It's only April, and already we've been treated to two new original small-cast one-act musicals starring #TCTheater veteran Bradley Greenwald, paired with younger performers. Just over a month ago, Open Eye Theatre premiered
Strange Heart: The Dream Songs of John Berryman, an odd and dreamy musical in which Bradley played the titular poet, with Anna Hashizume and Sam Albright (and some puppets). Now Illusion Theater is premiering the lovely and touching musical
The Postman's Daughter, in which Bradley again plays the title character, with Katherine Fried as his (spoiler alert but not really since it's in the title) daughter. In a year when only
one new original musical premiered on Broadway, it's heartening to see that new original musicals are flourishing in our own theater community. At just about 80 minutes, this one gives us a sweet little story that feels like the beginning, and leaves you wanting more, but also feels satisfying. It's mostly sung-through, has the feel of a modern musical, and is beautifully performed in the intimate theater at Center for Performing Arts.
Playing through April 25 only, go see it if you're interested in the future of music-theater.
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| Katherine Fried (photo by Aaron Fenster) |
The story opens on a young pregnant woman moving into a new home, and a postman delivering her mail with a "welcome to the neighborhood" note. Soon it's mom and baby, and it becomes obvious that she's isolated in her home in a new neighborhood, her only contact phone calls with her mom who is living in some kind of memory care facility. The postman also seems lonely, or else just friendly with everyone on his route, as he continues to leave her notes with news of the neighborhood. They exchange notes, then texts, then meet for an awkward lunch. This is the only speaking scene, like we've moved out of the lyrical written relationship to the real world, which is often not as polished or pretty. It's here that we learn about the surprise relationship between the two, which throws a wrench into what was an endearing relationship. Nothing is resolved by the end, not all questions are answered, but we arrive at a beginning.
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| Bradley Greenwald (photo by Aaron Fenster) |
All of this story plays out in song and music (book and lyrics by Danielle Koenig, music by Justin D. Cook). Even the daughter's conversations with her mother, which are more like dialogue, are sort of sung to music. Musical themes, like the sound of a clarinet for the baby's cries, and a guitar when the postman appears, recur throughout the piece. It's less of clearly defined songs, than one long musical story, which doesn't allow for too many applause breaks to interrupt the flow. The score includes some interesting melodies, lovely harmonies, and lyrics that feel like dialogue, played by a three-piece onstage band led by music director Benjamin Larson.
If I were going to cast a two-person musical, Katherine Fried and Bradley Greenwald would be at the top of my list. Both are powerful singers with gorgeous voices (I wish they weren't miked in this intimate space), and both are also experts at conveying emotion through song, so that we feel every bit of the young mom's desperation, the postman's self-deprecating humor and attempts to make up for past mistakes.
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| Bradley Greenwald and Katherine Fried (photo by Aaron Fenster) |
The piece is well-staged (by director Michael Robbins) on the simple set (designed by Sarah Harris). The daughter's comfy and lived-in home is represented by a door with an all-important mail slot, the means for communication, a couch, boxes of baby items, and a bassinet. The daughter rarely leaves, the postman walks past the audience and up to the door, across the front (where she can watch him through the imaginary windows), with another small set area in front of the band. Some beautiful lighting effects (designed by Dante Benjegerdes) create the illusion of the passage of time, daylight fading to evening and back again. She's dressed in the comfy kind of clothes that require no effort, like a new mom would throw on, he's in the dark blue of a postman's uniform, complete with the USPS patch, and winter gear (costume design by Amber Brown).
The Postman's Daughter is a small and lovely new piece of music-theater that tells an intimate story of two strangers and their developing relationship, with themes of loneliness, connection, and atypical families. And as much as I love an 80-minute musical, if they wrote an Act II, I would eagerly go back to see it!
