Photo by Nick Stokes
Yesterday I took a trip down to the Cort Theatre to see something which one could describe as a rarity on the Broadway stage nowadays... a completely original musical! Bright Star, the first Broadway outing from the pairing of singer-songwriter Edie Brickell and comedy legend Steve Martin, is not a musical adaptation of a novel or a movie, nor is it a jukebox musical which takes advantage of well-known pop hits. It is, however, an enchanting tale from the South, matched with a unique and delightful score. Yes folks, Bluegrass has come to Broadway! And that's why Bright Star is our #ShowOfTheWeek!
Over the years, I had heard snippets of Bluegrass or American roots music, but never within the confines of a theatre. Could this genre work and hold my attention over the course of a two and a half hour Broadway production? The answer, thankfully, is yes! It certainly can. Brickell and Martin have put together a score that perfectly captures both the soul of this story as well as its setting. Indeed having the main members of the orchestra on stage symbolizes how integral the music is to Southern culture and to this very show.
That leads me to the show's leading lady, as Carmen Cusack makes her Broadway debut as Alice Murphy. It is extraordinary how effortless Ms Cusack makes it seem leading the audience member through each of her numbers, as if we were floating nose-first along a scent trail to a kitchen of sweet, baked goodies. She nails the country vibe with a vocal tone that sounds like the lovechild of Dolly Parton and Cher and her acting chops definitely get a work out too. As the story unfolds in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina in 1945-46, with flashbacks to 1923, her character ages roughly 23 years in the two time strands of the musical, and her physical and emotional evolutions are remarkable as she goes back and forth. From young and plucky teen to a guarded and intriguing literary editor in later life, she is always believable and relatable. Each member of the cast actually seizes their moment to shine. The wonderful comic relief elements brought to you by Emily Padgett and Jeff Blumenkrantz (as Ms. Murphy's editorial staff), the misguided acts of cruelty by Michael Mulheren (claiming "a man's gotta do, what a man's gotta do," as Mayor Josiah Dobbs), and the romantic 'young love' subplot played out by A.J. Shively (as Billy Cane) and Hannah Elless (as Margo Crawford) leave every box ticked. Furthermore, the ensemble, who at times are just as important acting as part of the set as they are when acting as actual townsfolk in the background, are magnificently incorporated through the direction of Walter Bobbie and through Josh Rhodes' choreography, as they sweepingly instigate the scene changes. A delightful touch!
Yes, the story is sugary and you constantly get the urge to slap your own thigh and cry out "gee whizz" whilst watching, but the show never feels without authenticity and you roll with its optimism. The lyric "Sun Is Gonna Shine" is drummed into our hearts at the beginning of Act Two and I, for one, am always grateful for a little sunshine from my theatre visits.
Click here for tickets to Bright Star for performances through to 9 October 2016 at Broadway's Cort Theatre.
Carmen Cusack & Paul Alexander Nolan in Bright Star More production photosOriginally published on