PicksInSix Review: The Notebook - Broadway in Chicago

Love Notes: For Better Or Worse.
PicksInSix® Review | Guest Contributor | Sarah Frances Fiorello

The musical “The Notebook” has returned to Chicago, ready to meet all new audiences and be reacquainted—and reintroduced—with theatregoers who found themselves at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre’s pre-Broadway production in the fall of 2022.  The musical, based on the book by Nicholas Sparks and subsequent 2004 hit film, plays now through August 16th at the Nederlander Theatre at Broadway in Chicago.

The story weaves through the lives of star-crossed lovers Noah and Allie, played in the musical by three actors for each character—Younger, Middle, and Older—jumping from present day to their carefree youth and everywhere in between. Older Noah and Older Allie recall and revisit their love story through the center inanimate character, a notebook, read from Noah to Allie as she grasps and struggles with deteriorating dementia. “The Notebook” is a beautifully told story of fleeting time and fervent love, one that you have not seen told in the current format—the touring production has undergone changes from the Broadway production and, of course, from its pre-Broadway run. Easter eggs only here for those who have seen previous versions of the show; I encourage you to head to the Nederlander to see for yourself.

On to this production, which deserves a review in its own right. Directed by Schele Williams alongside Broadway juggernaut and five-time Tony Award nominee Michael Greif (“Rent”, “Next to Normal”, “Dear Evan Hansen”) with choreography by Katie Spelman, “The Notebook” serves a visual treat to audiences, with staging and storytelling that often feels like poetry in motion. Multiple versions of Noah and Allie exist simultaneously on stage throughout much of the musical; what transpires at the expert direction of Williams and Grief is a journey through time, memory, while taking honest stock of our relationship to our past and future selves.

“The Notebook” marks the theatrical and Broadway debut of singer/songwriter Ingrid Michaelson, alongside book writer Bekah Brunstetter (most notably television’s “This is Us” writer, story editor, and producer). The duo have created a musical that is as strikingly unique as it is true to the original book while also somehow capturing fan-favorite moments from the film starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams.

The cast is replete with Broadway veterans, each as fantastic as the next. Alysha Deslorieux as “Middle Allie” soars vocally in her full-throated 11 o’clock number “My Days” while Beau Gravitte as “Older Noah” delivers a sincere, earnest, and loving performance as the idyllic spouse any married person would be lucky to have. Connor Richardson as Johnny, the physical therapist to Older Allie and the Gen Z point-counterpoint to Baby Boomer Older Noah offers a delightful performance, highlighting the power of platonic love alongside the romantic love of our main characters.  Sharon Catherine Brown as Older Allie brings this story home with her devasting portrayal of life while suffering with dementia.  Brown brings both a gentleness and fierceness to the role and gives us a heartbreaking glimpse into what it feels like to navigate this disease—constantly searching for answers while also searching for yourself.

I never read the Sparks novel but when I saw the film all those years ago, I immediately fell in love with what it stood for: real love can persist and stand firm in the face of life’s hardest struggles and most difficult tests. All these years later, as I’m sure is true for most of us, life has a way of testing that belief. Perhaps that’s why we go to the theatre. To be reminded of what is possible in life and in love, and that what we see beyond the footlights, even on our most difficult days, might find its way across the threshold.

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR | SARAH FRANCES FIORELLO is a graduate of Shenandoah Conservatory with a BFA in Music Theatre and a Chicago-based poet, writer, and performer. 
Instagram: @writtenbysarahfrances

PHOTO | Roger Mastroianni

Broadway in Chicago
presents
National Tour
The Notebook

James N. Nederlander Theatre
24 W. Randolph St.

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PicksInSix Review: The Wiz - Broadway in Chicago

“THIS IS A WHOLE ‘NOTHER LEVEL!”
PicksInSix® Review | Ed Tracy

The national tour of the Broadway-bound musical “The Wiz” opened its limited Chicago engagement at the Cadillac Palace on Wednesday with all the blissful promise and brilliant colors of the rainbow you could ever imagine. With a massive, techno-landscape—a marvel all in itself—the L. Frank Baum-based classic that made its groundbreaking 1974 debut in Baltimore and conquered Broadway the following year with eight nominations and seven Tony® Awards on the way to a four-year run, now comes vibrantly alive for a new generation.

“The Wiz” is ingeniously directed by Schele Williams with some clever choreography by JaQuel Knight that amplifies a superb company large in number and steeped with talent running through their paces at a size and scope rarely seen in a touring production. The show premiered in Baltimore in late September and is making a multi-city tour in advance of its scheduled debut on Broadway in March 2024 with a lot of professional steam behind the William F. Brown book with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls.

The revival includes new musical moments from Joseph Joubert (music supervision, orchestrations, & music arrangements), vocal arrangements and music arrangements by Allen René Louis and additional material by Amber Ruffian. Nearly sixty producers and co-producers led by Kristin Caskey, Mike Isaacson, Brian Anthony Moreland, Kandi Burruss, Todd Tucker, Common, MC Lyte and The Ambassador Theatre Group are the team behind the curtain making this a feat of epic proportions.

Those elements work extremely well for “The Wiz” and are sure to be crowd-pleasers at every stop along the way. The tour will also allow time for the performance elements to coalesce for what is one of the most highly anticipated Broadway openings next spring—a straight-up adaptation focused squarely and beautifully on the central themes of friendship, family and home with just the right touch of panache—with all the right stuff to appeal to contemporary audiences of all ages. If you are a fan who knows this familiar, and much beloved, score that includes “Ease On Down The Road,” “If You Believe,” “Everybody Rejoice” and “Home” by heart, you will not be disappointed.  

Nichelle Lewis’s debut performance as Dorothy will be turning heads in the months to come with her charm, wholesome innocence with a little sass, and heavenly vocal range. Melody A. Betts is a powerhouse in the dual role of Aunt Em/Evillene. You will love the cohort of the remarkably limber Avery Wilson’s Scarecrow, the soulfully spirited Phillip Johnson Richardson’s Tinman and Kyle Ramar Freeman’s effervescent Lion. Alan Miongo, Jr. delights as the inimitable Wiz. The charismatic and glamorous Deborah Cox as Glinda, another superb vocalist, looks amazing in costume designer Sharen Davis’s creations.

The journey begins in Kansas, on a black and white tapestry by scenic designer Hannah Beachler. Once in the full color Land of Oz, the opulent scenic transitions race by at the speed of light through imaginative corn fields with tilted windmills, dark forests and a lion’s den in the jungle, to a stunning glimpse of the Emerald City. Once in Oz, the palate turns emerald and the majestic lighting design (Ryan J. O’Gara), sound design (Jon Weston) and projections (Daniel Brodie) continue to an awe-inspiring scene in Evillene’s lair for “Don’t Nobody Bring Me No Bad News” and Lewis’s soaring delivery of “Home” that will sweep you away and ease on down the road all the way to Broadway. No bad news here. 

Post Script: André De Shields
Earlier this week via text, I asked the original Wiz, the omnipresent André De Shields, if he would share a memorable highlight from the original 1974 production. He told me that during the run, the entire company was invited to a homecooked meal prepared by his mother and two of his sisters:  

“The group was so large, that it spilled out of my family’s modest two-story row house onto the 1800 block of Division Street. Forty-nine years later, in September 2023, the revival of “The Wiz” opened in Baltimore at the Hippodrome Theatre, during the same week that the 1800 block of Division Street was renamed ‘André De Shields Way.’”  

And in case you were wondering, the company feasted on everything from oyster fritters, steak fish and kidney stew to sweet potato pie and Chesapeake blue crabs, washed down with assorted flavors of Kool-Aid. et  

PHOTO|Jeremy Daniel

BROADWAY IN CHICAGO
presents
THE WIZ
Cadillac Palace Theatre
through December 10

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PicksInSix Review: The Notebook - Chicago Shakespeare Theater

Love Beats Beyond Waves of Time.
PicksInSix® Gold Review | Guest Contributor | Scott Gryder

It was an unexpectedly quiet beginning for the world premiere performance of “The Notebook” at Chicago Shakespeare’s The Yard last night. With an unannounced, subtle start of general actor activity onstage, versus the typical darkened house and scolding pre-show curtain speech, the audience gently honed in on the stage. There had also been no pre-show music or ambient sound filling the house, preparing the audience for the energy and theme of the show. It felt as if CST wasn’t going to give anything away for this new work. Thus, we were in no way prepared for the 2 hour and 15 minute epically emotional voyage ahead of us.

That made the ride all the better.

Based on the bestselling 1996 novel by Nicholas Sparks, which also inspired the beloved 2004 film, “The Notebook“ tells the story of love across multiple waves of time. Not only do we thrill at the blossoming of a new, forbidden love, but we witness how love can lead us to overcome the many unexpected, inopportune challenges of life. Adding the heightened musical element to the already volatile romance within “The Notebook“ creates the perfect storm for any audience to get swept away. As a musical, “The Notebook“ further solidifies the truth that not even time, place nor sickness can ever carry away our true love.

“The Notebook“ may be focused on the love of one central couple, but the staging succeeds thanks to an ensemble of over a dozen actors building a multi-dimensional theatrical experience. With six main actors portraying various versions of the main lovers, the extended ensemble highlights each scene with the roles of friends, family, and medical professionals across each time line, masterfully slipping in and out of various characters, never overplaying into the stereotypes. Standout Liam Oh boldly suggests that ignorance is bliss, and it is a gift to be cherished. Most moving was Maryann Plunkett’s Older Allie, gracefully searching and tormented in the role of a person with dementia. Bonus applause for Jerome Harmann Hardeman, who appeared in the role of Older Noah for this performance, with such solid faith in his commitment to his life partner that he nearly pushes himself too far in order to reach her again. As for the young and middle lovers, John Cardoza’s Younger Noah and Jordan Tyson’s Younger Allie share shimmering moments of zingy vocals literally vibrating one’s heartstrings. Additionally, the warmth and golden vocals produced by Ryan Vasquez and Joy Woods’s Middle Noah and Middle Allie reveal that their love has only grown warmer and more intensified with age.

Each creative element gently holds the hand of the other, creating a balanced bond throughout. To start, Ingrid Michaelson’s music is both darling and passionate. Utilizing mostly clichés, the song forms are less traditional musical theater, with a more folksy, organic feel; repeating lyrics over and over as if to reflect the pattern of waves lapping at the shore, slowly wearing away at the sand with the passage of time.

Choreographically, Katie Spelman follows suit, creating mirrored movements across multiple levels of the stage, as if catching a rippling reflection upon a pool. Co-scenic designers David Zinn and Brett Banakis have created a set almost like a diorama. With the bare bones structure of a house as its foundation, the set effortlessly flows between locations and places in time. And Ben Stanton’s lighting design echoes the reflective spirit by brightening and dimming depending on the emotional and physical intensity of each scene.

Literally splashing onto the stage, Broadway directing duo Michael Greif and Schele Williams then layer Bekah Brunstetter’s witty and cutting book into picturesque moments of storytelling as if each scene is a bubble in time, appearing before us and then popping as we drop into each timeline. Taking the emotional experience almost too far, but in a most profound way, Music Director Geoffrey Ko shapes and builds the voices to palpably invoke harmonious heartache and joy.

At first, I was disheartened by the almost elementary lyrics of Ingrid Michaelson’s music, but it didn’t take long to realize that it wasn’t simplicity, but Michaelson was setting simple universal truths to her signature folk-pop style. These songs sounded too familiar because they are comprised of nuggets of wisdom passed down through generations, appropriately set for a show about time.

Thanks to a well-aligned creative team and stunning acting, “The Notebook“ hopscotches through time so clearly that, for a show about time travel, no one gets left behind. It’s no wonder that when the sourcebook was published in 1996, it sold more than 105 million copies worldwide. As overly allegorical as it may seem, “The Notebook’s“ characters and their story are a retelling of famed and personal loves that any human can relate to.

For those fans of the best-selling novel and the cherished film, “The Notebook“ enhances this timeless tale of romance in a way only musical theater storytelling can. This powerful performance reminds us of how life’s hardships may make us feel adrift, but it also shows us that we are never beyond righting our ship if we only listen to our hearts and look to those who love us most.

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR | SCOTT GRYDER received a Non-Equity Jeff Award for his performance in the one-man show BUYER & CELLAR. www.thescottgryder.com  

PHOTO|Liz Lauren

CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE THEATER
presents
World Premiere
THE NOTEBOOK
through October 30, 2022

The Yard
Navy Pier

(312) 595-5600

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