Friday September 22, 2006 SGN.org |
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Volume 34 Issue 38 |
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Friday, Sep 05, 2008
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A frothy 'Bollywood' musical that fell a bit flat for me, and a very funny behind-the-scenes look at the making of Gone With The Wind |
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| A frothy 'Bollywood' musical that fell a bit flat for me, and a very funny behind-the-scenes look at the making of Gone With The Wind | ||
| by Rajkhet Dirzhud-Rashid
- SGN A&E Writer
Bombay Dreams Directed by Baayork Lee Starring: Sachin Bhatt, Deep Katdare, Aneesh Sheth, Sandra Allen, Christine Toy Johnson, Reshma Shetty, Suresh John, Marie Kelly September 12th-October 1st Fifth Avenue Theatre Moonlight And Magnolias Directed by Timothy Near Starring: Tom Beckett, Peter Van Norden, Marya Sea Kaminsky John Procaccino, September 8th-October 7th Just to be clear, I love 'Bollywood', the name given to those over the top, all dancing, all singing musicals that come out of India, and the culture of filmmaking that sprang up around those films. The Eastern version of Hollywood one could say. And I still believe one of the best films I've ever seen is Bride and Predjudice, Bollywood at its best. But, sitting in the audience of Bombay Dreams, the newest musical to land on the 5th Avenue stage after playing on Broadway, I didn't find myself greatly moved. True, I wasn't in the best of moods, but even if I had been, I'm not sure I would have felt a lot differently. The songs were nothing I could hitch my soul to, usually the 'hook' that gets me to like a musical, or simply put up with it. I'd say I more put up with Bombay Dreams than liked it. Even though, to be fair, the costumes were appropriately bright, even a bit tacky, which is so Bollywood, and the music was entertaining to listen to, though none of the songs really moved me greatly. And I did like the story of a poor kid, Akaash (Sachin Bhatt) from the slums of India, who gets to make his dream of becoming a 'Bollywood' star come true, when the eunuch who loves him secretly (Aneesh Sheth), helps him get noticed. Unfortunately, 'Sweety' (Sheth), the eunuch with the heart of gold, isn't rewarded once he becomes famous and the glitter and glam of Bollywood goes to his head. I also liked the sub-plot of Akaash's hopeless romance with a higher caste girl, Priya, (Reshma Shetty), that moves the story along and provides some of the more serious moments in an otherwise completely frothy piece of fluff. By and large though, this isn't one of 5th Avenue's best musicals, but it is fun to look at with all of those gorgeous costumes and some of the most incredible dance numbers I've seen on the 5th's stage. Don't take my word, go see it and judge for yourself, if only because a slice of 'Bollywood' life isn't onstage very often anywhere, let alone in Seattle. For more information on tickets, go online to www.5thAvenue.org. How much difference one evening can make in the theater experience. Not only was I in a better mood, and with company I really clicked with, but the show, (this time 'Moonlight and Magnolias' at the Seattle Repertory Theatre) totally thrilled me to pieces. The comic timing between the ensemble cast of Tim Beckett as David O. Selznick, Peter Van Norden as Ben Hecht, and John Prococcino as Victor Fleming' had me and my companion for the evening in stitches the whole time we were there. Also, the added deadpan delivery by Marya Sea Kaminsky as 'Miss Poppenguhl', David O. Selznick's assistant gave even more hilarity to an already delightful gigglefest. Dealing with the fictional account of what went on behind the scenes during the making of one of the most famous of Hollywood's epic dramas, Gone With the Wind, Moonlight and Magnolias drops names, quips and zips along at a breakneck pace. But in its core, this is an 'everyman' kind of story, about the power of one of our most enduring mediums, the film industry, particularly the film industry in its golden, glam period of bygone years. I loved everything about this play, mostly because I grew up watching O. Selznick films, Metro Goldwyn Mayer films and the like; devouring the mythical cities and characters those films brought me via my little black and white telly in Houston, as a wee Bisexual. Get out and see it and be prepared to laugh until your eyes hurt and you're cured of whatever bad mood you might have been in, or feel even better if your mood's already light. For ticket information, call: 269-1900, or go online to www.intiman.org. |
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