Henderson/Bray 2016!
by Christopher Key
Politics, it is said, is not a game for gentlemen. It’s certainly true of our current election
cycle, regardless of whom you support.
Scott Henderson and Martin Bray are gentlemen of the highest caliber and
have put their reputations at risk with their latest opus “Broadway Takes On
Politics,” opening Thursday at The Firehouse Performing Arts Center in
Fairhaven. Fear not. They put politics through the grinder of
American Musical Theatre and the only winner is the audience.
“When we started writing this last March,” Henderson said by
way of introduction, “we had no idea what this election year was going to be
like.” That deadpan bit of humor
immediately got a round of applause from the audience and he needed to say no
more.
Some of us remember a kinder, gentler America. And then we remember a politician, or at
least his writer, came up with that.
Broadway has always been a large part of that rose-tinted vision and a
few rousing choruses help heal the current pain.
Applying the balm are six of Bellingham’s best polit…umm…actors. It’s become difficult to tell the difference
since the B-movie President, but actors only lie when they’re getting paid to
do so. Pay Scott, Martin, Martha
Benedict, Paul Henderson II, Akilah Williams and Jenny Woods with your laughter
and applause. And I promise you…oh, hell…go
see for yourself.
In collaboration with the Bellingham Music Club, Henderson
has become Bellingham’s Broadway Impresario.
The former CEO of the Whatcom Symphony seems to have a bottomless well
of imagination from which he slakes our thirst for singin’, dancin’, actin’ and
occasionally all three at the same time.
 |
| Photo credit - Christopher Key |
His henchman, Martin Bray, helps write and contributes some
memorable choreography. Bray is what’s
known in the trade as a “hoofer,” an old-school song-and-dance man. I could watch him dance forever. The occasional mad glint in his eye is the
result of having taught kindergarten for 34 years. And lived!
 |
| Photo credit - Christopher Key |
Narrating the evening is the inimitable, the hostess with
the mostess, Martha Benedict. She exudes
showbiz glamour the way politicians exude slime. Naturally.
That smoky voice and brassy presence have highlighted all of these
revues and remind us of something politicians will never have. Magic.
 |
| Photo credit - Christopher Key |
Paul Henderson II must be something special or I wouldn’t
have cast him in so many of my shows. He’s
a five-tool actor. He can act, sing,
dance…I forget what the other two are, but he can do them. If we didn’t have Hendu around, we’d have to
invent him.
 |
| Photo credit - Christopher Key |
A while back on Facebook, I quoted that old baseball saw “It
ain’t over ‘til the fat lady sings.”
Akilah Williams, whose wit is as dazzling as her voice, immediately
responded, “You got something against fat ladies singing?” “No ma’am,” I said and slunk off into
cyberspace. Not everyone gets that kind
of respect from me.
 |
| Photo credit - Christopher Key |
What would a political revue be without the All-American
Girl? I suspect Jenny Woods may be
getting tired of that image, but I swear Norman Rockwell painted her. Long blonde hair, innocent (relatively) blue
eyes and she takes her pom-poms to bed every night. Woods is a very smart performer, and milks it
for all it’s worth. Hey, it worked for Marilyn.
If you’ve been around long enough to remember Mamie
Eisenhower, you’ll know costumer Genny Cohn stole that hat from the
Smithsonian. Tanner Hanson pushes the
photons and nobody does it better.
“Broadway Takes On Politics” plays October 6 and 7 at 7:30
p.m.; October 8 at 3:00 and 7:30 p.m. and The Firehouse couldn’t be a more
perfect venue. They are very close to
sold out in this small house, so get your tickets at Brown Paper Tickets or
Village Books. If you wait until you get
to the door, you’ll be sorrier than when you voted for Ralph Nader.
# # #
No comments:
Post a Comment