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'Memphis' does rock, despite shallow story
(by Bob Ableman - March 08, 2012)
THEATER, BY BOB ABELMAN
'Memphis' does rock, despite shallow story
The Broadway musical "Memphis," on tour and currently on stage at Playhouse Square, earned the 2010 Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards for best musical. While such awards are emblematic of theatrical excellence, they are also a measure of what is being bested. The greater the competition, the more valid the award.
Sad to say, the honors bestowed upon "Memphis" occurred during a relatively mediocre season of musical theater dominated by retreads, revivals and minimal risk taking.
Also nominated for best musical were: "Million Dollar Quartet," an artificial and formulaic retelling of the historic jam session with Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley; "American Idiot," which the New York Times called "a pulsating portrait of wasted youth that, in both plotting and its emotional palette, is drawn in brash, primary-colored strokes, maybe too crudely for those looking for specifics;" and "Fela!" which critics noted "doesn't so much tell a story as soak an audience to and through the skin with musical style and sensibility."
"Memphis," too, has more moxie than meaning and wins kudos for its presentation rather than its profundity or audacity. While the story and its songs lack depth and, quite frankly, heart and soul, the storytelling is absolutely superb.
At its core is a tale about race and rock 'n' roll during the early 1950s. Huey Calhoun, a smooth-talking Caucasian rebel with a cause, is seduced by the sound of rhythm and blues. During the course of this musical, Huey launches a career as a quirky radio disc jockey in his hometown of Memphis that introduces "race music" to white audiences and jump-starts a musical revolution.
This core is given thin candy coating by librettist-lyricist Joe DiPietro ("I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change") and composer David Bryan (Bon Jovi keyboardist and co-writer of the "Toxic Avenger" musical with Mr. DiPietro). Their songs are solid but soulless simulations of early rock, church gospel and R&B that lack that elusive ingredient that reels you in by the heartstrings. They serve to move along the storyline but fail to move an audience.
While the material lacks luster, the presentation of it is topnotch. The show boasts of an explosive group of singers and dancers who execute Sergio Trujillo's highly stylized period choreography to perfection and hold nothing back. Ensemble numbers occasionally resemble an advanced Jazzercise video, with moves more aerobic than aesthetic, but they are thoroughly entertaining.
Bryan Fenkart is a 78 rpm record played at 33 1/3 rpm and an absolute charmer as Huey. With a face and body in perpetual, if somewhat spastic, motion, he does his best to bring life to dialogue that is often stale and stunted in terms of dramatic development. His "Memphis Lives in Me" is one of the best songs in the show, but, as an 11th-hour number at the tail end of Act 2, it is a bit too little too late.
Felicia Boswell, as Huey's love interest, Felicia, is phenomenal. Listening to Ms. Boswell sing "Love Will Stand When all Else Falls" in the face of the adversity brought on by their interracial relationship is reason enough to see this production.
While the story lacks a genuine pulse, it has a solid backbeat delivered by a wonderful 10-piece, on-stage orchestra under Alvin Hough's direction. In fact, under Christopher Ashley's general direction, the entire production moves at a delightfully fast pace.
All this activity unfolds within a set that, while a simplified version of David Gallo's New York staging, beautifully captures the play's time, place and temperament. Some transitions were a bit rough on opening night, but they resulted in some stunning locations, particularly the smoky, underground bar where Huey and Felicia first meet.
This production is wonderful to look at and a pleasure to listen to. It will stimulate the senses if not satisfy the desire for something more out of a Tony Award-winning musical.
"Memphis" continues through March 11 at Playhouse Square's Palace Theatre. Tickets range from $10 to $85.
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