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May 25, 2007
Reluctant star is born
Burlesque performer's roots traced in musical.
BAILA LAZARUS
Nothing says spring like a little burlesque, I always say; and
what better way to take it in than served up with some Sondheim
lyrics and the exceptional acting of Barbara Barsky?
Barsky, who was just nominated for a Jessie for her performance
in Urinetown, controls the house in her latest role –
Mama Rose, the mother of Gypsy Rose Lee, in Arthur Laurents's Gypsy:
A Musical Fable.
Loud, aggressive, tenacious and often downright maddening, Barsky
steps into a role originally played on Broadway by Ethel Merman
in 1959. As perfect as Merman must have been for the part, Barsky
makes it her own at the Stanley and walks away with the show.
Inspired by the real-life Rose Louise Hovick, born in Seattle in
1911, the musical traces Gypsy Rose Lee's beginnings in vaudeville
with her sister, June (who was, coincidentally, born in Vancouver).
Starting off with the act Baby June and Her Newsboys, the two sisters
basically grow up on stage together, with their mother, Mama Rose,
relentlessly pushing them. They can barely make ends meet, living
from hand to mouth, moving from town to town and hiding entire stage
casts in rooming houses meant for three people. Although she keeps
saying she does it all for her daughters, Mama Rose is the ultimate
stage mother, desperate to live a life of celebrity through her
children.
"I promised my daughter she'd be a star!" she says over
and over throughout the play. She refuses to listen to anyone who
tells her the act stinks, and has an enormously exaggerated idea
of her own abilities and importance.
At first, Mama Rose focuses on the more talented of the two daughters
– June (Melissa Young) – but after she runs away with
another performer, Rose switches her attention to Louise (who got
the name "Lee" accidentally). Playing one washed up vaudeville
stage after another, Rose, Louise (Lauren Bowler) and Rose's suitor,
Herbie (Andrew Wheeler) end up in a house of burlesque. At first,
Rose takes the high road, refusing to allow her daughter to participate
in any of the more titillating performances. But when the headliner
drops out, she practically pushes Louise, at only 15 years old,
on stage. Louise becomes Gypsy Rose Lee and takes to the part as
though she were born to it.
All in all, this was one of the stronger musicals I've seen at the
Stanley in recent years. All the main singers – Bowler, Young,
Wheeler and especially Barsky – know how to belt out a song.
And with classics like "Small World," "Everything's
Coming up Roses," "Together," "You Gotta Get
a Gimmick" and "Let Me Entertain You," the performers'
abilities make the experience all the more memorable.
As good as the music was, however, I couldn't say the same for the
show's pacing. With a 90-minute first half, the time started to
drag towards intermission. It's not really until the troupe makes
its way to the burlesque house in Act II that the energy picks up,
as strippers Tessi, Mazeppa and Electra sing, "If you want
to grind it, wait till you've refined it" and "If you
want to bump it, bump it with a trumpet." Unfortunately, as
soon as we start to follow Gypsy Rose Lee on her trek to stardom,
the pacing hits quicksand, with nothing happening for a good five
or 10 minutes.
Gypsy: A Musical Fable is directed by Bill Millerd, with
musical director Bruce Kellett and choreographer Valerie Easton.
Lyrics are by Stephen Sondheim and music by Jule Styne. The play
runs until July 8 at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage, 2750
Granville. Tickets are $29-$59.50, with discounts for students,
seniors and groups. Call Ticketmaster at 604-280-3311 or the Arts
Club box office at 604-687-1644 or visit www.artsclub.com.
Baila Lazarus is a freelance writer, photographer and
illustrator living in Vancouver. Her work can be seen at www.orchiddesigns.net.
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