New
York-area readers hungry for a little Weimer Republic-era color could do no
better than the recent revival of The
Threepenny Opera, currently at the Linda
Gross Theater, 336 West 20th Street, Manhattan. In an English adaptation by Marc Blitzstein (1905-1964) of the Bertolt Brecht (1898-1956) book, the
small but game troupe of professionals breathes new life into the show with
music by Kurt Weill (1900-1950).
Under the direction of Martha Clarke (born 1944), this production owes its artistic
inspiration to the style of the seductive and seedy era of Weimar Berlin, and
it is gamely played by the Atlantic Theater company. The Blitzstein translation of the original is
the same as appeared in the US in 1954, when the Opera played at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.
The Opera was originally adapted from an 18th
Century English ballad opera, John Gay’s
The Beggar’s Opera. The Weill-Brecht
show opened originally in Berlin in 1928, and was hailed as a socialist
criticism of capitalist society. Though
filled with many fine songs, only The
Ballad of Mack the Knife has since become a standard. (There is a wonderful recording of Lotte Lenya, Mrs. Kurt Weill and star
of the original production, singing with Louis
Armstrong here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5362wt7-dEM.)
The story is simply told: two-bit punk Macheath
(Mack the Knife) marries virginal Polly Peachum. This enrages her father, who is King of the
Beggars, and he works to have Macheath hanged for past crimes. However, Tiger Brown, the Chief of Police, is
an old crony of Mack’s, and he ensures the criminal’s safety. When Peachum finally has Mack behind bars and
heading towards a well-deserved hanging, the villain receives a pardon from the
Queen, along with a baronetcy.
Working on a bare-bone set, the cast manages to
convey the seamy back-streets of London, a brothel, the home of the beggar king
and an open-air hanging. The invention
of the staging is matched only by the game playing of the cast, who invest the
show with rare theatrical alchemy.
Though Clarke’s staging is uniformly creative, it
is, to our taste, marked by a taste for the sordid and the seedy. It was hardly necessary for the brothel scene
to be punctuated by moments of simulated sex or gratuitous nudity. (No prudes here at The Jade Sphinx, we like nudity more than the next fellow. It just doesn’t have to have such an
unsavory, sordid air.) At times, Clarke
doesn’t trust the material and over-compensates, hardly necessary, considering
the inherent theatricality of the show.
Clarke’s work may be very smart, but it leaves a dank taste at times.
As the Beggar King, F. Murray Abraham (born 1939) cuts a wonderfully, Fagin-like
figure. By turns majestic and
threadbare, he manages to invest his character with a tremendous, conniving
energy. Mary Beth Peil (born 1940), as his wife, Mrs. Peachum, is a
powerhouse of venom and indignation.
Laura
Osnes (born 1985), as Polly, was recently seen in the Broadway production of
Cinderella, and there are few more beautiful voices currently on Broadway. Her acting is clean and direct, her charisma
high and her singing magnificent. More
please.
Also
solid is Rick Holmes (born 1963), as
Tiger Brown, as well as two standouts in the ensemble: Timothy Doyle and Jon David
Casey. Doyle first came to our
attention for his scene-stealing turn opposite Frank Langella in Fortune’s
Fool some 10 years ago, and we wonder why he is not a bigger star. Casey has an impressive physicality and
presence, and his handsome face can easily transform into effective menace. I’m sure we will see more of them both.
Perhaps the one disappointing performance comes
from leading man Michael Park (born
1968), as Mack. Where the role calls for
calculating, slimy insouciance, Park never seems to be more than the
self-centered football star remembered from our college days. He never effectively projects menace,
intelligence or charm – vital components of Mack. Fortunately, the overall quality of the show
transcends the hole in its center.
Recommended.
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