Fun on Broadway: Shrek and West Side Story

It’s hard to believe that summer 2009 is drawing to a close, time for Pops and then the 2009-2010 season. Summer is fun, but a bit strange. No other season seems to be invested with so much meaning and expectation. For example, I never heard anyone say “have a great winter!” or “how was your fall?” Or “can you believe spring is almost over?”

One highlight of my summer was visiting New York to see my brother and his family. My 20-month-old niece Audrey certainly deserves her nickname: “Little Devil.” Look at all that red hair! As my sister-in-law Rebecca says, “Audrey has a lot of energy,” and that’s an understatement. She wakes up ready for action, stopping only for food and sleep. She loves to play and to color – and not just on paper – on tables, chairs, the refrigerator, other people, and on herself.

During this visit I saw two Broadway shows that also exist as movies (that was my lame attempt to tie this blog in with the Pops theme of movie music): Shrek the Musical and West Side Story. I thought I’d tell you a little bit about them and share some videos.

I saw Shrek with my seven-year-old niece Chloe. She thoroughly enjoyed it and so did I. The costumes and sets were impressive and the performances were solid. Tony winner Sutton Foster stole the show as Princess Fiona with her hilarious send-up of a typical Disney princess. Check out her singing and dancing in “Morning Person.” This song comes at the beginning of Act II, after Fiona has been liberated by Shrek and is full of hope for her upcoming marriage.

A lot of the music in Shrek isn’t terribly memorable, except for this number, “I Know It’s Today,” which serves as the introduction to Fiona’s character. Catchy tune -- Chloe and I were singing it for days. Using three actresses of different ages was really effective in setting up Fiona’s backstory and her frustration over not living a fairytale life.

If you’ve seen the Shrek movies, you know that most of their humor comes from in-jokes deconstructing fairytale clichés. In the stage version, though, these jokes often seemed forced and heavy-handed. The films’ message about accepting differences also seemed overly didactic and obvious when delivered through show-stopping song-and-dance. OK, enough carping; it was an overall enjoyable theater experience. Best seen with a seven-year-old. Even more so if she’s your niece or other close relative whom you love, sitting on your lap, so she can see better. Eating M&Ms helps, too.

After Shrek, my brother Paul and I saw the revival of West Side Story. Despite 90+ weather (New York in August), the house was packed. WSS is well known and beloved, so this version was deliberately trying to “make it new.” For example, the Sharks spoke in Spanish much of the time, and two songs (“I Feel Pretty” and “A Boy Like That”) were sung entirely in Spanish. The staging and acting emphasized the grittiness, violence, and sexuality of the story, undermining the sappiness and sentimentality that can creep in with songs like “Somewhere” and “Tonight” and “Maria.”

I saw the film version of WSS at the Fremont a while back, quite an experience, and then as now I was struck by how the ballads seem a bit dated, while the dance numbers, set to Bernstein’s music, still hold up.

One advantage of sitting in the cheap seats, as Paul and I did, is that you can see the dance routines from above, really appreciating their symmetry, geometry, and energy. The highlight of the show was “America,” led by Tony award winner Karen Olivo. Here she is performing the song with the cast on David Letterman.

See you soon for Pops! Looking forward to the Damon Castillo Band. Last time we backed up a band was Pink Martini, and that was a blast. Warm regards, DH