Hello, Disney! The Little Mermaid triumphs as “Dolly” in Orlando (today's MARQUEE)It’s so nice to have Jodi Benson back where she belongs
Shalom, Broadway lovers!In today’s Premium edition of MARQUEE: The Broadway Maven’s Weekly Blast: a review of a performance by the original Little Mermaid in a production of Hello, Dolly!; a homework video for Monday’s class on Gypsy; and a Last Blast about three Sondheim shows. Premium subscribers also get this week: a Broadway Maven YouTube GEM about Wicked; a Broadway Blast about West Side Story; and a quiz about romantic partners in musicals.
REVIEW: She’s still glowin’, she’s still crowin’! Jodi Benson’s acting career is still goin’ strong, having taken her from mischievous mermaid to meddling matchmaker. I’m glad to say she’s just as good as the latter as she was as the former. In a pair of benefit performances last weekend, the performer best known for playing 16-year-old Ariel in 1989’s The Little Mermaid tackled Dolly Levi, a plum role for “women of a certain age” (which at 61 she now is). The admirable production took place in Orlando, and wow, it’s so nice to have Benson back where she belongs – playing an iconic role in the heart of Disney territory. The production, which raised many thousands of dollars for “Give Kids the World Village,” an organization that offers critically ill children an Orlando vacation, involved hundreds of unpaid actors, musicians, crew members, and others to support Encore Performing Arts, a local charity that uses theater to support good causes. Benson was definitely the highlight of the evening. She communicated the versatile, ambitious widow’s every emotion using her whole body, from her knuckles to her knees. Of course, I would expect no less from Triton’s daughter. Unfortunately but understandably, the rest of the all-volunteer, part-time production seemed slightly under-rehearsed, with a few too many flubbed lines by Benson’s fellow principal performers. Still, there were a few standouts among the cast, especially Oakley Thacker as 17-year-old Barnaby Tucker. Thacker has a gift for physical comedy and a talent for dance and voice as well. This won’t be the last time you’ll hear about this promising young actor. Hello, Dolly! is Jerry Herman’s 1964 musical celebrating Thornton Wilder’s dynamic, nose-in-everyone’s-business character who presents herself as a matchmaker as well as a dance instructor, short-distance hauler, ear piercer, and other seemingly random professions. However, she mostly seems focused on finding security with a wealthy husband. The man she’s set her eyes on is Mr. Horace Vandergelder, the “well-known half-a-millionaire” whose grumpy exterior (and, it seems, interior) is hardly an obstacle to Dolly’s ambitions for a comfortable life. The musical comedy takes us from Yonkers to New York City and back, with the famous title number in the Manhattan restaurant of Harmonia Gardens forming the climax of the show. And oh, what a climax it is, at least in the Orlando production. Benson’s emergence at the head of the stairs decked out in her trademark over-the-top red outfit gives the actress a chance to show off her vocal prowess and delightful charm. The show’s choreography was very good, but unfortunately the dancing itself did not match the quality of the staging. The numbers “Dancing” and especially “The Waiter’s Gallop” require perfect coordination, which the dedicated cast could not really achieve. Less ambitious dance steps would have served the production well, and the audience knew it, withholding applause at several key moments in those numbers. Speaking of applause, though, Benson’s hometown crowd celebrated the leading lady with extended cheering that must have extended the show’s run time by several minutes. It was truly thrilling to witness a classic actress play a classic role for a good cause. I say add Benson’s name to the list of memorable Dollys like Carol Channing, Pearl Bailey, and Bette Midler. She deserves it, and the children in crisis who will benefit from her star turn are very blessed that she chose to lend her name and her talent to this important production.
WEST END GIVEAWAY: Broadway Maven David Benkof will be visiting London next month and has an extra ticket for a MARQUEE subscriber to join him for Heathers: The Musical on Thursday, July 4 and another ticket for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Starlight Express for the matinee Sunday, July 7. If you’re interested in one or both tickets, hit “reply” to this E-mail indicating which ticket you’re submitting your name for, no later than Friday night, and winners will be contacted next week.
HOMEWORK: To help get ready for Monday’s class on Gypsy, watch this 10-minute version of that show and answer in the comments: What is the theme of Gypsy? Explain your answer. 
Note: Links to register for ALL classes are always available at TheBroadwayMaven.com.• Monday, July 1 FREE class on Gypsy Noon and 7 pm ET (Register here) • Monday, July 15 FREE class on Into the Woods Noon and 7 pm ET(Register here) • Friday, July 26-Sunday, July 28 BroadwayCon in Times Square (three panels hosted by The Broadway Maven) • Mondays in August: Noon and 7 pm ET Rodgers and Hammerstein series • Tuesdays in August: Noon ET Stephen Schwartz series • Mondays in September: Noon and 7 pm ET Jewish Broadway series • Tuesdays in September: Noon ET Sondheim Academy Act Three NOTE: As always, ALL-ACCESS Passholders do not have to sign up or pay for anything. Just show up!
LAST BLAST: A “niggun” is a Jewish melody without intelligible lyrics. In three Sondheim shows in a row, the composer (who is of course Jewish) gives us a different niggun with the same nonsense lyric: “bum bum.” First, in Sweeney Todd, Judge Turpin sings “bum bum bum” as Sweeney prepares to shave the judge’s face in the song “Pretty Women.” In 1981’s Merrily We Roll Along, producer Joe Josephson complains to songwriting duo Frank and Charley that their music isn’t melodic enough: “there’s not a tune you go bum-bum-bum-di-dum.” (It’s an inside joke, since Sondheim’s his music was reputed to be “non-hummable.”) Finally, three years later, in Sunday in the Park With George, as the titular painter dabs his canvas during the song “Color and Light,” he makes the repetitive sound “bumbum bumbum.” A niggun has the advantage of allowing the singer to focus on something else (like a shave or a painting) while enjoying music without being distracted by lyrics. And in the case of Merrily, the very point is that the lyric doesn’t matter! Broadway Maven David Benkof helps students further their appreciation of musical theater through his classes, his YouTube channel, and MARQUEE: the Broadway Maven’s Weekly Blast. Contact him at DavidBenkof@gmail.com. Invite your friends and earn rewardsIf you enjoy MARQUEE: The Broadway Maven's Weekly Blast, share it with your friends and earn rewards when they subscribe.
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Hello, Disney! The Little Mermaid triumphs as “Dolly” in Orlando (today's MARQUEE)
June 26, 2024
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