I took advantage of the huge discount for tickets to If/Then and traveled to Chicago with wife
and daughter to see the show on Thursday, February 25. And to sum it up – I enjoyed the show. I don’t need to see it again.
The show is a huge fantasy.
We meet Elizabeth – played by Jackie Burns – at the beginning of the
show. She has just returned to New York
City after ending a 12 year marriage which took her to Phoenix. (The city of Phoenix gets bashed a bit –
primarily for not being New York City. I
presume when the show plays Phoenix, they change the name of the town to someplace
else, perhaps Tucson). She sings about what might have been IF – and
the show then follows her down two alternate timelines. In one timeline, she is “Liz”. In the other timeline, she is “Beth”. As “Liz” she falls in love and marries Josh,
a soldier and medical doctor just returned from his second tour of duty
abroad. As “Beth”, she becomes Deputy
City Planner for New York City – without having to go through civil service
exams, notices, interviews, etc. While
each of these lives has a little conflict, neither has enough novel drama to
build a full show around. Rather, each
of these lives follows a pretty tired route, and whose developments should not
really surprise anyone who is paying the slightest bit of attention. So, the show tries to play with its audience
as it flits and flips between the two lives – deliberately confusing the two
for some “shock” value that becomes predictable in its repetition of the
technique. There are visual clues as to
when Jackie Burns is “Liz” and when she is “Beth” – primarily she wears glasses
as “Liz”. While it is not too difficult to keep track
of the two storylines, it does become a bit of a chore. And, just when one life begins to become a
bit interesting, the show switches to the other life story. And to what effect? I’m not sure.
If there was a message to be conveyed by the show, it was lost on
me. What the show is left with is
simply the journey – and the journey can be entertaining, if not
enthralling. There’s nothing wrong with
simple entertainment – but If/Then
doesn’t contain any real special moments that lifted it out of the “simply
entertaining” category.
Overall, the production is first rate. The performances are good to excellent. But, much like Big Fish, audience reactions are really varied. Some people are crying. Some are yawning. The stories will hit people
differently, depending on their own life experiences. For what is the primary theatre going audience
of middle to upper class educated women aged 30-50, the show may have much more
meaning and connection. (I do not fall
within that demographic). Indeed, the
show is almost too calculated to appeal to that audience. Talk about your fantasy - Educated woman returns to big city – gets
job/man quickly with little trouble, has a nice apartment, and no urban issues
to deal with. She finds success
easily. But, she is tormented by the
thought she has made the “wrong choice” and so she tries to plan everything out
to avoid being hurt. See, that’s why she’s
the “best” and “brightest” and “most accomplished” city planner! Regardless of her choice, she still considers
what might have been. So, I was not the
target audience for the show. My cousin
joined us, and she was the target audience, and she was greatly affected by the
show.
The show also is calculated to appeal to audiences in how it
presents several LGBT relationships. Those
stories are not presented for “shock” or “drama” or “conflict” but just stories
about people. It seeks to be
extraordinary in depicting the ordinary.
One of my overriding impressions was that the rock score by Tom
Kitt and BrianYorkey is a bitch to
sing. It is filled with big belts and
long notes and opportunities to do runs and all sorts of vocal gymnastics. Think American
Idol on steroids. If you like that
type of singing, this show was written for you! As a rock album, I probably
would enjoy it. But, as opposed to their
score for Next to Normal, this one gets
a little tiresome in its repetitions of motifs.
The cast certainly gives it their all. The role of Elizabeth was obviously tailored
to the strengths (and weaknesses) of Idina Menzel, who originated the
role. I like, but am not a huge fan of Ms. Menzel,
so that she is no longer with the tour was not a big loss to me. Instead, the tour stars Jackie Burns, who was
the alternate for Idinia Menzel on Broadway.
And, as the score must do a number on the human voice, Ms. Menzel missed
many performances and Ms. Burns played the role many times. So, there certainly was no letdown by having Ms. Burns
perform in Chicago. To me, Ms. Burns
inhabits both “Liz” and “Beth” well – and she can belt out the score with the best
of today’s belters. (She also played
Elphaba in Wicked on Broadway). I liked
Ms. Burns’ straighter tones more than Ms. Menzel's voice as Ms. Menzel always sounds a bit nasal
to me. Also, I think Ms. Menzel goes for the
voice too much – Ms. Burns went for the character. Indeed, Ms. Burns did not give the eleven o’clock
number, “Always Starting Over” the “tear the ceiling” off rendition that Ms.
Menzel gave it on the Tony Awards.
Rather, Ms. Burns gives it more quiet and human touches – capturing more
sentimentality rather than anger or frustration. Now, perhaps that has something to do with
Ms. Burns having sung her lungs out for the prior two and a half hours and she is just
tired at this point. Ms. Menzel's Tony Award
performance was an isolated and rested moment.
Anthony Rapp originated the role of Lucas on Broadway and
plays it here, in his hometown. Lucas is
basically an older version of Mark from Rent.
He’s a “community activist” concerned with housing in New York
City. And since Mr. Rapp was the
original Mark, the association is impossible to not make. Lucas kind of disappears in Act Two – even though
his character has two moments of emotional loss. But, both are kind of flat in the
writing and lack of surprise or novelty.
Matthew Hydzik is Josh, the army doctor. He is confined primarily to one time
line. I saw him as Buddy in Side Show in
San Diego, before that show’s unfortunate revival on Broadway. He is quite the handsome, but quiet, leading
man, with a warm comforting voice.
However, his role is written in a limited fashion. His character is part of the “fantasy”
of the show, as his character is almost too perfect. I want to see Mr. Hydzik as “Chris” in Miss
Saigon, to see what he could do with meatier material.
Tamyra Gray, she of the first “shock” elimination in American Idol history, has one of the
most fun characters in the show. And,
she brings down the house when she teaches “American Heroes” to her
kindergarten class. She is a bundle of
energy on stage. However, I don’t recall
her having the opportunity to let loose with her vocals. I would actually like to see her in the Elizabeth
role.
The rest of the cast is not asked to do much. And they do it well.
The choreography by Larry Keigwin has the more “contemporary”
style seen on So You Think You Can Dance. It looks a lot like Andy Blankenbuehler’s
choreography for In The Heights. There is no huge “number” – rather the few dancers
are background whose movements, I think, are designed to amplify emotion or
story. In isolation, the movements are
nice and interesting. But, as part of
the show, I found them more distracting and not actually adding much.
The set is a lot of fun.
It is a basically unitary set – with catwalks and a turntable. It could
be a bit dangerous! The dual projections
– one above the catwalk and one below – seek to add to the plot lines. They are nice but easily ignored. I admired how the staging intricately keeps
the transitions between the two timelines smooth – and does try to play with
your expectations.
Last thought. It was
great to see a show with big sound in the grand Oriental Theatre. I love community theatre – but it just can’t
match the experience of seeing a show in a big theatre built for a big show.
In the end, it is a good show to see. It was definitely worth the trek to
Chicago. If/Then plays in Chicago until March 6. Please note that the show is almost 3 hours
long, with intermission. Our performance
started about 7:35 and ended about 10:20.
Bonus: here is Idina Menzel belting her heart out on Always Starting Over on the Tony Awards. I don't think there is much spoiler in the lyrics, so you can watch without worry:
