What happens to a dead musical?
If it’s lucky, it finds new life in tours, Broadway revivals, regional theater productions and beloved cast recordings.
But then there are the others. The ones that flop right out of the gate and die a swift, ignominious death. The ones that are a hit at the time, but just don’t have a broad enough appeal to survive long-term. There’s usually a reason they don’t make it. Maybe they just came along at the wrong time. Maybe they were a hit, but too reliant on a gimmick or a star. Or maybe they were just flat-out bad.
Sony is digging very, very deep into the archives, reviving and releasing cast recordings for some of those lost “gems” on its Masterworks label in primarily digital formats.
But are they really gems? Sort of. But not exactly.
BRAVO GIOVANNI
This 1962 comic musical was a flop, running for only 76 performances on Broadway. There’s nothing terribly earthshaking or unique, but it’s not a lost cause.
Set in Rome, it tells the tale of a trattoria owner who uses devious methods (like an underground tunnel) to compete with his new neighbor - a chain restaurant.
The concept and some of the songs are fairly funny, particularly in the way they skewer restaurant chains. This chain, Uriti, boasts a chef from the United Nations luncheonette and great “Italian cuisine” like chicken chow mein.
Opera star Cesare Siepi, in the title role, is a bit too heavy for some of the more comic numbers, but his voice is still lovely and his co-stars are quite good.
Best of all is a young Michele Lee as Giovanni’s love interest. Her numbers “I’m All I’ve Got” and “Steady, Steady” are standouts.
LADY IN THE DARK
Giovanni may have crashed, but Lady in the Dark was a genuine hit in 1941, with music by Kurt Weill and lyrics by Ira Gershwin. This album is a 1963 studio cast recording that also includes a couple of bonus tracks with alternate song versions.
Opera diva Rise Stevens stars as Liza, a fashion editor who goes to a therapist for help with her depression and fatigue. Despite her glamorous position, she’s drab, underwhelming and in a relationship with a man she doesn’t love. But in her dreams, she’s glamorous, desirable and the toast of the whole country.
The story goes back and forth between her real life and fantasy.
It’s an odd story for a musical - and an odd musical. It’s not often you come across a Broadway musical about psychoanalysis. Rather than being light and frothy, it requires a certain amount of concentration, and you’d do well to hunt down a good synopsis. The songs are lush and rich, but few are exactly catchy.
Stevens may have been an opera star, but she sounds a bit past her prime here, wobbly and harsh on higher notes. Still, she knows how to inject songs with the appropriate amount of attitude and personality. Her “The Saga of Jenny” has a nice jazzy swing to it.
As for the bonus tracks, Danny Kaye’s performance of the tongue-twisting “Tchaikovsky and Other Russians” is fun.
CLOWNAROUND
From a drab woman’s dream to a coulrophobic’s ultimate nightmare. It’s Clownaround, a notorious 1972 flop that never even made it to Broadway, despite the fact that it was produced by Gene Kelly.
It is about clowns. And like clowns, the songs are aggressively cheerful, most sung by a chorus with a tone reminiscent of The Fifth Dimension’s “Up Up and Away.” Fitting for a circus theme, the numbers also tend to get big and over-the-top with lots of brass.
The lyrics are largely inane. A sample: “Look at you. Aren’t you funny. Does that nose belong to you? Well, if it does, kiss me, honey. I love you.”
“Animal Band” is an interesting oddity, veering from African rhythms to big-band jazz to show tune to psychedelic rock and back, but then some numbers can get into unintentionally creepy territory. Case in point: the song “Here Are Your Children,” in which the chorus of clowns laments the fact that they don’t have children and wish they could have yours.
It’s unsettling on many levels.
Of course, if you love clowns, you might find it charming instead of disturbing.
Each of these shows has something to offer - even if it’s nightmares. But their primary appeal will be for serious musical theater aficionados, those who remember seeing the production or fans of someone involved. There’s not much here to win over the casual listener or to really stand out.
Style, Pages 45 on 06/30/2013