The cast of The Cure, a new musical at NYMF
For the sixth year, the New York Musical Theatre Festival—where New York audiences first encountered [title of show], Next to Normal and Altar Boyz—will be taking over Midtown for three weeks of song and dance. And just like the Fringe Fest or the Midtown Theatre Festival, the NYMF can often seem heavy on spoofy, joke-laden musicals that won’t go any further than their limited festival runs. But this year, amid plots about Cinderella’s daughter Dusty, searching for a cure for the plague in Plagued and a world in which movie stars become saints in My Illustrious Wasteland, there are a handful of period musicals dealing with atypical musical theater issues and plenty of shows that seem both promising and inspired.
Count among the latter The Last Smoker in America, which has already seen its run extended thanks to a stellar cast and advance buzz. With book and lyrics by Bill Russell (who wrote cult favorite Side Show) and music by Peter Melnick, The Last Smoker in America follows Pam and her family as she tries to quit smoking in a world where lighting up has recently been outlawed. The plot is mouth-wateringly tantalizing in a city where a carton of cigarettes costs more than a monthly MetroCard, and the cast of four features several talented Broadway ensemble members from shows ranging from Avenue Q to The Full Monty.
But while The Last Smoker in America is set in a future world that seems increasingly closer to our own time, several of the NYMF offerings take place in the distant and not-so-distant past. Cross That River, set in 1860s Texas, is a country and bluegrass-infused musical about a runaway slave who heads west to become one of America’s first black cowboys. And Anjou: A Tale of Horror is a musical version of Catherine d’Medici’s violent attempts to ensure her son is made king of France—though the show itself is performed in Spanish with English supertitles. More promising is Hurricane, which marries America’s never-ending fascination with severe weather to a true story about the storm that devastated Rhode Island in 1938 and the meteorologist whose warnings went unheeded. Boasting a score from Michael Holland that runs the gamut from folk songs to “Depression-era pop” (which I assume means Tin Pan Alley), Hurricane could be a powerful look at America’s perpetual unpreparedness for storms if the special effects are inventive enough.
The fest also stays culturally relevant with the inclusion of vampires in The Cure, a rock and roll fable about two friends who stumble upon the world’s last remaining vampires (which seems unlikely but hopeful). Also representing the rock and roll front is Gay Bride of Frankenstein, in which rock music can raise the dead and whether the girl will get the girl is the big question, and prog-rock musical Rainbow Around the Sun, which eschews monsters for a plot revolving around a radio retrospective of “rock hero” Zachary Blasto’s career. Not to mention the intriguing indie rock musical Open the Dark Door, about an executioner’s son in Mortland, USA, who falls in love amidst “festive beheadings.”
Oddly, this year will see not one but two musicals about losing weight. Fat Camp follows teenager Robert’s trials and tribulations at Camp Overton in a musical filled with secrets, sex and S’Mores along with what it means to be the fat kid. And Lighter, with a score and book by Monica Bauer, focuses on engaged dieters Connie and Stevie whose break-up prompts Connie to be the newest sensation on American Weight Loss Idol.
Along with full productions, the NYMF also offers a series of special events, readings and concerts, many of which actually sound like more fun than the full-fledged productions. Live! Nude! Girls! revolves around a 1950s housewife who snaps one day and runs off to Vegas. Moisty the Snowman Saves Christmas, a kiddie show for adults, is a fairy tale about a filthy NYC snowman who, with a homeboy elf, a lesbian rag doll and the Baby Jesus himself, fights to save Christmas from Mayor Bloomburger-Meisterburger. And Wayne Brady must be fuming somewhere over One Night Stand, an hour-long musical in which everything—songs, choreography and plot—is made up on the spot on the basis of an audience member’s suggestion.
Tony winners Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller (Smokey Joe’s Café) and Stew (Passing Strange) are also represented in the special events category this year, by Nightingale and the Satin Woman and Punk Princess, respectively. Nightingale, which sounds reminiscent of The Maltese Falcon, follows the smuggler Nightingale and his companion The Satin Woman as they pursue a Golden Caterpillar across the globe, while Scotland Yard pursues them. Punk Princess, with music by Stew and Heidi Rodewald, sounds a bit like a mirror version of Passing Strange; this time, a young British woman journeys to America as part of her bid for punk legitimacy.
Of course, whether or not any of these musicals will go on to greater glory or languish as a footnote in its creators’ and performers’ bios remains to be seen. But, as with any other festival, half of the fun is in taking your chances on the possibility of being in on the beginning of a potential Tony award winner.
New York Musical
Theatre Festival runs Sept. 28-Oct. 18. For a full schedule and tickets, visit
www.nymf.com.
