On & Off Broadway

'Fiorello'

Review by Elyse Trevers

Posted

In the middle of watching the Berkshire Theatre Group revival of Fiorello, I realized that I had never seen the show before. With lyrics by Sheldon Harnick and music by Jerry Bock, the George Abbott play is only one of nine musicals to ever win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Songs like "Till Tomorrow" and fun songs like "Politics and Poker" and "Little Tin Box” have become standards, yet the show has only been revived twice. High school theater departments rarely perform it.

One would wonder why. In recent reviews of this revival, some critics suggest that the musical is dated. Could it be that the notion of a political hero seems outdated? How sad, since we could use a confident, ambitious politician who truly cares for the people. The depiction of the mayor of NY, Fiorello LaGuardia, is somewhat idealized and the character is bigger than life. He’s one who'd rather take on the cases of the indigent than get paid as his assistants note when they sing, "Side of the Angels."

The show still retains its charm and exuberance. The problem with the version at the East 13th Street Theater is its amateurish quality. The cast is comprised of young people, some of whom unsuccessfully attempt foreign accents. The women striking outside the shirt factory all look too clean and healthy. None of the characters are believable.

Austen Scott Lombardi as Fiorello works really hard. He has an adequate voice but not a big presence as befits his character. A couple of the young women sing well. Rebecca Brudner, as Fiorello’s first wife, has a lovely soprano voice. Chelsea Cree Grown is an adorable Dora, who’s fallen in love with a policeman much to her chagrin, as she sings “I Love A Cop.”

I believe Fiorello could be successfully revived with a top-notch cast and better staging. The notion that a politician is a hero to the people may be outdated and might feel optimistic. That would be a breath of fresh air. The Berkshire crowd may have enjoyed the show but we expect more from Off-Broadway theater in New York. For me, seeing Fiorello was like attending a college production when I didn’t have a relative in the cast.