Let 'Em Eat Cake

The narration for the MasterVoices production of the Gershwins' Let 'Em Eat Cake mentions that (1) it was the very first musical sequel (to Of Thee I Sing), and (2) it set the precedent for musical sequels flopping (see, e.g., Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public, Bring Back Birdie, and Annie 2: Miss Hannigan’s Revenge). It failed, however, to include point (3), which is that the sequels mostly aren't as good as the originals (exception: Falsettoland).

Bryce Pinkham, Mikaela Bennett
Photo: Erin Baiano

It's not that Let 'Me Eat Cake is bad. It just isn't . . . good. The plot is all over the place, even for a silly satire, and Ira Gershwin is in full twee mode. (Complicated rhymes that don't quite make sense get boring quickly.) But, and this is a huge but, the score by George Gershwin is gorgeous.

And any show sounds terrific when presented by the 150-person MasterVoices and the Orchestra of St. Luke's, directed and conducted by the fabulous Ted Sperling. It's always a treat to see them perform. In addition, they generally have amazing guest stars. This time, the cast included Bryce Pinkham, Mikaela Bennett (delightful), David Pittu (stealing the show), Kevin Chamberlin, Christopher Fitzgerald, Fred Applegate, Chuck Cooper (wasted!), and Lewis J. Stadlen (mumbling through his one-liners).

It's a little odd to review MasterVoices shows, since they're always gone before the reviews come out. So let me predict that their entire season will be well worth seeing and leave you with a link to their website: MasterVoices.

Wendy Caster
(row R, press ticket)

Lady in the Dark

What an odd show is Lady in the Dark. Consisting largely of three dream sequences, it lacks forward propulsion and is frequently overdone and/or pointless and/or flabby, particularly in the first act. But it has some gorgeous songs, and the recent MasterVoices version had Victoria Clark in the lead role. She of course nailed the second act's two wonderful numbers, the energetic and funny "Saga of Jennie" and the wistful and lovely "My Ship."

Victoria Clark et al.
Photo: Richard Terminer

The plot, such as it is, is simple: Liza Elliott (Clark), editor of the fashion magazine Allure, is slowly unraveling and doesn't understand why. Her main symptom is her inability to decide between using "the Easter cover" or "the circus cover"; she has lost her certainty at work and in the world. Elliott lives with a married man and is glad of the limitations of the arrangement. She also goes on a few dates with a movie star. And then there is the advertising manager of the magazine, with whom she spars regularly and who seems to get who she really is. But she feels detached and at sea, so she goes into therapy, and her problems are solved in three sessions (if only!) via the dream sequences.

Ted Sperling who directed this Lady in the Dark and who runs MasterVoices, has spoken of wanting to do this show with Clark since they were teenagers. I'm glad for them that their dreams came true. However, the MasterVoices chorus was not well-served, particularly in the large and awkward City Center, where their 100-plus voices were lost amid the murky acoustics. (In contrast, in their most recent show, Night Songs and Love Waltzes, they could be heard loud and clear and were downright thrilling. But that was in Alice Tully Hall, whose acoustics are about a million percent better than City Center's.)

Sperling made at least a couple of other tactical blunders. One was having Clark sing "My Ship" sitting on the floor the stage. He has probably never sat in the balcony of City Center, but I have, so I know how mediocre the sight lines are up there. Even in theatres with good sight lines, many audience members will have trouble seeing someone sitting on the floor! It's a particularly questionable decision considering the importance of the song to the show. Another bad choice was having/allowing David Pittu to play a gay character in a wince-worthily fey performance that would have been cliché/offensive decades ago, let alone in 2019. (On All That Chat, sergius called his performance "gay minstrelsy," which sums it up perfectly.)

I enjoyed "Lady in the Dark" only intermittently. I'm not a huge fan of Ira Gershwin; I hated the choreography; I didn't like the costumes; and I thought the dream sequences were way too long. But many other people loved it, and I suspect this is a classic case of "to each her own."

I look forward to the next time I can actually hear the MasterVoices singers.

Wendy Caster

(1st row, grand tier, press ticket)

Show-Score: 70

MasterVoices: Night Songs And Love Waltzes

MasterVoices (formerly known as the Collegiate Chorale) has a long history of presenting wonderful evenings of song and theatre, and Night Songs and Love Waltzes fit right in. (There's also every reason to believe that MasterVoices' presentation of Lady in the Dark, starring Victoria Clark, will also be wonderful. For more info, click here.)

Night Songs and Love Waltzes was the work of many people, and they all deserve shout-outs.

Ted Sperling. The artistic director and conductor, Sperling loves his work and shares that love generously. And his taste and conducting are superb. When I see his name, I relax in the knowledge that I'm going to have a good time.

Ted Sperling

MasterVoices Singers. I love big groups of people singing, and MasterVoices' 120 singers sound glorious together. It's a thrill whenever they sing.

The Soloists. Nicole Cabell (soprano), Kate Aldrich (mezzo-soprano), Nicholas Phan (tenor), and Nmon Ford (baritone) acquitted themselves nicely throughout. 

Stephen Sondheim. He's Stephen Sondheim, y'know? And his music for A Little Night Music is some of the most luscious in his brilliant and insanely rich oeuvre. Ted Sperling made an arrangement of those Night Music songs originated by its quintet/chorus--including a song that didn't make it to the finished show--and the result is sheer pleasure.

Ricky Ian Gordon. Gordon's music is often stunning, and his Life is Love, a song cycle to poems of Langston Hughes, is beautiful.

Anderson & Roe. Greg Anderson and Elizabeth Joy Roe play piano(s) with proficiency, brilliance, energy, humor, and a touch of insanity. They are fabulous musicians and incredible showpeople.

Anderson (right) & Roe

Brahms, Mendelssohn, Schumann (Clara and Robert), and Schubert. At the risk of revealing my middle-brow-ness, I appreciated rather than loved their pieces. In truth, I was counting the minutes until the work of Sondheim, Gordon, or Anderson & Roe.

The Musicians. When I initially saw cellists Peter Sachon and Mairi Dorman and the horn quartet led by Zohar Schondorf, I thought they made up an odd combination of instruments. Sperling, of course, knows better than I, and the band was terrific and just right.

Alice Tully.  Alice Tully, who died in her early 90s in the early '90s, was originally a singer but ended up focusing on philanthropy once she inherited her family's significant fortune. She pretty much paid for Alice Tully Hall, where Night Songs and Love Waltzes was performed, but she only allowed it to be named after her once she made sure it was up to her standards in acoustics and leg room. The result is a perfect venue in which to hear music, and it is much warmer in mood than its larger siblings in Lincoln Center.

All in all, Night Songs and Love Waltzes soared.

Wendy Caster

(mid-orchestra center)

Dido and Aeneas

There's good news, and bad news, and good news again. The good news is that the Master Voices (formerly The Collegiate Chorale) production of Dido and Aeneas was lovely. The bad news is that it was only two nights. And the other good news is that Master Voices is already planning its 75th season, starting in October with 27 by Ricky Ian Gordon (more info here and here).

Victoria Clark, Doug Varone Dancers, Master Voices

Meanwhile, Dido and Aeneas (by Henry Purcell) was splendid, and the prologue, The Daughters of Necessity (by Michael John LaChiusa), was delightful. Kelli O'Hara was excellent as Dido, though I prefer her Broadway voice, which reflects more of her personality. Victoria Clark did her usual, brilliant, glorious show-stealing; that she is not always in a show in New York is a sin. Anna Christy and Sarah Mesko were wonderful. All told, the women's voices were a feast for the ears. And the Master Voices soared. Getting to listen to dozens of brilliant performers sing gorgeous music could be the definition of good fortune, particularly as accompanied by The Orchestra of St. Luke's under Ted Sperling's direction.

The choreography, by Doug Varone, who also directed, was a real treat, working in service of the piece yet evocative on its own. (I could have lived without the dancers' frequently moving chairs and a table, but that's a small enough quibble.)

Yes, it's too late to see this show, but it's not too late to discover Master Voices.


Wendy Caster
(third row balcony, press ticket)