WHAT IF? a revue on CD!!
A completely SUBJECTIVE opinion.
We are, of course, dealing with two different media. The lucky ones are those who saw WHAT IF? live and in person. But then again, we are lucky because we can see it second-hand, as it were. THE DVD IS ENHANCED FOR WIDESCREEN TV'S AND IN STEREO SOUND. There I said it, and I'm glad.
Writer-director Bruce Kimmel has come up with a clever (in the best sense of the word) way to present old material in a new way. With a cast of five professional audience pleasers and one mugger, we are taken on a terrific journey. Pianist Jose Simbulan's fingers never leave the keyboard and he is a talented and versatile musician.
The first number explains how WHAT IF? came to be - details of which I do not have to repeat for the HHW'ers here on the board. Costumes and staging for the opening number promise a great evening.
Alet Taylor is a joy in the first solo of the night "Show Me." She is pretty and funny and talented. We then get our first full What If.... of the evening: a Bock & Harnick A CHORUS LINE. Led by Paul Haber you know immediately that you are in the hands of a writer who knows his stuff, a costumer (uncredited on the DVD) who can suggest an icon with a color, and a pair of choreographers (Cheryl Baxter & Joseph McKee) who can put a foot and/or hand in exactly the RIGHT place. Funny stuff.
Tammy Minoff does her first solo turn "Times Like This". It is sweet and ironic and simple AND effective. This is followed by Haber's solo "Something" the first knock-out of the park of the evening solo wise. Set up perfectly by all that has gone before, it settles us in and prepares us for the rest of the evening.
The duet of "At the Same Time" by Tammy and Ryan Raftery is next. Cute song - clever bits. Nice.
Ryan has already threatened to sing "Don't Rain on My Parade" but gets stopped variously throughout the show.
Next we have BK's take on Irving Berlin's WEST SIDE STORY. On the money staging, accents, and a perfect button make this a crowd pleaser.
Susanne Blakeslee is next with her first solo "A Little Lift." Comic song done in an ironic tone, particularly ironic since it is being sung by a beautiful woman. It made me feel a little uncomfortable, but it was well done.
Paul is back for "Millions of Men" - another home run for the team.
The Phantom of the Opera What If.... is well written and played, staged okay....and here is the first time we see the ladies look very lovely in long gowns. This is followed by Alet solo on "When You're Waiting for Love" - sweet. Her off the shoulder gown is beautiful.
Then Tammy knocks her solo out of the park. "I Want to be Annie" the story of a little girl who auditions for the coveted role and finally gets to do it! Clever rhythms and lyrics are delivered perfectly. I love this song and Tammy has a ball doing it!
Then Ryan Raftery does "Born Too Late."
The first act finale is the What If.....The Yiddish Sondheim. Some nice solo work (the ladies' trio is a stand-out) and staging and a good way to send the audience out for a smoke.
A nice title card tells us INTERMISSION.
Act Two opens with Susanne as Maria/Julie Andrews in the R/H What If....ASSASSINS. Joined by the cast in German Band mode - I liked this number a lot. The costuming was perfect - Suzanne's "Julie" was on the money! Very funny.
Then Ryan sang "I Don't Need You."
Frank Loesser didn't write GUYS AND DOLLS - he wrote "THE KING AND I" and this number with Paul as King and Ryan as the Krolahome was so very funny. A couple of signs explained some of the puns, and Paul with his shirt off and his undie waistband showing was a rather undignified King....looking for some "I." Hiilarious.
Susanne then sang another "put down" song "A Little Neurotic." Gosh - she is so pretty and so talented, which I guess is the point of this particular song....what we see is not how someone feels about themselves - but two of them in the same show - whew. Nicely done.
Couple of guys sitting in a bar, Paul and Ryan, sing about "Foolin' Ourselves" and the setting is really perfect. Nice song.
Then we have the What If.... of Loesser and then Jerry Herman doing SWEENEY TODD. I don't like SWEENEY TODD at all, I have found that most of the people who do like it are NOT audience members, but performers who appreciate what the singers are doing....maybe someday I will like it, but I don't, so sue me. The cast as waiters and Paul as Sweeney were good....but if the original material is not something I appreciate, I can't really get into a What If... about it.... If you like the original, you will love this.
Tammy next sings "Simply" a lovely song. But she is wearing the only costume mistake of the evening. The dress is not flattering, doesn't reflect the song, doesn't fit well. and whew! Tammy through her talent prevails, but it's a close call.
Susanne follows with "Better" which is really a nice song, and probably my favorite song she does in the show. This woman knows her stuff, knows where to hit the emotion, when to hold back, and when to let us have it.
BROADWAY COMING ATTRACTIONS....funny funny funny. You have to see it....you have to. Too many funny moments to talk about, although my favorite has to be the "Violence" clip!
Uh-oh....the song I looked most forward to. A song I didn't even know a year ago. A song that should have been the highlight of the second act, is destroyed by mugging, impossible phrasing, and a complete mis-understanding of its intent. I am outraged. Ryan kills "Chinese Food in Bed."
Alet perks things up quickly with "If I Can't Take It With Me" in a great dress and sitting on the piano. There is some clumsy staging in this song, but it ends up okay. I guess I just wanted her to do MORE!
Then we have our last What If....Sondheim's BYE BYE BIRDIE. Cute and on the button again, musically, lyrically, staging and costuming. And while none of the parody reaches the delirious heights of "Oy Oy Oy" in the Sondheim Yiddish theatre of the first act - form follows function, and it's a lot of FUN!!!
Finale! Bows! The End!
Thanks to Mr BK for sharing this DVD with us. And remember everything I have written is subjective - and of course seeing something on DVD is not like seeing it live!
