Reviewed by Judy Richter
Composer-lyricist Stephen
Schwartz has
given us hit musicals like "Godspell," "Pippin" and "Wicked." He also has a string of
less well-known or less successful shows like "Children of Eden" and "The Baker's
Wife."
"Rags,"for
which he was the lyricist, was a bomb on Broadway, but it was terrific when
artistic director Robert Kelley staged it for TheatreWorks several seasons ago. Kelley has
turned to Schwartz again as the company opens its 39th season. This time the
show is "Snapshots," a book musical featuring songs taken from, adapted from or
cut from Schwartz musicals, plus the new title song. The show was conceived by Michael
Scheman and David
Stern, who also
wrote the book. Additional music and lyrics are by David Crane, Seth
Friedman, Marta Kaufman and Charles Strouse. Schwartz and Stern were in residence and tweaked the
show during rehearsals. They also attended opening night.
Stern's
book focuses on an empty-nester Connecticut couple, Sue (Beth DeVries) and Dan (Ray Wills), whose marriage has gone stale.
Or it least it has for unhappy Sue, who has decided to leave Dan. She's in the
attic to retrieve her suitcase when she runs across a box of snapshots going
back to long before they were married. Just then, Dan returns home from work
early. The play then goes back and forth as two other sets of actors portray
the couple in their younger years.
The
youngest couple, Danny (Brian Crum) and Susie (Courtney Stokes), meet as youngsters when Danny
is the "New Kid in the Neighborhood" (from "Captain Louie"). They're best friends,
but they never become sweethearts. Danny appears unable to express his true
affection for Susie, who's more than fond of him. This situation continues for several
years -- with both becoming involved with other people -- until finally Daniel
(Michael Marcotte)
and Susan (Molly Bell) act on their love and get married. Sue and Dan watch these events
unfold, often commenting on what's happening. It becomes clear that Dan isn't
aware or doesn't care that the romance has disappeared from their relationship,
but that seems to be the problem from Sue's perspective.
Kelley,
who's also credited with the musical staging (Alex Perez is associate choreographer),
directs the show sure-handedly and paces it well. All six performers are
excellent singers who blend well in various combinations. This is especially
true of the women, as in "Meadowlark" (from "The Baker's Wife").
Marcotte as Daniel and Crum as Danny both do well. Wills is saddled with Dan's
less well developed character. He's mostly a passive observer.
Joe
Ragey's
cluttered attic set, lighted by Steven B. Mannshardt, works well, giving the actors
places to change costumes (designed by Fumiko Bielefeldt) and pick up props. Musical
director William Liberatore also sits with the four-member band, conducting from the
keyboards. The songs are tuneful even if many aren't very familiar. Perhaps the
best known are "Popular" from "Wicked" (sung by Stokes as Susie)
and "All Good Gifts" from "Godspell" (sung by Wills as Dan and Marcotte
as Daniel).
Despite
all the best efforts of the cast and TheatreWorks artistic team, weaknesses in
the book undermine "Snapshots." Thus it's a pleasant but not
particularly memorable show.
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