Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown,
at Broadway's Belasco Theatre
Gratuitous Violins rating: **1/2 out of ****

Before Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown recedes to a distant memory, here's my bottom line: it wasn't a great musical but I had a good time. Seeing Patti LuPone, Laura Benanti and Brian Stokes Mitchell in the same show was a treat, even if I didn't feel totally swept up in the story.

The book, by Jeffrey Lane, is based on the Pedro Almodovar movie about a group of women in Madrid in 1987 who are driven to the breaking point by the men in their lives. While I've never seen the film I knew the musical, with a score by David Yazbek, was supposed to be a dark comedy, with over-the-top characters and a convoluted plot in the style of a telenovela.

Gazpacho also plays a big role in the musical - there's a recipe for it on the show's curtain. Since I don't speak Spanish I didn't understand all of the ingredients and the key word: frio. (It means cold, which is how the soup is served.) So the symbolism kind of escaped me.

The main character in Women on the Verge, played by Sherie Rene Scott, is Pepa, an actress who makes a living dubbing foreign films. She's distraught after her longtime boyfriend, Ivan (a very suave Mitchell), abruptly breaks up with her, via a message on her answering machine.

At the same time her good friend Candela, a frantic, not-too-bright model played by Benanti, is in a troubled relationship of her own: she fears that her boyfriend may be a terrorist, and she comes to Pepa for help.

Also in the mix are LuPone as Ivan's mentally unstable wife, Lucia; a charming Justin Guarini as Carlos, Ivan and Lucia's son; Nikka Graff Lanzarone as Marisa, Carlos' domineering fiancee; De'Adre Aziza as Paulina, a take-charge lawyer; and Mary Beth Peil as the sweet concierge in Pepa's apartment building. There's also Danny Burstein as the helpful taxi driver who chauffeurs Pepa around town.

Unfortunately as Pepa, Scott doesn't really stand out in this ensemble and I felt she was miscast. Her performance seemed a little flat, while everyone else was operating at a faster speed, more zany and memorable. Although she does have a nice solo number, "Mother's Day," that I thought was poignant.

In contrast, Benanti was an absolute delight as Candela. She was hilarious and truly seemed to capture the outrageous style that I was expecting from the musical. She made the story interesting and exciting to watch in a way that Pepa never did for me.

I also liked LuPone, whose Lucia lurked in the background, disguised in a series of large hats as she searched for Ivan. It was funny and at the same time, a sad story about an abandoned wife. Of course she has a big solo, "Invisible," which the audience ate up, myself included.

As the smooth-talking Ivan, Mitchell doesn't have a lot to do but he also gets a song, "Yesterday, Tomorrow and Today." This was my first time hearing him perform live - and I have to say it was pretty incredible. What a deep, powerful voice. I can't believe he's the same actor I used to watch as Dr. "Jackpot" Jackson on Trapper John M.D.

Despite a terrific performance from Benanti and the thrill of hearing Mitchell and LuPone, Women on the Verge seemed to be lacking something. I was entertained but I wasn't captivated. I don't know, maybe Bartlett Sher wasn't the right director for this musical. Maybe it just wasn't wacky enough.

Yazbek's score didn't leave a lasting impression and despite Burstein's opening number, "Madrid," I didn't feel transported to the Spanish capital or like I was in some kind of English-language version of a Spanish soap opera. (The song is a lively ensemble number that's supposed to set the tone but it contains some cringe-worthy lyrics involving mother's milk.)

In the Playbill, Almodovar says his films from the 1980s, coming a decade after the establishment of democracy in Spain, "reflect that explosion of freedom which illuminated everything. You could say that even grief was joyful."

Grief and joy sprinkled with a touch of craziness against the backdrop of Spain emerging from dictatorship. I get it. Unfortunately, I don't think the musical version of Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown truly got it.

On the verge of a trip to Broadway

I got a sinking feeling reading the reviews last night for Women on the Verge of A Nervous Breakdown knowing that I have a ticket to see a Broadway musical widely considered a mess.

It's one of 11 shows - 10 on Broadway and 1 off-Broadway - that I'll be taking in during my two trips to New York City this month.

For an out-of-towner, especially one who can't get to the city that often, the selection process can be a gamble. Sometimes I have friends who've seen a show and rave about it. Sometimes I'm making my decisions before opening night or even before previews begin.

Honestly, I'm not sure how I'll feel about my choices by the end of November or whether the results will affect my next round of theatergoing.

While I use discounts, I'll pay full price if I think a better seat is worth it. And my aging knees require the extra leg room in the orchestra section. So we're not talking about an inconsequential amount of money.

Fortunately, I'm in a situation where I could just eat the ticket and go see something else that got a better reception from the critics. It's not going to break the bank.

Maybe it's me putting on a brave face but despite the pans, I'm still curious about Women on the Verge - if only to see for myself what everyone's talking about. I'm still looking forward to seeing Patti LuPone and Laura Benanti onstage again. I will do my best to sit back and enjoy myself. I will NOT have a nervous breakdown over it.

Picking a show is a tough decision for a tourist. Do you go with the safe choice or do you take a chance? I hope I'm always willing and able to take a chance. That's part of the excitement of being a theatre fan - and sometimes the disappointment.

And I'm pretty easy to please. Being in New York City, on vacation and away from the responsibilities of daily life, is always a treat for me. A show has to try really hard for me not to be entertained.

I love being in New York and I love going to Broadway. If Women on the Verge doesn't work for me well, it's an opportunity to hone my critical skills and see why - and to be part of the conversation.

My Broadway wish list: fall 2010

I love this time of year, when every book and movie, TV series and CD, play and musical has the potential to be a hit.

I'll only be able to see a handful of shows in New York City and not nearly enough off Broadway. But you have to start somewhere, so here are the Broadway shows at the top of my wish list:

La Bete:
A comedy in rhyming couplets inspired by Moliere? I'm there. This is my chance to see Mark Rylance, whose Tony-winning turn in Boeing Boeing I missed. And it's been 3 1/2 years since I last saw David Hyde Pierce on Broadway, in his Tony-winning performance in Curtains. Much too long.

The Pitmen Painters:
Maybe it's because I loved How Green Was My Valley, or the fact that I've been in a coal mine, but I'm very interested in Lee Hall's play about a group of British miners in the 1930s who discover their artistic side. Hall, who wrote Billy Elliot, knows the terrain. New Yorker theatre critic John Lahr, who saw it in London, put The Pitmen Painters on his list of the 10 best plays of 2008.

Brief Encounter:
I've never seen the 1945 British movie, directed by David Lean, with a screenplay by Noel Coward. And I'm not a big Coward fan. Still, I like innovative work and this play, from Britain's Kneehigh Theatre, sounds so intriguing for the way it incorporates film footage into the action onstage. I can't even imagine what it'll be like.

The Scottsboro Boys:
The reviews from the pre-Broadway engagement at the Guthrie Theater have been glowing. It's got a score by Kander and Ebb. The cast includes John Cullum and Colman Domingo, both of whom I've enjoyed onstage. And I'm so curious to see how this shameful episode in American history is told through music.

A Free Man of Color:
I've read a little bit about the time in which John Guare's play occurs and it's fascinating. New Orleans in 1801, before the Louisiana Purchase, was a freewheeling place, where racial strictures were much less rigid. Jeffrey Wright plays the title character, whose life will be upended when the city is transferred from French to American sovereignty.

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown:
I could not be more excited about a cast - Patti LuPone and Laura Benanti, both of whom I adored in Gypsy, plus Sherie Rene Scott and Brian Stokes Mitchell, whom I've never seen. And the musical is based on a Pedro Almodovar movie that I haven't seen, so it'll all be new to me. Plus, haven't we all been on the verge of a nervous breakdown at one time or another?

Of course there's more I'd love to see. I missed Time Stands Still with Laura Linney, so I'm hoping to catch the return engagement. And I want to see Spider-Man Turn off the Dark, but since previews don't begin until mid-November, I'll wait until they get that flying down pat.