Lauren Kennedy, Anneliese Van Der Pol and Sarah Stiles in Vanities. Photo by Joan Marcus.jpg
Score one for the recession. Until the economy imploded, the musical version of perpetual community theater staple Vanities was Broadway-bound, where the three-person musical would surely have met the same fate as last season’s similarly-sized [title of show] and The Story of My Life, both of which looked out of place on the vast Broadway stage.
Not that the smaller theater at Second Stage makes Vanities look good. Too much of this “friends o’er the years” musical, about three Texas cheerleaders seen against the backdrop of the free wheeling 1960s and frantic ‘70s, is a rehash of stale material for anyone involved to do more than polish it up as best they can. Thankfully, the show is blessed with a cast too talented to deserve such mediocre material (though why they and director Judith Ivey signed on remains something of a mystery).
But every time one is ready to write off Vanities as something more befitting a college stage than a New York City theater, bookwriter Jack Heifner (working from his original script) throws in something startling. “You don’t know the joy of motherhood!” uptight Joanne (Sarah Stiles) shrieks at free spirit Mary (a superb Lauren Kennedy) during a boozy tea party. “No,” Mary replies. “But I know the relief of abortion.” Delivered as it is out of the blue, the line is a shocking one, dragging real issues into a play that has until then been content to merely skirt on the surface of these women’s lives. Mary wants to be free from the confines of small town life; Joanne wants a husband and children and for her two best friends to remain always a little jealous of her; and Kathy (Anneliese van der Pol) must always be in control of life’s minutiae.
There’s certainly little that’s new or remarkable in Heifner’s story, and even less that cries out to be musicalized so forgettably by David Kirshenbaum. The whole musical plays out like a snapshot of the ‘60s and ‘70s, complete with framed Paul Newman photos, over-sized sunglasses and high-waisted slacks. Of the three, Kennedy probably fares the best, mainly because her character is the most relatable. Mary’s desperation for a life away from the small minds in her Texas town pushes her to make huge mistakes in her pursuit. And if she turns into the kind of boozy, bitchy woman who snags easy laughs simply by asking for a martini, so be it. At least Heifner has given us one character who we can laugh with, instead of at.
Stiles relies a little too much on a gurgling giggle as Joanne, punctuating almost every deadpan insult with it (though she’s quite good delivering a drunken rabble-rousing song in the show’s final third). And van der Pol’s performance is more than adequate, but turns mysteriously elusive once the show has ended, leaving behind not a single line reading or vocal moment in the memory.
Anna Louizos’ set keeps the show and its various time periods flowing smoothly and Joseph G. Aulisi’s costumes are marvels of ingenuity, but, like the three stars, one wonders if their talents might not have been better served with a show that had even one original thought in its head. Life can be hard for three popular high school girls, Vanities tells us. But no one ever bothers to explain why we should care.
>Vanities
Through Aug. 9, Second Stage Theatre, 307 W. 43rd St. (betw. 8th & 9th Aves.), 212-246-4422; times vary, $75.
Not that the smaller theater at Second Stage makes Vanities look good. Too much of this “friends o’er the years” musical, about three Texas cheerleaders seen against the backdrop of the free wheeling 1960s and frantic ‘70s, is a rehash of stale material for anyone involved to do more than polish it up as best they can. Thankfully, the show is blessed with a cast too talented to deserve such mediocre material (though why they and director Judith Ivey signed on remains something of a mystery).
But every time one is ready to write off Vanities as something more befitting a college stage than a New York City theater, bookwriter Jack Heifner (working from his original script) throws in something startling. “You don’t know the joy of motherhood!” uptight Joanne (Sarah Stiles) shrieks at free spirit Mary (a superb Lauren Kennedy) during a boozy tea party. “No,” Mary replies. “But I know the relief of abortion.” Delivered as it is out of the blue, the line is a shocking one, dragging real issues into a play that has until then been content to merely skirt on the surface of these women’s lives. Mary wants to be free from the confines of small town life; Joanne wants a husband and children and for her two best friends to remain always a little jealous of her; and Kathy (Anneliese van der Pol) must always be in control of life’s minutiae.
There’s certainly little that’s new or remarkable in Heifner’s story, and even less that cries out to be musicalized so forgettably by David Kirshenbaum. The whole musical plays out like a snapshot of the ‘60s and ‘70s, complete with framed Paul Newman photos, over-sized sunglasses and high-waisted slacks. Of the three, Kennedy probably fares the best, mainly because her character is the most relatable. Mary’s desperation for a life away from the small minds in her Texas town pushes her to make huge mistakes in her pursuit. And if she turns into the kind of boozy, bitchy woman who snags easy laughs simply by asking for a martini, so be it. At least Heifner has given us one character who we can laugh with, instead of at.
Stiles relies a little too much on a gurgling giggle as Joanne, punctuating almost every deadpan insult with it (though she’s quite good delivering a drunken rabble-rousing song in the show’s final third). And van der Pol’s performance is more than adequate, but turns mysteriously elusive once the show has ended, leaving behind not a single line reading or vocal moment in the memory.
Anna Louizos’ set keeps the show and its various time periods flowing smoothly and Joseph G. Aulisi’s costumes are marvels of ingenuity, but, like the three stars, one wonders if their talents might not have been better served with a show that had even one original thought in its head. Life can be hard for three popular high school girls, Vanities tells us. But no one ever bothers to explain why we should care.
>Vanities
Through Aug. 9, Second Stage Theatre, 307 W. 43rd St. (betw. 8th & 9th Aves.), 212-246-4422; times vary, $75.
