Joining the slew of movies-turned-musicals that have taken Broadway by storm over the past few years (ala The Producers and The Full Monty) comes the stage adaptation of the Academy Award-winning 1967 classic Thoroughly Modern Millie. Currently in previews, the production officially opens on April 18 - giving it plenty of time to make the Tony Award nominating committee's final selections.
And Millie's chances for success are solid, partially given to the fact that it has been a fairly lackluster season for new musicals. Revivals of reliable favorites like Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma and Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods have dominated the Broadway scene of late, leaving theatergoers wondering what happened to last year's hopeful burst of new collaborative talent.
But that's not to say that Millie doesn't have any staying power of its own. The spunky new musical's fiercest competition comes from the box-office smash Mamma Mia, which in typical British mega-musical style has taken up residency at the Winter Garden Theater - the former home of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats. Mamma Mia will clearly have the edge with the general public simply based on name recognition, but that does not necessarily mean that it is the stronger musical artistically.
What Millie has going for it is that it is an all-American, all-around tribute to the heyday of musical comedy. With snazzy tunes, a wholesome story, and endearing characters, the show puts faith back into a once-purely American art form that is slowly becoming overshadowed by imported productions.
Only two and a half songs from the original remain, thus making the musical essentially a new piece of drama, rather than a carbon copy of a dated film. And both the old and new songs are delightfully clever, ranging from the Gilbert and Sullivan-esque typewriting tap dance in "The Speed Test" and the cabaret style ballad "Only in New York." While Millie's tunes are almost all clearly evocative of past musical gems, the way in which they are strung together and the freshness of their execution makes any rip-offs forgivable.
Which is in many ways surprising, given that both the creative team and the performers behind Millie consist largely of Broadway newcomers. All have extensive experience at regional playhouses, and some are making the crossover from straight to musical theater. But it is almost a relief to watch a show powered more by its raw talent than by star power. Sutton Foster's Millie is pure and polished, though her vocals initially make for an overly treble baby belt. A displaced Kansas girl learning how to survive on her own in the Big Apple, Millie is very much reminiscent of Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. And as Foster warms up to the audience, her voice grows immensely. By the time the second act rolls around, she brings the house down with passionate showstopper called "Gimme Gimme" that makes one wonder why she wasn't singing like that in the first place.
The supporting cast is also strong, and for the most part remains in tact from the musical's tryout run in La Jolla, California. Sheryl Lee Ralph of Dreamgirls fame plays '20s diva Muzzy Van Hossmere, an almost Good Witch-like figure who teaches Millie that there is more to life than riches and status. Angela Christian's glorious soprano brings an aura of innocence to Millie's newfound best friend, Miss Dorothy Brown. And the most humorous performances are delivered by two actors who speak barely three words of English each throughout the whole play: Ken Leung's Ching Ho and Francis Jue's Bun Foo delight with their vulnerability and subtle slapstick humor. Their humor is especially poignant in several musical numbers during which their foreign lyrics are translated into English and projected onto a computerized screen
A few plot twists make for a surprising but unrealistic ending that almost takes away from the show's purity. But such instances give a more up-to-date edge to the standard girl-meets-boy musical theater scenario, thus allowing Millie to make an impact in today's deep and dark world of musical theater. Hopefully the Tony voters will feel the same way.
