"Fun Home" To Broadway

[Frankly Rich]

It received a lot of favorable publicity, but I can't find anything about it here. The Public Theater's production of "Fun Home" will open in April at the Circle on the Square, thus qualifying it for Tony nominations. Apparently it might earn some given the buzz on the Public's presentation last fall.

 

NYTimes: "Based on Alison Bechdel’s best-selling memoir, which was largely told through comic-book panels, “Fun Home” has music by Jeanine Tesori (“Violet,” “Caroline, or Change”) and a book and lyrics by Lisa Kron (“Well,” “In the Wake”). The director will again be Obie winner Sam Gold. Casting for Broadway will be announced later; the Public production featured Tony Award winner Michael Cerveris and Judy Kuhn, as well as three actresses playing the character of Alison at different ages.

 

“Fun Home” is an expected but nonetheless major entry to the new musical lineup for Broadway this season. The production at the Public was honored with best musical awards this year by several theater groups, including the New York Drama Critics’ Circle, and was also a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in drama."

 

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/08/07/fun-home-will-reach-broadway-just-before-tonys-deadline/?hpw&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpHedThumbWell&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well

 

The Times cautions: "The subject matter of “Fun Home,” which also includes death and marital discord, will make the show’s commercial success dependent on serious-minded theatergoers and adult ticket-buyers. New Broadway musicals nowadays are typically geared toward families and tourists who make up the bulk of audiences, and shows tend to be based on popular movies (like “Aladdin”) and well-known books (like “Matilda the Musical”).

[+ nycman]

"The show, about a young woman awakening to her sexuality ....."

 

Second sentence....and you lost me.

[Frankly Rich]

Well, I wasn't trying to win you! I haven't even seen the show, but good theater attracts me, even if it's about (partially) a woman awakening to her sexuality. Now, I won't see The Vagina Monologues, but then, it doesn't strike me as real theater anyway.

[foxy]

I saw Fun Home on Saturday. A mostly sold out performance. Well played and sung by the entire cast. It's in the round so there are no bad seats. The actors rarely have their backs to you for any length of time and each gets at least one big number. There's a funny moment when the three young kids do a disco number using a coffin as a prop. It received a big standing ovation from the audience at the end which was well deserved. Despite all this good stuff I left the theater feeling feeling oddly unsatisfied and I'm not quite sure why. It's received rave reviews and I'd recommend the show but can't figure out why it didn't move me as it did the audience. I'd like to hear other opinions.

[RyanDean]

Saw it downtown - found it thrilling, but not altogether satisfying. (Standout numbers for me were "Majoring in Joan" and "Ring of Keys"...)

Which is pretty standard for me with Tesori.

But I am very excited to see it again on Broadway.

[foxy]

It is a good show. Usually I like most things and honestly can't find a reason why this left me sort of empty. It must have been my mood at the time. I wasn't disturbed by the plot even though it was a rather sad story. I saw previous shows by the creators of this one and really enjoyed them. The music and performances are quite good.

[N13]

Saw it last night. I was seemingly the only person not to give it a standing ovation. It qualifies, in my opinion, as a play with music rather than a musical. I found the story disturbing not because of the subject matter, but because I found nothing exciting, new or even empowering about it. Don't understand how it won the tony. The acting was superb; the staging wonderful; the effect - nothing! It struck me more as a 'conceit' than meaningful.

[OneFinger]

I have a friend that is with a touring company. He's on vacation this week in NYC and this is one of the plays he went to see. He enjoyed it and I trust his opinion.

[Cooper]

It's been on Broadway for just about a year and it's still going strong. I saw it yesterday and thoroughly enjoyed it. I agree with N13 that it's more of a play than a musical, however, the singing is well done. Having recently seen 2 excellent musicals, Hamilton and School of Rock, Fun Home (short for Funeral Home) isn't as lively or entertaining. How it won the 2015 Tony for Best Musical surprises me as it's good but not great.

 

The story is told by Alison, now an adult well into her career, who reflects on her life from childhood to college. Two other actresses also play the role of a younger Alison, all do an excellent job. As foxy mentioned, there's a very funny skit with the 3 children making a commercial for the funeral home. There are 9 actors in this play, 3 are playing Alison, 2 others are Alison's young brothers, her parents, her college girlfriend/lover Joan, and the father's young flings, all played by 1 man.

 

It's playing at Circle in The Square. If you haven't been to that theater, the stage is in the center surrounded by the seats. The orchestra is on stage and is excellent. The songs are not listed in the Playbill but there are a few memorable ones; the mother's exit song, the 3 Alisons singing their finale together, and a fun piano duet done by father and daughter.

 

It's an easy ticket and listed at TKTS.

 

Coop

[adriano46]

I had an extended date with an escort well-known here, and asked how he would like to spend part of the evening (including, if he wanted, something on Broadway). To my surprise, he wanted to see "Fun Home," which I had never heard about. I read a synopsis of the play and felt this would be a dull evening for me, but I bought tickets for us (4th row, side) and the view was the perfect height in this special theater to see everything.

 

The staging was surprisingly well done with many trap doors to make the transition from scene to scene (and jumping backwards and forwards in time) seamless. I found the acting and story more compelling than I imagined - very well written and very close to the style of Alison Bechdel's writing.

 

I found the music very well suited to the show -- not really Broadway musical productions, but a great "musical theatre" if you like, where each song fit into the dialogue. While most enjoy the song "Ring of Keys," my favorite was the mother/wife's final song, "Days and Days" as well as others such as "Telephone Wire," "Flying Away," and the repeated anthem to their home, "Welcome to Our House on Maple Avenue," and "Maps." I found myself leaving the theatre humming the opening bars of the show that were often repeated in some of the other music.

 

The acting was very well done. Many of the roles from the original cast had new members -- I found the version I saw of the college-age Alison less off-putting than videos I have seen of the original actress who plaid this role. Also the young Alison was played by a new young actress as was the role of the mother.

 

The tickets were much more reasonable than "Hamilton," and it was a shorter play (one act about 1.5 hours), but for an enjoyable, intellectual evening, it was fine despite my not really being interested in a "coming out" play about a lesbian. But that said, most of the audience were very straight, and many touched and even crying at different parts -- it was a moving story of love in a somewhat quirky, dysfunctional family of a generation or two ago.