearly middle aged, is still at the top of her game.  She's singing two of the songs she originally introduced.  Happy birthday, Chita!

Friday Dance Party: Do They Think That Walls Can Hide You?

Jesus!

It was a week of confessions, one of which inspires our Dance Party.  Of course, everyone has heard all about Lance Armstrong's revelation that he has been lying for years, and that he in fact was a major doper. 

Liar's Club

I did not watch his interview this week, as I have less than zero interest in an athlete revealing that he rose to glory by artificial means.  I've heard that Armstrong is likely to feel the pain of his lying through his wallet.  NPR told me that he is worth about 100 million, but will shortly be sued by just about everybody.  The London Times, for example, paid out over a million dollars when it lost a libel suit brought by Lance.  Since the claims the paper made are now verified, they want their money back.  So does the US Postal Service, who sponsored Armstrong's activities to the tune of 90 million dollars.

Ah well, you get what you pay for.

Jodie Foster's confession was probably the week's most fun. 

Foster's first Oscar nod came at age 15.

Her rambling speech at the Golden Globes verified what everybody in the film industry already knew about her sexuality, though her speech seemed to mystify some.  I read later that there was confusion about whether or not she had actually come out.  Yes, she did.  The confusing part of her speech was really about her work;  it sounded a lot like she was retiring.  When someone asked her about it backstage, she clarified that no, she did not mean to imply that she was leaving the business. 

Something's wrong with this picture.

Good to know, but I'd really like to hear why Foster specifically mentioned Mel Gibson as someone who "saved me."  How did such a self-professed bigot, racist, misogynist, and xenophobe ever save Jodie?  THAT'S the Oprah interview I'd like to hear.

This week's Dance Party comes from the third confessional we heard this week, though it really wasn't one. 

Playing Jennifer Garner's pop
on Alias brought him his first
sustained national attention.

Victor Garber was interviewed by one of those Hollywood bloggers, and seemed surprised to be asked about his partner of 13 years. Garber has never been secretive about his sexuality, but since he spent his younger years in the theatre, it didn't come up.  I don't really think anybody cares now, either, as he's a solidly middle-aged character actor who has a thriving but understated career.  He counts Titanic as one of his films (he played the boat's builder) and is currently on the big screen as the heroic Canadian ambassador in Argo.  He's carved a lively career in episodic television, playing Jennifer Garner's father in Alias and, currently, as the patriarch on NBC's Deception (Victor has a total of six Emmy nominations to his credit). 

Eli Stone didn't last 2 seasons, and is now only remembered, if at all, as having brought current Sherlock Holmes Jonny Lee Miller to the small screen.  But the quirky show was one of my favorites, and was peopled with Broadway alums like Loretta Devine and Victor Garber. Producers occasionally made use of their vocal chops with imaginary musical numbers.

Our hero has earned four Tony nominations, having appeared in the original casts of Lend Me A Tenor, Noises Off, Deathtrap, and many others. 

Garber teamed with Bebe Neuwirth in the 1994 revival of
Damn Yankees.

His performance in the Canadian production of Godspell (he is himself of Canadian birth) led to his starring role as Jesus in the film version, which perhaps should have elevated him to stardom, but didn't. 

Suspenders and clown makeup will only take you so far. I find the charm of Godspell to be questionable, even on stage, but I'm clearly in the minority. The show is constantly performed in schools.  The film version was even less charming. Filmed on location in New York City, the show's hippy-dippy vibe was out-of-date by 1973. One of the numbers was filmed on the roof of the World Trade Center, which was just nearing completion, making the film even harder to watch today.  That other messianic musical, Jesus Christ Superstar, was also released in 1973 to similarly disappointing results. 

Godspell is one of those shows which is more fun to be in than to watch, and the film is cloying and pretty unwatchable.  But it is Victor's appearance in another Broadway musical of note which inspires this week's Dance Party. 

Garber's young leading man in Sweeney Todd
was overshadowed by the
flamboyant performances surrounding him

In 1979, Garber created the role of sailor Anthony Hope in Stephen Sondheim's masterwork Sweeney Todd, and introduced one of the most haunting ballads in the Sondheim canon, "Johanna."  I've been unable to find a video clip of his performance in Sweeney, but the original cast album, which is one of my treasures, reveals a clarion tenor voice filled with emotion.  Sondheim, master that he is, allows his young leading man to introduce the song, but then incorporates the tune as a continuing motif of the show.  The clip below illustrates that mastery;  it comes from the video of the First National Tour. 

In the upper right corner, Victor is almost
unrecognizable.

Sadly, Victor Garber is not included here, his role is taken by the blond Cris Groenendaal.  But this sequence is a prime example of Stephen Sondheim's genius.  He takes what was, at first hearing, a stand-alone love ballad, and expands it into a quartet which reveals aspects of character and moves the plot. This clip also displays director Hal Prince's staging finesse, which is so evocative of  London in the early industrial age, filled with iron and smoke and teaming with lowlife. 

Who needs meat pies with all this ham around? Angela Lansbury and George Hearn chewed the scenery ferociously, exactly as needed for this melodrama.

This video was shot during the tour's stop in Los Angeles, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.  Though the close-ups were filmed in an empty theatre, the producers also taped a performance in front of a live audience; I was in that audience. 

Victor Garber's confirmation this week of his
long term relationship was met with shrugs.
That's a good sign.

I wish I had seen Victor Garber play the role he created, but could never complain about the performances I saw, which included the great Angela Lansbury as the definitive Mrs Lovett (she wanders through this clip carrying human remains;  she is the woman with the red hair). In honor of Victor Garber, enjoy the song he introduced to the world. 

Friday Dance Party: This Lingering Season

My stocking was handmade by my grandmother when I was only 5 or so.  It hangs in a position of prominence, over my fireplace's mantle, all year long. I don't consider it a Christmas decoration at all, but rather a family treasure.

Usually, by the first week of January, I am ready to move on from the holidays.  I love my Christmas and all that, but by the New Year, I'm done.  Not this year.  For what may be a variety of reasons, I am loathe to let go of the holidays this year.

I put up this misshapen specimen as an afterthought, and despite its obvious shortcomings, I have enjoyed it more than most others in my holiday history.  Perhaps its sorry state is a symbol for the way Christmas limped into town this year.

Part of the reason may be that crooked little tree.  I wrote here about my impulse buy, a Christmas tree which I stuffed into the trunk of my Honda on Christmas Eve.  I tossed some strings of lights and some ornaments on the thing, in a very haphazard way, and called it tannenbaum.  The poor thing slants precariously to the southwest, but I've enjoyed watching the cheap colored lights blink.  For some reason, I can't get rid of it yet.

Apparently, I'm not the only one.  I've run into quite a few friends and others who rather sheepishly admit that their tree is still up.  It seems particularly hard for a number of people to let go of the holidays this year. 

These snowflake lights hang from streetlamps in
DC during the hols. Everyone's back to work,
the new year has begun,
but the snowflakes remain.

It was certainly a stressful, even dismal, Christmastime in and of itself.  Everybody was frustrated about finances, both personal and at the national level (I really wanted to cover the Capitol building with a big tent and gas the place during the whole Fiscal Cliff debacle).  Thousands of people spent the holidays in makeshift, temporary homes after their entire lives were flattened by Sandy.  The horrible shooting in Connecticut only 10 days before Christmas drew a pall over the holiday for the whole country. 

Superstorm Sandy, the Fiscal Cliff, Newtown: Who the hell
was in the mood for Christmas? The Whos, that's who, and it
came just the same.

But there was something comforting about the fact that, to quote Dr Seuss, Christmas came just the same.  Maybe that's why so many of us don't want to let it go this year.

I've already given up some of the accoutrements of the holiday.  As much as I love Christmas music, it loses its charm after month #2, so my dozens of albums of the holiday genre have all been retired until next year. 

This little-known album is a constant presence on my CD
player from November-December.
But in January, it's gotta go.

My Christmas Wine and Martini glasses (yes, I have such things, are you surprised?) have already been packed away until next November. 
But as we approach the middle of January, my misshapen little tree continues to blink in my bay window.  (Only at night, of course, as I find a Christmas tree which is lit during the day to be a little sad.)  But every night when I come home from rehearsal, I plug in the lights on my crooked little tree, and admire the sentiment for a while. 

Yeah, it's probably time to bid Christmas adieu.  But not before one more Dance Party celebrating the season.  There's a melancholy song out there which seems to suit my mood as I let Christmas go;  it's really only marginally a Christmas carol.  "River" is a Joni Mitchell tune, and it's been recorded  by lots and lots of others. 

Robert Downey Jr shocked everyone (and won a Golden Globe) with a dynamic comeback on Ally McBeal.  His 12-episode story arc included several musical sequences, including the first time I ever heard "River." Sadly, he fell off the wagon during hiatus, and he was dumped from the show.  But his musical career continued.

It first came to my attention when Robert Downey, Jr. was guest starring on Ally McBeal, and he delivered a soulful version which has stuck with me all these years.  That particular clip has been removed from YouTube by Fox, and I've been unable to find another clip of him singing it live.  It's my favorite version of the song.  My bittersweet farewell to Christmas calls for "River," so this week's Dance Party features James Taylor's rendition.