The Girls of Murder City (Book Review)

After author Douglas Perry saw Chicago: The Musical, he wanted to read a book about the real women on whom playwright Maurine Watkins had based her original play, also called Chicago. To his surprise, such a book did not exist, so he wrote one. The Girls of Murder City: Fame, Lust, and the Beautiful Killers Who Inspired Chicago is not a great book, but it does effectively introduce the real-life versions of Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly. Roxie is based on the beautiful Beulah Annan, who defended herself for shooting her lover by saying that "they both reached for the gun" and who feigned pregnancy to gain the sympathy of the public and the jury. Velma is less exactly based on the upper class Belva Gaertner, who was too drunk to remember if she shot her lover but thought it was unlikely, because, "I don't see how I could. I thought so much of him." The main source of enjoyment reading the book is seeing how much of the musical is based on actual events: for example, there was indeed a number of female murderers in the Cook County jail at the same time as Beulah and Belva, being pretty and well-dressed was a more valuable defense than being innocent, and there were indeed credulous sob sisters writing for many newspapers. (Watkins herself, however, was not a sob sister and did all she could to get Beulah and Belva found guilty. ) Perhaps the most fascinating realization is that Bob Fosse's version of Chicago is no more cynical than Maurine Watkins's or the reality of 1920's Chicago. Unfortunately, the book's structure is confusing, and Perry's writing ranges from pedestrian to purple. The frequency with which he claims to know what people were thinking 75 years ago suggests one of two conclusions: (1) he was too willing to accept as true the hyperdramatic newspaper reports of the time, or (2) he has too much faith in his ability to read dead people's minds.

Fringe Report Card

It was a well-run and efficient Fringe. The house managers were on top of things, shows started reasonably close to their stated times, and the theatres I saw shows in were largely comfortable. (Although I saw 14 shows, I was only in seven theatres.) The website was helpful. It would have been nice if the theatre in each listing were linked to its location information, but that's no big deal.

It also seemed to me to be a Fringe with high-quality content. Of the 14 shows I saw, I rated 8 as B+ or better, which is impressive:

A When Last We Flew

A- As I Am Truly Known

B+ Jen and Liz in Love

B+ Lost and Found

B+ Open Heart

B+ Hamlettes

B+ The Secretaries

B+ Dear Harvey

C+ Platinum

C+ American Gypsy

C- Just in Time: The Judy Holliday Story

D- Dream of the Marionettes

D- Mobius

F Terms of Dismemberment

More impressive is the fact that a friend of mine--someone who is not easy to please--liked more than half of the dozens of shows he saw. These are his bests:

Best Plays

1) Miss Kim

2) Swearing Jar

3) Trick Boxing

4) Lost & Found

5) Monetizing Emma

Best Musicals

1) Shine

2) Bunked

3) Platinum

Best Sketch Comedies

1) Raisan in the Salad

2) Love in the Time of Swine Flu

Best Solo Shows

1) Made in Taiwan

2) Headscarf

3) 23 Feet

Best Male Performances

1) Brian Sostek-Trick Boxing

2) Bill Tomony-Pickin Palin

3) John Pollono- Lost & Found

4) Philip Hoffman- Hurricane Katrina

5) Damiyr Shuford- Matter Of Choice

Best female performances

1) Cristy Candler- Miss Kim

2) Marjory Collado-War Zones

3) Kate Hewlett- Swearing Jar

4) Dana Domenick- Lost & Found

5) Nitya Vidyasagar-Montizing Emma

Fringe: As I Am Truly Known

Emily Rieder's As I Am Fully Known, in which she also stars, is well on its way to being excellent. The story of a Catholic lesbian who becomes convinced that her same-sex relationship is causing God to punish her family, the play presents fully-drawn characters, interesting obstacles, and believable, funny, lyrical-yet-real dialogue. The chronology of the show isn't totally clear, and some parts are flat-out preachy. (Is the priest's "gay people are okay" monologue really necessary? If so, couldn't it be half as long?). The show also requires too many lengthy scene changes that slow the pacing. But these problems are small compared with the many strengths of the piece. And all five actors (Gretchen Ferris, Ross DeGraw, Rebecca Nerz, Jesse Presler, and Rieder) provide textured, true performances, and Presler deserves particular applause for his hysterical depiction of the main character's ne'er-do-well cousin. I look forward to seeing As I Am Fully Known again. (The title, by the way, comes from First Corinthians 13:12: "Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.")

Fringe: American Gypsy

Ben Whiting wrote and performs American Gypsy, a combination of one-man-multiple-character theatre and a magic show. Whitlaw plays three magicians: himself, his mentor Jim Cellini, and Cellini's teacher Tony Slydini. The show consists mostly of "words of wisdom" handed down, along with a falling out between Cellini and Slydini. Its 75 minutes are thin, and Ben Whiting is a better magician than actor. His performance would be improved, I think, if he pushed less, but I suspect that the two wiggling young children in the first row helped neither his performance nor the audience's enjoyment of it. Whiting's final piece of magic, done with two metal rings, was elegant and gorgeous.

Fringe: Jen and Liz in Love

In Jesse Weaver's lovely 45-minute two-hander, Jen and Liz in Love (nicely directed by Lory Henning), Liz is stuck in a kissing booth while her husband goes to deposit the day's profits. When Jen comes to tell her the fair is closing, Liz asks Jen to stay until her husband returns. As they chat, and argue, we learn about their shared past, their fears, and their desires. The show is funny, economical, and touching. Helene Galek, as Liz, gives a textured and poignant performance with only her lips and occasionally an eye visible. As Jen, Cindy Keiter is wary, subtle, and heart-breaking. (The title is not quite right: it tells too much and seems--to me, anyway--to suggest that the play will be about teens. I wish Weaver had used One Good Thing.)

Fringe: Dream of the Marionettes

Photo: Leslie Westbrook

It's an interesting concept: abused marionettes (played by humans) rebel against their puppetmaster, making him the marionette and reveling in their newfound freedom. Unfortunately, the execution is by the numbers: between each song, the sex-crazed marionette says something sex-crazed, the mean marionette says something mean, the nervous marionette says something nervous, etc, and then they sing another song. The songs and dances aren't bad, but the whole enterprise just doesn't add up.