{"id":24207,"date":"2021-09-13T15:45:07","date_gmt":"2021-09-13T22:45:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/?p=24207"},"modified":"2021-10-05T09:52:53","modified_gmt":"2021-10-05T16:52:53","slug":"starting-here-starting-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/starting-here-starting-now\/","title":{"rendered":"Starting Here, Starting Now: a review by Victor Cordell"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Wilson Jermaine Heredia, Rinabeth Apostol, Keith Pinto, Melissa WolfKlain. All photos by Jessica Palopoli.<\/p><\/div>\n

Love is all around in \u201cStarting Here, Starting Now,\u201d a musical revue of over 20 songs, each one an independent vignette about life.\u00a0 San Francisco Playhouse offers Susi Damilano\u2019s well-directed, high-energy rendering of this 1976 compilation of Maltby and Shire songs.\u00a0 The winsome foursome of Rinabeth Apostol, Wilson Jermaine Heredia, Keith Pinto, and Melissa WolfKlain warble and hoof their way through the evening with verve and enthusiasm in a concept and score with both strengths and weaknesses.<\/p>\n

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Rinabeth Apostol, Keith Pinto, Wilson Jermaine Heredia.<\/p><\/div>\n

The musical revue is an odd hybrid appealing mostly to lovers of theatrical musicals and of music in general.\u00a0 Its history dates to the late 19th<\/sup> century with the typical characteristics in contemporary times being a series of songs by the same composer(s); dance and other movement to add theatricality; and the absence of dialogue and overarching storyline.<\/p>\n

Most successful musical revues ride on the coattails of at least a smattering of beloved songs.\u00a0 The music sometimes derives from theatrical musicals as with \u201cSide by Side by Sondheim,\u201d but more often, successful ones come from the world of popular music, like \u201cSmokey Joe\u2019s Caf\u00e9,\u201d \u201cAin\u2019t Misbehavin\u2019\u201d (conceived by Maltby in 1978),\u201d and \u201cJacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris.\u201d<\/p>\n

What may surprise about \u201cStarting Here, Starting Now\u201d is that the whole roster of songs predates the later Broadway successes of the composers.\u00a0 They are salvage from musicals that folded \u201cout of town\u201d or that never made it to any stage!\u00a0 Though they are professionally crafted, only a couple have had an independent life outside of the stage and soundtrack recordings, so warm and fuzzy ah-ha moments of familiarity are lacking in the whole show.<\/p>\n

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Melissa WolfKlain, Keith Pinto.<\/p><\/div>\n

At its outset, the show had modest success in Manhattan dinner theaters, but over the years, it has benefitted from revivals, demonstrating its draw.\u00a0 One attraction to producers is that with a cast of three performers and an orchestra of three, it can be put on almost in a piano bar setting. Since characters are unnamed anyway, SF Playhouse expanded the cast to four, an excellent decision that adds balance, diversity, and heft.\u00a0 An audience appeal of the score is that each song is a mini-drama – often poignant, sometimes emotional, and all sharing truths about relationships.\u00a0 The stories are told with literate thoughts and lyrics, and the music is pleasant.\u00a0 Perhaps true to life, more episodes concern the pain than the joy.<\/p>\n

The songs weren\u2019t written with the idea of being compiled, so they don\u2019t act as a pure life cycle of love and loss (or everlasting bliss).\u00a0 There is however a general flow from the excitement of first meeting with \u201cI\u2019m a Little Bit Off,\u201d in which a person tries to control emotions but can\u2019t resist the feeling of love, to breakup, with the lament \u201cWhat About Today?\u201d when the person is consoled that things will be better tomorrow, but the hurt is today.\u00a0 A few numbers fail to connect well with the theme.<\/p>\n

Ensembles that work well include the cynical \u201cI Don\u2019t Believe It\u201d when listeners doubt the veracity of couples who publicly promote their loving bliss, and \u201cOne Step,\u201d a tap dance number. Each performer has showcases as well.\u00a0 Apostol is Charo-like sassy as a cosmetics girl in \u201cI\u2019m Going to Make You Beautiful,\u201d and WolfKlain is quizzical and distracted by thoughts of love in the clue-driven \u201cCrossword Puzzle.\u201d\u00a0 Pinto takes a humorous turn as a clown, while Heredia is reflective as a girl!\u00a0 Each artist has a sweet spot in their range, but they are all a bit uneven, and sometimes the vocals seem that they could be stronger if the key were transposed.\u00a0 <\/span>Unlike most revues, this one also demands acting out the songs, and on this count, the artists excel, making the drama work.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Rinabeth Apostol, Wilson Jermaine Heredia, Melissa WolfKlain<\/p><\/div>\n

Dance and blocking choreographed by Nicole Helfer provide visual dynamics.\u00a0 Heather Kenyon’s set design is simple, nightclub handsome with Music Director Dave Dobrusky center-stage rear at the grand piano flanked by a percussionist and a bass.\u00a0 It should also be noted that in deference to changing times, the gender associations have changed significantly from the original, to include gay couples and songs sung by the opposite gender intended.<\/span><\/p>\n

Many preferences in life are a matter of taste.\u00a0 Lovers of musical revues who like the cerebral and the discovery of unfamiliar music and lyrics will appreciate this production.<\/p>\n

\u201cStarting Here, Starting Now,\u201d a musical revue with lyrics by Roger Maltby, Jr. and music by David Shire is produced by San Francisco Playhouse and appears on their stage at 450 Post St., San Francisco, CA through October 2, 2021.<\/p>\n

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Love is all around in \u201cStarting Here, Starting Now,\u201d a musical revue of over 20 songs, each one an independent vignette about life.\u00a0 San Francisco Playhouse offers Susi Damilano\u2019s well-directed,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":104,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"yasr_overall_rating":0,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[664],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-24207","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-victor-cordell"},"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":true,"span_bottom":"