Friday, October 23, 1998
Herr apparent
THEATER REVIEW: ‘Fosse: A Celebration in Song and Dance’
establishes Bob Fosse as an influential choreographic force
 even if the show
occasionally drags
By Cheryl Klein
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
A monstrous photograph hovers in transparent black and white
over the stage of the Ahmanson Theatre. Apparently caught in an
introspective moment, the crouching figure looms both larger than
life and delicately human.
This telling and imposing image opens "Fosse: A Celebration in
Song and Dance" and bookends nicely with one of the last numbers,
"Mr. Bojangles." Legendary choreographer Bob Fosse composed the
piece in 1978, when his body no longer followed through with what
his strict inner director demanded. His daughter, Nicole, however,
was in her prime and could execute her father’s moves with passion,
precision and the sort of collective memory that the retrospective
musical shares with several generations of fans.
So when a hunched-over curmudgeon (Sergio Trujillo) recounts his
glory days while a ghost of his younger self arches and leaps,
dreamlike, around him, the show hits a powerfully personal
climax.
But between these two striking images are two and a half hours
of hit-and-miss Fosse odes that may explain the distressed
expression on the photograph’s face.
The three-act dance concert leaves no doubt as to Fosse’s
breadth or ingenuity. The current consensus is that Fosse was ahead
of his time, which his layered moves and aptitude for
experimentation attest to.
Gender, for example, is wholly malleable, evoking the same
considerations as the work of modern dancer Bill T. Jones but in a
less cerebral, more accessible format. As far back as the 1950s,
Fosse was structuring women’s moves around bowler hats, and by the
’70s, he was juxtaposing male-male, female-female and male-female
duets in "All That Jazz’s" "Take Off With Us  Three Pas De
Deux."
As such a subtitle might suggest, Fosse worked in threes. Nearly
all the numbers feature two men and a woman or two women and a
man.
And as long as we’re implying kinkiness, let’s talk about "Mein
Herr," a night club number which appears in the film version of
"Cabaret." Long before Madonna ever donned lingerie and straddled a
chair, Sally Bowles (here a decadent, jaded Valerie Pettiford)
heated up pre-WWII Berlin with Fosse’s doom-laden stoicism and
simultaneous sexual abandon.
Performed by a septet of boldly apathetic dancers, the number is
by far "Fosse’s" most stunning. Santo Loquasto’s costuming (crucial
in a show with style as its primary uniting factor) is no less than
perfect; the dancers’ all-black S&M-ish combinations of garter
belts and bits of lace capture "Cabaret’s" mood of forced mourning,
of going kicking, screaming and singing into the good night.
The cast also expresses what, beyond the limp wrists and bowler
hats, made Fosse so distinctive and perhaps so popular now: his
unrelenting self-consciousness. In an age where artistic homages
seem to wrap more and more tightly around themselves, Fosse’s flair
is probably clearer than it was a few decades ago.
Beyond Fosse’s obvious debts to his vaudeville background, the
energetic, technically strong ensemble also manifests his reflexive
humor. When knock-kneed gold-diggers promise "a few laughs" in the
trashy "Big Spender," they do more than deliver. A cluster of
socialites prance about with rear ends in the air in "Rich Man’s
Frug" and the finale, Benny Goodman’s "Sing, Sing, Sing," features
many a swinger wagging his head and arms as if to say, "I’m a dork.
But I’m loving every minute of it."
The audience, however, cannot. Though director Richard Maltby
Jr. has made several savvy positioning choices, the show repeatedly
stumbles and lags. Much of this could be remedied with a little
fine-tuning (for example, trim the chaotic finale before the
impatient audience forgets the heart-wrenching impact of "Mr.
Bojangles" completely).
Other problems seem to accompany the minefield that is a tribute
show  a tribute to a choreographer, no less. Frequently, the
pieces that get catalogued as "big dance numbers" are not the best
songs any given musical has to offer. Though the rockin’ "Crunchy
Granola Suite" from "Dancin’" and "Pippin’s" revival-style "Glory"
are exceptions, much of the music  especially the
instrumentals  takes on a forgettable, elevator quality; what
should be sexy is merely sleepy.
Bob Fosse was at his best when he wore multiple hats Â
"Chicago" and "All That Jazz," which he wrote and directed, are
arguably his masterpieces. Thus, when limited to dance steps, the
careful integration of the characters who initially performed them
is lost.
One of "Fosse’s" most disappointing numbers is "Razzle Dazzle,"
which neither razzles nor dazzles. Those who saw Ann Reinking’s
version in this summer’s revival of "Chicago" will resent the
lackluster rendition and perhaps wish that the "Fosse" co-director
had taken a little artistic license here as well.
Of course, what tributes have on their side is name recognition
 making them the theatrical equivalent of a political
incumbent. Fosse’s familiar numbers get thunderous applause even
before they start. In a few instances, however, perhaps the zealous
clappers should hold off.
While "Steam Heat" is certainly a show-stopper and synchronously
executed by Jane Lanier, Michael Paternostro and Alex Sanchez, it
is not distinct or particularly clever without the annoyingly perky
"Pajama Game" to make it look good. Here, Fosse gets overshadowed
by his own work  most of what makes "Heat" cool is
demonstrated elsewhere in the revue.
Though far from a flawless musical, "Fosse" is nevertheless an
ambitious and historically necessary work. And more often than not,
it boasts the added bonus of being entertaining. For this, we can
thank lead singer Valerie Pettiford (the definition of
triple-threat), the gracefully acrobatic Desmond Richardson and the
outrageous Shannon Lewis (in "I Gotcha," she thrashes, struts and
shimmies like Tina Turner).
If the production makes our shoulders droop a bit as we leave
the theater, well, Fosse’s influence makes us look darn good doing
it.
THEATER: "Fosse: A Celebration in Song and Dance" runs through
Dec. 6 at the Ahmanson Theatre in downtown L.A. Tickets range from
$22.50 to $65. For ticket information, call (213)
628-2772.Catherine Ashmore
Valerie Pettiford and company perform in "Mein Herr" from the
musical revue "Fosse: A Celebration in Song and Dance."
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