A little musical sneek peak

by Janine Sobeck

It's a quiet moment in the tech process.  Nicholas Rodriguez, our Fabrizio, has just finished melting my heart with Il Mondo Era Vuoto and we've paused briefly while our lighting designer is figuring out some cues in the booth while our choreographer works with a stage manager on the best path to bring out the Naccarrelli tie shop.  It really is starting to all come together.

And just so you can get a better idea of what I'm talking about...here's the newest Piazza video with clips from some early music rehearsals.  I hope your heart is ready to soar...

Comments

[Sue Allen]

I am an Arena subscriber who has seen four versions of Light in the Piazza, beginning at the Intiman Theatre in Seattle (also Chicago’s Goodman and New York’s Lincoln Center). I love this show and its lush, romantic score, but I braced myself for disappointment, feeling nothing could compare to the Tony-winning NY show. After seeing Arena’s March 6 preview production, however, I am happy to report I left delighted in many ways. Here’s why:
Molly, bravo for a different and highly romantic Piazza. You brought warmth and intimacy to this production in a way I have not experienced before. The earlier shows seemed to have a touch of coldness. (the shock of winter?) You brought out the nuances of all the characters. I liked the more rounded-out interpretation and prominence of Giuseppe, including his relationship with Fabrizio, his wife and his parents. The other examples of love relationships—Giuseppe’s and his wife’s jealousies, lack of trust—the broken and never-quite-there love between Margaret and Roy—the mutual suspicions of Signor and Signora Nacarrelli, and the hint that Signor had lost the love of his life in the past—these all stood out more in this production, heightening the contrast between these love relationships and the innocence, passion and purity between Clara and Fabrizio.
Another thing I appreciated was the energy and dynamic flow of the Naccarelli family, particularly Signor. The addition of more fast-moving Italian banter was lacking in the other versions –where Aiutami felt more like a wonderful skit dropped into the play. The Arena production, however, gave the Naccarellis life and a feeling that they were woven into the fabric of plot. Overall, the relationships between minor characters—Giuseppe’s love interest, people on the street-- and between family members, were stronger in the Arena production. Speaking of Italian, I think Fabrizio appeared to be genuinely struggling with English. Anyone who has ever been unable to express themselves in another language knows how maddening the experience can be—especially at a high stakes time when you have so much to say but can’t say it.
I loved the chemistry between Clara and Fabrizio, and I appreciated Florence’s interpretation of a 26-year-old -12-year-old. Not an easy feat. As Fabrizio sings the gorgeous Love to Me in the last act, the blocking with the characters tete-a-tete, then Fabrizio moving around Clara, touching her , not being able to keep his hands away, delivered a sense of raw, physical passion between them. He really looked like he meant and felt every word—not just an actor singing a difficult and lovely piece. It is here that you really begin to feel Clara as a woman,-- that she is growing up, that maybe, just maybe, she can live without Mom.
I loved Victoria’s Clark’s Dividing Day, and I was honestly waiting to be disappointed, but Hollis Resnick hit it perfectly! Also, her crystal clear enunciation of those key final words in Fable really helped close the play. In the other versions I often felt that audiences did not understand what this final piece was saying; that Margaret was skeptical of love and had not found it for herself, but still believed in its possibility…there was hope -- “Love, if you can, oh my Clara/Love if you can and be loved/May it last forever…” Without perfect clarity, those lines don’t work; the ending feels odd and not quite right. But she got it right. In addition, Resnick’s facial expressions, her explanation of her and her daughter’s struggle and condition, made those aspects more clear than ever before. At other productions I often heard people perplexed by Clara’s condition. This time the audience got it, thanks to both Resnick and Florence.
The musicians were exceptional. This is tough music. Though pared down to five instruments, they played superbly. With music like this, they must be enjoying it. I hope the audience grows to love and appreciate the beauty and complexity of Guettel’s music, although during the intermission chatter I felt that many patrons did not appreciate the extraordinary audible meal being dished out to them..
I have a few criticisms. First, the light in the first act needs to reflect the music: shimmery, like water. In the first act, the blue on the arches and stairway reminds me of the color at the world premiere at the Intiman, which was too dark. Some reviewers called it the shade in the piazza. I understand the need for a contrast between the glow of the paintings and the arches, but even so, could they add a little more silvery shimmeriness to it? After all, we are setting the scene for a romance in Italy, the elusiveness but palpable presence of love.
The microphones need to be adjusted, as well as some of the singing. Florence tended to push or shout some of the key high notes, especially in The Light in the Piazza song—one of the centerpieces of the play. This needs to be sung with a little more interpretation, and not so much pushing. Rodriguez also sounded at times as if he was scooping, especially in El Mondo Era Vuoto and Say It Somehow. When the company sang Octet they were off-key, especially the male voices.
I hope these adjustments can be made and audiences will come to appreciate this complex and tender story.