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Storyline: Mark Twain’s tale of
Huckleberry Finn is set along the Mississippi River in the days when it was
the key avenue of commerce between the reach of slavery and the free states
of the north. Huck embarks on a raft trip down the river with runaway slave
Jim and is soon joined by a pair of charlatans who run scams among the river
towns. His friendship with Jim sorely tests his acceptance of the concepts
of slavery and the inferiority of one race of men as compared to another.
The
musical won the Tony Award for best new musical and for best score when it
premiered in 1985. This version uses a cast of a dozen performers who speak
and sing their own lines while also signing them, and a dozen who sign
theirs while others speak or sing them. To help the process along, it adds
the character of Mark Twain himself as a narrator. Those familiar with the
original cast recording will find more than just the songs sound familiar,
for the voice of Huck is provided by the actor playing Twain, who is the
same actor who played Huck in the original production. Here Daniel Jenkins
joins in a partnership with young Tyrone Giordano who plays with all the
energy of youth communicated through sign language while Jenkins delivers
the audible portion of the part, often from the lip of the stage or the side
of the set. Michael McElroy who plays Jim uses his own booming voice while
signing each meaning. The duets between him and Giordano/Jenkins are
exceptionally thrilling as the meaning of each moment is captured not only
in audible sound but in signs which cannot be mistaken by anyone, even those
with no fluency in sign language. The signing of “You see the same stars
through brown eyes as I see through blue” is an unmistakable visual
testament to newly discovered truth.
The
work of many, including the team of American Sign Language masters headed by
Linda Bove and Freda Norman, can be cited for the special magic of this
production but it is the work of director and choreographer Jeff Calhoun
that must be singled out. Bringing a choreographer’s eye to the director’s
chores has been important in many musicals over the years but perhaps never
this important. Sign language, after all, is a means of communication very
similar to dance. But it is also a language that is directional, a sign must
be viewed from straight on to be fully read. On stage, you can’t have a
dialogue where two “speakers” face each other, giving the audience just a
side view of signs which would be meaningless from that angle. On the other
hand, you can’t really get away with two people supposedly signing to each
other who aren’t signing in each other’s direction. What to do? Choreograph
it like a dance! This is the skill that Calhoun brings to the equation and
his work makes the show something special indeed.
The
show has always been a crowd pleaser and this production is no exception. A
brightly colorful design uses the pages of Twain’s book as set pieces. The
costumes are just right for period and character, including a tremendously
entertaining pair of duplicate costumes for the two actors playing Huck’s
Pap, Troy Kotsur and Lyle Kanouse - one signing and one voicing in one of
the most entertaining joint efforts in recent memory. The show is a limited
engagement, with tickets on sale only through September 14. Let’s hope for
both a lengthy extension and a subsequent tour so that the unique joy of
this production can be shared with a larger number than the lucky few who
can get to New York this summer.
Written by William
Hauptman based on the novel by Mark Twain. Music and lyrics by Roger Miller.
Directed and choreographed by Jeff Calhoun. Musical direction and special
musical arrangements by Steven Landau. Design: Ray Klausen (set) David R.
Zyla (costumes) Michael Gilliam (lights) Peter Fitzgerald (sound). Cast:
Michael Arden, Scott Barnhardt, Catherine Brunell, Walter Charles, David
Aron Damane, Christina Ellison Dunams, Gina Ferrall, Phyllis Frelich, Tyrone
Giordano, Daniel Jenkins, Lyle Kanouse, Rod Keller, Troy Kotsur, Kevin
Massey, George McDaniel, Michael McElroy, Drew McVety, Guthrie Nutter, Ryan
Schlecht, Josif Schneiderman, Gwen Stewart, Melissa van der Schyff,
Alexandria Wailes. |
