Hershey Gelder on the set for GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE on Berkeley Rep’s thrust stage playing until June 23,2013
GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE: Music and lyrics by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin. Book by Hershey Felder, with Hershey Felder as George Gershwin. Directed by Joel Zwick. Berkeley Repertory Theatre’s Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison St., Berkeley. (510) 647-2949. www.berkeleyrep.org june 8–23, 2013
GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE a pleasant evening but no brass ring at Berkeley Rep.
George and Ira Gershwin provided Broadway and Hollywood with a plethora of lyrics and music that thrilled audiences at the time they were written and are still doing so today. They wrote more than 1000 popular songs together and if asked the question of what came first, the music or the lyrics, Ira would insist that they were intrinsically created as one. This is what Hershey Felder playing George Gershwin tells us early on in his 90 minutes upon the stage as he takes on the mantle and persona of George Gershwin and occasionally lectures to us.
Felder who is an accomplished pianist and adequate singer wrote the show after doing extensive research perusing original manuscripts, personal letters, interviewing family and biographers and, of course, listening to audio recordings. The results are very apparent as we learn about the short life of George Gershwin and listen to his music played on the center stage grand piano, sung by the performer and often in recorded music. George and Ira wrote over 1000 popular songs and George, who wished to be known as a serious composer alone created “Rhapsody in Blue”, “An American in Paris” and “Porgy and Bess.”
Felder has been playing Gershwin for over 10 years and his polished delivery never misses a beat from his narrative, singing or piano playing. His first big hit was “Swanee” that was picked up and made famous by Al Jolson. Felder’s mimicry of Jolson’s singing and the similarity of Ethyl Merman’s singing brought the most laughter of the evening.
There is not much laughter during the evening since Gershwin’s life is not the stuff that dreams are made of since he died at age 38 of a brain tumor. Early in his career he was financially successful enough to buy a 5 story Brown Stone house in New York City where his entire family lived. This period in the story telling of the relationship between his diminutive father and large dominating Russian-Jewish mother and his fathers deep love was both funny and touching.
Where acclaim and financial success were the end result of their popular music, George’s foray into the semi-classical genre with “Rhapsody in Blue”, “American in Paris” and opera with Porgy and Bess was devastating to his ego when they were panned by the critics. In time his genius was recognized but critical failure of Porgy and Bess also was a financial one and the brothers went off to Hollywood to write for the movies. Alas, the moguls there wanted songs that could be whistled like “those of Irving Berlin.”
Into this biographic story telling Gelder liberally introduces such memorable songs as “I Got Rhythm”, “Summertime”,“They Can’t Take That Away from Me”, “Fascinating Rhythm”, “But Not for Me”, “S’Wonderful” and more. To end the evening he plays the entire score of “Rhapsody in Blue” with appreciated energy. Although he received a standing ovation, for this reviewer and companion it was a pleasant evening but did not grab the brass ring.
Kedar K. Adour, MD
Courtesy of www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com
