‘Carousel’: Unhinged revival never gets to spin

CAROUSEL
Book & lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
Music by Richard Rodgers
Based on the play Liliom by Ferenc Molnar
Choreographed by Justin Peck
Directed by Jack O’Brien
Imperial Theatre
249 West 45th Street
(212-239-6200), www.CarouselBroadway.com

By David NouNou

If you don’t have a real carousel on stage, how can you still call the show Carousel?

The definitive revival of Carousel was presented by Lincoln Center in 1994. So how can you improve on that production? You can’t; it is virtually impossible. Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel was a treat for sight, mind and sound. It is still a treat for sound because no matter how bad the production, nothing can ever dim the brilliance of the score. It was impeccably directed by Nicholas Hytner and choreographed to perfection by Sir Harold McMillan. The sets and costumes by Bob Crowley were a feast for the sight and mind that transported us to Maine for the turn of the 20^th century and what a magnificent carousel was created right on stage before our eyes. The lighting by Paul Pyant just added to the enchantment. It was a marvel to behold.

I guess by now you have figured out how I felt about the 1994 revival. I wish I could say the same about this version. Of all the famous Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, Carousel by contrast seems the most dated and sluggish of their shows. Other than the brilliant score, there really is very little cause to revive this show unless you have a revelatory vision, which this version totally lacks.

This is a delicate piece about a lovely, gentle factory worker, Julie Jordan (Jessie Mueller) falling in love for the good-looking brutish carnival/carousel barker, Billy Bigelow (Joshua Henry).  Billy gets fired from his job because he pays too much attention to Julie. This is not an easy love. They truly do love each other, but the difficulties of life and the difficulty of Billy trying to find a job all make him abuse Julie, precipitating his ultimate demise and never getting to see his unborn daughter. He is given a second chance to plead his case to come down to Earth and do right by Julie and his daughter, Louise, who is 15 now and is having a hard time finding her place in the world.

In order for this gentle piece to work there has to be real chemistry between Julie and Billy to be able to sell this fantasy Although both Ms. Mueller and Mr. Henry are incredible talents in their own right, their chemistry here is below the charts. Mr. Henry possesses a great singing voice, but here he is a one-note charmless brute as Billy and Ms. Mueller, who is also in great voice, adds no spark or life into her Julie. Considering how much life and charm Ms. Mueller injected into Beautiful and Waitress and Mr. Henry in The Scottsboro Boys and Violet, together they totally flatline as a couple.

The joys of the show are Renee Fleming as Julie’s Aunt Nettie, whose rendition of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” brought the house down; and Alexander Gemignani as Enoch Snow, Julie’s best friend Carrie Pipperidge’s fiancé, singing “When the Children Are Asleep” is an absolute joy. The two of them just fill the stage and we wish the show could have been more about them.

The creative team does little to eliminate the datedness of the show. Jack O’Brien’s listless direction makes the proceedings even more ponderous. Justin Peck, resident choreographer of the New York City Ballet, scraped all the revolutionary choreography that Agnes DeMille and Harold McMillan created for “The Carousel Waltz,” “June Is Bustin’ Out All Over,” “Louise’s Ballet” to name a few, and instead inserts his banal choreography that slows the proceedings even further. The brilliant Santo Loquasto–who won a Tony last year for Hello, Dolly!–has created some of his dullest designs. There isn’t even a carousel in this version, just a lone horse among dancers; and the lighting by Brian MacDevitt is so dim, you can hardly see the stage.

Other than the brilliant score, this version of Carousel is totally unhinged, never gets to spin and stalls.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published April 12, 2018
Reviewed at performance on April 8, 2018

Image: Carousel on Broadway/Facebook