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    Theater Review: Short North Stage’s Loving ‘Surviving the Moonlight’

    As a labor of love, it’s hard to argue with Surviving the Moonlight, premiering at Short North Stage in a handsome production directed by Michael Licata, augmenting the last songs left by Christopher Gore (Nefertiti, Fame) and worked on by his frequent collaborator David Spangler, with new songs by Gore’s brother (and Short North Stage co-founder) Rick Gore and Spangler and a new book by Rick Gore. 

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    The curation and implantation of those existing ‘80s demos into new contexts felt remarkably seamless to me, nothing stood out as “Oh, this must have come from 35 years ago.” Again and again, I was struck by the dazzling love and care they took with Christopher Gore’s stylistic tendencies and the ways in which their expansion/updating of his work used disco tropes and polish mostly very effectively.

    Lloyd Butler’s orchestrations and Jonathan Collura’s sure-handed music direction helps those songs land, leading an octet from the keyboard that includes glittering string work from Lane Champa and Mary Davis; juicy, rich horns courtesy of Gavin Newton and Tom Regouski; and a thumping, sympathetic rhythm section consisting of William Mayer, Sara Smith, and Drew Stedman, the latter’s wah guitar was a particular highlight in a score riddled with delightful earworms. 

    The book I had more trouble with, finding myself spending energy trying to bridge mental chasms instead of getting lost in the flow of the story; I felt like it worked best when the play leaned into the self-aware cheesiness of the classic backstage comedy tropes and relationships, and stumbled when it got maudlin or when it seemed to deliberately set up a joke that never came.  

    Surviving the Moonlight – Photo by Jerri Shafer

    The first act follows charismatic hit playwright/director Jonathan (Mark A. Harmon) shepherding an out-of-town tryout for his new play, a story of a transcendent menage a trois in 1870s Istanbul, starring his former lover Vulkan (JJ Parkey), his ex-wife Andrea (Beatriz Cavalieri), his brother Michael (Matt Clemens), sister-in-law Carol (Jennifer Walder), with old pal Henry (Scott Wilson) producing, the younger generation interning, represented by Jonathan’s niece Jessie (Meg Frost) and Henry’s nephew Graydon (Keegan Sells), and costume designer/psychic Absinthe (Christian Maxwell Henry). The second act deals with the fallout of events from the first and ends with snippets of the play-within-a-play as it opens on Broadway. 

    At two and a half hours, with one intermission, Surviving the Moonlight feels long and a big part of that feeling comes from the surprisingly slow build-up. Once it gets going and the cast gets to chew into some barbed dialogue and witty sexual politics, it builds a solid head of steam with big laughs, in speech and song. Sells and Frost capture the idealism and intensity of youth in their raucous duet “Yes/And,” and scorching second act set-piece “Ignite Me.” Clemens and Walder sizzle in the physical comedy laced duet “My First and Last Love.” Harmon’s interesting choices in setting his character up as emblematic of a disappearing era pay off especially well on songs like “Country of Joy” and “I Only Believe in Love,” balancing a raw poignance with swashbuckling swagger. Parkey gives nuance and depth to his Puckish arrested development charmer Vulkan and soars on songs like “Hero” and “Desire.” 

    Best of all are a couple of big group dance numbers, choreographed by Edward Carignan, especially “Istiklal Street,” led by Sells. These moments of surging joy, bringing the cast together, hammer home the reason humans make art and the reason we find communities to make that art and to live, the way that sheer power of a song or moving your body will connect you to the right people without having to say anything. I watched that handful of numbers with dropped jaw and tears in my eyes, 

    Surviving the Moonlight – Photo by Jerri Shafer

    That said, the play occasionally disagrees with me on where its strengths lie. Early in act two, the momentum grinds to a halt for back-to-back numbers where a single character sings about a character who’s just left the room, with songs that aren’t highlights of the score. At the same time, talking about the play within a play, one character says, “We need to supercharge the score, bring it into the 21st century – Vulkan, including your Turkish funk,” but then Surviving the Moonlight ends with portions of the play within a play and all we get to see are ballads. 

    The score to Surviving the Moonlight is worth going back to. As I write this a couple of hours later, I’m still humming a few of those songs. And there are some exquisite performances. But sometimes I had to dig through the storytelling to hold those gems up to the light. 

    Surviving the Moonlight runs through June 26 with performances at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. For tickets and more information, visit shortnorthstage.org/moonlight.

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    Richard Sanford
    Richard Sanfordhttp://sanfordspeaks.blogspot.com/
    Richard Sanford is a freelance contributor to Columbus Underground covering the city's vibrant theatre scene. You can find him seeking inspiration at a variety of bars, concert halls, performance spaces, museums and galleries.
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