by Mike Hoban
‘ExtraOrdinary’ – Written by Dick Scanlan; Directed by Diane Paulus; Music Direction by Lance Horne; Choreography by Abbey O’Brien. Presented by American Repertory Theater at the Loeb Drama Center, 64 Brattle St. in Cambridge through Nov. 30.
You don’t have to be an American Repertory Theater subscriber (or a reviewer) to appreciate the selections from ExtraOrdinary, the company’s exhilarating salute to itself playing now through November 30th. With a veritable ‘Cavalcade of Stars’ performing selections from the last decade of musical theater with Diane Paulus at the helm of A.R.T. – many of which ended up (or will be) on Broadway – it’s an evening of some truly extraordinary highs and few lows. Featuring seven cast members from productions staged in Cambridge (both the Loeb Center and Oberon) ExtraOrdinary showcases numbers from Broadway staples like Pippin, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, and Cabaret, as well as lesser-known works such as Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet, Witness Uganda, and Prometheus Bound – all of which had premieres of sorts at the A.R.T.
The cast includes members of two of the original shows that went on to win Tonys (Bryonha Marie Parham from The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, and Terrence Mann and Matthew James Thomas from Pippin), as well as Melody A. Betts (Witness Uganda) and MJ Rodriguez (Burn All Night, which premiered at Oberon). Kathryn Gallagher (Jagged Little Pill) and Brandon Michael Nase (The Black Clown) appeared in shows that – based on audience and critical reaction – will inevitably be bound for New York stages. On opening weekend, theatergoers were treated to an appearance by Tony Award-winning actress and star of CBS’ political drama Madam Secretary, Patina Miller, who reprised her Tony-winning role of “Leading Player” in a duet with Matthew James Thomas with a high-energy blast of “On the Right Track,’’ from Pippin, and closed the show with a killer version of “You Oughtta Know” from Jagged Little Pill.
(Patina Miller. Photo: Gretjen Helene Photography)
The production was interspersed with personal stories from the actors, mostly centering on how they came to the craft, but also how the A.R.T. experience informed their careers (which felt a little self-promotional at times). The vignettes also included an admission from the stunning Rodriguez that she would really prefer to be known simply as an actress rather than a “trans-actress”. But while the stories provided interesting side notes to the production, it was really all about the music.
There were the classics, such as a gorgeous version of “Summertime” by Parham, “Cabaret” (Gallagher) and the Pippin numbers, but there were also a number of lesser known works that shone brightly. Betts’ sonic vocals powered the full ensemble with “Bela Musana’’ from Witness Uganda, and she was equally impressive in the gut-wrenching “Sonya Alone” from Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet. There were a couple of selections from Prometheus Bound which were really intriguing, and which made me (again) regret not seeing the original Oberon production in 2011. Other highlights included the entire cast singing “This Land Is Your Land,’’ (with Gallagher on guitar) from 2012’s Woody Sez: The Life and Music of Woody Guthrie, and Mann’s hilarious physical comedy extravaganza as a pirate from Finding Neverland – which had the cast cracking up on the sidelines.
The program did not list all the songs and performers, but there were outstanding performances across the board by the talented cast, each of whom had at least one solo moment. Upcoming shows will include appearances by ART/Broadway alums Alicia Hall Moran, Norm Lewis, Rachel Bay Jones, Lea DeLaria, NaTasha Yvette Williams, Gavin Creel, Carolee Carmello, and Elizabeth Stanley. ExtraOrdinary is a great night of cabaret, and doesn’t require knowledge of the shows to be enjoyable, given the level of talent on stage and the terrific material. It’s also a reminder of how fortunate we are in this area to have an incubator like the A.R.T. to produce new work. While Finding Neverland and Waitress were fun but fairly mediocre productions, works like Natasha, Pierre…, Black Clown, and Jagged Little Pill are evidence that there’s a great time to be had in the theater that goes far beyond the revivals of time-tested classics. For more information and tickets, go to: https://americanrepertorytheater.org/shows-events/
