Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The sensational Adrienne Warren dazzles in the otherwise merely mediocre TINA: THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL

• By drediman
• November 8, 2019
• No Comments

Adrienne Warren leads “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical” at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. Photo by Manuel Harlan.

Last night at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, the latest in the seemingly endless parade of jukebox bio-musicals opened on Broadway. That would be Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, the British import that’s been generating strong box office figures across the pond in the West End. Obviously, the musical tells the eventful, decades-spanning story of the rock-and-roll diva and icon Tina Turner –  from her humble, difficult beginnings as a big-voiced but misunderstood child in Tennessee, to her tumultuous and despicably abusive professional and personal relationship with Ike Turner, to her triumphant late-career re-invention in the 1980s.

As far as jukebox bio-musicals go, Tina is merely mediocre, easily ranking below the likes of Jersey Boys, Ain’t Too Proud, and the recently shuttered Beautiful. The crammed book, which has been credited to playwright Katori Hall (The Mountaintop, Our Lady of Kibeho) and the relatively unknown Dutch writing duo of Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prins, is comprised of a long string of scenes that have a robotic, telegraphed quality to them. The production has been directed by Phyllida Lloyd (who helmed Mamma Mia!, the mother of all jukebox musicals) efficiently if with limited inspiration. Only during the show’s coda – a flashy mini-concert during which a fully realized Tina Turner struts her stuff – does the show catch on real fire.

Nonetheless, I’m hard pressed not to recommend Tina. That would be because, in the title role, the show possesses an extraordinary star-making performance by the sensational Adrienne Warren (Ms. Warren had originated the role when the musical first opened in London). Although she was a Tony-nominee a few seasons ago for a cute, eye-catching supporting turn in Shuffle Along, I wasn’t prepared for the gravitas and range she would bring to her portrayal of Ms. Turner. Brandishing pipes of steel and astonishing stamina – Ms. Warren is practically onstage for the entire thing (and it’s a long show), singing and dancing as if her life depended on it – she gamely rolls with the mediocrity of the show’s construction and, in fact, amazingly transcends it. Indeed, on the strength of Ms. Warren’s dazzling performance alone, I would suggest a visit to Tina.

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TINA: THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL
Broadway, Musical
Lunt-Fontanne Theatre
2 hours, 40 minutes (with one intermission)
Open run