Review by Tony Annicone
The 19th season opener of Greater Boston Stage is the East Coast premiere of “Being Earnest”, the musical version of “The Importance of Being Earnest” by Oscar Wilde which was one of his most successful plays during his lifetime. The musical was written by Paul Gordon and Jay Gruska. The original show was a satirical drawing room comedy written in 1895 but the musical moves the time period up to 1965. The author explains that the social mores of 1965 (two years before the summer of love) were similar to those of the Victorian era. The fashion coming out on Carnaby Street in the 60’s was inspired by some of the fashion of the Victorian era. Gordon and Gruska adapted Wilde’s play and stayed true to its storyline, and added music with some of Wilde’s lines as lyrics for some of them.
The show is a convoluted story as two English girls explain to each other that they can only love a man with the name of Earnest or love no one else at all. It is a glamorous meets the upcoming groovy period of the 1960’s. Both men have strong libidos and love chasing anything in a miniskirt. Wilde’s play was a satire on the hypocrisies of the society in which he lived, and the damaging effects these hypocrisies have on the souls under which they live. It reflects the shallowness of the roots obsessed society of the day. Director/ choreographer Ilyse Robbins takes this comic musical script and turns it into a madcap musical romp with musical director Steve Bass playing lead keyboards and conducting a five piece orchestra to bring the appreciative audience into the London of 1965 while winning many laughs and accolades as the curtain descends on this over 100 year old play which still rings true to this day.
Ilyse captures the zaniness and wild behavior of the 1960’s perfectly while Steve brings out the best vocals in his cast and the harmonic balance between his orchestra and them is sublime, too. Leading this talented cast is Michael Jennings Mahoney who shines as Algernon. He is more of a smart aleck as shown in the Prologue when he sings “Man can survive many things but debt and a man has to change clothes every six months because of their ugliness.” And the rack has been replaced by the press. The numbers sound similar to Beatles songs and “Jesus Christ Superstar” at times. Michael’s powerful tenor voice is also heard in the tender ballad “Cecily” as he sings how he is intrigued by her and must capture her heart or be a bore.
Algernon’s 4 duets are “A Man Dressed in Tweed” with Cecily, about not trusting a man in tweeds, and the gorgeous and tender ballad “Absolutely Perfect” where he sings she’s indecently ideal, “Brothers” with Jack as they argue over the name of Earnest as well as “All in the Gutter” which sounds like a “Superstar” song. The cast sing and dance up a storm to this opening number of Act 2. I last reviewed Michael in “A Christmas Carol” at Trinity Repertory Company where he played nephew Fred and had to learn the whole part in about four hours. Dave Heard plays Jack who is priggish and pretends to visit his brother, Earnest who is the black sheep of the family. He is Jack at the estate and Earnest in the city where he can mislead women and misbehave. He falls in love with Gwendolyn who can only love a man called Earnest. He runs up against her formidable mother, Lady Bracknell who looks down on him for being an orphan found in a handbag at a train station, but Wilde provides a happy ending, tying up the loose strings by finding a long lost family connection to soothe the snooty upper class society. Dave also displays his strong voice and dancing prowess in this show, too.
Beautiful, statuesque brunette, Sara Coombs plays the big city girl, Gwendolyn perfectly. Destiny is at her door as she sings of the “Age of Ideals” where we find out what she yearns for. The argument song with Cecily is another show stopping number and is called “Old” where they wish they were old and insult each other as they want Earnest for themselves. I last reviewed Sara in “Dames at Sea” last year as Joan. The naive country gal, Cecily played wonderfully by Ephie Aardema, wants to ditch her studies in a jazzy number called “Bad Behavior” with no more grammar and no more German for her now that she’s found her Earnest. Pretty blonde Ephie’s voice soars in “A Man Dressed in Tweed” and in the lovely ballad “Absolutely Perfect” with Algernon. Sara and Ephie’s argument scene crackles with electricity as does their ganging up on the two men. I last reviewed Ephie as Ruby in “Dames at Sea.” Beth Gotha also stops the show as Lady Bracknell when she proclaims her contempt of all things in “Gwendolyn’s Good” when she wants what she wants for her daughter as long as society sees it as the correct and proper way to do things. She commands the stage in this authoritarian role. Rounding out this talented cast is Kerry Dowling as Miss Prism, who confused a manuscript with a baby, and Will McGarrahan as the two butlers and Reverend Chasuble. So for a fabulous version of Wilde’s best known comedy, be sure to catch this superb musical “Being Earnest” at Greater Boston Stage before time runs out. Listen carefully to the clever lines and lyrics with catchy melodies. Tell them Tony sent you.
BEING EARNEST (13 September to 7 October)
Greater Boston Stage, 395 Main Street, Stoneham, MA
1(781)279-2200 or www.greaterbostonstage.org
