“No Strings”
Freud Playhouse
May 9-20
Appearing atop a short set of stairs front and center on the Freud Playhouse’s stage, Barbara (Sophina Brown) opens “No Strings” with the haunting song, “The Sweetest Sounds.” She is tall and delicate, standing in front of the live band and to the side of a gauzy Eiffel Tower.
David (Scott Bakula) steps onstage to join her in duet, receiving applause from those who recognize him from “Quantum Leap” and “Star Trek: Enterprise.” His voice is smooth and full of subtle inflection, blending strongly with Brown’s.
They both sing, “The sweetest sounds I’ll ever hear are still inside my head / The kindest words I’ll ever know are waiting to be said / The most entrancing sight of all is yet for me to see / And the dearest love in all the world is waiting somewhere for me …”
The audience immediately knows what this story will be about, even if they aren’t aware of the 1962 Broadway production of “No Strings.”
Barbara is the top model of the Parisian haute-couture scene, and David is a rough-around-the-edges writer lacking motivation. Two good-looking Americans plus one city made for lovers equals endless drama and bittersweet passion, with some jaw-dropping costumes and catchy tunes to lighten the intensity.
Joining the two lovers is Barbara’s French sugar daddy (Joseph Culliton), whom she learns to live without by falling in love with David. Ruth Williamson plays Mollie Plummer, the feisty, “Funny Face”-esque editor of French Vogue ““ who doesn’t speak a word of French.
Bets Malone stands out among the other talented cast members as Comfort O’Connell, a Southern redhead with a big bank account to match her oversized attitude. Williamson and Malone sing a powerhouse duet, “Love Makes the World Go,” about the ridiculousness of love. Ending with the duo flanked by two male dancers (each), it is a welcome, sassy break from the other love songs.
As a product of the 1960s, every character in “No Strings” is appropriately costumed. Brown wears a Givenchy-inspired peacoat reminiscent of Audrey Hepburn films of the era, and adorable mod costumes resembling the famous Yves Saint Laurent Mondrian dress are perfect on ensemble members during a scene in Monte Carlo.
Another sign of the times is the un-politically correct nature of the 1960s script. It is frustrating to see Barbara give up her modeling career to become David’s coffeemaker and writing muse, only to be abandoned by him for his bad-boy lifestyle.
Still, that doesn’t mean that those who cast the original “No Strings” weren’t progressive. Producing director Jim Gardia writes in the program that when “No Strings” first came out, civil rights messages had not quite resonated on Broadway, but Diahann Carroll, a black woman, played Barbara. Brown steps into Carroll’s shoes and does justice to both the role and the legacy.
At $20, student rush tickets are well worth the price. “No Strings” is a lighthearted, impeccably executed romp through glamorous 1960s Europe and a lively way to spend a spring evening.