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A CurtainUp Review
The Scottsboro Boys
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I told the truth. There’s nothing more I can do. —
Haywood
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Scene from The Scottsboro Boys
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An old-style musical with Kander and Ebb’s music and lyrics, it has been widely noted that The Scottsboro Boys is reminiscent of their work in Cabaret and Chicago. I was afraid to go see it, thinking it might be disappointing. The Broadway run was pretty short and the production was nominated for 12 Tony Awards, all of which eluded them. But it turns out to be a keeper, and like the two earlier musicals, remarkable for evoking a specific sense of time and locale in a very particular and memorable way.
The idea of staging a terrible miscarriage of justice within a bold minstrel show format boggles the mind — dancing and joking about injustice and ineffable sadness? How do you get your mind around it? But it’s a brilliant choice. Like mom adding flavor to bitter medicine to make it go down smooth and sweet, this show makes you laugh and tap your feet. Then, dripping with irony, it makes you pay for the fun as the medicine hits home and does the job.
For PTC’s production, Jeff Whiting recreated Susan Stroman’s original direction and dy-no-mite choreography. The song list is the same except for "It's Gonna Take Time," which was cut at Stroman’s suggestion to keep the action flowing. Unseen music director Eric Ebbenga and the fine pocket orchestra, tucked away somewhere, do right by the music.
This isn’t something you can pull together with just any old cast. It takes really talented and disciplined performers, and PTC has them. Some have history with the show and some are new. Casting director Alan Filderman is to be congratulated.
For those who want the details, here’s the lowdown on the cast: Derrick Cobey reprises his Guthrie and Broadway role as Andy Wright. Rodney Hicks, who was Clarence Norris at the Guthrie and on Broadway, plays Haywood Patterson. Kendrick Jones, who plays Willie Roberson, was also Willie in the Vineyard Theatre, Guthrie, and Broadway productions. Forrest McClendon, who is Mr. Tambo and multiple roles, played the same roles in the Vineyard and Guthrie productions, and was nominated for a Tony on Broadway. JC Montgomery is Mr. Bones and multiple roles. He was in the swing cast at the Guthrie, and played the same roles on Broadway. Clinton Roane, who had the same role on Broadway, plays Roy Wright. The rest of the cast are newcomers to the show: Andrew Arrington (as Charles Weems and Victoria Price) Gilbert L. Bailey II (Ozie Powell and Ruby Bates), David Bazemore (Olen Montgomery), Nile Bullock (Eugene Williams) Kaci M. Fannin (The Lady) Ron Holgate (The Interlocutor and other roles), and Eric Jackson (Clarence Norris).
Take a musical with a solid book by David Thompson, splendid tunes and lyrics created by a seasoned team, and add fine performers and dance numbers with spot-on timing. Unleash cognitive dissonance by undergirding it with the consequences of unrelieved injustice and prejudice against blacks, along with swipes at Jews and white people. Then add seeds of resistance and change that will germinate over time. Sing about it. Tap your feet. And you’ve got yourself a very unlikely and powerful show.
| The Scottsboro Boys
by Book by David Thompson, Music & Lyrics by John Kander & Fred Ebb Directed by Jeff Whiting, recreating original direction by Susan Stroman Cast: Andrew Arrington, Gilbert L. Bailey II, David Bazemore, Nile Bullock, Derrick Cobey, Kaci M. Fannin, Rodney Hicks, Ron Holgate, Eric Jackson, Kendrick Jones, Forrest McClendon, JC Montgomery, Clinton Roane Choreography: Jeff Whiting ( by Susan Stroman), Associate Choreographer: Eric Santagata Music Director: Eric Ebbenga Scenic Design: Beowulf Boritt Lighting Design: Ken Billington Costume Design: Toni-Leslie James Sound Design: Peter Hylenski Jan 20 – Feb 19, 2012 I hour, 50 minutes with no intermission Reviewed by Kathryn Osenlund based on 02/09 performance. Suzanne Roberts Theatre. South Broad and Lombard Sts, Philadelphia. |
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