"City of Angels" at SF Playhouse

SF Playhouse photo by Jessica Palopoli

 

Back in the saddle for a mid-week Date Night, which obviously means a trip to the theater. I was a little surprised that the house wasn't a bit more full, but it is Wednesday. I am pretty fond of SF Playhouse, and have signed up to subscribe for the upcoming season. "City of Angels" is the final show of the previous season, and runs for about two more weeks. I've had sort of mixed reactions to previous musicals at SF Playhouse. On one hand, I applaud them for working in musicals every season. On another, I find the results to be somewhat mixed.

The Play

It's a musical. I don't expect great literature, but the more I think about it, the less the story line holds up. It's got some very appealing elements: a kind of pulpy detective novel being turned into a "B" grade film noir piece. There is conflict between the writer ("Stine") and the director/producer ("Buddy") who wants to rewrite things. There is some very appealing interplay between Stine and his main character ("Stone"), particularly in the song pictured above, where they take turns telling each other that "you're nothing without me." That's the catchy tune that you're humming on the way out.

The rest of the music is pretty good, kind of jazzy, pre-rock 'n' roll, late 1940s-early 50s stuff. The harmonies are kind of a mixed bag. Stine and Stone blend really well in their duets. Some of the quartets, including the overture just aren't quite there, although the individual voices are pretty good.

Unfortunately, though some of the characters (the three mentioned above, plus "Alaura" and "Oolie"/"Donna") are pretty well developed, others (particularly "Gabby") are just not, and it leaves one wondering why we actually care about some of the action late in the show. If Stine and Gabby don't really have much chemistry, it's difficult to figure out why they might be getting back together.

The Production

Acting-wise, things were fine. As noted, there were a couple of characters who just didn't pop for me, and in a musical you really need to get a feel for them, because there isn't really going to be enough dialog to develop minor characters very well. The sets and costumes were good, as were the projections that gave the show it's noir feel. On the other hand, there were some lighting issues (or maybe Stine just didn't find his spot), and I have ongoing issues with SF Playhouse's insistence on using its turntable for set changes to excess (and noisily). I found a lot of the scene changes quite distracting, especially when there was still action and/or music going on.

Gotta mention a couple of very good scenes where Stine is writing/rewriting the action being portrayed in the film, and it's both cleverly imagined and very tightly choreographed and performed. Just excellently conceived and done. But that level of execution calls into question some of the weaker choreography in, for example, the overture.

Ending Rants

This to me is probably the biggest problem with some of the shows I've seen at SF Playhouse: the execution of the stagecraft tends to lag behind the designs and the performances, which is unfortunate. It detracts from otherwise effective productions, including this one. The actors and designers deserve better. And it's a nice theater with good facilities, and they've obviously got good ideas and the ability to land good scripts and performers. But the other stuff counts, too.

And finally, I just have to say it: they need to tone down the "empathy gym" thing. Artistic Director Bill English gave the welcome speech tonight, and it sounded pretty worn, and almost word-for-word what's written over the door and on the tote bag behind the bar, etc. We get it. Try a little spontaneity.

On the whole, it was a fun evening, but a bit on the light and fluffy end of things.