A BARE-BONES BOBBY IN BROOKLYN:
A COMPANY THAT GHOSTS THE GOODS
IS STILL ABOUT BEING ALIVE
A revival of a show featuring the smart songs by the late Stephen Sondheim is sure to draw interest and audiences. Broadway is currently hosting the revue Sondheim’s Old Friends and his lyrics (with Jule Styne’s music) are in the air again in that neighborhood with the return of Gypsy. Merrily We Roll Along is recent stage (and future film) evidence of the ongoing attraction. And the legacy keeps rolling along. Starry concert versions of Follies were attractions at the quickly-sold-out program at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall and another group tackled the songs in Las Vegas. At 54 Below, the series Sondheim Unplugged returns. And, overseas, the UK is about to enjoy the master’s final score, Here We Are. Meanwhile, Theater 2020 in Brooklyn has dug into the oeuvre numerous times, although their current offering – a kind of bare-bones Company – is not as satisfying as their admirable mountings in recent years of Into the Woods and A Little Night Music.
Sondheim songs are the gift that keeps giving: good musical “company” whether they’re part of a live show that’s running somewhere or just running through your head. After all—and after all these years, and after all the productions of the lauded musicals, reminding us of his remarkable craft—who can hold a candle to him? Candles on the protagonist’s birthday cake in Company are blown out in the first (and, again in the last) moments of the piece. But Bobby tells his friends in attendance—five couples of varied compatibility, referred to as “those good and crazy people”—that he didn’t make a wish. Some audience members might have been wishing that there would be more to see; there is actually no cake, nor are there candles or plates or gifts. And in later scenes where characters talk about brownies, imbibing booze, smoking a joint, etc., those things don’t appear either. Instead of handling what could be simple, inexpensive props, it’s all done in pantomime. Likewise, there’s no scenery—just a few non-descript pieces of furniture for actors to sit on, which may not sit well with attendees who’d like visual representations of the story’s period and its setting: Manhattan—its exteriors, such as streets and park and interiors of the various apartments, a church, a bar. Instead, one must settle for the minimalist production’s interior monologues in song, rewardingly revealing character, angst, and perspectives.
When the Brooklyn cast handles with care and skill the needed emotion in Sondheim songs (with Mitchell Brownell’s fine, precise piano accompaniment), and George Furth’s dialogue gets its deserved zing or sting, there’s meaty stuff to feast on. And there’s certainly some strong, crisp, effective singing.
To be or not to be (married)—that is the question with no easy answer for our hero. One song written for the show that was initially cut—but restored a couple of decades later—offers a wedding proposal that unrealistically suggests a compromise (“Marry Me a Little”). Recent productions have changed two marriage-resistant characters. Committed to thoughtfully exploring the commitment of marriage, the still largely relevant Company is now 55 years old, 20 years older than the age of its central character. Bobby, originally written as an outwardly carefree and ambivalent single guy, was revamped to be a female so that she (Bobbie) has the added pressure of the biological clock if bearing children is a goal. And the high-strung woman named Amy was replaced with Jamie, a gay man. Theater 2020 goes back to Plan A, recalling how the musical was conceived back in 1970, minus the dance set to the instrumental “Tick Tock.” This musical has never been heavy on dance, but “Side by Side by Side,” Act II’s vaudeville-style, strutting number with the full company of Company handling canes, comedy, and a kickline is a happy highlight bringing welcome energy and movement.
As Bobby, Gavin Kenny sings in an increasingly earnest fashion to demonstrate that, despite witnessing the squabbles and struggles of the couples he’s befriended, Bobby starts to yearn for the ideal mate he hopes is out there somewhere. She’d have a combination of the best qualities of the women he knows (“Someone Is Waiting”). He doesn’t name any of the three people we see that he’s dated, played by Stefani Richardson, Emma Noelani, and Megan Benjamin, who nail the frustrations set to the frisky melody of “You Could Drive a Person Crazy.”
The production, as seen at an early performance, takes time to get going. A too-static staging of the opening number (the title song) is followed by a slow-moving scene with a couple’s seemingly endless round of clenched-teeth, passive-aggressive corrections of each other’s statements. Several later scenes fare better, the pace picks up, and some characterizations prove to be more engaging and seem more authentically “owned” than others. Having dauntingly big shoes to fill, following the indelible impact of the formidable originator Elaine Stritch—and Patti LuPone later on—Bess Morrison could use some more acid and snark in taking on the role of the older, oft-wed woman. There is room for Amy (the likeable Annie Hunt) to be even more neurotic, while others would benefit from more subtle approaches. Corey Barron and Elena Blyskal amuse as husband and wife reacting so differently to marijuana—and she reveals a gorgeous legit soprano voice in “Getting Married Today.” The ensemble works well as a unit in the larger group numbers, with some splendid harmony.
Despite the misgivings and missed opportunities here (some are fixable), musical theatre lovers may not want to miss getting their Sondheim fix at affordable prices (starting at $43.50) where the songs are the thing and they’re blessedly audible, sung without amplification. Also coming through loud and clear are the thought-provoking points about caring and coupling. Maybe that’s not surprising, as 2020 has long been run by dedicated co-producing artistic directors Judith Jarosz (choreographer) and David Fuller (director), a married couple themselves.
photo by John Hoffman
Company
Theater 2020 at the Mark O’Donnell Theater
Entertainment Community Fund Arts Center, 160 Schermerhorn St, Brooklyn Heights
Thurs-Sat at 7; Sun at 3
ends on May 11, 2025
for tickets, visit Theater 2020
