REVIEW: DROOD at Baltimore's Vagabond Players

When The Mystery of Edwin Drood opened on Broadway (Best Musical 1986), it had a very short run, which might be attributed to the fact that, in hindsight, it was ahead of its time.  The play-within-a-play, based on Charles Dickens' unfinished mystery novel of the same name, ends with the audience voting for the murderer of the title character. Very much in the same vein as the now popular "wink-wink, nudge-nudge" "we-are-all-in-on-the-joke-together" musicals like Urinetown, the show has an almost modern feel to it. And with the current popularity of LOST, that has audiences catching every detail and nuance, and popularity/talent contests where every vote counts as "American Idol", Drood seems ripe for a Broadway revival. Until then, audiences must settle for local productions, such as the one at Baltimore's Vagabond Players (aka "Vags" to the locals).

The show is full of duality: the actors play actors playing characters, the setting is both The Music Hall Royale and England, and the villain suffers from major dual personality issues. Unfortunately, this Drood, as directed by John Ford, also suffers from a duality, and not in a good way.

First, the audience SHOULD be very aware of the play-within-a-play structure, and the book and opening number, "There You Are" provide nicely for that. Unfortunately, as directed, the audience is given little help here. Having cast members address the audience from the stage instead of going directly into the house, doesn't immediately tear down the fourth wall, and the opening number, with its crucial in the house bits, is staged entirely on one side of the small theatre, leaving half the audience (where I sat) in the dark as to what the heck is going on.

 

 Second, the cast SHOULD be aware that they are really playing two different characters, and here, only five cast members seemed to know that from start to finish – the funny and touching Liz Boyer Hunnicutt (Princess Puffer), the sassy, arrogant and strong-voiced Shannon Wollman (Edwin Drood), the underused, utterly charming Dan Johnson (Bazzard), and Courtney Colaizzi and Rebecca Parry, who make magic out of their thankless (at least as directed here) ensemble roles. The rest of the cast only intermittently gives any sense of understanding what they are doing. (Someone please give Brent Bell (Neville Landless) some direction!)

Any good production of Drood needs two excellent actors: one to play the Chairman, who must keep the proceedings and the audience on track, and one to play the deliciously scary, sexy and pitiful villain John Jasper. "Vags" fails on both accounts. As Chairman, B. Thomas Rinaldi hurts the show where it matters most, as it is apparent that he doesn't have much of a sense of humor or a firm command of his lines (knowing who is who, and what all of the clues are is vital to this labyrinthine tale). He comes across much like Joe Friday in the old "Dragnet" series, only not nearly as entertaining. Some of his inability to connect with the audience is not his fault; some of the blame must be given to the director who unwisely has the Chairman introducing key characters by bellowing his lines from behind the seats. Stephen Antonsen is clearly in over his head as Jasper, and looks embarrassed during much of the climactic Act One duet with a shrill and unfunny Beth Webber as Rosa Bud. In fact, the night I saw it, he stopped singing altogether and just stood there. For a melodramatic character who suffers from a frightening split personality, Antonsen demonstrates none of it. Instead, one gets the sense that a couple  Tylenol would make his little "headache" go away, and his mildly creepy smile as he lusts after Rosa suggests that uncle in everyone's family who leers after a cute niece, rather than a stalking, dangerous letch. (SPOILER ALERT) His Act 2 "Confession" listed in the program was also cut, much to the detriment of the entire ending.

Did I mention duality? Act Two, I am pleased to say, is like an entirely different show! It moves at lightning speed, and alternates between laugh-out-loud funny, charming and touching with the surefootedness of a well-oiled machine. One gets the sense that the company rehearsed the second half much more. The confidence and, yes, the "wink-wink, nudge-nudge" quality comes spilling from the stage. Director Ford wisely chose to reconfigure the Act Two opener, "Settling up the Score" into a bouncy duet (rather than a chorus number) for Wollman and Hunnicutt, clarifying and focusing a significant plot twist and the introduction of a new character. It also serves to make that song and the rousing "Don't Quit While You're Ahead" sound less like the same song with a slightly different tempo. And in the scene where the audience is given a Cliffs Notes version of the major clues thus far, most of the rest of the cast seems to finally be in on the joke, replaying lines from Act One with a fiendish over-the-top delight – exactly how The Mystery of Edwin Drood should be! 

 A couple of notes about the crucial voting at the end: The company scores well with its "applaud your favorite" when determining the identity of the detective (played on my night by the delightful Johnson as Bazzard), and in its funniest moment of the night, the selection of lovers (played with such fun so as to make your sides hurt by Hunnicutt as Puffer and Roger Shulman as crypt keeper Durdles). Regrettably, the most important vote of the evening - election of murderer - is poorly executed (pun intended). A private vote would have been more democratic. As staged, the entire audience could see who voted for whom, thus eliminating a surprise ending. The joke was apparently on us! With the stink of hanging chads in Florida, the murderer was revealed - a major surprise because the clear winner in that show of hands was NOT the person who played out the confession scene. (To pick your own winners, "Vags", at least take a "vote" in secret and then ignore the results…) And last, if you want a real surprise at the finale, DON'T read Act Two song list!

It is a real credit to the Tony-winning book and score that, in spite of all of my objections, a good time seemed to be had by all. Great songs and great writing were able to overcome this uneven production, and provide an entertaining evening.

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