Chicago Weekend Fun!

I saw the ad in the Daily Herald for “Turn of the Century” with Jeff Daniels at the Chicago Goodman Theatre a few days ago and the first thing out of my mouth was ” Jeff Daniels? the guy from Dumb and Dumber?” I have to see this… So I got tickets online from the goodmantheatre.org website with their swish little seat chooser web interface and guess what? It was almost sold out. In order to see the play soon and without having to sit in the rafters it will be a Wednesday night show on September 24th. The Turn of the Century show opens at The Goodman Theatre a week before that on Friday September 19th.

It seems that The Goodman Theatre has been a little jealous of the Steppenwolf Theater’s success this year with August: Osage County winning Pulitzers, Tony awards and all the press in Chicago. I did see one play at The Goodman Theater a few years ago and while it was good, although most of the shows I see promoted at the Goodman look like older themes I would not be interested in. Steppenwolf Theater across town seems to have younger edgier fare and is more identifiable for someone like me in my 30′s. But that said I do like a good Musical and loved Jersey Boys and Wicked.

My guess is that The Turn of The Century is a bigger musical with large dance numbers and tries to use the classic music that made many musicals a hit in the past 100 years. Plus it was a nostalgia boost for the core audience at the Goodman that likes that era. I think bringing people like Tommy Tune and others from Broadway in New York means they were really serious about the project and wanted some big guns to make an impact and getting Jeff Daniels seems to be a draw also because people outside the traditional theater crowds know who he is. Plus people never seem to tire of hearing the songs in the Great American Songbook from composers like Irving Berlin, Rodgers and Hart, Rodgers and Hammerstein.

The thing that I noticed from the backstage footage that the Goodman has online is that it is pre-WW1 music. Like ragtime, player pianos, and even before the 1920′s dance styles. (think long dresses and lots of parasols) It makes me think of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers ballroom dancing (although that was 1920′s – 1940′s) yet can anyone live up to a dance legend and musical immortal like that? How will they make this story in a time that offers no similarity to today, relate able and edgy enough to capture the minds and hearts of Chicagoans? Lots of singing synchronized dancers in period costumes probably won’t do it alone. It will need to tie emotionally to something we care about and something we understand. Most Chicagoans don’t know hoey about dancing nor do they care much about history 100 years ago.

Many of us also did not know that Jeff Daniels had a range beyond quirky-goofy-funny-guy but maybe we are all wrong about that.  From the behind the scenes footage he looks like he does know what he is doing and enjoys being in a musical even if it is in Chicago rather than New York.

The other interesting part of this musical is that they say it is an original musical never performed anywhere before and not written based on someones life or book. That could mean that it is really different from what we expect or not quite as good. It remains to be seen. They elude to some dramatic time travel in the Goodman’s ads and interviews and maybe that is the hook it needs. I will update this post in a few weeks when I see The Turn of the Century at The Goodman Theatre and let you know what I think.

Update and Review 9.25.08:

I saw “Turn of the Century” last night at the Goodman Theatre and it was a very nice theatrical work. The sets, costumes, dancing and singing are all top notch and worth going to see alone. Jeff Daniels fills his role with some of the quirkiness we would expect from him but it is much more of a straight role that most people have seen him in before. (A long way from Dumb and Dumber) He captures the essence of this character in his singing, dancing and acting. (yes, he can sing!) Rachel York is truly stunning in this show, looking amazing in the most impossibly tight corseted dresses, singing a wide range of songs and styles and really conveying the feelings of her character in a very believable way. There is a large supporting cast which means this really is an expensive production. They create mood and setting with some very good dancing and chorus singing that is historically correct and executed well. They also have about a million quick costume changes.

The set uses a white backdrop and white floor and lighting with a grand piano and minimal furniture to create settings for scenes. The stage has a catwalk that wraps around the orchestra pit and allows the actors to interact with the audience more and lets the scenes have an inside and outside divided space. There is also a large conveyor belt on one side that some scenes roll in on, but I’m not sure that is necessary considering how tricky it must be to install. The outside of the stage is wrapped in a circular scrolling electronic sign from floor to ceiling that sends messages around it from left to right. It is used before the show to scroll historical events from different times and during the show to list where and when they happen because the plot jumps around somewhat and there isn’t always more of a cue than a scene change. And of course they surpriseus all with a real live orchestra under the stage complete with a conductor that pops his head up occasionally. Even more people in this complicated production in a small theater.

Overall, I enjoyed the play although I can’t help thinking there are still some areas that need a little refinement and there are some plausibilityholes. The main one is this time travel thing. It is never explained or justified in a believable way although the characters fully accept it. (almost too quickly) The scenes change without any special effects or even an attempt to show that time is changing. They time this jump back in time with the millennium changeover in the beginning which could be understood as some time continuum weirdness but at the end they are back to present day with no reasoning whatsoever. (I think there is one sentence meant to explain why but it just doesn’t do it and can be easily missed) It seemed like they just went on this fantastic voyage to prove that the mid-level artists now would be capable of wowing millions back 100 years ago and that those songs and stories were the best ever told on Broadway so lets go have a nostalgic moment. 

The singing and dancing was flawless but sometimes it seemed like the songs were used just to reminisce about the good old days and had no ties to the emotions of the characters. Some did tell the story and emotions but maybe only 1/2 of them. And for a musical I always thought that was the point. The plot relies on the old standby of making a musical about making a musical. I feel like the people developing this just wanted to go back in time personally to re-live these songs, stories and possibly their youth. This may have also been evident that at 32 I may have been one of the youngest people in the sea of grey haired audience members. So, at least it appeals to the Goodman’s target demographic and will continue to sell out. (but don’t expect to attract many newcomers to the theater like Wicked or Jersey Boys does)

There are some technical difficulties they should work out also to refine things to the best level possible. (considering this is the Goodman) The first scene’s singing is drowned out by the clapping because of the mics the actors are wearing. There is a scene near the end where a clock bell tolls and you can’t hear what is being said there also. The piano is a little weird in that it just has a light-up keyboard since no one in the show actually plays piano. (I am sure finding a Harry Connick Jr Piano playing, singing, acting pro can’t be easy so you can understand why they do this) Sometimes though, I feel like it is better to have the piano turned away from the audience as to improve the believability that he is actually playing it.

All those things aside Turn of the Century is an enjoyable hour and a half show if you like music from the first 40 years of the last century. If you are under 30 you may be like my boyfriend and have never heard the songs used in this show and don’t know that they are out of place being performed in a 1900 style. For those people it won’t really be that compelling, but for the over 50 set it is probably a really nice night at the Goodman theater downtown. My parents would love it.