By Kent Mancuso
To those of us who remember the early ’60s, the years from 1960 to 1963 were filled with a silly sweetness and material comfort as we sailed through life without a thought of the troubles fomenting right within our country and around the world.
Broadway and Hollywood reflected the innocence of our national consciousness with a series of saccharine-drenched comedies and musicals, with plots revolved around whacky misunderstandings between lovers and spouses, or rivalry over who gets to date “Gidget.”
Two of the most colossal hits of those years were the “parents versus spawning teens” pre-rock musical “Bye Bye Birdie” and the “husband and wife who really DO love each other” comedy “Send Me No Flowers.” “Flowers” was a tribute to everybody’s then-favorite lighthearted soul, David Wayne, perhaps more famous as the original leprechaun in Broadway’s “Finian’s Rainbow.”
Wayne, along with his Broadway partner — perky, blonde and blue-eyed Nancy Olsen, came with the show from Broadway to the West Coast, when I drove a date, who 15 years (and one marriage) later became my wife, all the way to LA to see it. We both remember laughing hysterically through the performance. The play eventually found it’s way into a Hollywood edition, a vehicle for the drive-in-star-power of Rock Hudson and Doris Day, along with Tony Randall and Paul Lynde in an unforgettable cameo.
“Birdie” toured across the nation — with its thinly veiled commentary about parents losing control of their teenagers to the hipswinging Elvis Presley, alias Conrad Birdie. Of course, losing control of one’s kids back then was nothing compared to kids — and parents — out of control today, so it’s no wonder that parents and kids alike have been flocking to this mindless songfest for over 40 years, including it’s mega-hit film starring the original lead, Dick van Dyck and the super-talent of Ann-Margret.
How coincidental that these two quintessential ’60s pieces would find their way to local Queens stages this past weekend — opening within neighboring areas, for that matter. “Send Me No Flowers” is the current spring production of Theatre à la Carte of Douglaston. And “Bye Bye Birdie” is the annual spring musical presentation of the Andrean Players, a parish-based group of St. Andrew of Avellino in Flushing.
Notices of both pieces drew instant smiles from the two women in my life, my wife and my dear friend Bette. With Bette’s insatiable love of American musicals, she was determined to lure me to “Birdlie,” a thought that did not exactly whet my theatrical appetite. But I must say, when I actually settled down and let my inhibitions go, I was certainly surprised at the Andrean Player’s production.
In today’s digital-world, with an energetic cast of mostly eager-to-please youngsters, “Birdie” takes on a whole new meaning — rather like watching kids today performing in “Hair,” light years away from understanding what the dated period piece was originally about. Indeed, the rather “shocking” union of Albert “Peterson” and Rosie “Alvarez” back in 1961 — a romance which forced Hollywood to recast the original Chita Rivera with Janet Leigh — raises not even an eyebrow today. Instead, we are left with a town filled with screaming pre-teens, suffering hopelessly from the allure of Conrad Birdie.
And scream they did, with great aplomb and endless energy, as director Paul Canestro filled the vast stage of St. Andrew’s with his huge cast. I can only imagine the tireless effort involved with mounting a piece of this size, requiring the wealth of experience of this well-known local director. Working with him was the talented team of music director Margaret Joyce, who made me think I was listening to a full orchestra, and choreographer Melissa Stolberg, who imparted simple, yet exciting steps to her chorus.
Doreen Franquinha stole the show, for me, as the adorable Rosie, an eye-catching singer-dancer-actress with great timing and a sense of presence that singled her out. From the moment she stepped out on stage she was a knockout — through her scenes with her co-star, the way she handled those shriners with great panache and, of course, in her climactic solo, “Spanish Rose.”
Frank McNamara, as Albert, the overaged moma’s boy anxious to cut the apron strings, certainly held his own. His “Put on a Happy Face” was nicely done, and he blended well with Franquinha in “Rosie,” the show’s final number. Marilyn Lescher, as “Moma Mae” certainly proved that the nearly 30-years association with the group noted in the program was not in vain.
But most of the show really belonged to the kids. Danny Moore, as Conrad, could hardly have swung those hips any wider without a major traction realignment. The role of Kim MacAfee, a great vehicle for a talented youngster, was certainly not wasted on Janice Galizia, who made the most of her duet with Conrad, “A Lot of Livin’ to Do,” as well as with her star handling of her solo, “How Lovely to Be a Woman.”
As her frustrated boyfriend, Hugo, Paul Morisi displayed innate timing, presence, and — this is Bette’s comment — “charm.” He certainly held his own in his number with Albert in Act II. Local color, with an obvious dose of years of experience, was at the core of Rocky Carrozzo’s interpretation of the mayor. Jeanne Ambrosino was cute as his wife.
As Kim’s parents, Tom Kennedy and Christine Meittinis certainly made a realistic-looking couple. Mr. MacAfee was a role that helped make the cynical comedian Paul Lynde famous and undoubtedly was a model for Kennedy’s interpretation. Their numbers, “Hymn for a Sunday Evening” and, the show’s most famous number, “Kids,” were filled with character and mutual chemistry — elements that made me look up and take notice.
And the teen chorus — Chistey Cannon, Andrea Miele, Ashley Churchill, Alyse Landers, Leann Brunn, Sarina LoPresti, Emilia Horn, Regina DiBella, all of whom sang, screamed, jumped and danced their hearts out — deserved the loud familial applause they received after each number.
With such a large cast — I count 35 in the program — I regret that the available space does not allow me to congratulate by name these hearty performers who gave their best to make this show as delightfully upbeat as it was. My most meaningful tribute to them all was Bette’s comment to me as we munched pancakes later Friday night at a nearby diner — “I told you so, duckie.” Indeed!
The Andrean Players are located at St. Andrew Avellino Church, 35-60 158th St., Flushing, right off Northern Boulevard, with the entrance on 158th Street. Those of you who have never been to this “church basement” will be taken aback at the size and design of this facility. I am glad to summarize that it is certainly well-used and that lovers of this carefree musical will want to catch one of the remaining performances this coming weekend, Friday and Saturday, at 8 p.m., or the Sunday matinee at 2 p.m. Tickets are an unbelieveable $10. You won’t be disappointed.
Over at Douglaston’s acclaimed Theatre à la Carte, my wife and I decided to relieve our date of more than 40 years ago and brave the threat of rain by taking in “Send Me No Flowers.” This piece is quite an about-face for Theatre à la Carte, whose last few offerings were so grandly done — in fact, last fall’s “Rebecca” was conceived on such a large scale, emotionally and visually — that I felt compelled to comment in a review at the time that they might perhaps focus on smaller-scaled works to fit their small stage. I meant no ill-will and certainly was not intending to dictate the group’s future productions.
However, “Send Me No Flowers” is certainly a smaller-scaled work, an utterly delightful — if absolutely mindless — comedy that fits quite well in TALC’s limited space. The fit works well, indeed, thanks to imaginative use of lighting by Dino Oranges (suggesting the lead’s offstage daydreams), integration of music (this time, quite upbeat), and once again, an evocative set courtesy of Dana Martin. It’s really a tribute to think that Martin could mold a work of art out of a middle-class, Westchester suburban home of the ’60s.
Forgive me, however, if I repeat, “mindless” — for that does characterize the plot. “Flowers,” actually, is not about “what happens,” but is rather a character piece that requires a first-class group of performers to elevate it out of the “dopey” category. Ever since first I have attended performances at Theatre à la Carte, I have remarked that this group has a quality core of performers, who could easily take any one of their productions on a professional tour. “Flowers” is no exception.
First, let me sing my heart out to Mary Lynch, who once again dazzled me with her versatility and — this is my comment — “charm.” As Judy Kimball, the wife of a hopeless hypochondriac, a role bludgeoned to death by Doris Day in the ’60s film, Lynch pulls out all the stops. She is caught in the trap of a middle-class ’60s housewife who finds herself without a profession — or indeed without a life, beyond buying cold cuts for her husband. As her husband daydreams about her fate if he were to pass away, Lynch acts out a number of over-the-top scenarios, as a Lucille-Ball-like beggar selling pencils to the sensuous paramour of a Latin heart-throb.
And to top it off, her husband all but tosses her into the arms of a former boyfriend — with ample opportunities for this resourceful actress to show real emotion, rather than just the blind adherence to her numb husband. Indeed, I was almost hoping the director would have revised the script, let her husband kick the bucket, and give Judy Kimball a chance at some real passion.
As George Kimball, the clueless hypochondriac, John Emro used an underplayed, self-absorbed approach, his emotions attenuated to the point of no return. More of a dramatic actor perhaps than the touching, comic clown that David Wayne brought to this role, Emro won my sympathies. In fact, I wanted to run up on stage, shake him, and tell him that he was okay — just to end his witless misery. Of course, almost anyone in the room felt a time-warp pinch as he patronizingly offered to send his wife to night school to learn self-supporting skills. (Ouch! Funny, I don’t remember that from 40 years ago.)
As George’s neighbor, Jimmy O’Neill, claiming to be “a nine-year veteran” of TALC (he must have started with the group as a baby), turned in a remarkably stylish performance that contrasted well with Emro’s. As the creature-comforted, golf-club-swinging Arnold (notably performed in the film by Tony Randall), O’Neill evoked the essence of the “best friend” roles so common in the ’60s — and set himself up for a well-performed shift to mock tragedy as he turned to Scotch-guzzling at news of his friend’s imminent demise. (Funny, too, how time has made us more sensitive to alcohol abuse than we dared dream about in the ’60s.)
Surrounding this trio is a fine set of supporting roles — all played with pizzazz. Heading the list was the avaricious doctor played by Kevin Ryan, who brought many a chuckle as he commented on the goldmines of doctors who eschewed general practice in favor of specializing. Michael Zurich swaggered well as Judy’s former boyfriend, an oil millionaire barging into the couple’s new “one-third acre” dwelling. He certainly knew how to use a laugh to drive a punch right into George’s gut. Dana Jaffe, as the hokey cemetery plot sales-“woman,” turned the role played by Paul Lynde in the film into a female character, downplaying Lynde’s broad cynicism in favor of a more lighthearted approach.
Three cute cameos rounded out the cast, all of whom figured in George’s and Judy’s daydream sequences — Alain Laforest as the Latin “lover” of the neighborhood, Donna Jacobus as a well-spoken passerby buying pencils from the penniless Judy, and the curvaceous Heidi Philipsen in various “girly” roles, all done with brio and sense of variation in character. Bravo to all.
While I truly hope TALC will challenge its talented players in more thought-provoking fare again in the future, my wife and I thank the group for this brief return to simpler days. While nowhere near as sidesplitting as it was 40 years ago, “Flowers” can still bring on a chuckle, especially with this cast under the efficient eye of director Susan Emro.
Two more weekends remain in the run, with performances on Fridays and Saturdays, May 2, 3, 9 and 10 at 8 p.m. and Sundays, May 4 and 11 at 3 p.m. Theatre à la Carte is located at the Community Church of Douglaston, 39-50 Douglaston Parkway, just north of the Long Island Railroad, surrounded by a group of fine restaurants to make a great night out. Call 718-631-4092 for reservations.
