Interludes

VIEWPOINTS – In Memoriam: Bidding farewell to the under-appreciated THE GREAT COMET, BANDSTAND, and GROUNDHOG DAY

• By drediman
• September 21, 2017
• No Comments

Are some shows just too good for Broadway? Over the last few weeks, I bid farewell to three extraordinary new musicals, each of which ended their Broadway runs this month. They were Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812 (closed September 3), Bandstand (closed September 17), and Groundhog Day (also closed September 17).

Josh Groban and the company of “The Great Comet” at the Imperial Theatre

Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812, lovingly simply known as The Great Comet, is perhaps the most forward-looking and viscerally exciting of the trio. I’ve had a long history with the show, having seen it more than a dozen times throughout its various incarnations over the last five years – from the tiny Ars Nova to its two pop-up tent versions, and finally at the Imperial Theatre on the Great White Way (many in the cast were with the show through the entire arc of this improbable journey). Dave Malloy’s gorgeous musical is based on a section of Tolstoy’s War and Peace and is set to a pulsating, eclectic, and essentially through-composed score. Immersively set in a Russian supper club, the show featured blazing and endlessly inventive direction by Rachel Chavkin and a miraculous, all-encompassing set design by Mimi Lien. The Great Comet overflowed with moments of authenticity that could only be created in live performance; it created an a gutsy, one-of-a-kind personal connection with its audience at each performance by simply disregarding the fourth wall (literally). Broadway simply has never seen anything this vital and viscerally exciting (“Balaga”, anyone?) and likely won’t again for a long time. Oh, and I’m deeply upset by the circumstances of its demise.

Corey Cott, Laura Osnes, and the company of “Bandstand” at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre

Bandstand is the most old fashioned of the bunch, and I mean that as a true compliment. It’s probably also the most misunderstood of the three. I first encountered this heartfelt new musical about a group of World War II veterans and their quest to win a bandstand competition – while dealing with a good dose of PTSD – at the Paper Mill Playhouse out in Millburn, New Jersey. There, I had felt like I had encountered a diamond in the rough. The score, by the relatively unknown team of Richard Oberacker and Robert Taylor, was period-perfect and uncommonly well-crafted. The show also featured beautifully-considered and integrated direction and choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler – best known for choreographing that behemoth Hamilton – whose accomplishments here harkened the best work of director/choreographers of theater lore (particularly the stylish and seamless work of Michael Bennett). When Bandstand was announced for Broadway at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, I was tickled pink, but I also know that its chances of survival were slim, particularly with no star at its helm; at least The Great Comet had Josh Groban. That being said, the show did have the Corey Cott, a fascinating young actor with both a fine set of pipes and superb acting chops, whose career I’d been tracking over the last few seasons. In Bandstand, he gave a fully committed, breakout leading performance that was thrilling to behold. I hope to see much more of him in the future.

Andy Karl leads the company of “Groundhog Day” at the August Wilson Theatre

Which leads us to Groundhog Day, Tim Minchin’s musical adaptation of the classic film about a weatherman stuck in the same day (for many a day). Of the three, I think I connected emotionally most with this show. Given its pedigree – the show’s well-seasoned creators, a critically acclaimed hit run in London’s West End – I knew I was at least going to admire the musical. Indeed, of the three, it’s also the smartest and most intelligently crafted, characteristics which reveal themselves increasingly upon successive viewings. However, I wasn’t prepared for the uncompromising existential depths it would mine about the human experience (particularly in the show’s feel-everything second act), all the while gaining dramatic momentum as a piece of musical theater. Kudos to the brilliant director Matthew Warchus for wonderfully balancing all of this and executing flawlessly. Upon first hearing, Mr. Minchin’s score sounds tuneful if pedestrian. But after a few listens, it becomes apparent that it is a masterclass in theme and variation with whip-smart lyrics to boot (“Seeing You” has to be my favorite theater song of las season). And in his own words in the show, leading man Andy Karl is a god (sorry Ben Platt). He is a true leading man, and his performance as weatherman Phil commanded the stage with the unforced charm and magnetic presence of a true matinee idol of yesteryear; I simply couldn’t take my eyes off him. It’s unfortunate and baffling that Groundhog Day did not catch on, producing a disappointing run at the August Wilson Theatre. In my mind, the musical represented the very best of the season.