Mary Poppins
Book by Julian Fellowes
Original Music and Lyrics by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman
New Songs and Additional Music and Lyrics by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe
Original Music and Lyrics by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman
New Songs and Additional Music and Lyrics by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe
Directed by Richard Eyre
Where: New Amsterdam Theater (New York, NY)
When: Sunday, January 15, 2011, 1pm
This was my second viewing of Disney's Mary Poppins on Broadway and, much like the first time, it's a musical that works incredibly well, but has a few flaws that prevent it from being "practically perfect" as the title character would say. Still, despite a few troublesome spots in the production, Mary Poppins is, to me, the epitome of what a old-fashioned Broadway musical is/was full of great songs, humor, huge dance numbers, and heart.
The reason to see this production on Broadway is for the absolutely stunning set design and special effects. While much of the action takes place in the Banks household, the way the huge house raises, lowers, and switches to different levels is part of the fun of seeing this thing at the New Amsterdam theater. When you couple that with some great special effects that set the whimsical tone and you're in for a treat. Right from the very beginning as Mary begins to pull seemingly impossible items like six foot-tall coatracks out of her tiny handbag, a smile popped on my face. And that's the simplest special effect...I'll leave it a surprise as to what chimney sweep Bert does during Act II's "Step in Time" that brought literal gasps from the audience.
While the production itself is stunning, the whole thing takes a while to get moving. Unfortunately, Act I has one too many lulls to be truly successful. When the focus is placed on father George Banks who is having a difficult time with his banking job, the play screeches to a halt. The classic song "A Spoonful of Sugar" is oddly placed in the storyline and it ruins its effectiveness. And "Feed the Birds," a lovely song and apparently Walt Disney's favorite, will never be anything but a yawn provider for me (in this play or in the movie). Fortunately, Act I contains "Jolly Holiday" and "Supercalifragilisticexpialidious," two fantastic production numbers, the latter of which is simply magical.
And once Act II comes along, it never stops. The pacing problems that were evident in Act I vanish and the whole thing moves at a rapid clip. It certainly helps that Act II introduces a villain that wasn't present in the film for Mary to stand up against. Miss Andrews (played by a delightfully wicked Ruth Gottschall) was George Banks's nanny when he was growing up and she's an absolute tyrant. When the two polar opposite nannies begin to duke it out, it becomes one of my favorite scenes despite a lack of the showiness and special effects that are present in much of the rest of the play. Since Act II veers a little more different when compared to the movie than Act I, I think that helps the boredom factor as well. Seeing something we aren't quite used to keeps it interesting.
While Steffanie Leigh's Mary had a lovely singing voice, and Gavin Lee who originated the role of Bert on Broadway seemed to be having an absolute blast bringing an effervescent joy whenever he was onstage, there were a few issues in the acting department that I don't remember seeing in my previous visit to Mary Poppins. Perhaps this is a bit harsh to criticize someone so young, but Kara Oates who played little Jane Banks was nearly indecipherable when she spoke thanks to the shrillness of her voice. When she sang, things were fine, but whenever she spoke, I hardly ever understood a word she said...this was certainly the most unpleasant thing in the production. Also, while not necessarily the fault of the actors, the mics on Karl Kenzler's George Banks and housemaid Katie Nanna (played by Kristin Carbone) were so low that it was a strain to hear them which made many of their lines that should have delivered laughs fall on deaf ears.
Still, even with a few problems, Mary Poppins is everything a Broadway show should be. You'll certainly have a lovely day at the theater with this one.
The reason to see this production on Broadway is for the absolutely stunning set design and special effects. While much of the action takes place in the Banks household, the way the huge house raises, lowers, and switches to different levels is part of the fun of seeing this thing at the New Amsterdam theater. When you couple that with some great special effects that set the whimsical tone and you're in for a treat. Right from the very beginning as Mary begins to pull seemingly impossible items like six foot-tall coatracks out of her tiny handbag, a smile popped on my face. And that's the simplest special effect...I'll leave it a surprise as to what chimney sweep Bert does during Act II's "Step in Time" that brought literal gasps from the audience.
While the production itself is stunning, the whole thing takes a while to get moving. Unfortunately, Act I has one too many lulls to be truly successful. When the focus is placed on father George Banks who is having a difficult time with his banking job, the play screeches to a halt. The classic song "A Spoonful of Sugar" is oddly placed in the storyline and it ruins its effectiveness. And "Feed the Birds," a lovely song and apparently Walt Disney's favorite, will never be anything but a yawn provider for me (in this play or in the movie). Fortunately, Act I contains "Jolly Holiday" and "Supercalifragilisticexpialidious," two fantastic production numbers, the latter of which is simply magical.
And once Act II comes along, it never stops. The pacing problems that were evident in Act I vanish and the whole thing moves at a rapid clip. It certainly helps that Act II introduces a villain that wasn't present in the film for Mary to stand up against. Miss Andrews (played by a delightfully wicked Ruth Gottschall) was George Banks's nanny when he was growing up and she's an absolute tyrant. When the two polar opposite nannies begin to duke it out, it becomes one of my favorite scenes despite a lack of the showiness and special effects that are present in much of the rest of the play. Since Act II veers a little more different when compared to the movie than Act I, I think that helps the boredom factor as well. Seeing something we aren't quite used to keeps it interesting.
While Steffanie Leigh's Mary had a lovely singing voice, and Gavin Lee who originated the role of Bert on Broadway seemed to be having an absolute blast bringing an effervescent joy whenever he was onstage, there were a few issues in the acting department that I don't remember seeing in my previous visit to Mary Poppins. Perhaps this is a bit harsh to criticize someone so young, but Kara Oates who played little Jane Banks was nearly indecipherable when she spoke thanks to the shrillness of her voice. When she sang, things were fine, but whenever she spoke, I hardly ever understood a word she said...this was certainly the most unpleasant thing in the production. Also, while not necessarily the fault of the actors, the mics on Karl Kenzler's George Banks and housemaid Katie Nanna (played by Kristin Carbone) were so low that it was a strain to hear them which made many of their lines that should have delivered laughs fall on deaf ears.
Still, even with a few problems, Mary Poppins is everything a Broadway show should be. You'll certainly have a lovely day at the theater with this one.
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