NEWS
May 27, 2010
Broadway Redux
Turtle Creek Chorale kicks up its heels for a concert of showtunes.by Gregory Sullivan Isaacs
Published Thursday, May 27, 2010
The Turtle Creek Chorale gave audiences a mix of music and theater on Wednesday, its first of five shows for its Off Broadway program, and its first appearance in the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre at the AT&T Performing Arts Center.
The presentation is partly staged and choreographed, and part stand-and-sing concert, often both at the same time. A smaller group does the stage business at the front of the proscenium configuration, while the majority of the chorus is on risers, resplendent in tuxedos and T-shirts of the same green that permeates the theater.
Before another word is said about the show, I must add my voice to those who have already voiced concerns about the deplorable seats in the Wyly. You could do penance in those seats: Six Hail Marys and three hours in them should get you forgiven for almost anything.
The concert covers a wide range of Broadway music, from shows as old as Gypsy to a selection from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s just-opened Phantom sequel, Love Never Dies, featuring a rousing solo by tenor Chris Wagley. Along the way, we hear selections from shows both familiar and less so. While you will have to listen to yet another rendition of "The Impossible Dream," we are rewarded with some relative rarities, such as "Coffee in a Cardboard Cup" from Kander and Ebb's 70 Girls 70 and "Who Will Love Me As I Am?" from Henry Krieger and Bill Russell's Side Show. The latter is one of the show's better moments, a duet featuring Daryl Curry and Leslie Frye.
Of course, this being a gay men's chorus, they do the gay anthem "I Am What I Am" (La Cage aux Folles) and "If You Were Gay" from Avenue Q, which is currently playing across the street at the Winspear Opera House. The showtune classics "Big Spender" and "You Gotta Have a Gimmick" are camped up, with the boys on the dancehall barre and bumping it with a trumpet. "Big Spender" uses a clever arrangement that involves the full chorus subtly vocalizing some of the instrumental parts. The performers on the front of the stage capture the number's sauciness.
The finale, a medley from A Chorus Line, goes on a bit too long, but there are some funny augmentations. In the song "Dance: Ten; Looks: Three," the lyrics are changed to "pecs and ass." The finale ends really big with TCC Musical Director Jonathan Palant dead center in a silly costume, his steps almost learned. You gotta love it.
The chorus sounds rich and resonant. The soloists range from adequate to very good, although occasionally the song is too low or too high. Some are tenors, others baritones, and one "Popular" member is impossible to categorize.
One minor quibble at Wednesday's show, which will hopefully be fixed as the Chorale settles into a space that's new to them, was lighting. The chorus members on the top two rows of the risers were frequently in the dark, faceless. Most of the other stagecraft aspects ran smoothly, though.
Choreographer Michael Serrecchia does a terrific job of reminding the audience of the original versions, considering that he's not really working with dancers. There was one terrific pirouette, though. The superb pianist Mark Stamper anchors the stage band. The use of enlarged Playbill covers reminds us what we are hearing. The show moves from number to number with an easy flow, only occasionally interrupted by Palant's long-winded comments. Even he is in on that joke when, in the second act, a performer with an outrageous accessory stands just inches from him while he waxes eloquent. It's funny and endearing.
The Turtle Creek Chorale's Off Broadway is both a show and a concert. It is a highly entertaining performance by a dedicated group of men who work very hard to please—which they do. Who could ask for anything more?
© Copyright by Theater Jones
Back to the main page
