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When Broadway first saw a fully staged musical comedy version of one of Mel
Brooks' outrageously corny movies, there was euphoric excitement. People
said "we've never
seen anything like it on a Broadway stage before!" Well, actually, everyone
had seen almost all of the elements before. It's just that they all had
never been assembled with the unique Brooks touch. The result? Higher ticket
prices and more Tony Awards than any other show had ever enjoyed. That was
2001 and the musical was The Producers. Naturally, a second Mel
Brooks musical was called for by fans and investors alike. Now it is here.
While The Producers was an incomparable hit because there was nothing
to compare it to, Young Frankenstein can be compared - it can be
compared to The Producers, and it suffers by the comparison on almost
every level. But is that fair? How does it stand on its own? Not, too well,
actually. Brooks has contributed a score that does its job musically but
repeats too many clichés lyrically. The production has every bell and
whistle possible, including the nifty work of a new member of the team,
special effects wizard Marc Brickman, but the lavishness is purposeless. The
cast has talent and works very hard, but inconsistently. The leading
performance in the title role is surprisingly blah. It all adds up to a
decidedly disappointing evening. |
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Storyline: The musical version of the 1974 movie comedy spoofing the
monster movies of the 1930s. In it the grandson of the famous Dr.
Frankenstein decides to "Join The Family Business" and bring the gigantic
corpse of a recently executed criminal back to life with unexpected results.
Brooks teams again with Thomas Meehan to convert
his screenplay into Broadway-style musical comedy. They don't make of the
material much more than was there in the original. Repeating known gags all
evening long was unavoidable. After all, who could imagine a Young
Frankenstein without a "What hump?" or a "Walk this way?" But one of the
secrets of The Producers' success was the extent to which it topped
the original. This time out, it seems that the team thought it was enough to
transfer the original. It isn't. Amazingly, Susan Stroman who topped herself
so many times in the course of The Producers, and who seemed to come
up with a fabulous new idea at every turn, produces practically no new,
surprising or superbly funny moments this time. While The Producers
had its "Springtime for Hitler" which took the highlight of the movie to
astronomical new heights, Young Frankenstein has a lackluster
mounting of "Putting on the Ritz" that is only saved from blah-ness by
Shuler Hensley's quite funny emoting as the monster. Only the musical team
that made Brooks' first score sound so solid has worked magic here. Once again, Doug Besterman has orchestrated the
arrangements of Glen Kelley while the vocal arrangements are by Patrick S.
Brady, who also conducts the orchestra as Musical Director. A very large
orchestra gives a full, lush and jazzy sound.
Roger Bart has been given the title role, probably on the
strength of his last performance with Brooks when he was
side-splittingly funny as Carmen Ghia, the director’s “common law
assistant” in The Producers. Our review of that show pointed out that
he had "moments that make you beg for mercy so you can get your breath."
Here he accomplishes the strange feat of making an over-the-top performance
feel routine, almost as if he is going through the motions of what was once
a high-energy romp. Beth Leavel is now the horse scaring Frau Blucher while
Michele Ragusa has the role of the professor's fiancée with her two big
sophomoric numbers, the inconsistent "Please Don't Touch Me" and the one-gag
phallus song "Deep Love." Two fine performances come from Christopher
Fitzgerald who makes the role of Igor a funny side-kick turn ("Together
Again" is the delight of the first act) and Fred Applegate who throws himself
completely into two roles, the town's Inspector Kemp whose encounter with
one of Frankenstein's monsters cost him an arm and a leg, and the Hermit
whose "Please Send Me Someone" is at least the most earnestly delivered
number in the second act.
The only member of the "top four" designers for this show
(set, costumes, lights, sound) that didn't have the same function for The
Producers is Jonathan Deans, who came in to handle sound design in this
house where he did such a marvelous job for Ragtime a decade ago. One
wonders what his reaction was when he discovered how loud the house air
handling system has become over that decade. In the very few quiet moments
of this overly raucous show, the hum of machinery seemed more like a roar.
No wonder they kept the show screaming for attention. Added to the mix for
visual impact was Marc Brickman, whose special effects designs range from a
nifty projection of moving trees for the hay wagon sequence ("Roll in the
Hay" of course) to a not too impressive bank of sparks, flares and strobes
for the "Life, Life" number.
Music and lyrics by Mel Brooks. Book by Mel Brooks and
Thomas Meehan. Directed and choreographed by Susan Stroman. Music
arrangements by Glen Kelly. Orchestrations by Doug Besterman. Music
direction and vocal arrangements by Patrick S. Brady. Design: Robin Wagner
(set) William Ivey Long (costumes) Marc Brickman (special effects) Angelina
Avallone (make up) Paul Huntley (wigs and hair) Peter Kaczorowski (lights)
Jonathan Deans (sound). Principal Cast: Fred Applegate, Roger Bart,
Christopher Fitzgerald, Shuler Hensley, Beth Leavel, Michele Ragusa, Kelly
Sullivan.
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