THE HANGOVER REPORT – Simon Stephens and Mark Eitzel’s dreary new musical CORNELIA STREET is tonally off, despite a few genuinely affecting moments

The company of Atlantic Theater Company’s production of “Cornelia Street” by Simon Stephens and Mark Eitzel at Atlantic Stage 2 (photo by Ahron R. Foster).

Last night, the anticipated new musical Cornelia Street opened Off-Broadway at Atlantic Stage 2, Atlantic Stage Company’s snug subterranean space on 16th Street. With a book by acclaimed playwright Simon Stephens (a Tony-winner for his stage adaptation of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time) and a score by pop singer/songwriter Mark Eitzel, the musical — which tells the story of a slowly dying Greenwich Village restaurant and the motley old neighborhood stragglers who rally to keep it afloat against the odds — arrives this winter with high hopes.

Unfortunately, the show in its current state is a bewilderment and a disappointment. In their endeavor, both Stephens and Eitzel seem stubbornly set against actually writing any semblance of a musical, resulting in a stilted theatrical experience that’s dreary and tonally off from the get go (e.g., Eitzel’s emotive songs often come out of nowhere and end abruptly, and Stephens’ book is resistant to any sort of easily accessible emotions). As a cry against the city’s unstoppable march towards gentrification, the work is only moderately successful, most notably in some genuinely affecting scenes involving stage veterans Norbert Leo Butz and Mary Beth Peil, whose performances sing through the sheer force of their vitality.

The production has been directed by Atlantic Theater Company artistic director Neil Pepe, who does well to create an atmospheric and naturalistic world for the musical. In addition to Mr. Butz and Ms Peil, the ensemble cast attempts valiantly to bring texture and authenticity to the material — with varying degrees of success. Those looking to get a glimpse of New York’s “glory days” are better advised buying (much cheaper) tickets to The Village, A Disco Daydream, Nora Burns’ affectionate, ridiculously campy homage to the Greenwich Village of yore which is currently running at Dixon Place.

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CORNELIA STREET
Off-Broadway, Musical
Atlantic Stage 2 / Atlantic Theater Company
2 hours, 25 minutes (including one intermission)
Through March 5

Categories: Off-Broadway, Theater

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