Late in April, PBS broadcast a concert version of the
Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel. I have seen several productions of Carousel and, like many, I regard it as
Rodgers’s finest score and Hammerstein’s most soaring poetry. But I have never
heard a Carousel so musically rich or
so well sung as this one. For those who treasure music rather than stagecraft
it will stand as the definitive Carousel
for a long time.
First, the leads.
Nathan Gunn was Billy Bigelow, the rough-edged carousel barker. Gunn has
one of the strongest, truest voices in the world of opera, and he is equally at
home in musical theater. (He also sings in the definitive CD of
another Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Allegro.) His Soliloquy
is on a par with John Raitt’s, which is saying a lot, and his duet with Julie, If I Loved You, is riveting.
Julie is played by Kelli O’Hara, who is perfection as Julie
Jordan. Whenever I think of Carousel in the future, I
will conjure up a mental picture of Kelli O’Hara. The make-up crew and wigmaker deserve a
special award, so absolutely right
does she look – and act, with beautifully expressive eyes revealing a deep love
for the caddish Billy. Musically, she is terrific. In fact, I have never heard Kelli O’Hara sing as well as she does here.
Since in this play the music is the thing, it must be stated
here and now that Carousel deserves
nothing less than the New York Philharmonic. To play that overture with a pit
orchestra should be a mortal sin. This
orchestra, with Rob Fisher conducting, is heaven to listen to.
The supporting cast is fine. Opera’s Stephanie Blythe as cousin Netty sings June is
Busting Out All Over with gusto and is thrilling in everybody's favorite anthem, You’ll Never Walk Alone. Enoch Snow and Carrie Pipperidge are played
by Jason Danieley and Jessie Mueller, and, while the
comedic touches one associates with these characters are missing, both are in fine
voice. Kate Burton makes the most of her small but key role as carousel owner Mrs.
Mullen, and special mention must be made of Shuler
Hensley, who plays the role of Jigger, Billy’s partner in crime.
It’s not easy to play a bad guy and a comic character simultaneously, but
Shuler pulls it off – and sings well, too. And John Cullum must be just the kind of star-keeper Oscar Hammerstein had in mind when he wrote the final scenes.
As you probably know, the plot of Carousel is derived from Molnar’s Liliom. Rodgers and Hammerstein made
major plot alterations, principally to move the story to New England and to brighten the ending, but Molnar deserves credit; without his approval, we would
be deprived of what Time called the greatest musical of the twentieth
century.
The staging is arranged so that the ensemble comes and goes
through the same space that the orchestra inhabits, a device that somehow
forces you to remain aware of the wonderful Don Walker arrangements and the
artistry of the Philharmonic.
All told, this is the finest production in the Live at
Lincoln Center series I have ever seen, and we are indebted to those who made
it possible..
