By Jennifer Mustoe
Tonight, I had the opportunity to see brilliance onstage, in the form of Broadway Bound, part of the Neil Simon Festival’s four-play line up in Cedar City. If I could spend the time I’m writing this review to just text everyone and say GET TO CEDAR CITY AND SEE THESE FOUR SHOWS, I would. Since that’s not possible, I’ll just try to explain what I saw tonight.
Last night, I saw Simon’s The Dinner Party. It was good. Sad, but good. Not a happy topic—divorce. I didn’t know what to expect with Broadway Bound, but with Neil Simon, you can expect laughs but also real pain. Tonight’s show was no exception. But it was So. Much. More. Broadway Bound is the final piece in a trilogy about Simon’s rise to fame, starting with Brighton Beach Memoirs, then Biloxi Blues. Because these plays are semi-autobiographical, what we see onstage has more impact. This is the real thing, folks.
Director Clarence Gilyard has taken a fine cast and created a piece that is so delicately sweet, so glaringly harsh, so funny and so bitter, I’m gobsmacked. Really. Broadway Bound, which takes place in the 40s, is the story of Eugene (Trevor Messenger) (or Neil himself) and his brother Stanley (Christopher Whiteside) as they try to make it as comedy writers. I laughed to see the turmoil they went through to find the jokes that would catapult them to fame. As a writer, I get that. Messenger and Whiteside are fantastic—as sweet and horrible to each other as brothers can be. Both shriek, bellow, laugh, tease, work, and plan like two people who’ve been raised together. I found them completely believable.
These brothers live with their mother, Kate (Kirsten Sham), their father Jack (Peter Sham), and their grandfather, Kate’s father, Ben (Richard Bugg.) Kate’s wealthy sister Blanche (Alyson King) appears briefly. Sometimes a character narrates, usually Eugene, and it’s always funny with that Simon snap. The story is not just of the brothers, who, though they have their struggles, are on their way up. Their parents are on their way down, and it is a slow crash that is sickening and yet, we can’t stop watching.
Sham as Kate, the mother, is so perfectly perfect in this role. Last night in The Dinner Party, she was a divorcee in her 30s. Tonight, in Broadway Bound, she is a Jewish mother in her 50s from Brighton Beach, NY. This transformation is complete because Sham commits to her character completely. She doesn’t use makeup to age herself. She employs mannerisms, a strong mother attitude (she scolds a fully grown Eugene to get back in bed when he’s sick, and though he doesn’t obey, she still tries to boss him), facial expressions that create a more mature woman, and a strident, strong, sometimes oh so controlled voice. There is a scene where she dances with Eugene that almost had me in tears. Messenger, too, is so committed to his role, he completely charmed me. His excitement, his drive, his sense of fun, fear of failure, love for his parents, even his father, who he finds out has cheated on his mother—every scene Messenger nails. It’s that simple. Whiteside also had me convinced. He is so good in this role, his timing so tight, his huge wails and screams when he is frustrated—loved it all.
Gilyard’s directing took this talented cast and truly formed an amazing work. The actors move all over the stage, but it looks natural, not forced. The mother is always buzzing in and out of the kitchen, because that’s what Jewish mothers in the 40s do. The brothers often mimic the other, lip syncing what the other says, using the same movements in unison. Funny stuff. There is a lot of high drama and wailing going on, often funny, but I was impressed that this show took the chance to overplay it but didn’t. This shows great directing.
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Costumes by Jen Bach are great. I especially loved Kate’s costumes. Scenic Designer/Technical Director Randy Lawrence Seely created a set that was simple enough to not look fussy but its two-level design gives the actors space to move.
Broadway Bound has some (as my mother called it) “salty” language. Profanity, often said in anger, is in this show, though I wouldn’t say it’s obnoxious. There were some kids in the audience who laughed at all the right places, and not in embarrassment when someone was swearing. I’d bring a kid age 10 or 11 or over.
The Neil Simon Festival is giving something to the theater community that shouldn’t be missed with Broadway Bound. Is it worth driving hours from Utah or Salt Lake County or Las Vegas to come see it? Yes. An emphatic yes. But to catch the real transformations, see all four shows. You’ll be blown away.
Neil Simon Festival presents Broadway Bound, by Neil Simon
The Heritage Center Theater, 105 North 100 East, Cedar City, UT 84720
Tickets: $25 or $80 for all four shows.
Contact: info@simonfest.org, 435-267-0194
Neil Simon Festival Facebook Page
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