Review: A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC at Irish Classical Theatre

ELEGANT NIGHT MUSIC

Stephen Sondheim's A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC elegantly opened the Irish Classical Theatre's 25th season. Based on Ingmar Bergman's film "Smiles of a Summer Night," this production of the 1973 Tony Award winning musical demonstrates everything that is right about this well established company. Attempting a large musical can be vexing in the relatively small space of the Andrews Theatre, but any worries of being pared down can be cast aside. The immediate intimacy of the theatre worked beautifully for this romantic tale.

Director Chris Kelly has triumphed in seamlessly weaving his finessed stage direction with Robert Cooke's lilting choreograpahy. Staging a musical in the round is quite a challenge, and Kelly has a great eye for stage pictures, so no seat in the audience is ever looking at someone's back for long. His direction was graceful and had the actors looking fantastic in their movements.The opening "Night Waltz" introduced us to the entire cast, effortlessly waltzing while interchanging partners, thus offering a glimpse of the drama that would unfold.

Set in the turn of the 20th century Sweden, we meet a middle aged actress Desiree, her family and her many amours. The sophisticated book by Hugh Wheeler tells us of many tristes, where intertwined love affairs become tangled with family matters. Sondheim's glorious score is based on the 3/4 time waltz figure and it employs a chorus of Liebeslieder singers who comment on the action, while also acting as servants. Their difficult music borders on operatic at times, and they seemed poised for the challenge.

Although appearing too young for the role of Desiree, actress Jenn Stafford embodied the character with appropriate grand gestures of a great stage actress, and her clear singing voice was well suited for her show stopping "Send in the Clowns." Her lover of many years ago, Fredrik Egerman, was played by Matt Witten. Witten's baritone shone in his Act I number, "You Must Meet My Wife," one of Sondheim's most brilliant expository songs, with biting commentary supplied by Desiree. The relationship between Stafford and Witten was playful and the two had a palpable energy of their past love.

Frederik's teen age second wife, Anne, is played by the lovely Renee Landrigan. Her giggly, yet pouty nature was perfect for the role, although the upper reaches of the score sometimes taxed her. Ben Caldwell, as Fredrik's son Henrik, was convincing as the frustrated young man who is constantly being put off and has problems with his misplaced sexual energy. The ACT I trio of "Now," "Later," and "Soon" brilliantly uses Sondheim's complex writing to communicate the inner feelings of the three. With this challenging music, Caldwell later suffered from some minor intonation problems in ACT II.

Stage veteran Pamela Rose Mangus assumed the role of Desiree's aged mother, Madame Armfeldt, after playing the part of Desiree in 1993. Written for Hermione Gingold, and in the most recent Broadway revival played by Angela Lansbury and then Elaine Stritch, this juicy role is full of sage wisdom and biting one liners. Mangus delivered the hypnotic "Liaisons" with ease and reminiscence of her past affairs with royalty. With Desiree often touring with theatrical productions, Madame Armfeldt assumes the role of mother to Desiree's young daughter,Fredrika, played by the charming child actor Faith Walh.

Count Carl-Magnus Malcolm (Anthony Alcocer) is Desiree's most recent lover. As his name implies, he is a power hungry ego maniac. Alcocer was hammy and self absorbed, offering good comic timing to his strong vocals. His wife, Charlotte, played by Michele Marie Roberts, is a juicy role of the bitter wife who is not resigned to being cheated upon. Her duet with Anne, "Everyday A Little Death" was well sung and lent pathos to the two ladies despair over their cheating husbands. Roberts cunningly guides young Anne towards revenge against he husband's lover, climaxing in the brilliant Act I finale "A Weekend in the Country."

Ladies maid Petra (Amy Jakel) is given the 11 o'clock number of "The Miller's Son." Jakel coped well with the too brisk tempo of this wordy song and was great as the lusty country girl who makes advances at any available pair of pants.

The simple set by Kenneth Shaw was delicately lit by lighting designer Brian Cavanagh. The visual highlight of this production was the glorious period costumes, designed by Lise Harty. Ms. Harty's attention to detail was spot on, most notably in the ACT II costumes with the entire cast dressed in shades of white and cream, as well as some handsome car coats for the gentlemen. Also of note were Desiree's ACT I entrance gown and hat, worn during "The Glamorous Life." The 4 piece combo, led by Music Director Allan Paglia, was efficient for the small space but could have benefitted from a few more strings to fill out the lush original orchestrations of Jonathan Tunick.

Wheeler and Sondheim's musical came at a time when the formulaic musical comedy of the 50's and 60's was wavering, and theatre scores became more complex due to innovative writing by this composer. Sondheim would write COMPANY(1970) and FOLLIES (1971), both dealing with issues of middle age and coping with challenging relationships. He would ultimately solidify his own distinct musical sound through these 3 seminal works. With Irish Classical Theatre's high production values, excellent cast, and thoughtful direction, this production of Stephen Sondheim's classic musical is not to be missed.

Performances continue through October 18,2105 at The Irish Classical Theatre, 625 Main St, Buffalo, New York. For more information or tickets, visit the box office, phone 716-853-ICTC (4282) or at www.irishclassicaltheatre.com.

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