Kennedy Center’s Funny Girl Has All the Razzamatazz of the Original
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Jordan Wright
July 5, 2022
If you hadn’t noticed before, revivals are having a moment. Merrily We Roll Along, Sondheim’s early 1981 musical recently garnered a Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical, and although Cats had its final NY bow in 2017, shows like the latest B’way versions of Cabaret, Once Upon a Mattress and The Wiz are red hot.
Enter Funny Girl, in its latest iteration, now on tour and spending a few months at the Kennedy Center. Until I saw it again, I had no idea how much I’d missed it. The story of a Jewish Brooklyn girl’s rise to the pinnacle of the Broadway stage to star in Flo Ziegfeld’s biggest revue, is one that inspired many a singer/actress with Barbra Streisand’s star-making performance.
I’m unapologetically predisposed to fiercely loving this story. My maternal grandmother was a Ziegfeld “girl”, as they were known. Betty Morton (née Elisabeth Mortensen and 100% Danish) wore the massive headdresses in awe-inspiring vignettes, modeled for the leading fashion magazines of the day and married a millionaire – as there were very few billionaires in that gilded era. Forget chocolates and rose bouquets, these highly sought-after beauties were courted by kings and scions of American fortunes who would send diamond bracelets and ermine coats backstage just to procure a dinner date where they could be seen with these beautiful young women. But I digress.
In true Broadway fashion, this production has a phenomenal cast of hoofers and belters – precisely the splash, dash and razzamatazz you’d expect from a show about Broadway and played by ace performers. Katerina McCrimmon plays Fanny Brice, a sassy, take-no-prisoners chorine who by dint of chutzpah and her pal, Eddie Ryan (Iziah Montaque Harris – with standby, DC local, John Manzari), a choreographer and top-drawer hoofer, quickly scratches her way to the top under at the New Amsterdam Theatre. There’s tons of schtick, a kickin’ 17-piece orchestra enhanced by the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra, and all the familiar tunes by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill. God, help me, I knew all the words and so did much of the audience who properly refrained from singing aloud.
First there’s the mavens, Mrs. Brice, Mrs. Strakosh (Eileen T’Kaye) and Mrs. Meeker (Christine Bunaun) – a group of well-meaning mothers who pass the time meddling in the affairs of the neighborhood, and especially laser-focused on Fanny’s future. You’ll never guess in a million years who plays the part of Mrs. Brice – Melissa Manchester. Yes! That Melissa Manchester – the R&B songstress, actress and Carole Bayer Sager co-composer, who sang the hit song “Midnight Blue” back in the 80’s and “Come in From the Rain” in the 70’s. I was gobsmacked! She’s still got the stuff in spades.
When romance comes to Fanny, it comes in the form of gambler, Nick Arnstein (Stephen Mark Lukas), a slick, handsome mountebank who charms her, marries her and enjoys her new-found wealth as the biggest star on Broadway.
So many of the numbers from this show are not only memorable but unforgettable – “I’m the Greatest Star”, “If a Girl Isn’t Pretty”, “His Love Makes Me Beautiful”, “Sadie, Sadie”, “Don’t Rain on My Parade” and the iconic “People” covered by, well, nearly every female singer in the world and made famous by, of course, Barbra.
So, if you’ve a mind to see fabulous costumes – feathered headdresses worn by sexy showgirls dripping with diamonds – the best hoofers and belters on stage today and a story that will melt the hardest heart – this one’s for you. God knows, it was for me!
Leah Platt as Emma/Mrs. Nadler, Ryan Rodino as John, David Foley, Jr. as Tom Keeney, Jackson Grove as Piano Player/Tenor/Actor/Porter, Jack Bianchi & Jackson Grove as Cornet Men, Jordon Taylor as Polly, Missy Marion as Bubbles, Dot Kelly as Maude, Walter Coppage as the iconic impresario, Florenz Ziegfeld, Kate E. Cook as Virginia, Alex Hartman as Vera, Sean Thompson as Bartender/Mr. Renaldi, Jack Bianchi & Travis Ward-Osborne as Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat Men.
Book by Isobel Lennart based on Directed by Michael Mayer, Tap Choreography by Ayodele Casel, Choreography by Ellenore Scott, Scenic Design by David Zinn, Costume Design by Susan Hilferty, Lighting Design by Kevin Adams, Sound Design by Brian Ronan & Cody Spencer, Orchestrations by Chris Walker, with Music Director/Conductor Elaine Davidson.
Highly recommended!!!
Through July 14th at the Kennedy Center, 2700 F Street, Washington, DC, 20566. For tickets and information call the box office at 202 416-8000 or visit www.Kennedy-Center.org.