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“Narcissa & Goldmund — Diabolocal Weimar Wunderkinder”
Metropolitan Room – October 24, 31, November 22, 29
Don’t be put off by the silly, cumbersome title, “Narcissa & Goldmund—Diabolical Weimar Wunderkinder.” This musical revue provides an excellent opportunity to sample the extraordinary body of work that came out of Weimar Berlin—the period that began in 1919 and ended in 1933, when the ascent of Nazism put an end to fourteen years of cultural explosion and exploration. Stunningly and evocatively dressed by designer Julia Jentzsch, Micaela Leon and Adrienne Haan, two luscious ladies if ever I saw one—or two—are just the people to serve as ambassadors of the Weimar Republic. In addition to being beautiful and sexy, they are skilled actor-singers, and their look and style conjure up the very image of Weimar. And both were born in Germany.
The show was conceived and written by Leon and Haan, and directed by Jeff Howard. Many of the fifteen songs will be familiar to people who’ve been exposed to the music of the period; even the man in the street—at least the streets of New York and other culture capitals—will know a few of them. The evening is sung mainly in English, with translations by Jeremy Lawrence, Eric Bentley, Sammy Lerner, and Marc Blitzstein.
Have I mentioned that Leon and Haan are sexy? I’m not just making a tired joke here. It’s important. As the spare but illuminating narration explains, this was a time in which the role of women in society underwent radical change, and limits on sex and sexual options evaporated—as illustrated in Mischa Spoliansky and Marcellus Schiffer’s “Maskulinum – Femininum,” a song of sexual ambivalence and flexibility, and in “The Lavender Song,” a defiant gay pride anthem by Spoliansky and Kurt Schwabach.
Lesbianism figures prominently: Spoliansky and Schiffer’s “When the Special Girlfriend” is delightfully chipper; and a lesbian context is established for Friedrich Hollaender’s “Falling in Love Again,” which lends an interesting new slant to the lines “Men cluster round me like moths around a flame/and if their wings burn, I know I’m not to blame”—it works.
“Abortion Is Illegal” (Hanns Eisler, Bertolt Brecht) is a duet between a pregnant woman and her doctor; it remains powerful and topical today, eight decades later, and the heartlessness and cynicism of the doctor are positively chilling. There’s strong solo work as well: Leon delivers Brecht and Kurt Weill’s “Pirate Jenny” passionately and dramatically (though I submit it would be more forceful still if she were to hold back and do the number more icily, more cold-bloodedly); Haan does a lovely job on Weill and Brecht’s beautiful “Nanna’s Song,” in which a prostitute poignantly reflects on the past.
I have a few suggestions for making the show even better. The first song, Spoliansky and Schiffer’s “It’s All a Swindle,” suffers from what I term opening number syndrome. It’s quite different from the opening number problems I’ve discussed in several recent reviews of solo shows; responsibility for those rests with the individual performers. Here I’m talking about a problem that often afflicts musical revues and book musicals, and it is the result of choices made by the director and/or choreographer. The error is in trying to wow the audience immediately after the opening bell, and it is characterized by too much or too-manic stage movement. In “It’s All a Swindle,” Leon and Haan don’t stay still for two consecutive seconds; it’s relentless. If the choreography were cut by 80%, the audience would have a chance to become familiar with the performers and to get into the show, instead of being hit over the head with it.
The second song, Hollaender’s “Blonde Women,” fares much better, but it’s too short; it should be either expanded or combined with another number. In “Sex Appeal” (Hollaender and Schiffer), there is a marvelous stage image: Leon and Haan, with elegant cigarette holders, standing on either side of musician Sweet Sue Terry as she makes her saxophone sing. Then one of the ladies introduces Terry before the number is over. This sends an unclear signal to the audience, who can’t tell whether the song has ended; as a result, the stars have to work hard to take control again and re-establish the song. As I’ve said countless times before, except in very rare instances, singers should not introduce their accompanists mid-song.
Finally, with “Peter, Peter” by Hollaender and Rudolf Nelson, a man from the audience is called up on stage, and the ladies are all over him and undress him; they even open his trousers. Although many in the audience seemed to be having a grand time with this, I think it is ill-advised in that it calls attention away from the stars and onto an audience member—in this case for quite a long time. I don’t know whether this device is historically accurate, but I do know that I was extremely uncomfortable and concerned for the hapless fellow. Though at the performance I saw, the victim seemed to be enjoying himself, it is a very risky thing to do: other men might be less cooperative. What’s more, when the man went back to his seat, the show did not resume until he’d been given time to zip up his fly. Good manners, certainly, but anathema to pacing.
Richard Danley supplied the musical direction, and he accompanies on piano. Joining him are the aforementioned Sweet Sue Terry on sax, clarinet and flute, and Philipp Gutbrod on drums. They sound swell throughout the evening and they get a chance to shine in a jazzy instrumental interlude by Spoliansky.
Roy Sander has been covering cabaret and theatre for over thirty years. He’s written cabaret and theatre reviews, features, and commentary for seven print publications, most notably Back Stage, and for CitySearch on the Internet. He covered cabaret monthly on “New York Theatre Review” on PBS TV, and cabaret and theatre weekly on WLIM-FM radio. He was twice a guest instructor at the London School of Musical Theatre. A critic for BistroAwards.com, he is also the site’s Reviews Editor; in addition, he is Chairman of the Advisory Board of MAC.
