'Tick, Tick' go the years
Jayne Blanchard
October 16, 2007
In the pop-rock musical
"Tick,
Tick...Boom!," a 29-year-old kvetches over
the
passage of time and things left unachieved while teetering on the cusp
of 30.
Would we care if the young man in question were not Jonathan Larson?
This breezy, sometimes introspective look at choices and choosing
whether or
not to grow up — winningly staged at MetroStage
by
director Matthew Gardiner — is made more poignant by the fact that its
composer
died at 35 of an undiagnosed aortic aneurysm that occurred the morning
of the
scheduled opening of his big-break musical, "Rent," in 1996.
Needless to say, the show did go on, and "Rent" became a cultural
phenomenon, quickly transferring from the East Village's New York
Theatre
Workshop to Broadway, where it has been playing to predominantly
youthful
packed houses (both in Times Square and on tour) for more than a
decade. Mr.
Larson was awarded the Pulitzer Prize posthumously, and the musical
also won
numerous Tonys and other awards.
"Tick, Tick...Boom!" is based on Mr. Larsen's 1990 one-man
autobiographical musical, which he performed in cafes and clubs in his
starving-artist phase. In 2001, the show was reworked with the addition
of a
book by playwright David Auburn (of the Pulitzer Prize-winning
"Proof") that expands the cast to three characters — the aspiring
musical-theater composer named Jonathan (Stephen Gregory Smith,
dynamically
stepping into a starring role); Jonathan's dancer girlfriend, Susan
(Felicia Curry,
who brings a big Broadway voice and lithe strength to the modest
musical); and
best friend, Michael (promising newcomer Matt Pearson).
Opening up the show dilutes some of the composer's absorbed
navel-gazing, as
the other characters have their own set of challenges. Susan longs to
get out
of the city for a quiet life in
"Tick, Tick" is largely still a pastiche of songs arranged around a
loose plot concerning Jonathan's upcoming birthday and musical
workshop. The songs run toward the soaring rock
anthem (think the Who, Billy
Joel, Elton John, Foo Fighters)
particularly the
initial number, "30/90," the punk-inflected "No More" and
"Real Life." "Therapy" injects a witty country twang
to a duet about lovers' miscommunication; "Sugar" is a blithe
bubble-gum-pop tune that could have been sung by the Archies,
while "Sunday" is a clever tribute to Mr. Larson's mentor, Stephen
Sondheim. The standout song of the show is "Come to Your Senses," a
rock ballad that slowly builds to a shattering climax and is delivered
with gospelly bravado by Miss Curry.
Health crises, lifestyle decisions, the waning days of being a boy
wonder —
none of these seems fodder for a musical. As with "Rent," Mr. Larson
was going for something more embracing and relevant. With "Tick,
Tick...Boom!" he wished to reinvent the musical for Gen-Xers, and as the character Jonathan says about
his work in
progress: "I want to write 'Hair' for my generation." With both
"Rent" and the earlier "Tick," Mr. Larson triumphed,
crafting a warp-speed fusion of rock music and powerful emotion that
engages
the audience's senses and modern sensibilities.
MAXIMUM RATING: FOUR STARS