"Marry Me a Little" Brightens the Season
We’re in that dreary, flavorless period between the 12th
day of Christmas and Valentine’s Day. Sigh. But if you need a truffle, a
trifle, a delightful hour, see New Rep’s production of “Marry Me A Little.” The
evening’s entertainment (more of a musical revue than a play) is a pastiche of
Stephen Sondheim “discards,” songs written for various musicals and cut out for
a variety of reasons having nothing to do with their quality.
The four characters live in separate compartments on the
ingeniously designed set, décor reflecting their various stages of life. The
experienced older woman makes dinner in her well-equipped kitchen. The
established architect in his chilly minimalist dining room fiddles on his
laptop, spreads out a set of plans, drinks. The young violinist practices and
dreams in her small room which still carries the flavor of her childhood – bear
on pillow, polka-dotted sheets. A young man of indeterminate profession gazes
at his reflection in the mirror, preens and paces around the room that will
remind you of your younger brother’s first apartment, making occasional
half-hearted attempts to at least confine the clothes (dirty? clean?) carpeting
the floor to a single pile.
Their characters are designated simply Woman 1 and 2 and Man
1 and 2. Though the externals of their lives are defined by the spaces they
inhabit, the inner identity shifts and is redefined as they transition from
song to song, sometimes a solo, sometimes in duet, dreaming of relationships,
some gay, and some straight. What they have in common is the tentative,
fumbling longing and uncertainty, so typical of Sondheim. We see ourselves in
their oh-so-human frailty and isolation and we smile at them and at ourselves.
They dream of love and companionship without surrender or risk. Marry me – a
little. Love me – but not too much. Only
at the end do they venture out into the world and risk a real encounter.
All four singer/actors had voices well-suited to musical
comedy. Erica Spyres, Woman 1, sings with a bright, clear soprano, perfect for
our ingénue. In the role of Woman 2 Aimee Doherty reveals a voice which is more
powerful and well-suited to her more mature role. Brad Daniel Peloquin, Man 2,
reveals his classical training in the exceptional sweetness of his tenor as
the sophisticated architect, while Phil Taylor, Man 1, convincingly sings the
confusion, vanity and ambition of the younger man.
Todd C. Gordon and David McGrory, who provide accompaniment
from pianos on opposite sides of the stage, play with spirit and provide secure
grounding for the whole production. And we loved the way Spyres’s violin
practice was integrated into the accompaniment for other singers. (Talented girl!)
A bonbon of an evening, yes, but reflective and
sweet-natured and thoughtful. Well worth a midwinter drive to Watertown.
~ Johanna Ettin & Shauna Shames, New Rep Reviewers
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