Review - Anyone Can Whistle at Encores

Sitting and watching the recent Encores production of Anyone Can Whistle, it was often difficult to imagine how the original  Broadway production could ever have been a nine-performance flop in 1964. But it was a flop, and a rather legendary one at that. I think it was Ethan Mordden who once quipped that if everyone who claimed that they had seen Anyone Can Whistle had actually seen it, the show would still be running.

But the score to Anyone Can Whistle has since become greatly admired, particularly among Sondheim aficionados. There was a great deal of excitement leading up to the Encores production -- particularly when it was announced that Donna Murphy, Sutton Foster, Raúl Esparza would head the cast -- and I'm happy to say that the production didn't disappoint. In fact, it was the best thing I've ever seen at Encores. (Before you ask, here are the Encores shows that I have personally seen: No, No, Nanette,  Juno, Damn Yankees, On the Town, Music in the Air, Finian's Rainbow, The Wiz, Girl Crazy, Fanny and Anyone Can Whistle.)

Typically, Encores cuts down the librettos for its shows, sometimes to a detrimental extent, as was the case with Finian's Rainbow and Juno. But in the case of Anyone Can Whistle, they were doing the show a huge favor, paring down Arthur Laurents' ridiculous, confusing, and self-indulgent book to an absolute minimum, and giving Stephen Sondheim's glorious score a chance to shine.The score contains some of Sondheim's most interesting, moving, and ambitious work, including the soaring ballad "With So Little to Be Sure of," the rousing "Everybody Says Don't," and what is perhaps the best song in the show, "A Parade in Town." Sure, there are some clunkers, including the awkward "See What it Gets You." But one the whole, it's one of Sondheim's best scores, and when you're talking about the big S, that's saying something.

Pulling off Anyone Can Whistle can be a very challenging task indeed, and requires a director with a very sure hand. Fortunately, the folks at Encores brought in Casey Nicholaw. (Admittedly, Nicholaw's most recent gig was the poorly received and early-closing All About Me, but hey even Fosse and Bennett had their misfires.) Nicholaw brings a fast pace and a consistent tone to the show, and also does a masterful job staging the songs, particularly the two extended sequences, "Simple" and "The Cookie Chase."

Anyone Can Whistle also depends on very strong and appropriate casting choices, and here, as elsewhere, this production did not disappoint. Sutton Foster was her perky, spunky, funny self, and Raúl Esparza was his sonorous, intense, and dynamic self. But as talented as the two performers are, and as well-suited for their roles as they were, they wound up coming off as merely competent in the shadow of the spectacular Donna Murphy. Murphy is not only letter-perfect as Cora, but I couldn't help thinking about the other roles that this amazingly talented woman has mastered, including Fosca in Passion, Ruth Sherwood in Wonderful Town, Anna Leonowens in The King and I, and Lotte Lenya in Lovemusik. Great honk, is there anything this woman can't do? My friend and fellow blogger Kevin over at Theatre Aficionado at Large has called Ms. Murphy "God's gift to musical comedy." I couldn't have said it any better.

A final note: Anyone Can Whistle is certainly a period piece, particularly in its decidedly '60s association of "crazy" with "nonconformist." Someone mentioned to me that Sondheim was speaking at a talk-back for the show and said that, in the original production, they didn't do a strong enough job of making the crazy/nonconformist distinction. I think it's more of a semantic issue. But even if the show *were* romanticizing mental illness, I'd be inclined to cut the creators some slack given that it was written 45 years ago. (I'm a bit less inclined to give certain Pulitzer Prize-winning musicals a bye is this regard. Stay tuned for my take on that recent, stunning development.) 

GRADE: A (What very well may become the definitive production of a deeply flawed but significant show.)

Comments

[Geoff]

I saw this show at the Saturday evening performance and loved it. Donna Murphy certainly had her Kay Thompson vibe going strong and stole every scene she was in. Talk about commanding the proceedings! The rest of the performers were perfectly cast and excellent in their roles, but I found myself increasingly just waiting for Donna to slink on with her posse (The Mills Brothers?) and jazz up the plot. At the performance I attended I found her pitch to be slightly errant during "Parade in Town," but it hardly mattered. She had us eating out of her hand, getting huge laughs by merely opening her script or turning a page.

It was nice to see Sutton Foster as Nurse Fay A*P*P*L*E. She shook the rafters with "There Won't Be Trumpets" and then gave us a tender and vulnerable "Anyone Can Whistle." I'm not accustomed to seeing a vulnerable side to Ms. Foster's performances and I found this most welcome. It was also fun to see her play the Lady From Lourdes. She seemed a bit uncomfortable vamping as the seductive siren in red, which is, of course exactly perfect for the character of Nurse Fay. I don't know that I've seen her give a finer performance than she did here and I've seen her in just about everything from "Millie" on.

Raul Esparza was perfect casting for Hapgood (and the main reason I came to see the show). What a pleasure to finally hear those songs sung so well. His "Everybody Says Don't" was simply definitive and he soared in "With So Little To Be Sure Of." I certainly hope there will be a recording of this one.

I found the book to be an interesting, but ultimately unfocused and confusing mess. I know the show quite well so it didn't bother me, but my wife was a bit at sea with some parts of the plot. But hey, with a score this good and a cast this perfect, it doesn't really matter does it? This is the perfect show for Encores: interesting and experimental book linked to a fascinating score equaling one helluva good show without a snowball's chance of commercial success. Totally agree with your rating of Grade A, Chris.

I forgot to mention how fascinated I was with the orchestra (who played the score beautifully). Six celli and not a violin in site? Even the orchestrations were ahead of their time. Awesome!

The curtain went up about 12 minutes late on Saturday night and I was getting fairly fidgety waiting for things to get rolling. As the lights finally dimmed I grinned broadly at the women sitting next to me and she rolled her eyes and said "Oh, you're one of those Sondheimites aren't you?" Sister, you have no idea!

[Kathy]

Hi Chris,

I was at the Saturday matinee, with my two grandsons, 12 and 15, who knew nothing about the show, but before it began agreed they wouldn't want to miss the talkback after. We all loved it.

I have been hearing for all these years what a bad book it had, and maybe the original was confusing, but I'm thinking it was just ahead of its time. This production was not confusing to any of the three of us.

Raul Esparza's Hapgood was very well played, as I had expected it to be, and I agree with Geoff's commendation of Foster's There won't be Trumpets, and the title song.

All in all, I was tremendously impressed with this production, and the musical as a whole, and only wish I could have seen it twice.

It was great to go to the talkback and have Sondheim there, and my grandsons also thought that was very special.

Next week I will be in NYC for some opera, and have tickets for Promises, Promises and Stop the World, so for me April has been a terrific theater month!

Kathy Boyce

[ccaggiano]

Geoff, thanks for sharing your considered thoughts on the production. It seems our views are mostly in accord. I can't say I paid very close attention to the orchestrations. In truth, I rarely do. My focus is almost always on whether the story works and whether the actors are effective.

[ccaggiano]

Kathy, in fairness, this production featured a much-abbreviated version of the book. And believe me, you weren't missing much. It's ponderous and pretentious. But the Encores production left in just enough dialog to set the context for the songs and make the story somewhat comprehensible.