wayneharada.com

Thirteenth and last of a series

NEW YORK – Before we bid aloha to Broadway 2024, thought we’d share some recaps of our visit.

Sometimes plans don’t work out. I had ordered a rental power wheelchair, to tool around Times Square and the immediate vicinity. The chair arrived, but had a left-handed toggle switch,  and I’m right-handed, so requested a change. Alas, there were no right-hand models, so the rental company provided a power scooter. Had to return it, too, since I’ve never tried a scooter and was not comfortable using one

So: Mr. Walker became my buddy, subbing for Mr. Wheelchair. The walker put a stress on my legs and arms, but I was acclimated to it and it got me to all my Broadway shows, to a dinner or two, and – two big tests – a 10-block street fair on Eighth Avenue on Saturday, and a journey from Seventh Ave. and W. 47^th St. to W.53^rd  and Fifth Ave. on Sunday. Quite a distance to cover, and the legs withstood the distance test.

It was the first time I used a walker in New York, and I’m thrilled it worked out and saw me through the trip. Mr. Walker even earned a pink Hawaiian Airlines tag, an unofficial certification of its boarding in the first class overhead bin. (Yes, it fit).

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Hotel Edison, smack dab in the middle of the Theatre District, has become a preferred place to stay. Last summer, we  booked a cramped room based on its under $300 rate. With a wheelchair in the room, it was darn cramped.

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The Edison also had daily grab-and-go quickie breakfasts for guests that include a bacon-egg sandwich, croissant, fruit and coffee.

Prior to arrival, Vi had made multiple reservations at two of Edison’s restaurants, Friedman’s and Bond 45, so we had multiple res for breakfasts and dinners. The convenience was the defining factor; these eateries are a long ride down in the elevator, with quick service and ample menu choices.  We managed to dine at Victor’s on W. 54^th, the night buddy Kevin Iwamoto joined us for Cuban fare, and theater that night was “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club” at the August Wilson, just across the street.

Kevin had a breakfast with us one morn, and a dinner, too, at Friedman’s, before a quick walk on 47^th to the renovated Palace Theatre, where Ben Platt was in residency for three weeks.

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I don’t get much fan mail – very seldom, anyway– so imagine the thrill and unexpected joy when, in the midst of our New York visit, I got an email from a Broadway star, whose works I respect.

The note carried her married name, so I didn’t immediately recognize the sender.

Then my eyes widened and my heart melted, when I read the sincere message:

Wayne: THANK YOU for this thoughtful and sweet write up! I feel so seen and you were so kind with your words ~ thank you very much. I’ll send it to my biggest fan (my mom, Esther.) 

 I’m happy to hear from you. Thank you for thinking to send this to me. 

I hope you are healthy and well. 

Ruthie 

Ruthie Ann Miles was responding to a column, where commended her for earnest delivery of “Aloha Oe,” one of the enduring island anthems that she performed in a recent PBS Memorial Day program. It was the best-ever rendering I’ve heard, with genuine from-the-heart manao, and I wanted to let her know its impact on me and her ongoing great work.

That she would respond so generously was a sweet surprise…

Over the past few years, I’ve been blessed to see Ruthie – a Kaimuki High grad – in three of her many roles – as Imelda Marcos in “Here Lives Love,” at the Public Theatre; “The King and I,” at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theatre, where she portrayed Lady Thiang the wife of The King, and picked up a Tony for Best Featured Actress in a Musical, and as the Beggar Woman (Tony nominee) in last year’s “Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street.” …

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This year, more than last year, I reached out to each of the theaters where I would be seeing shows,  to seek out how they assist the handicapped.

All of them responded…with common, encouraging advice, that if you have a wheelchair, a walker, a scooter or use a cane, on-site staff will help you find seats and bring your chair or walker to your seat at intermission, if needed, and also at the termination of the performance.

About ticketing: most theaters have a limited number of handicapped seats; the variations could mean you could sit in your wheelchair in allotted space for you and your accompanist, or sit in a conventional seat reserved for the handicapped. You could wheel to your seat, and your chair or walker will be removed and properly stored.

Most older theaters don’t have elevators, so you’d be wise to seek orchestra-level seating.

Do not try to buy seats reserved for the handicapped; you will need to verify, on scene, if indeed there is handicapped person in your party.

“Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club,” with its unique in-the-round performing stage, as well as orchestra-level seating with a ledge to hold drinks, is most tasked in accommodating patrons. I had orchestra seats, a few rows away from the stage, and I was able to use a walker up angled walkways until I had to carefully reach my seats with a device of support. It’s commendable that an aide came to ask, at intermission, if I needed to make a bathroom run (no, I didn’t),  and the aide returned at the end of the show to bring my walker and wait till the last of the crowds exited, then guided me down the walkers. OK, my friend Kevin also was a dandy helper in the movement up to the seats and descent later.

Moral: if you have a sturdy helper, ask for kokua from him. Or her…

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You never know what you’ll see at Times Square.

Yes, the Naked Cowboy still makes his rounds, strumming his guitar.

The surprise this year was a gigantic wiener attracting stares, which has been a weekend attraction this summer.

The weather had been perfect when we were there, making people watching fun.

I always go to the M&M store, where you can purchase anything from keychains to T-shirts, from blankets to candy (natch). Buying assorted M&Ms, in all shades and shapes (the almond variety is football-shaped), and you simply move – with plastic ziplock bags in hard== and go from faucet to faucet to faucet to faucet, then head to the cashier and discover you have 3 lbs!  But upon return home, we’ve mixed and separated the various M&Ms to share as gifts. Yummeee.

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Lastly, a few theaters still enable you to download and print tickets with barcodes that you can bring to the theaters.

Most, however,  require e-ticketing, with the tickets either stored in an e-wallet or at the sellers websites, like Ticketmaster, Telecharge or Broadway.com. My “Cabaret” seats went directed to Seat Geek. If all this is foreign language (think seniors), ask for help at home before you leave for New York. For safety, save/bring online orders, as back up.

Then enjoy the show, and Broadway…

And that’s Show Biz…

Twelfth of series

NEW YORK – So what and who will be gracing a Broadway stage in the weeks, months, and year ahead?

Here’s a selective short list of coming attractions:

• Aug. 12—“Once Upon a Mattress,” with Sutton Foster and Michael Urie. Hudson Theatre.
• Sept. 12—“The Roommate,” with Mia Farrow and Patti LuPone. Booth Theatre.

• Sept. 30—“McNeal,” with Robert Downey Jr. Vivian Beaumont Theatre.
• Oct. 1—“Yellow Face,” with Daniel Dae Kim. Todd Haines Theatre.
• Oct. 10—“Our Town,” with Jim Parsons, Zoey Deutch, and Katie Holmes. Ethel Barrymore Theatre.
• Oct. 20—“Sunset Boulevard,” with Nicole Scherzinger. Todd Haines Theatre.
• Oct. 24—”Romeo and Juliet,” with Kit O’Conner and Rachel Zegler. Circle in the Square.
• Nov.11—“A Wonderful World,” with James Monroe Iglehart. Studio 54.
• Nov. 14—“Tammy Faye,” with Katie Brayben and Andrew Rannels. Palace Theatre.

• Dec. 14—“Gypsy,” with Audra McDonald. Majestic Theatre.
• March 25 Preview—”Stephen Sondheim’s “Old Friends,” with Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga. Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.
• April 24–“Pirates of Penzance,” with Ramin Karimloo and David Hyde Pierce. Todd Haines Theatre.
• Dates  to be announced:

• “Good Night and Good Luck,” with George Clooney.
• “Othello,” with Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal.
• “The Devin Wears Prada,” with music by Elton John
• “The Last Five Years,” with Nick Jonas and Adrienne Warren.
• “Hello, I’m Dolly,” a Dolly Parton biographical musical.
• “In Dreams,” a Roy Orbison biographical musical.
• ‘The Karate Kid,” based on the films.
• “La-La Land,” based on the film.
• “Purple Rain,” a Prince biographical musical.
• “Sinatra, the Musical,” a Frank Sinatra biographical musical.

And that’s Show Biz…

Eleventh of a series

NEW YORK –  Gee, Wiz. The latest revival of the black musical, based on L. Frank Baum’s “The Wizard of Oz,” tosses convention out of the window.

Change is good, yes, but familiarity breeds the comfort  you feel at home.

So, click your heels, and explore “The Wiz,” playing through Aug. 8 at the Marquis Theatre in the Marquis Hotel. It’s lively, with lots of pops of color in neon costumes that brighten but not necessarily heighten the glee.

Nichelle Lewis makes a credible Broadway debut as Dorothy, in this retelling, but she is challenged with trying to project her numbers to reach the huge theater. I attended a matinee, jammed with black fans, with many women dressed to the nines in sequined red caps, blouses, pants and skirts. Almost like the twinkles spilled off the stage and into the house.

With a new book by William F. Brown, with additional material from Amber Ruffin, there are subtractions and additions, possibly providing something for everyone, old and new.

Happily, Charlie Small’s music is retained, and yes, and tunes like “Ease on Down the Road,” “Believe in Yourself,” and “Home” are treasured anchors. It would have been wicked to eliminate these classics.

Dorothy here has left the ‘hood to live with her Aunt Em (Melody A.  Betts) in Kansas because of discomfort and bullying by her peers. Don’t recall this element in earlier versions. FYI, Betts shows up as the evil witch, Evillene, later in the show.

Of course, a tornado whirls and twirls and blows Dorothy afar.  In a singular breathtaking sequence, Tornada – a “character,” featuring a corps of seven dancers, clad in gray  fabric “wings” resembling land-locked manta rays spinning and fueling wind and rain. It’s a stunning moment of choreography conjoined with light, sound and special effects.

This thing-as-characters style, however, is not necessarily  effective, with four dancers in yellow uniforms, serving as The Yellow Brick Road, but look like soldiers. But they do soldier the movement after Dorothy meets and engages in the lives of the Scarecrow (Avery Wilson, agile and acrobatic, in need of a brain), the Tinman (Phillip Johnson Richardson, cheerfully hearty, but nonetheless aching for a heart) and the Lion (Kyle Lamar Freeman, nervous and fearful, but eager to discover courage).

Midway in the show, Wayne Brady projects rhythm and style as the Wiz;  he’s not feared in this playout. His exit is better than his entrance…

The good witch, Glinda (Deborah Cox) is bathed in gold, the hue of grandness.

Evillene has an army of poppies in the Emerald City.

Oh, and I don’t know the protocol, re Dorothy’s slippers/shoes. They’re silver here, not red.

Another oh. There’s no Toto in this show;  animal lovers should protest!…

And that’s Show Biz…

Tenth of a series

NEW YORK – Old age, middle age, and young age are a given in life. In the new Broadway musical, based on a book and a movie, “The Notebook” is in residency at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre.  It’s an occasional challenge and an inevitable distraction, because of color blind casting, with different actors with different ethnicities playing the six key roles of a couple, Allie and Noah, over a time span of four decades.

With an underlying  theme of the impact of Alzheimer’s, perhaps dual directors Michael Greif and Schele Williams wanted to include a memory test for spectators – visual in this case – to identify six actors portraying the same characters at different stages of life. I’ll admit; I had occasional difficulties.

Older Allie (played by Marian Plunkett) and Older Noah (enacted by Dorian Harewood)  are the elders. She’s white, he’s black. They are emotionally moving and powerful, and consequently Tony-nominated this year.

Middle Allie (Joy Woods) and  Middle Noah (Ryan Vasquez) are the middle-aged  duo. She’s black, he’s Hispanic. They make a splash – literally – as they are doused, in a clinch, in realistic rain in Act 2.

Young Allie (Jordan Tyson) and Young Noah (John Cardoza) are the youths. She’s black, he’s white. They make charming, bubbling lovebirds .

Allie and Noah usually appear together, but there are tricky instances – part of the device of storytelling flashbacks – where old, middle and young selves all appear together. Example: In Noah’s ark, the three gents appear in a scene where all wear brown tops. Happily, though the two younger Noahs are blond, they are identifiable.

Inspired by the 1996 book by Nicholas Sparks and the 2004 rom-com weeper of a film, starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams, the tale revolves around the notion that if Noah renovates the family home, Allie will thus remain. In her old age, he reads her memoirs from a notebook, in a nursing home, which triggers actions and reactions with the middle duo and the young ones.

Bekah Brunstetter’s book features folks from Allie’s life, like her disapproving parents — Mother (Andrea Burns) and Father (Charles E. Wallace) – who withhold several hundred letters from Noah that Allie never receives. No confusion here, since there are just one  of each parent.

Ingrid Michaelson’s music and lyrics are reflective of the specific joy, sadness, love and depression depicted in the storytelling. Breakaway hits, however, are not likely.

David Zinn and Brett J. Banakis’ scenic design includes a water element, featuring a brook/pool running the span of the stage, with faux rain descending in Act 2, and architectural gems, like a wooden skeleton of a home and a moving second-floor porch-walkway.

Dangling lights, like upside candles, hang from above, and occasionally, the actors see reflections from mirrors at both sides of the stage, as they reminisce – as do the audience…

And that’s Show Biz…