As promised, here are my thoughts on Kismet, as mounted by Reprise!, which I saw last night:
What a mish-mash. Brilliant at moments, rather amateurish at others, all over the place in between. First off, I can tell you that it's pretty clear why Kismet does not get revived very often. The book is rather weak, as it crams in so many characters and plot lines and supposed intrigues that none of them are given very much justice. Worse, some of its comic passages can be downright sophomoric. More than a few songs in the score stop the action cold, and there are moments in the plot that cry out for music that never arrives. Still, there are some fine nuggets in the score, like "Stranger in Paradise" and especially "And This is My Beloved," which are incredibly wonderful.
This production is one of the sparest I've seen at Reprise! in some time. Sets are comprised of little more than some draped fabric here and there. As always, the orchestra (18 or 19 pieces, by my count) is on stage, behind a relatively narrow playing area.
The show begins strangely, with cast members--dressed in contemporary street clothes--gathering on stage, some of them stretching and some of them sitting in circles here and there, while the orchestra plays the overture. As the action begins, costumes consist solely of some schmattes wrapped around the players to create the notion of Arabian robes. As the production progresses, we see less of the street clothing and more evocative costuming. There is much exposed flesh and eye candy--both male and female--throughout the evening.
I would love to tell you that Mr. Len Cariou is wonderful as Hajj, the poet, but I cannot. He phones in a performance that leaves much to be desired. His voice lacks the power it once had and he struggles to maintain pitch during several of his sustained passages. There is little chemistry between Mr. Cariou and Miss Caryn Kaplan, who plays his daughter Marsinah, and there is little evidence of the supposed erotic attraction between Hajj and Lalume, played by Miss Jennifer Leigh Warren, called for in the script. His rendition of "Gesticulate," the truth be told, is rather difficult to endure.
The two stars of the evening are, not surprisingly, Mr. Jason Graae and Miss Warren. Mr. Graae is, well, I'm not sure how else to put this, Mr. Graae. To say he plays the part of The Wazir broadly would be understating matters considerably. At several junctures in Mr. Graae's performance my head was saying "too over the top!" while my heart was laughing heartily. Never have I seen an evil villain played so campily and to such humorous effect. To see him sing "Was I Wazir?" in front of seven very buff and shirtless members of the ensemble is a joy. Miss Warren completely fills the stage with energy and charisma. Vocally, she demonstrates tremendous range, belting here, singing everything from low alto to high soprano there. Her "Not Since Nineveh" is thrilling.
The Caliph is played by Anthony Crivello, and he and Miss Kaplan sing their numbers sweetly and are pleasant to look at on stage.
