San Francisco Music Review: HARVEY MILK 2013 (San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus at Nourse Theatre)

COME OUT TO THE SAN FRANCISCO GAY MEN’S CHORUS

In 1978, on the night of Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone’s assassinations, an unprecedented candlelight march brought mourners to San Francisco’s City Hall. The newly formed San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus canceled a rehearsal for their upcoming debut concert and opted to perform at the makeshift memorial service. It was there on the steps of City Hall that the world’s first openly gay chorus sang in public for the first time.

Now, 35 years later, SFGMC is presenting Harvey Milk 2013, a tribute concert to the slain supervisor which opened last night at the Nourse Theater. The first half, “I Am The Legacy,” is the debut of six interdisciplinary art works which were chosen by SFGMC after they solicited a call for submissions via the Internet for new art of all forms. The second half showcases the world premiere of Andrew Lippa’s 12-piece song cycle, I Am Harvey Milk, a stirring, rousing and thrilling oratorio which bristles the senses and proves to be the best work yet from Lippa, best-known as composer and lyricist of The Wild Party, The Addams Family,  and Big Fish, (which opened recently in Chicago and will hopefully be retooled prior to its October Broadway opening).

The reason for Lippa’s successful score this time around is that he is not attached to a clunky libretto. Instead of a biographical retelling, I Am Harvey Milk takes pieces of Milk’s life and turns them into songs both general and personal. The haunting choral work “Sticks and Stones” validates how name-calling can feel like a physical attack, making something so seemingly trivial an impetus for the gay rights movement. “San Francisco” is a paean to the city which is not just a healing force for broken-spirited émigrés, but a soul mate as well. Remarkably, one of the most triumphant sections is “Friday Night in the Castro,” a perfect pastiche of the 70s disco that blared during Milk’s rise to power; the standout soloists revved up the energy, and when a giant disco ball descended over them, the house went wild.

Lippa himself portrays Milk, and his strong Broadway chops are used in “Lavender Pen,” a joyous ode to the signing of the first gay rights bill, the bouncy “You Are Here,” a celebratory and triumphant acknowledgement of Milk’s win for a supervisorial seat, and the exhilarating finale, “Tired of the Silence,” which uses an actual speech of Milk’s in which he announced that the best road to freedom was to come out of the closet. Laura Benanti (Tony-winner for Gypsy with Patti Lupone) played the “soprano,” but her silvery voice was hindered by unnecessary over-amplification; as a result, we lose many of her lyrics and it is difficult to discern if she is Milk’s mother or his muse – or both. Most impressive is Noah Marlowe as Young Harvey. Mr. Marlowe has already appeared on Broadway in Mary Poppins, but he is no Newsies-esque moppet; this great young performer with a stunning voice is poised to be a star. The opening number in which the young Milk sees his life as “An Operatic Masterpiece” is both haunting and memorable.

The oratorio – “a grand musical composition for soloists, chorus and orchestra based on a sacred subject” – is backed by the 30-member Bay Area Rainbow Symphony, which articulates August Erksmoen’s inventive orchestrations without bringing attention to themselves.

Under the direction of the charming Dr. Timothy Seelig, the 300+ chorus members create a magnificently rich sound, especially evident when Guest Director Noah Himmelstein had them fill the aisles in the anthemic “We Will Know,” the first number of “I Am the Legacy.” Orchestra spectators were treated to the stereophonic sounds of the chorus as they held twinkling electronic candles. “I Met a Boy” is the persuasively silly and funny look at couples from different decades; this crowd pleaser is performed by The Lollipop Guild, SWAG, and Vocal Minority.

Other highlights included a pas de deux danced by Chad Dawson and James Graham, with an incredibly sweet text by Graham thanking Milk for having paved the way for the two men’s freedom to dance together. The two danced to the accompaniment of “Falling Slowly” from Once, beautifully arranged for the chorus by Oran Eldor. 17-year-old Julian Hornik entranced us with his original composition and intelligent, soulful performance of “Altoona, Pennsylvania.”

All the stars fell into place for this once-in-a-lifetime event. Footage of the reactions from the Supreme Court’s recent decision to nullify DOMA and Prop 8 is incorporated into the show (the exquisite video and projection design behind and on the chorus is by Andrew Lazarow).

Also, City Arts & Lectures just completed a plush refurbishment of the 1927, 1600-seat Nourse Theater, which had been closed to the public for over 30 years – this meant that many San Franciscans were unaware that this gorgeous venue existed in the heart of San Francisco’s Performing Arts Center (across the street from Davies Hall musicians’ entrance). With original architectural details, the hall now has state of the art lighting, new curtains, and plush upholstered seats.

The commissioned I Am Harvey Milk is a work which deserves to – and will be – seen at Chorus Concerts around the country in the next year. And while SFGMC delivers the premiere with all the professionalism and love anyone could wish for, the loveliest symbol of Milk’s legacy resides just outside the venue, where rainbow lights emblazon City Hall, ground zero for the equality which is now sweeping the country.

photos by Glenn Steiner Photography

Harvey Milk 2013
San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus
Nourse Theatre, 201-299 Hayes Street
scheduled to end on June 28, 2013
for tickets, visit http://www.SFGMC.org

for future performances of I Am Harvey Milk, visit http://iamharveymilk.com/