Mame was bit of a disappointment for me. My friends loved, loved, loved it and I certainly enjoyed it but there were small things that stuck out.
The show had the first performance on Thursday, May 25th and officially opened on Friday, May 26th. We saw the Sunday evening performance. Both Christine Baranksi and Harriet Harris seemed off. CB as Mame is doing A LOT of dancing. The show is choreographed within an inch of its life and she is doing a lot of the dancing. It is well choreographed and well danced but I don't know if CB is pacing herself yet. She seemed out of breath and rather nervous at times and though she got all her play laughs her singing high moments (not just notes) were not always there. Harriet Harris (who I love in Frasier and in Thoroughly Modern Millie) also seemed to be working through her character. She seemed unsure at times and seemed to be missing the core of Vera. She was screechy sometimes and it just didn't work.
On a positive note, the show had GREAT energy. The chorus was vibrant and full of piss and vinegar (to quote my father). Emily Skinner was very good as Gooch and Max von Essen did a great job as adult Patrick. The show is well directed and choreographed. It's full of color and great costumes. The set design is generic 20s/30s/40s. Nothing special and easily moved to another theatre.
As much as I love the score to Mame, seeing it again reminds me how much I love the play and the film Auntie Mame. Even though Lawrence and Lee wrote both the play Auntie Mame and the book for Mame they chopped up the story for the musical and made changes that I think weaken the show. I know you can't do, on stage, the whole Macy's scene where Roz Russell gets fired but changing it to a nail salon just doesn't work for me. I know the play and movie so well that the things chopped out just seem to leave big holes for me. Condensing the roles of Patrick's nanny who evenutally becomes Mame's maid along with Ito and Gooch, who, in the play, doesn't appear until halfway into the show into the one character of Gooch (Agnes Gooch delivers young Patrick to Auntie Mame at the top of the show for those who didn't know) has never worked for me. Oh, well. I don't want this to sound like a negative review because it's not. I enjoyed the show and I think by the time FJL sees it CB and HH will have settled into their performances. I would recommened it for many reasons. There is a large orchestra and when the baton goes down to begin the show and that sound rises out of the pit, it's wonderful, wonderful, wonderful! We left the show smiling and talking and sharing our wonderful evening.
So, FJL, that's my Mame report.
