BWW Reviews: MTW Presents Lush New Revival of Webber's SUNSET BOULEVARD

To close out its 60th Season in grand fashion, Musical Theatre West has commissioned a lush new revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Tony Award-winning musical SUNSET BOULEVARD on its home stage at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach. Directed by Larry Raben and featuring musical direction by David Lamoureux and choreography by John Todd, this impressive, admirable 20th Anniversary Southern California production continues its limited engagement through July 28.

It's alarming to fathom that it has shockingly been twenty years (!) since Los Angeles has seen a full-scale production of this rarely-mounted show. After a couple of years of workshops and festival stagings, Webber's first fully-staged production finally opened---appropriately enough---in London, 1993, with stage superstar Patti LuPone taking on the showy role of Norma Desmond.

The show then underwent some much-needed heavy re-tooling for its pre-Broadway L.A. incarnation later that same year at the now-shuttered Shubert Theater, infamously recasting Glenn Close as Norma. Then, finally in the following year, the show made its heralded debut on Broadway, winning both Close and Webber Tony Awards for their work (book co-writers/co-lyricists Don Black and Christopher Hampton also won Tonys).

But to go even further back, the stage musical, of course, is adapted from what many film scholars and critics regard as one of the greatest motion pictures in American cinematic history. The movie, released by Paramount Pictures in 1950, was the brilliant black-and-white noir classic by film auteur Billy Wilder, which presented a stirring, often haunting insider's look at the inner-workings and backstage drama of the Hollywood most casual movie-goers at the time aren't often privy to see (well, at least not in the pre-TMZ, pre-Twitter, pre-Instagram mid-20th Century).

While, sure, much of Wilder's eerie moodiness and signature biting, cynical-laced wit didn't quite translate shot-for-shot into Webber's still rather laudable adaptation (heightened histrionics and overly-sweeping melodrama---the bread-and-butter of the Webber oeuvre---are almost always his automatic go-to, it seems), the musical theater conversion of SUNSET BOULEVARD is still, for the most part, a grand showcase of story and song filled with complex characters and many memorable anthems. At least for this reviewer, this closely follows EVITA as Webber's most mature, grounded work among his catalog of hit shows.

Much like the source material that inspired it, the stage adaptation---and MTW's fine revival of it---follows the same narrative path from surprising start to tragic end of how a luck-starved studio screenwriter named Joe Gillis (here dashingly played by David Burnham) finds himself somehow locked---or, rather, trapped---into an uneasy companionship with aging, forgotten film star Norma Desmond (played with vivid gusto by theater vet Valerie Perri), a discarded remnant of the Golden Age of Hollywood's Silent Era.

While on the run from repo men---cleverly dramatized using a mash up of projected black-and-white film footage of a car chase spliced with live, on-stage car props---Joe evades his determined chasers by randomly pulling into an open driveway of a house on the posh street of Sunset Boulevard. Little does he know that the dilapidated house he drove into by chance belonged to Ms. Desmond, who has spent the past several years shielded away in this dark, time-worn Hollywood mansion with only her trusted Butler/chauffeur/caretaker/enabler Max (the riveting Norman Large) as her sole company.

Almost immediately, Norma's egomaniacal delusion becomes very apparent.

"You're Norma Desmond!" exclaims a startled Joe. "You used to be in silent pictures. You used to be big!"

"I am big!" Norma retorts. "It's the pictures that got small!" Oh, dear.

Excited with the prospect of having a young, handsome, live-in screenwriter in residence, Norma insists in providing room-and-board to the struggling Joe in exchange for his expert "assistance" in polishing up her erratic self-penned script for her "return" film (she hates the word "comeback") that she hopes to present to her past collaborator, the ubiquitous Cecil B. DeMille (David Aldrete). You see, since the rise in popularity of "talkies," the evidently mentally-unstable Norma---whose over-the-top acting skills have no place in the non-silent film world---is longing to get back into the spotlight. After all, in her mind, she never really left the spotlight at all.

Partly opportunistic and perhaps fueled by the notion that she's pretty harmless, Joe agrees to the arrangement---which soon, as expected, becomes more than what he bargained for, especially when Norma proves to be a demanding, possessive landlord. Before you know it, Joe---after a fateful New Year's Eve---has morphed into a "kept" man, looking every bit like Norma's live-in escort and sexual companion, much to reserved contempt of Max. Joe Doesn't seem to be that terribly troubled by his new "position" in Norma's life, even as he continues to cultivate a questionable romance with a betrothed fellow screenwriter Betty (Ashley Fox Linton). Poor engaged girl. Joe's charming, ain't he?

So, alas, in a story about dashed dreams and unrequited love, it's safe to assume that things don't get wrapped up in a tidy happy ending, or even---since this is musical theater---a buoyantly joyful uptempo finalé.

Overall, MTW's striking revival production of SUNSET BOULEVARD is an exceptional one, filled with beautifully-staged scenes of grandeur and sadness. And although it's not as opulent as I would have expected, its epic ambitions are clearly palpable and are much appreciated. But more importantly, the show is all the more elevated thanks to its trio of top-notch lead actors that help this uniquely Hollywood-esque tale come to life.

As the ultimately tragic Ms. Desmond, Perri does an exemplary job of creating a layered fading star filled with deep sadness. When she sings "With One Look" you can feel her madness bubbling to the surface; later, when she visits a soundstage at Paramount, her gorgeous take on "As If We Never Said Goodbye" is both hopeful and heartbreaking at the same time. You can't help but be awed (just as the other "actors" on that DeMille set are) by her very luminous presence as your heart is flooded with feelings of empathy.

Her portrait of Norma is no mere loon---she is, in modern terms, a tragic, possibly bipolar woman that needed a really good shrink (and perhaps some pills) and not to have an unhealthy enabler like Max hanging around (though he gets points for truly loving Norma, warts and all, and taming her beast within).

Speaking of Max, Norma's immovably loyal man-servant (with a rather interesting secret), Large turns in one incredible, first-rate performance as the hulking man, particularly in scenes that betray his vulnerability. His rendition of "The Greatest Star of All" is perfectly sung and, yes, perfectly acted.

And as trophy boy-toy turned doomed pool-floater Joe Gillis, Burnham is utterly believable as a struggling cad and is undeniably swoon-worthy. Plus, the guy can sing the heck out of these Webber tunes, particularly his belt-tastic take on the title song. Selfishly, I must admit, MTW's production of SUNSET BOULEVARD---if anything else---is a lovely chance to see Burnham take on another musical theater role again, even though his one-man cabaret shows in the past few years have been such an awesome treat. An accomplished actor blessed with matinee idol good looks and a jaw-droppingly magnificent singing voice to match, his return to a Southern California stage in a fictional role is a celebration in itself.

The musical itself, of course, is far from perfect and, subsequently, the piece Webber and his collaborators have crafted here doesn't quite reach the brilliance of the motion picture masterpiece that inspired it. But that's okay, considering Billy Wilder is a tough act to follow.

Personally, the only real gripes I have with MTW's specific production of SUNSET BOULEVARD are, first, its uneven sound mix---but technical gaffes, particularly during opening weekend are almost always forgivable, especially when you know (or, at least, hope) that these troubles will be fixed for forthcoming performances. Secondly---and this one's less forgivable---the show seems to lose momentum during scenes with the periphery ensemble, as if the staging of these scenes are less assured than those that involved interactions between the four principal characters. The scenes, I feel, needed a little more umphh and a bigger jolt of energy.

And, lastly, while I really liked how the creative team stage the car-chase scene at the top of the show, it would have been extra nice to have much, much more of the 50's Hollywood noir vibe of the film (and the film industry) be integrated into it. I feel a few more scenes could have been punched up by this bit of movie pixie dust in some way.

In the end, though, MTW should be exuberantly proud of their grand finalé to their 60th season. Like its central character and the show itself, we all want to be loved and adored for as long as we can. Trust me, this production genuinely deserves every bit of love showered upon it during---and after---its run.

Follow this reviewer on Twitter: @cre8iveMLQ

Photos by Ken Jacques. Previous page: Valerie Perri and David Burnham. This page, from top: Norma (Perri) demonstrates how she slayed audiences with just one look; Joe (Burnham) listens in on Norma's plans; Max (Norman Large) monologues his adoration for Ms. Desmond.

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Final remaining performances of Musical Theatre West's SUNSET BOULEVARD continue through Sunday, July 28 and are scheduled Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., with Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m., and Sunday evening at 7 p.m. Tickets start at $20. There is a $3 service charge per ticket. Prices are subject to change without notice. Group rates are available for 12 or more.

Musical Theatre West performs at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center located at 6200 E. Atherton Street in Long Beach, CA.

For tickets or for more information, please call 562-856-1999 x4 or visit online at www.musical.org.

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