Review - Dietrich and Chevalier: Love and War

I will leave it to you, dear readers, if you decide to take in a performance of Jerry Mayer's Dietrich and Chevalier, to determine for yourselves if it's better off being a play peppered with just a few musical moments or a full-out concert with just a smattering of narrative. As it stands now, the two-act piece with a plot that continually gets halted to present its collection of fifteen musical hits trudges along without much purpose.

Which is a shame because the relationship between the two film icons is a promising topic for the stage. Meeting in 1930's Hollywood, the French Maurice chevalier (Robert Cuccioli) and the German Marlene Dietrich (Jodi Stevens) first bond through their mutual difficulties in being fashioned by the studio as exotic foreign entertainers. Though both married, they begin an affair that settles into more of a life-long friendship.

During World War II, Dietrich becomes the sweetheart of American G.I.s by denouncing her homeland's government and entertaining the troops in U.S.O. shows. Meanwhile, Chevalier has his reasons for returning to German occupied Paris, singing for his countrymen (and, unavoidably, their conquerors) in nightclubs and on Nazi-sponsored radio programs and even crossing the border to entertain French soldiers in a P.O.W. camp; actions that lead to his being accused of treason after the War. While Mayer's surface telling of their story is rather flat throughout, the proceedings turn downright silly when Dietrich rushes into Chevalier's hearing, demanding a chance to defend her friend.

Throughout the story, the playwright squeezes in excuses for the pair's signature tunes; "Isn't It Romantic," "Mimi" and "Louise" for him, "Falling In Love Again," "Lili Marlene" and "The Boys in the Back Room" for her. They're usually placed in scenes where the characters are on a stage somewhere, contributing little, if anything, to the plot.

The two stars, plus Donald Corren, who is billed as playing "Eight Fascinating Characters" (mostly German and French officials), certainly throw their skill and energy into the production. Stevens is a model of dignified glamour, though her accent isn't always reliable, and is most charming when chatting up the audience as if they were her adoring military fans. But director Pamela Hall's rather perfunctory staging does little to help her achieve movie star radiance.

Cuccioli, who looks nothing like Chevalier, has mastered the man's broad facial expressions, show-bizzy gestures and comical phrasing. His performance does seem a little artificial at first, but the portrayal is accurate. And in one monologue, where Chevalier defends his actions when his patriotism is questioned, the actor delivers a very moving moment, the only one where Dietrich and Chevalier shows any kind of dramatic spark.

Photos by Jodi Stevens and Robert Cuccioli by Carol Rosegg.

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