7/7/2023 0 Comments Madcap moonMusical director and pianist Dave Dobrusky is an entire pit orchestra as he deftly manages to convey the razzle dazzle of 1920s show business with a single instrument. Songs like “Rich Is,” a group fantasy about what it must be like to have money, and “Empty,” a father’s lament for his absent sons, are sturdy show tunes and beautifully performed. Their musical biography is best at covering the struggling years. Sam says to his determined wife: “Minnie, don’t you understand the word ‘no’?” And she answers: “Sam, if I understood ‘no,’ would I be the mother of five boys?”Īfter a bumpy trek through the vaudeville circuit, the Marx boys finally hit it big at New York’s Palace Theatre and then struck out on their own. It seems their father, Sam (a sweet Michael Patrick Gaffney), was the world’s worst tailor, and the task of raising five lively boys - poor non-performing Miltie Marx (Nick Kealy) is practically ignored here - proved to be too much.Įnter Minnie (wonderful Darlene Popovic), a good-hearted Jewish mother whose masterful use of guilt helped propel her boys to stardom. until the very last number, so most of the play’s two-plus hours are spent telling us how they turned to show business as a last resort to save their family from destitution. The brothers don’t become the Marx Brothers - with Groucho’s mustache, Harpo’s horn, Chico’s hat, etc. And Harpo (Kalon Thibodeaux) preferred to get his laughs silently. Groucho (Michael Austin), for instance, had a stooped, funny walk before that was his gimmick. The book attempts to show us flashes of inspiration that led to the comedic characters they would eventually be. The task of recreating the Marx Brothers before they were the Marx Brothers is daunting, but MacKellan and his actors handle the task admirably. He and choreographer Tom Segal keep the show moving right along, and the dancing is perfectly pitched to highlight the comedy and sell the songs rather than impress in its own right. But such footnotes happen to be the specialty of San Francisco’s 42nd Street Moon, the 12-year-old company that produces concert versions of lost and forgotten musicals.ĭirector Greg MacKellan doesn’t try to provide flash. With few revivals in the ensuing decades, “Minnie’s Boys” was destined to become a Broadway footnote. Leading lady Shelley Winters, who played stage mother Minnie Marx, was terribly miscast and could neither sing nor dance at a Broadway-caliber level. The show might have been a hit in 1957, but in 1970, it fizzled. Groucho Marx was still alive and well (and served as the show’s production consultant), but younger, hipper audiences were more interested in Karl Marx than Groucho Marx.Īnd then there was the show itself, with a charmingly old-fashioned score by Larry Grossman (music) and Hal Hackady (lyrics) and a gag-filled book by Arthur Marx (Groucho’s son) and Robert Fisher. Here was a traditional book musical right out of the “Gypsy”/”Funny Girl” mold trying to make a go of it in the Age of Aquarius. It’s not surprising that “Minnie’s Boys,” the musical retelling of the Marx Brothers’ early days, was a flop on Broadway in 1970. Then, with a little showbiz push from their mother, Minnie, they found fame as Groucho, Harpo, Zeppo and Chico - the Marx Brothers. Now I know why this was the main event segment.JULIE, ADOLPH, HERBIE AND LEO began life as rambunctious boys on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. I was very surprised that this was the main event segment with Drew McIntyre chasing off Happy Corbin.ĭrew McIntyre conveniently destroyed the ring moments before the WWE Hall of Fame. ![]() The special guest for this segment was Drew McIntyre’s sword Angela. ![]() Fans even chanted “Michael Cole.” “Happy Talk” with Happy Corbin Michael Cole has been Pat McAfee’s life coach throughout this whole feud. WWE sacrificed both the Intercontinental and United States champion to put keep Austin Theory strong headed into his match against McAfee. Michael Cole told Pat McAfee that Austin Theory has been punking him out for weeks, and the camera panned over at McAfee just as he was staring daggers through Cole. ![]() They just need to kick their addiction to part-timers and see it through.īy trolling Pat McAfee, Austin Theory was able to get some solid heat as fans chanted “Theory sucks” during this tag team match. Between Ricochet, Madcap and Rick Boogs, WWE has its next generation of top babyfaces right under its nose.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |