"A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC"
at the Walter Kerr Theatre
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Expectations were certainly high for the current Broadway revival of "A Little Night Music." It's a Stephen Sondheim musical. Sondheim is perhaps our greatest living musical-theater writer; any Broadway revival of a Sondheim show is something to look forward to. And this revival boasts some particularly big names in the cast--Angela Lansbury as "Madame Arnfeldt" and Catherine Zeta-Jones as "Desiree Arnfeldt." Directing the revival is the respected Trevor Nunn, former Artistic Director of England's Royal Shakespeare Company; Nunn has directed not only the bulk of the Shakespeare canon, he's directed such popular musicals as "Les Miserables" and "Sunset Boulevard." Unfortunately, this revival is not all that it could have been. Or should have been.
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For one thing, the pacing is painfully slow. The story (libretto by Hugh Wheeler, based on a film by Ingmar Bergman) unfolds with a heavy, stately, almost pageant-like feel. This tale of romantic yearnings and dalliances calls for a lighter touch, and a graceful fluidity.
Second, Catherine Zeta-Jones is miscast. And she has not been wisely directed. She is bright and vivacious and interesting; but she feels far too contemporary for this musical, and does not fit in with the rest of the cast. The story is set in Sweden at the turn of the last century. The other actors appropriately evoke that time and place (as did everyone in the original Broadway production); she seems pretty much to be simply a present-day celebrity.
Angela Lansbury is, however, a delight from beginning to end. She is, needless to say, theatrical royalty. And she makes the most of her part. Every look, every line reading holds our attention. Whenever she is on stage, the energy is the whole theater is changed. I am glad I saw the play, if only to witness her work. It's just brilliant. If you can afford to do so, but a ticket just to see her.
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There are plenty of other competent performances--the show is generally quite well-sung--and young Keaton Whitaker impressed as "Frederika." But the set, by David Farley, appears a bit on the cheap side. The orchestra--smaller than in the original production--gets a thinner sound than would be ideal. And Zeta-Jones cannot find as much in the show's best-known song, "Send in the Clowns," as did Glynis Johns in the original Broadway production. Lansbury is the only one in this cast who, for me, was at least as strong--if not stronger than--the person playing the role in the original production. Lansbury stole the show.
Sondheim has been well served by some Broadway revivals of the past 20 years, such as "Company" and "Follies." But this revival is a mixed bag. Sondheim deserves better.
-- CHIP DEFFAA
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