Thursday, July 26, 2012
It took me two years to see Memphis because I was convinced that it was a stinker. Tony night surprised me, but did not shift me view so I stayed away. However, with the addition of Adam Pascal, my interest was piqued, but it was only the posting of their closing notice and the emergence of tickets on TDF that got me into the theatre.
Unfortunately, my suspicions were accurate - Memphis is a stinker. I can't recall what initially made me think it would be a stinker, but I now know that like Sister Act, the music is the problem. The emergence of the jukebox musical has had an indellible impact on the Broadway musical, largely in the proliferation of the form. Memphis, like Sister Act and Once, relies heavily on performance numbers that are thematically related to the story but fail to tell the story with any necessity. The songs could be cut, reduced, or removed and the plot wouldn't really change. Jukebox musicals often have to be structured this way because pop music rarely tells a story on its own, and when it does and is then put into a larger narrative as was seen in Julie Taymour's visually brilliant Across the Universe, the audience recoils in the requisite schmaltz. The form is what it is, and audiences seem to like it, so I will not judge the form - the problem with Memphis (like Sister Act) is that it doesn't use pop hits - so now the audience is left with irrelevant, derivative music that is far from compelling. Worse, because of the running undercurrent of race relations, the lyrics sound like they should be in an Avenue Q style parody rather than a serious telling of musical history - but sadly lacking all humor and wit. "Everybody Wants to be Black on a Saturday Night"? You've got to be kidding me. And then of course, there is the fact that a parallel story was told with wit, humor, and unforgettable musical moments in Hairspray (the original film and the Broadway version; the 2007 movie is unfortunate at best).
That is not to say that Montego Glovers' "Someday" is charming, as is she. Adam Pascal was awkward at best and none of his costumes seemed to fit him. I desperately searched the stage to see if any of the other men were having this issue - perhaps it was a stylistic choice - but no - only he looked like he traded in one potato sack for another as the show progresses.
The only musical moment of the show that really uplifted the production was the 11 O'clock number, "Memphis Lives in Me," which really was incredible. The rest - well - Broadway isn't losing anything when this show closes next week.
Adam Pascal sings "Memphis Lives in Me":
Memphis will end its three-year run at the Shubert Theatre on August 5, 2012.
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