CurtainUp
The Internet Theater Magazine of Reviews, Features,
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CurtainUp The Internet Theater Magazine of Reviews, Features,
Annotated Listings |
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A CurtainUp Connecticut Review
Flamingo Kid
Musicalizing the 1984 film that starred Matt Dillon as a teen on the cusp of manhood, the stage transformation is good-natured and lively but bland and uninvolving. Hartford's artistic director Darko Tresnjak's farewell production obviously has its eye on Broadway, following the path of the theater's A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder and Anastasia.(Gentleman's Guide review & Anastasia review) Whether this lightweight Flamingo can make it in New York is problematical, although it looks expensive. Alexander Dodge's scenic design, Philip Rosenberg's lighting, Linda Cho's costumes, Peter Hylenski's sound and Aaron Rhyne's projection design are top-notch. Jeffrey Winnick (Jimmy Brewer) is a Jewish teen living in Brooklyn with his working-class plumber father Arthur (Adam Heller) and sympathetic mother Ruth (Liz Larsen). Friends take Jimmy to El Flamingo, a Long Island resort where he eventually works as, first, a parking attendant, then a cabana boy, earning big tips from admiring yentas and putting his gin rummy skills to gainful use. (The club was founded by and for Jews since other such clubs were restricted.) Jimmy falls for the angelic Karla Samuels (Samantha Massell) who's visiting from California and staying with gin rummy champ, the big shot Phil Brody (Mark Kudisch), his bored wife Phyllis (Lesli Margherita) and their daughter Joyce (Lindsey Brett Carothers). Jeffrey, in thrall to Phil, is tempted by an offer to become a salesman at Phil's car dealership. Pitting his new-found hero against his hard-working father also allows Jeffrey a Hobson's Choice between becoming a ladder-climbing salesman or college student. Brewer's Jeffrey is attractive though neither sensuous or dangerous. As Karla, the laid-back Massell finds the character's pragmatic approach to life, while Margherita is a show-stealing hoot as Phyllis and Kudisch hams it up as husband Phil. Omar Lopez-Cepero is very funny as an egotistical rhumba instructor, with Heller and Larsen adding gravitas as Jeffrey's parents. His angry "This is My House" and her plaintive "A Mother Knows" are highlights. With book and lyrics by Robert L. Freedman and music by Scott Frankel, The Flamingo Kid ambles its way through the two-and-a-half hour evening. Both Tresnjak's direction and Denis Jones' choreography are zestful. Many numbers hit their targets: "Another Summer Day is Brooklyn," "Never Met a Boy Like You," "Rockaway Rhumba" and "The Cookie Crumbles" in particular. Yet, despite glancing mentions of The Feminine Mystique and the Cuban missile crisis, the show is stubbornly insular, safe and rather pointless. |
Search CurtainUp in the box below PRODUCTION NOTES The Flamingo Kid Book and Lyrics by Robert L. Freedman Music by Scott Frankel Choreographed by Denis Jones Directed by Darko Tresnjak CAST: Jimmy Brewer (Jeffrey Winnick), Gregory Rodriguez (Leo, Parking Attendant, Marvin), Ken Krugman (Mr. Cartucci, Mike), Alex Wyse (Hawk), Ben Frankhauser (Steve), Liz Larsen (Ruth Winnick), Adam Heller (Arthur Winnick, Lindsey Brett Carothers (Joyce Brody), Lesli Margherita (PhyllisBrody), Marc Kudish (Phil Brody), Stuart Zagnit (Colonel Easton), Omar Lopez-Cepero (Alejandro, Lido Guy), Samantha Massell (Karla Samuels), Kathy Voytko (Mrs. Bakaleinikoff), Michael Hartung (Neal, Irv, Alter Kocker Chorus, Lido Guy), Price Waldman (Cy, Alter Kocker Chorus, Dr. Ganz, Uncle Jack), Steve Routman (Morty, Alter Kocker Chorus, Mr. Dworkin), William Squier (Big Sid), Jean Kauffman (Nana Brodsky, Mrs. Unger), Erin Leigh Peck (Mrs. Finkelstein), Ben Bogen (Lido Guy), Anna Noble (Backup Singer), Kelli Youngman (Backup Singer) Scenic Designer: Alexander Dodge Costume Designer: Linda Cho Lighting Designer: Philip Rosenberg Sound Designer: Peter Hylenski Projection Designer: Aaron Rhyne Wig & Hair Designer: Charles G. LaPointe Makeup Designer: Joya Giambrone Dance & Vocal Arrangements: Scott Frankel Music Director: Thomas Murray Orchestrator: Bruce Coughlin Fight Choreographer: Thomas Schall Dramaturge and Associate Artistic Director: Elizabeth Williamson Casting: Carrie Gardner Production Stage Manager: Linda Marvel Assistant Stage Managers: Michael Wilhoite, Genevieve Kersh Production Manager: Bryan T. Holcombe General Manager: Emily Van Scoy Running Time: Act I: 65 minutes, Act II: 60minutes with a 20 minute intermission Hartford Stage, Hartford, Conn. May 9-June 15, 2019 Reviewed May 26, 2019 REVIEW FEEDBACK Highlight one of the responses below and click "copy" or"CTRL+C"
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