#1
Posted: 4/18/05 at 6:18pm
Is the addition of Robert Goulet too little too late, or will the Broadway baritone save this ailing revival?
When actors Daniel Davis and Garry Beach were announced to star as Georges and Albin, respectively, in the current revival of "La Cage Aux Folles," the general reaction outside the Broadway establishment was "Who are they?" With the former having been dismissed from the show within months after its opening, and the latter receiving a tepid response from critics, the producers somehow managed to lure the 71 year old Goulet out of semi-retirement and into the grueling rigors of eight performances a week in a show which was already faltering at the box office.
Goulet, as Georges, has been given top billing and receives a star's welcome when he makes his first appearance on stage; however, his curious performance as the "straighter" half of a gay couple would seem to raise more questions than it answers: namely, "What were the producers thinking?"
Appearing as though he just visited a mortician, Goulet's rigormortis-like mannerisms and continual fumbling for lines and lyrics create an aura of suspense once suspects is needed in the show, albeit of the wrong kind. Rather than wondering what plot twist might unfold, audience members are more likely questioning if Goulet will make it through the next song without flubbing, blanking, scooping, cutting off notes, or otherwise eliciting giddy laughter from the audience or nervous hand-wringing from his costars.
In spite of this obvious miscasting, "La Cage" boasts probably the strongest ensemble on Broadway today in the form of the multi-talented Cagelles who dance and sing and often look just gorgeous. With Goulet just getting by and co-star Garry Beach, who never exceeds expectations and at times fails to meet them, (particularly due to his apparent inability to deliver physical comedy effectively -- the scenes which should elicit rapturous applause and uproarious laughter do not -- or sing without considerable effort), La Cage is left in a state of unbalance: weak leads supported by an outstanding chorus. Sadly, such an equation rarely equals profit, which usually means, without a boost from the Tony's, a dim prospect for survival.
When actors Daniel Davis and Garry Beach were announced to star as Georges and Albin, respectively, in the current revival of "La Cage Aux Folles," the general reaction outside the Broadway establishment was "Who are they?" With the former having been dismissed from the show within months after its opening, and the latter receiving a tepid response from critics, the producers somehow managed to lure the 71 year old Goulet out of semi-retirement and into the grueling rigors of eight performances a week in a show which was already faltering at the box office.
Goulet, as Georges, has been given top billing and receives a star's welcome when he makes his first appearance on stage; however, his curious performance as the "straighter" half of a gay couple would seem to raise more questions than it answers: namely, "What were the producers thinking?"
Appearing as though he just visited a mortician, Goulet's rigormortis-like mannerisms and continual fumbling for lines and lyrics create an aura of suspense once suspects is needed in the show, albeit of the wrong kind. Rather than wondering what plot twist might unfold, audience members are more likely questioning if Goulet will make it through the next song without flubbing, blanking, scooping, cutting off notes, or otherwise eliciting giddy laughter from the audience or nervous hand-wringing from his costars.
In spite of this obvious miscasting, "La Cage" boasts probably the strongest ensemble on Broadway today in the form of the multi-talented Cagelles who dance and sing and often look just gorgeous. With Goulet just getting by and co-star Garry Beach, who never exceeds expectations and at times fails to meet them, (particularly due to his apparent inability to deliver physical comedy effectively -- the scenes which should elicit rapturous applause and uproarious laughter do not -- or sing without considerable effort), La Cage is left in a state of unbalance: weak leads supported by an outstanding chorus. Sadly, such an equation rarely equals profit, which usually means, without a boost from the Tony's, a dim prospect for survival.
