Summer of '42
York Theatre Company Cast Recording
Reviewed by
Brad Hathaway |
Issued 2007
Running time 1:57:41 over 41 tracks on 2 discs
Packaged with full libretto, synopsis, notes, photos
from the production and
the recording session
and head shots of the full cast
JAY Records CDJAY2 1396
List Price $38.98 |
Click here to buy the CD
 |
A charmer of a show results in a charmer of a recording. It is not the kind
of recording you put on as background music, nor is it the kind of thing you
play in a "shuffle mode" while only half paying attention. This is a
recording of a story being played out within a rich musical structure, so it
requires attentive listening at least the first few times out. Once the
material becomes familiar it gets to be like an old friend that you can
visit a piece at a time. The show has made the circuit of productions around
the country from Goodspeed in Connecticut to TheatreWorks in California. In
New York, it was given a full concertized presentation by the York Theatre
Company which was the basis for this recording. The version captured on disc
features a cast including Rachel York, Ryan Driscoll and Brett Tabisel along
with the nifty work of the vocal trio Celia Keenan-Bolger, Megan Valerie
Walker and Danielle Ferland. Bill Buell ads a warm, humorous touch as the
druggist in the small vacation village on an island off the coast of Maine
in the first summer of World War II. |
Storyline: The musical tells the
sentimental but humor filled tale of adolescent sexual awakening for a
fifteen year old boy spending the Summer of 1942 on a vacation island off
the coast of Maine. The peer pressure from his friends contrasts with the
attraction and affection he develops for an "older woman," a newlywed whose
husband has shipped off to fight World War II.
Record producer John Yap faced a challenge when
he decided to record this score. With many musicals, recording a score is a
relatively simple process of recording ten or twenty songs that are sung
during the show in between the spoken scenes. Many musicals have a song,
then spoken dialogue, then another song, then more talking, etc. Just skip
over the talk and you have what you need. Other shows are sung-through and
are all but constant music. Not this show. Summer of '42 weaves its
music and its talking together. What is more, much of the talking is
underscored with musical themes from the song which is either about to be
sung or just completed. It is a complex and carefully constructed mix, and
Yap made the right decision when he decided to record the entire show with
all the songs, all the underscoring and all the dialogue on two discs. But,
then, you expect completeness from Mr. Yap and his JAY records. He even
includes two songs that had been written for the show but were cut. What is more,
Yap uses the same orchestrations as in the theater without augmenting the
size of the orchestra as is often done to make the sound seem somehow
richer. Here, the original sound of the six instrumentalists support the
vocal work of the cast of nine. The orchestrations are by Lynne Shankel.
The script is the work of Hunter Foster, best known as the star of both
Urinetown and Little Shop of Horrors on Broadway (and brother of
Thoroughly Modern Millie and
Drowsy Chaperone star Sutton
Foster). He and composer, lyricist David Kirshenbaum weave the score into
the story with smooth transitions and recurring themes. Many of the stronger
songs, like "Someone To Dance With Me," are delivered together with spoken
dialogue with the song being sung early on and then reprised, all within the same
scene. Other songs, such as "The Walk" and "The Movie" are essentially
musicalized scenes which work well precisely because of the combination of
rhythm and pace of patter matched to a satisfying melodic line. There is a
charm duet, "Like They Used To," that will bring a smile to your face, and
1940s' swing pieces including a jitterbug. Internal monologues act as
soliloquies: "I Think I Like Her" and "Promise of
Morning."
Newcomer Ryan Driscoll, not much older than the fifteen
year old boy he plays, gives a charming and satisfying performance. He's
paired with veteran Rachel York (Victor/Victoria, Dessa Rose
and most recently Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) who sings beautifully and
somehow sounds as if she's a blend of wholesomeness and sexiness. Brett
Tabisil who was the adventurous best buddy in Big on Broadway is the
adventurous best buddy here, and Ayal Miodovnik lends a smooth voice to the
brief part of the husband leaving for war.
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