A Beautiful ‘Brigadoon’ Lacks Substance
By Melody Udell in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 9, 2014 3:30PM
'Brigadoon' at the Goodman.
As a musical, Goodman Theatre's production of Brigadoon is a tough sell. A mythical town that appears for one day every hundred years is the type of fantasy-romance that doesn’t jibe well with the Book of Mormon crowd. Throw in a quaint, underdeveloped love story and thin characterization, and Brigadoon, like its namesake town, seems destined to fade into the mist.
In her Goodman debut, prolific Chicago director Rachel Rockwell is attempting to change the show’s creaky reputation with a revised book and updated material. Penned in 1947, Brigadoon’s rich score has earned it a legion of devotees, and for good reason. Tunes like “Almost Like Being in Love” and “Heather on the Hill” are timeless, and the two leads in the Goodman production sing together beautifully. Rockwell, thankfully, recognizes the power of Frederick Loewe and Alan Jay Lerner's classically beautiful songs, and the production comes together visually thanks to appropriately ethereal set and lighting design (Kevin Depinet and Aaron Spivey, respectively). But solid visual and auditory appeal aren't enough to keep up with a plot that still feels clunky and dissatisfying.
Brigadoon suffers from a wholly unbelievable love story. Local girl Fiona (Jennie Sophia) and American tourist Tommy (Kevin Earley), who supposedly fall in love over the course of a day, aren’t given enough to work with, and they come off as flat and unengaging. Before stumbling into the town and falling for the local beauty, Tommy reveals that he’s no longer in love with his blue-blood fiancée but plans to go through with the marriage anyway. Once he sees Fiona, however, everything changes, and their love-at-first-sight is enough for Tommy to consider relocating to an unmapped town in the Scottish highlands with a once-a-century shelf life.
Meanwhile, the townspeople are spending their one day in the 20th century preparing for the wedding of Fiona’s sister, Jean (Olivia Renteria), who’s getting married to the former town lothario, Charlie (Jordan Brown). It’s here that the show derives its main conflict. Jean’s former suitor, Harry (Rhett Guter), can’t stand to be in Brigadoon and watch his ex-girlfriend marry someone else, so he threatens to leave town. If any citizen crosses the border, however, Brigadoon and its inhabitants will disappear forever—therefore thwarting the new love between Fiona and Tommy. It's a weak source of tension that, unfortunately, sets the stakes pretty low.
Pulling double duty as the choreographer, Rockwell’s revised dance scenes fare much better than the newly minted book, especially during Charlie and the townspeople’s rousing “Go Home With Bonnie Jean.” The show’s bit of comic relief comes from Meg (Maggie Portman), a saucy Brigadoon milkmaid who brings down the house singing about her misguided attempts at love. But wholly serviceable, enjoyable musical scenes can’t make up for a plot that lacks substance and true character development. Brigadoon, it seems, isn’t quite ready to wake up in this century.
The show runs through Sunday, Aug. 17 at Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn, 312-443-3800 or online.