• tune 20. 2003
36
THEATER
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NYC 2003
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Just Out takes on the gayest Broadway season ever
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J o n K r e t z u
espite the tragedy of 9/l I, persistent ter
rorist threats, S A R S paranoia, a precipi
tous decline in tourism and a steadily
depressing national economy, New York
City somehow manages to rise above— like
the gutsy lady she is. There is still no more
exciting place to spend a week filled to over
flowing with theater, dance, music and art or
just reveling in the sheer joy of spending time
in this unique adult playground.
Broadway had one of its best seasons in
recent memory this year— every show l saw
was filled to capacity (despite the never-
ending rise in ticket prices, which now top
out at $ lOl for all musicals and even a few
straight plays). These sold-out crowds
responded to everything with rapture.
It was also the gayest season in memory.
There were gay plays, gay musicals, shows
with gay subtext (we all know Frog and Toad
were just a hit more than pond buddies),
shows with gay diva icons feasting on scenery
(God bless Bernadette, Vanessa and Harvey)
D ick Latessa and Harvey Fierstein’s star-turn
and shows that were just so fabulous they
in H airspray is pure musical comedy bliss.
were gay hy association. It all reached an
In set: John W aters takes a bow at the
apotheosis in the Tony Awards, which were
production’s opening last year in New York
almost an entirely gay affair with the sole
exception of host Hugh Jackman’s hair.
expert, particularly leading lady Marissa Jaret
T h e excitem ent was palpable wherever I
Winokur as Tracy Tumhlad, whose energy
went, and nowhere more so than at this year’s
could light up several Broadway theaters. All
Producers phenomenon: Hatrspray.
in all, if you miss Hairspray you’re missing two
hours of total joy.
This musical adaptation of John Waters’
camp classic is a monster hit, and deservedly so.
T he only other new musical of note this
Basically a gtxxl old-fashioned musical (with a
season is a real surprise. Choreographer Twyla
truly funny kx>k by Mark O ’Donnell and
Tharp has taken the entire catalog of Billy Joel’s
Thomas Meehan and a clever and catchy score
classic nx:k ’n’ roll songs and used them as the
hy Marc Shaiman and Scott Whitman), Hair-
inspiration for a thrilling two-act dance drama
spray tweaks the traditional form with a wealth
called M inin’ Out. Joel’s tough and tender
of gay humor, sweetly subversive in-jokes, wild
tunes— played hy a kick-ass hand led by the
’60s surrealist designs and a healthy smattering of
talented Michael Cavanaugh— provide the
new millennium political correctness— all of
launching pad for Tharps dazzling choreogra
which the audience laps up like parched puppies.
phy and dramatic invention.
T h e wonderful cast is led hy the iconic
Every member of the Movin’ Out cast is a
Harvey Fierstein (gay, of course!), reprising
remarkable dancer/actor, hut mention must he
Divine’s original film role as Edna Tumhlad.
made of its leading quartet: the amazing fire
Fierstein delivers possibly the greatest drag
brand Elizabeth Parkinson, the lyrical Ashley
leading lady performance in musical theater
Tuttle, the sinuous David Gomez and, above
history with wit, affection and razor-sharp tim
all, John Selya, who gives the single greatest
ing. To watch him and the ageless Dick Latessa
dance performance I’ve seen since Barysh
do their star-turn duet “Timeless to M e” is to
nikov’s glory days. Movin' Out is a rare com bi
experience pure musical comedy bliss.
nation of music, dance and drama— a Broad
T h e rest of the Hairspray ensemble are all
way ballet— that astonishes and exhilarates.
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Gay actor Denis O ’Hare s nebbish accountant (left) finds a reason to love baseball in T a k e Me Out
This seasons other musical highlights can he
found in a pair o f marvelous revivals. Nine is
Maury Yeston’s adaptation of Fellini’s film mas
terpiece 8 i/2. Its seductive score and dreamlike
hook needs a strong directorial design hand to
pull its varied strands into place. Unfortunately,
this popular and very glamorous production
lacks just this element of cohesion, and it sim
ply pales against the memory of Tommy Tune’s
original 1972 production. T h e original was art;
the revival is a magazine layout.
Nine is basically hampered hy David Lev-
eaux’s excessively Euro-centric, so-chic-and-
metaphoric-its-incomprehensible direction and
an unwieldy design. (W hat is with that fkxxling
stage and toy gondola sequence wherein all
those gorgeous women have to carefully remove
their faux-Manolo Blahnik pumps and splash
about self-consciously in ankle-deep water?)
T he Nine ensemble, however, soars above
the silliness. Movie star intem ationale A nto
nio Banderas is perfectly cast in the Marcello
Mastroianni role, and he certainly does every
thing within decency to seduce the audience—
he sings beautifully, is effortlessly channing and
pours on the Latin emoting when necessary.
Chita Rivera is imperious, timelessly beautiful
and just plain delicious in an ultra-fabulous tango
routine with Mr. Banderas; Jane Krakowski is gor
geous, sultry and surprisingly moving; and Mary
Stuart M&sterson is sleek, sings well and just
about manages to overcome her sub-spaghetti -
and-meatballs dialect with nuance and style.
T he other current revival on view, however,
is far more effective. Gypsy is one of Broadways
greatest achievements— the most heartbreaking
musical ever written. Its portrait of renowned
stripper Gypsy Rose Lee and her powerhouse
mother is as strong as musical drama gets.
Sam Mendes, one of the best directors work
ing today, delivers a devastating production that
truly honors the show’s tragic core. He is also *
blessed with the Mama Rose of Bernadette