BWW Reviews: Regional Premiere of [title of show] is Fresh, Funny and Fabulous

Deadlines are a beautiful thing if you're a procrastinator. They serve to keep you focused and on track. But what happens when the deadline to submit your script for a Broadway musical theater festival is just three weeks away and you haven't even begun to write it yet?

Such was the dilemma of procrastinators Jeff Bowen (Music and Lyrics) and Hunter Bell (Book), two young theater outsiders who desperately wanted to be insiders and "part of it all." Their entry for the festival, [title of show], made the deadline, then went on to off-Broadway and then made its can't-believe-we-made-it, red-carpet premiere on Broadway in 2008. The outsiders were finally in.

Making its regional premiere with TheaterWorks Silicon Valley [title of show] is a fresh, funny and fabulous production about - what else - two guys writing a show about writing a show - on deadline.

[title of show] chronicles the process that gay New York Theater dorks Jeff (Ian Leonard) and Hunter (Jamison Stern) go through as they face the blank page in search of a story, a song and a stage. There is no orchestra, only a lone keyboardist (Musical Director William Liberatore, who racks up a lot of laughs for each of his five lines). Four chairs, a desk and a window overlooking the skyline make up the sparse New York loft (Scenic Design Kate Edmunds). It's a simple set but it works.

As the two friends contemplate what their show will be about Hunter jokingly says, "Hey, what if the first scene was just us talking about what to write?" And so begins the process about writing about the process. Although certainly not the first to use the show-about-a-show approach, [title of show] runs amok with it, playing it for laughs at every turn, breaking the fourth wall and shattering any thought that this might turn out to be your typical Broadway play. No dull derivatives or rusty revivals here.

Stern is giddily sublime as Hunter, the show's wannabe book writer, who sets aside a busy week of TV watching in order to begin writing. Leonard pulls off Jeff's quiet deadpan with panache fluctuating between moody meanderings and excitement that this musical might just work. The two are very good together.

Right from the start these two "Nobodies from New York" decide they want to ask the big questions. "Like are we writing for art/And is art a springboard for fame/And will fame get us a sitcom/And will a sitcom get us on Ellen...." So yes, they want to be artists and not sell-outs but yes, they also want to be famous.

Recruiting gal pals Susan (the truly talented Laura Jordan) and Heidi (fantastic belter Farah Alvin) they start to rehearse. Interspersed are random rants about hooker names, tuna sandwiches and the like and, of course, Wonder Woman for President. (Hey, there's a freedom in writing something fresh and original.)

Suddenly fear sets in when the show looks like it's going to take shape . Could this really, actually, truly be happening? Susan knows a lot about this kind of fear and leads them in a song (Die, Vampire, Die!) about fighting off insecurities.

Director Meredith McDonough has knit together a wonderfully blended ensemble cast. The action is funny, seamless and believable. The dramaturg (Vickie Rozell) more than likely had her work cut out for her especially with all the old or obscure Broadway references. (I mean, how do these kids know about Bagels and Yox or Mary Stout without some background info to make their characters believable?) Lighting design by Paul Toben was spot on, especially when the girls were hit with pink specials in the "Monkeys and Playbills" scene.

When [title of show] finally makes it and their dreams start to materialize, new problems set in. Somehow they get lost, just as they had originally feared might happen, but Heidi pulls them back together with the achingly wistful song "A Way Back to Then." Alvin's voice hugs the lyric close without ever becoming over-sentimental and the friends find their way again.

TheaterWorks [title of show] plays now through June 26 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. Brush off your dreams and join in the fun - just don't miss the deadline.

[Title of Show]
Book by Hunter Bell
Music and lyrics by Jeff Bowen
Directed by Meredith McDonough
Now through June 26
TheatreWorks, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts
One hour, 45 minutes, no intermission
$24-$44. (650) 463-1960. www.theatreworks.org.
Photo courtesy of: Mark Kitaoka

 

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