Playbill of The Week: Pippin

19/53

This past week my mom treated me to an afternoon to the theatre, or in our case the casino. The tour of Pippin was crossing our neck of the woods and my mom got us a set of tickets; through her points from gambling of course. I was in love with the recent revival directed by my favourite Diane Paulus, so I was excited yet nervous to see the show. The revival which starred Matthew James Thomas, Patina Miller, Terrance Mann and Andrea Martin was a wonder to see. Circus acts, bright bold costumes, vocal wonders and comedic master classes. It was exactly the kind of revival you want from a beloved show, it's a classic and a theatre staple and this production proved why.

The most notable difference in this production over the original with Ben Vereen and John Rubenstein is that the leading player is female. And particularly by Patina Miller who received a Tony Award for her portrayal. She was graceful, sexy and commanding on the stage. I think the gender changing role of the Leading Player works with the show. Does it always have to be a female now, no, it's interchangeable. It makes the show exciting and different every time. Never having seen Pippin with a male in the role I am extremely interested to see what the dynamic between Pippin and Player is. Patina plays her with so many layers. She's the boss of the show and extremely manipulative, a strong presence on stage. I got to see her do the show twice and I completely understand why she got the Tony. She gave this role so much energy and life, you almost wanted to volunteer to act out the big finale yourself.

The role of Pippin was played by Matthew James Thomas. I talked about him in my Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark post. I loved what he did with Pippin, he had a school boy charm to his performance. Obviously the character grows during the show and changes the course of his life, and MJT accomplished that without going to crazy from one extreme to the next. He had fun with every member on that stage, you could see the bond between the actors, it made for an extremely playful, fun, energetic show, with numerous consequences because of the connections. His voice was perfect for Pippin, soothing and hopeful, if you can describe a voice like that. He worked his butt off on stage and the end result was fantastic. One of my favourite moments in the show is during Morning Glow and it is truly because of MJTs voice. In the last bridge when he sings 'We can make a new day bright' and he just belts up to the rafters. It's pure magic.

I wouldn't be me if I didn't talk about one of my all time favourite theatre performers, Mr Terrance Mann who played King Charles. If you asked me what musicals started my obsession I would have about five on hand, and out of those five Terrance Mann has been in three. Javert in Les Mis, Rum Tum Tugger in Cats and The Beast in Beauty and the Beast. So not only was I excited for a Diane Paulus directed Pippin but I was finally going to see Terrance on stage, and man was I not disappointed. He delivered the exact performance I thought he would. Scene stealing and perfectly crafted. He was energetic and comedic, full of life and an absolute joy to watch. I haven't seen anyone have as much fun on stage as I have with Terrance and MJT during War Is A Science. They played off of each other beautifully, upping the comedic stakes at all times. And watching Terrance and his on and off stage wife Charlotte D'Amboise was a treat. I am a big fan of watching couples play couples. I think it adds such an interesting layer to the performance. And these two are definitely seasoned pros. Watching legends like that perform is an education in itself. I thank Terrance Mann for the work he's done for musical theatre. I'll watch anything you do sir.

It is Tony season, which means everyone is talking about a handful of actors, one that is taking the spotlight is Rachel Bay Jones who played Katharine in the revival. The poor widow, who is a pawn in Pippin's journey, a tool used by the players to force Pippin into his ultimate finale. She was poised, hilarious and kind. Katharine is a dream role that anyone would want to play. She's a twist on the classic damsel in distress, but in this case she holds the cards. Rachel played her with absolute elegance and mastery. Her voice is motherly and innocent and her ability to connect with her fellow actors is brilliant. She commits to whatever she's feeling on stage, so much that you start to feel it too. I feel like the audience mirrors Katharine. We learn to love him and cherish him, we want only what's good for him and in the end that's what saves him.

The first time I saw this show during previews was definitely a night I'll never forget. I was joking with my friend Rebecca saying wouldn't it be funny if Diane Paulus sat in front of us, and low and behold who sat in front of us, in all her glory, Diane Paulus. I'm normally a pretty calm and cool person, my mom trained all of the fan girl out of me; or at least taught me to hide it till I got back to the car, so when intermission rolled around I knew if I didn't have some sort of interaction I would regret it. So Rebecca and I walked right up to her and started a conversation. It's crazy how in a room filled with people no one seemed to know, or pay attention to the fact that the director was there. She was an absolute darling, filled with knowledge and advice that she was happy to share, and extremely interested in the opinion of two teenage girls. It was one of the most honest and lovely interactions I've had with anyone in the industry, so much so that during ACT II she even turned around and asked if we liked a certain part. That could be the reason that the Pippin revival is held in such high respects in my book, or maybe it's just her and the casts brilliance, but whatever it is I'm ok with it. This she was high flying, bold and magical. Exactly what a night at the theatre should be.