Audra McDonald makes the most of her role as Rose

There aren’t enough dressing rooms on Broadway to accommodate all the expectations of the new Gypsiesa George C. Wolfe revival starring the great Audra McDonald. Considered by theater buffs to be among the greatest musicals in the American canon, Gypsies Now it stars an artist considered among the greatest of all time.

But alongside the high hopes is the question that has been whispered since the production was announced months ago: Will Macdonald, an opera-trained singer revered for her pure soprano music, have the grit and belt for violent counter-pop? – The heroine Rose, a character entrusted with a collection of the best and most wonderful songs and poems written by the great theater creators Arthur Laurents, Jules Styne, and Stephen Sondheim?

Will she be able to convey the unnerving mixture of brutal self-absorption and triumph that is “The Role of Rose?”

The answer is yes, perhaps hesitantly. I can’t think of a better performance in recent memory than McDonald’s Rose.

Supported by an impressive list of co-stars – most notably Danny Burstyn as Herbie, Joey Woods as Louise, and Jordan Tyson in June – MacDonald delivers – no surprise here – a flawless dramatic performance. That is, she brings all her enormous talents to convey and conquer the obsessive drive of the stage mother to end all stage mothers, the woman who pushes her two whiny young daughters onto stage after stage for no other reason than to further herself. Ego and lives her unlived life through children, until she finally gets the shy Louise who turns into a stripper just because she’s – read: Rose – her last chance at stardom. (New Broadway play California Hills Featuring a shocking plot set in 1959 Gypsies It can only be hinted at: a young daughter pushed to sexual sacrifice to further the ambitions of a needy stage mother).

Less convincing is McDonald’s sometimes discordant vocal performance. There is no doubt that she is a wonderful singer, and one of the best on Broadway. However, her frequent leaps from her chesty voice — the rafter-lifting belt most associated with Rose — and her head voice — a velvety soprano revered by legions of Tony Award-winning fans six times over — take us unsettlingly out of the moment. Mama Rose begins a verse; McDonald finished it.

So, that warning out of the way, Wolf Gypsieswhich replaced the original choreography by Jerome Robbins with gorgeous new choreography by Camille A. Brown, and easily takes its place among a long line of memorable Broadway shows Gypsiess and their stars, Ethel Merman, Angela Lansbury, Tyne Daly, Bernadette Peters, and Patti LuPone (and, in the 1993 TV movie, Bette Midler), all of them.

You know the story based on real life: Vaudeville, stage matriarch, chosen child Baby June, under her mother’s control, runs away as soon as she’s old enough for an acting career, leaving Louise’s locket flower to become Mama’s new choice for Spotlight. When that doesn’t quite work out, Rose sets her sights on the hated ridicule, and the heretofore meek Louise finds her true calling as a high society activist, becoming the world-famous Gypsy Rose Lee.

Wolfe, here reunites with MacDonald after pairing up in 2016 Shuffle the deck alongmakes some bold choices, not least bringing in Brown to take a fresh look at choreography. Brown doesn’t completely abandon Robbins’ graceful movements, but her energetic style adds some freshness to the proceedings. The only misstep, so to speak, is the famous scene when the young dancers in Rose’s traveling troupe are replaced mid-dance by their older selves, a sign of the passage of time. Brown, unlike Robbins, places Rose front and center in transition, cluttering the stage with unnecessary action while erasing the subtle transitions that make the scene so powerfully resounding.

It is equally bold to choose black actors in most of the main roles. What Wolfe does not do, unfortunately, is acknowledge race in the story in the way that, say, the 2022 Broadway production of Miranda Cromwell does. death of a street vendor, Starring Wendell Pierce and Sharon D. Clarke, without resorting to any updating of the book and score. (There were rumors that the vaudeville circuit would become a chitlin’ circuit, or somehow recognize and tell a race story within the confines of the plot.) No mention or attention is given, for example, to interracial coupling. From McDonald’s Rose with Herbie Burstein. It’s a legitimate dramatic choice, and the basic premise for choosing colors blind. But while there have been many late-stage revivals that have taken significant conceptual risks and largely succeeded – Oklahoma!, Sunset Boulevard, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club, Cats: Jellicle Ball – this Gypsies I can’t help but feel like a wasted opportunity.

What is this Gypsies It works well – Santo Locasto’s theatrical backstage set design, Leslie James’ Tony costumes that miraculously convey the hard times without sacrificing aesthetic panache, Mia Neal’s eye-catching hair and wig design – it works very well. Mostly that means the score, a surefire collection of the best classic musicals have to offer. “Small World” presents the best of the contrasting styles of MacDonald and Burstyn, and it’s a delightful combination; “If Mama Were Married,” the wistful duet between Louise (Woods, who was as good here as she was in her last showbiz role Notebook) and June (Tyson, post notebook The alum who almost ran away from this show; The character’s early exit was not unfortunate at all.)

Two of the musical’s most beloved production numbers are worthy here, with Kevin Chulak making good use of his spotlight moment with “All I Need Is The Girl,” aided by Woods’ updated choreography Louise and Brown. Then there’s the second-act gem “You’ve Gotta Have a Gimmick,” a song and dance that’s certainly at the highest level of musical theater comedy numbers ever. The strict strippers with their unmistakable hearts of gold who instruct the naive (but enthusiastic) Louise in the mundane art of the stripper body never let us down. Adding to the enjoyment is that Wolfe and Brown conspire to give us full use of the delightful talents of Leslie Margherita (as Tessie Tora), Lily Thomas (Mazeppa), and Melinda Hall (Elektra), as they strut their stuff on the edge of the stage, delighting the audience.

Another late-show number worth the wait is Louise’s “Let Me Entertain You,” where her self-consciousness fades away like so many veils and elbow sleeves.

And finally there’s the inevitable “Rose Turn,” the very definition of a stunning eleventh-hour number in which Rose’s pent-up ambitions and decades of resentment come to the fore. There’s often a temptation to add one eruption too many – Tyne Daly famously slapped one on the ground – and MacDonald doesn’t avoid that temptation. She successfully undercuts the soprano intonations, but in their place she chews up more scenery than might be necessary. There’s no denying its power, here and throughout this revival. Her rose is her rose (just as — let’s not forget — Billie Holiday was Ha Billie Holiday in Lady’s Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill) – And who are we to do anything but cherish its scent?

address: Gypsies
place: Majestic Broadway theatre
exit: George C. Wolfe
book: Arthur Lorenz
music: Julie Stein
words: Stephen Sondheim
ejaculate: Audra McDonald, Danny Burstyn, Joey Woods, Jordan Tyson, Kevin Chulak, Leslie Margherita, Lily Thomas, Melinda Hall, Jacob Ming-Trent, Kylie Vickers, Marlee LeAnn Gomez, Jade Smith, Natalie Washen and Trevena Wade.
Operating time: 3 hours (including break)