I had quite the busy weekend immersed in live performances. I saw Brunch The Musical, and Conduit, Three Dances by Daniel Charon. While many of you spent time walking around outside in the heat wave we experienced, I spent some time in nicely air conditioned theaters. I will start with the first show I saw on Friday night.
After a rushed experience trying to get crosstown in a cab on a Friday night, I sat down into the Chernuchin Theater on W. 54th st. The seats were on risers and a little squeaky. Here is the synopsis of Brunch The Musical: (from the program) ‘Brunch’ is a new rock musical about the New York City restaurant scene from the eyes of those who do the serving. It’s about the daily grind, specials, romances, firings, tips and VIPs that inhabit every restaurant, bistro, cafe and diner in the city. BRUNCH follows a cast of characters – waiters, bartenders and managers – through the most hectic shift of the week, from the first cup of coffee to the last reservation at the tension-filled, comically riotous, patience-trying shift at the end of the restaurant week – Brunch!
The show opens up with an a cappella rendition of a cheesy ‘Happy Birthday’, the kind you would get from waiter-strangers on your birthday at a restaurant or diner. This is followed by a dance sequence by the entire cast. The cast is divided between the singer/actors and the dancer/actors through the obvious observation of who has a wireless mic and who doesn’t. I spent quite some time figuring out why there were only a select few had mics and a few didn’t. All the ones who were mic’ed had solo songs, more lines and more scenes.
The characters that worked at this Upper West Side-ambiguous-neighborhood restaurant were a motley crew stereotypes that run the restaurant: Fratboy/Actor/Photographer, New girl in training, Skeevy Manager who is full of himself/Mid-life Crisis, French or German or ambiguous European Chef, Rocker/Latino/Drummer, Blond/Know-it-all goody two shoes, Token fabulously gay guy, Handsome Bartender, Celeb obsessed blond, and the Will Smith lookalike who acts like he is above everybody because he’s the “night host”, all of these characters are supported by the Preppy rich alcoholic dad, and a slew of ensemble characters.
The songs written by Rick Kunzi and vocal arrangements by Martin Landry were catchy and full of energy. Audience members were humming some of the songs afterwards as living proof. Among my favorites were the ridiculous and silly “If I vas a Vaiter” sung by the chef and the cast and over the top “I am your guide” sung by “Jonathan” the “night host”. All of the action is centralized around the host table, bar, and entrance of the restaurant. We never really get to see any of tables or much of the clientele who frequent this so-called restaurant that Kevin Bacon frequents with his family. “Kevin Bacon” makes an appearance with his “wife” as well as a Preppy rich dad who is chummy with the bartender.
Overall, the characters remain a motley crew and not developed at fully as I had hoped. The mini-stories that each of the characters were masked by the portrayal of stereotypes. The skeevy manager “Steve” played by Kevin Thomas Collins is excellent, he grasps the characterization of an aging manager that is going through a mid-life crises by having a series of meltdowns and anxiety attacks over the faults of his employees and demands of the clientele.
The set was simple yet effective. Unencumbered by the grandiose sets that Broadway productions tend to have this off-Broadway musical utilized the split level stage to its fullest and minimal set pieces that consisted of the bar and host table. The bar rotates around to reveal a faux brick wall and stuffed black garbage bags to hint as the side entrance/street where the characters reveal their true selves outside of the restaurant.
I was quite disappointed by the costuming of the cast, particularly the women. There were boobs and butts everywhere! The curvy girls in the cast were put in street clothes that seemed to accentuate their assets a little too much and the girls who were not as buxom were put in baggy clothing. The lead actress Meghann Dreyfuss was put in a men’s flannel shirt that did not make her stand out among the ensemble that it took me a while to figure out who the leads were in the production. I was distracted by the costuming and wondered why the waiters were not all dressed in all black or white top/black bottoms like many of the waiters in restaurants around the city does. It seemed like the motley street clothing were reminiscent of the musical RENT in the rocker/trendy/hipster look.
Out of 5 stars I would rate this show a 3.5 stars for the performers energy, effective set, catchy songs, and interesting ideas.
Since the show was near Hell’s Kitchen, we sauntered over to Kyotofu for dinner, drinks, and delectable desserts. They serve Japanese fusion tapas that melt in your mouth with yummy goodness and equally orgasm inducing desserts at this little restaurant. The place was opens until 1:30 a.m. and when we left around midnight it was still crowded.
