By Darby Turnbull
Confession, whenever I need a good heavy cry I listen to William Finn, proper full body shakes, hot tears, nose full of snot crying. Most of his shows have at least 2 or 3 that do it for me Falsettos (Unlikely lovers, What would I do? Holding to the ground, Father to son), A new brain (And they’re off, Sailing) 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (the ‘I love you’ song, My friend, the dictionary). As a writer, composer and lyricist he upholds musical theatre at its purest, when words reach their limit, you sing. The nuances of the images and sensations he evokes are so specific that if your particular emotional pinpoints are pricked you find yourself utterly immersed, his characters become old friends, lovers, family. His song cycle Elegies was born out of his response to the 9/11 attacks, each song a tribute to a person, place or pet he knew, loved and lost throughout his life. Some explore the unique tragedies within a collective trauma; the AIDS epidemic, 9/11; the effects of gentrification on a community and the essential people and places that disappear or the deeply personal; the passing of friends and parents. Each contains Finn’s neurotic wit, wry humour and often breathtaking emotional resonance. New York City, especially the New York City cultural scene is essential to the tone of this piece. I imagine whenever Elegies is performed in New York there are people in the audience who actually knew or know people who knew some of the people depicted in the song cycle. In Melbourne, twenty years after its premiere the sense of insider bonhomie is lost but the strength of this production lies in the moments where their presence is honoured and evoked.
It’s a stellar debut production for Clovelly Fox productions and Director, Tyran Parke, beloved veteran of the musical stage. His reverence and insight for the form has generated an absolutely stunning testament to the power of musical storytelling. The presentation within Fortyfive downstairs is cosy and intimate, Miki Looker’s timeless furniture warehouse style set flexibly evoke the parties, Seders and funerals that feature prominently within the songs. Paired with Tom Vulcan’s hypnotic lighting incorporating elegant silhouettes and projections, designed by Martyn Coutts.
The bonds of friendship, family community and shared experiences are strong, and Parke and his team ensures that it feels like a genuinely communal experience.
Elegies is undoubtedly a draw for performers given the richness of the material and this production has assembled an exceptional quintet of some of our most skilled performers. Nadine Gardner, Marty Alix, Kerrie Anne Greenland, Glenn Hill and Anton Berezin are all beautifully matched to the material and excel when their singular skills and personalities are given the platform to flourish. All 18 songs are essentially mini plays with their own emotional arcs, intellectual beats and formidable verbosity so it needs performers at the top of their craft and all five revel in what they have to offer.
Anton Bereznin’s gravitas, developed over decades being one of our most stalwart character actors is utilized to grand effect and it’s wonderful to get the opportunity to enjoy him centre stage and his glorious baritone and emotional range in full throttle. As one of the more senior members of the company he in particular conveys the weight of losses that accumulate over a long life modulating curmudgeonly weariness, bitter despair and the possibility of hope. Marty Alix by comparison, relatively early in his career demonstrates charm and presence of someone decades older and brings an impish insouciance to his numbers; the jubilant ode to Public theatre founder Joe Papp to the maturity earned from his depiction of Finn grieving the loss of his mother in When the earth stopped turning.
Glenn Hill’s gentle naturalism makes profound organic emotional journeys filtered through the distance of memory that suddenly become raw as the feelings associated with them emerge in real time. His subtle presence unearths the pain of unexpected loss when Finn explores the early, confusing days of the AIDS epidemic in America, Monica and Mark and the sublime Venice.
Kerrie Anne Greenland certainly knows how to land a big, belty, emotional ballad (as seen in Les Miserables and Miss Saigon) and she commands the devastatingly gorgeous tribute to Monica, a friend of Finn’s who died of cancer, and wrote Anytime (I am there) from her perspective as an address to her young daughter. She also exhibits considerable comedic chops alongside Nadine Gardner Dear Reader. Sopranos get so few opportunities to use their instrument to some comedic effect and made me long for Greenland to essay some classical roles so we can see more of it.
What to say about Nadine Garner? One of our great singing actresses, every time she does a musical it’s a masterclass in lyric interpretation. There’s no one quite like her, she has a true character voice perfect for smaller spaces, it doesn’t subsume the space but tailors itself to essential emotional states of the character she’s inhabiting. A skilled physical performer: her take on children’s performer Peggy Hewitt in Infinite joy is a moving tribute to the joy of performance and the brittleness of an exacting teacher reflecting on her legacy in Only one seems to glow as she revels in her uncompromising abrasiveness. Finally, there’s the exquisite 14 Dwight Ave., Natick, Massachusetts resulting in the aforementioned streaming tears, body shakes, snotty nose.
Let us hope that under Tyran Parke’s sensitive, skilful eye Clovelly Fox productions will continue to provide local audiences with the kind of stark, characterful musical theatre that we don’t see nearly enough of.
Elegies is now playing at fortyfivedownstairs. For tickets: https://fortyfivedownstairs.com/event/elegies-a-song-cycle/
Images: Ben Fon
