On Sunday afternoon I attended the final performance of the long-ignored Jeanine Tesori musical VIOLET at Steinhardt. John Simpkins, the director, also helmed the school's absolutely exceptional production of FLOYD COLLINS last year. VIOLET, which is not nearly as important a musical as FLOYD COLLINS, is still a pretty smart and captivating show. And to be honest, I had never seen it before. Just as in FLOYD COLLINS, Simpkins provided a truly first-class, professional production of this difficult musical about a facially scarred young woman who travels by bus in 1964 to find a televangelist who she believes can heal her. Caitlyn Caughell gave a fierce yet vulnerable performance in the title role that ranks among the best I've ever seen from a student actor. Gregory Williams and Rich Krakowski were also excellent as the two soldiers who accompany her on the journey. It's worth noting that the Steinhardt program specializes in vocal performance; however, the acting and shared understanding of dramatic style among the entire cast was excellent. Then on Monday night I attended the Tisch mainstage production of CABARET. Whereas VIOLET is a little-known show that I was very anxious to see for the first time, CABARET is an extremely overdone show that I hardly wanted to see again. The production, directed by Jean Randich, used the revival script, cutting "Why Should I Wake Up" and adding "Mein Herr" and "I Don't Care Much." ...
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On Sunday afternoon I attended the final performance of the long-ignored Jeanine Tesori musical VIOLET at Steinhardt. John Simpkins, the director, also helmed the school's absolutely exceptional production of FLOYD COLLINS last year. VIOLET, which is not nearly as important a musical as FLOYD COLLINS, is still a pretty smart and captivating show. And to be honest, I had never seen it before. Just as in FLOYD COLLINS, Simpkins provided a truly first-class, professional production of this difficult musical about a facially scarred young woman who travels by bus in 1964 to find a televangelist who she believes can heal her. Caitlyn Caughell gave a fierce yet vulnerable performance in the title role that ranks among the best I've ever seen from a student actor. Gregory Williams and Rich Krakowski were also excellent as the two soldiers who accompany her on the journey. It's worth noting that the Steinhardt program specializes in vocal performance; however, the acting and shared understanding of dramatic style among the entire cast was excellent. Then on Monday night I attended the Tisch mainstage production of CABARET. Whereas VIOLET is a little-known show that I was very anxious to see for the first time, CABARET is an extremely overdone show that I hardly wanted to see again. The production, directed by Jean Randich, used the revival script, cutting "Why Should I Wake Up" and adding "Mein Herr" and "I Don't Care Much." ...