There Is Always Something To Re-Discover About "Follies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

                                   This past Saturday, with the subways all fucked up, as usual, David and I still managed to make it to BAM to see the filmed National Theater Live's  production of one of my favorite musicals, "Follies"--a show I would go just about anywhere to see.

                                   Like the Connecticut production seen last Spring, virtually every cast member here was unknown to me.  Save one, and that was Imelda Staunton.  Now, awhile back she did the lead in "Gypsy."  I think it was screened, but I saw her do "Some People" and "Rose's Turn" on YouTube, and, frankly, I was not impressed.  All of a sudden she is trying to become a Musical Theater Icon by taking on some of the genre's most difficult female roles.  When I heard she was to do Sally in "Follies," I rolled my eyes.  How could she, if she could not handle "Gypsy?"  I was skeptical about the whole thing, because to not get "Follies" right is to desecrate the work, and I, frankly, feared for Imelda.

                                   As soon as Imelda hit the stage, as Sally would say, "my fears were gone."  She completely inhabits the role, delivers the songs in an impassioned manner matching that of Dorothy Collins, making, for me the discovery that, much as it is about everyone, "Follies" is really Sally's story--a desperate woman who feels life cheated her out of what she wanted, and is certain, in this one-time reunion evening, she is going to rewrite the past. Only to discover she can't.

                                  And, as I watched Imelda play Sally, I was reminded of myself, who felt I was cheated during adolescence, and at times feel I want to rewrite that part of my past, even to the point of doing my own, real life Jerri Blank!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                  Of course, it would not work.

                                   What does work here is the cast, and the songs.  "Who's That Woman?," of course, as it should, blows the roof of the theater.  While Imelda's vocal range is a bit low for Sally, she surprised me by hitting notes I never thought she could.  Some were transposed, and her phrasing could have been more pointed during "In Buddy's Eyes," but Imelda makes up for what she lacks with impassioned acting that does not pull the focus away from anyone else, but makes the audience a little more aware of Sally than they might have been.

                                     Janie Dee as Phyllis, does great line readings, looks stunning, and really shines in "The Story Of Lucy And Jessie," one of the best songs in the score.

                                      The actresses doing Carlotta, Stella, and Hattie are revelations, and their renditions of those characters' songs--"I'm Still Here," "Who's That Woman?" and "Broadway Baby"--deliver the goods on them.   This "Follies" is well orchestrated, lush, and wonderfully sung. The vamp to "Broadway Baby" stopped the show!

                                       The actor playing Buddy, whom I do not know, is one of the strongest performances I have seen of this role.  Buddy is the least interesting of the quartet, so playing him is difficult for any actor, but here, Buddy becomes as forceful a presence as the other three, and his dancing and singing are spot on.

                                          The role of Ben is as impassioned as Sally--they are, after all, counterparts to one another--and while the actor in the role was effective, he did not seem to go the extra mile that Imelda did. His entire performance should have matched that summoned during his breakdown, at the climax of his number, "Live! Laugh! Love!"

                                        Oh, my God, darlings, the revolving stage, and sets represesnting both the past and the present, the lushness, of white and green giving an almost Cecil Beaton look to the "Loveland" sequence, and the way each character's folly is introduced is ingenious, especially helpful to audiences who may have no idea what was going on.

                                         But if they don't, then what are they doing at "Follies?"  I am sure the audience that packed the BAM auditorium contained not only some people I knew--I could not tell--but that everyone there was expressly there because "Follies" was, and they were familiar with it, and loved it.

                                         It is one of the greatest musicals ever written, and my favorite Sondheim work.  I have seen incredibly bad productions, and when "Follies" falls flat, it is a cringing experience to watch.  Especially when one knows what it ought to be.

                                         This "Follies" is, indeed, what it ought to be.  If I had been in London when it was on the stage, I doubt if I could have been stopped going every night.  And if this ever crosses the Atlantic to Broadway, Imelda Staunton is sure to win a TONY Award!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                           And, yes darlings, I STILL want to be a Wesiman Girl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!