The King and I
Richard Rodgers (Music) and Oscar Hammerstein II (Lyrics
& Book)
Based upon the novel Anna
and the King by Margaret Landon
Laura Michelle Kelly |
When a gloriously played overture pours forth hit after hit
right out of the Great American Songbook, there is no doubt that the musical to
follow is likely to be an evening to be savored. If the musical is one that has been revived
on Broadway four times since its 1951 debut; has won multiple Tonys in both the
premiere and subsequent outings; is now in its fifth national tour; and
continues many times each year to grace the stages of high schools,
universities, and communities every where, then anticipation is even higher for
a great evening with an old friend. The
fact that the current touring show landing at Broadway San Jose’s San Jose
Center for the Performing Arts comes with a spectacularly stellar cast in an
immensely impressive production means that Richard Rodgers’ (music) and Oscar
Hammerstein II’s (lyrics and book) The
King and I is a sure-fire guarantee to please both the first-timer and the
aficionado of the famed pair’s fifth, joint creation -- even for those of us in
the audience who saw this same production in San Francisco about fifteen months
ago.
Based on a novel (Margaret Landon’s Anna and the King), The King
and I finds its roots in the actual King Mongkut, ruler of Siam 1861-1868,
and in the British governess, Anna Leonowens, whom he hires to westernize his
royal children. Hammerstein’s version finds some truth in the musical’s story
how the King is desperately trying to keep his country from falling under the
rule of European powers as are many of his neighboring nations. History shows that the actual king in fact
was able to keep tiny Siam independent through his efforts.
Other aspects of the story Mr. Hammerstein pens are also
rooted in historical occurrences, including the fact that the first Anna did
live in the palace grounds until a brick house was built nearby for her. Whether that Anna put up quite the fuss to
get her own house that Hammerstein makes so central in the telling of his Anna
is doubtful – a battle of wills between the King and the governess that begins
almost as soon as she steps off the boat and lets the awaiting Kralahome (the
King’s prime minister) know in no uncertain terms that she expects that
contract promise to be fulfilled.
As Anna, Laura Michelle Kelly displays from the get-go upon
arriving in Siam her fiery defiance with a pointing finger, stern looks, and
firm vocals -- all aimed at the King’s shocked emissary (Darren Lee,
alternating with Brian Rivera). This
almost cocky confidence leads her to assert her demands for a private, brick
house time and again, even to the King himself.
But this same Anna is also the one that melts time and again to show
another side of herself as she softens her stance, demeanor, and tone -- first
when meeting some of the King’s sixty-seven children and later as her liking
and affection for the King himself clearly increases. Director Bartlett Sher clearly highlights
these contrasting aspects of Anna throughout this production – a decision that
provides much fun, nuance, and intrigue in the blossoming relationship between
the King and the Governess.
Laura Michelle Kelly & Children |
When her desired house is not first and foremost in her
mind, Anna exudes a love and excitement for the adventure she has set upon with
her young son, Louis (an properly English boy, Rhyees Stump). Ms. Kelley’s first sung words spill out with
crystal-clear chirpiness as she and Louis duet in “I Whistle a Happy
Tune.” When she fondly reminisces of her
late husband, Tom, and then calls out in song to say, “Hello, Young Lovers”
(“whoever you are”), she so easily allows each note to float at a pace and with
such distinctive singularity that as a listener, there is an ability to grab
hold and relish each rich, beautiful syllable.
And just as wonderful, while she sings, her broad smile reaches out into
the outer and upper regions of the theatre – almost as if she were actually
looking at and smiling at every individual there. Ms. Kelley becomes an Anna to deservedly join
as an equal in a long line of all the famous ones before her (Gertrude
Lawrence, Eileen Brennan, Maureen McGovern, Angela Lansbury, and many more
including most recently, Tony-winning Kelli O’Hara). And having seen her fifteen months ago in the
SF run, I can only say Ms. Kelley has take that wonderful performance and made
it all the more spectacular and memorable.
One of her best moments is not when she is singing but when
she allows her total comedic side to shine as the King gets her finally to
agree never to have her head any higher than his royal noggin and then proceeds
to lower himself position by position until finally prostrate on the
floor. Anna, in her enormously hooped
skirt, becomes a mixture of Lucille Ball and Carol Burnett in her exaggerated
twists and flops, grimaces and grins, as she makes sure her head in fact does
not eclipse his.
Her royal partner in this charade of wills is Brian Rivera
(alternating the role with Darren Lee).
Mr. Rivera immediately shows his very human, vulnerable side as the
all-mighty ruler of Siam while half-singing/half musing in “A Puzzlement.” His King constantly shows his own stubborn
streak that fully matches Anna’s; but he also has, like she, his own soft and humor-loving
side that Mr. Rivera has many delightful ways in demonstrating. This is particularly true when his children
parade in front of him in the eye-catching, warm-hearted, and funny “The March
of the Siamese Children” (one of several masterful sets choreographed by
Christopher Gattelli).
Joan Almedilla |
Equal impressiveness of voice and acting come from a number
of other key contributors. Lady Thiang,
the head wife that so deeply loves her kingly husband (even with all his faults
that she clearly acknowledges), delivers one of the evening’s highlights with
“Something Wonderful.” Joan Almedilla
explains to Anna her love for her King/husband with a voice that pleads in tone
for Anna’s understanding while it also teaches what true love really
means. With each ensuing stanza, a
climatic intensity slowly approaches note by note, totally revealing the depth
of her feelings for her husband.
Love, in this case a forbidden one, is also the focus of
relationship between Tuptim, the King’s newest wife and a ‘gift’ from the Burmese
king, and the Burmese envoy and student who brings her to Siam, Lun Tha. Q Lim and Kavin Panmeechao beautifully blend
their voices in notes clearly interlocked in love as they sing “We Kiss in a
Shadow.” The two once again draw huge
audience praise as they sing of their doomed, not-to-be union: “In these
dreams, I’ve loved you so that by now I think ... I will love being loved by
you” (“I Have Dreamed”).
"The Small House of Uncle Thomas" |
There is also so much more that could be said in praise of
this magnificent musical and production.
The totally charming “Getting to Know You” featuring Anna, the royal
children, and the wives; the visually, culturally, and musically show-stopper
ballet, “The Small House of Uncle Thomas” narrated by Tuptim and presented by a
host of royal singers and dancers; and of course the much-anticipated, fully
appreciated “Shall We Dance?” where Anna teaches the King to waltz as they both
step close to mutually expressed love – These are all favorite moments that
returnees cannot help but savor and first-timers will never forget.
The Cast of The King and I |
Much of the evening’s impact also comes from a production
team that has brought the awe and quality of New York’s Great White Way to the San
Jose Center for the Performing Arts.
From the opening moments when a huge sea-faring boat emerges to dock in
a bustling, red-sky Siam harbor, the sets designed by Michael Yeargan create an
exotic set of scenes. His royal palace
scenes majestically rise and shift with tall, oriental columns that dance in a
slow ballet across the wide stage. Dotting
the scenes with an array of color and with an enchanting mixture of East and
West are the costumes of Catherine Zuber.
Donald Holder’s lighting and Scott Lehrer’s sound designs further
suggest a faraway dreamland of the foreign but familiar. Bringing all the atmospheric magic together
is the underlying beauty of the mixed local and touring orchestra, conducted by
Gerald Steichen who clearly knows how to take a Richard Rodgers score and
ensure it both recalls what we fondly remember as well as makes it all sound
once again fresh and exciting.
And now this reviewer must confess: I love Rogers and Hammerstein musicals --
each and all of them. I always enter
with both anticipation and with dread, hoping for another evening of being
swept away in the well-loved music and story and yet afraid that my
expectations are raised so high that disappointment is assured. With the current Broadway San Jose
presentation of the touring The King and
I, I walked away elated with not the slightest bit of regret of seeing this
production a second time as it once again visits the Bay Area!
Rating: 5 E
The King and I continues
through February 25, 2018 at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts as
part of Broadway San Jose, 255 South Almaden Boulevard, San Jose. Tickets are available online at http://broadwaysanjose.com.
Photo
Credit: Matthew Murphy
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