Theater Review—

Director Dehnert Does A Fantastic Job With Jones & Schmidt’s Classic Work

By Julie Stern

NEW HAVEN — Opening off Broadway in 1960, and entertaining tourists and New Yorkers alike for the next 42 years,  Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidts’ The Fantasticks definitely holds the record as the longest running musical in history. If you grew up in Gotham, or worked or went to school there, or just went down to the Village to prowl and people watch, chances are you may have seen the original show; and when you hear its most famous song, “Try to remember…,” on the supermarket muzak, it strikes a chord in your own memory.

Of course, there is always the danger that what seemed novel and magical and whimsical back then might come across now as ho-hum. Indeed, several members of my party were grumbling in advance as to why Long Wharf chose to open its 2009-10 season with this particular chestnut.

Not to worry.

Director Amanda Dehnert and set designer Eugene Lee have breathed new life into the show, to the point where by intermission time, our grumblers were murmuring in surprise, “I don’t remember liking it this much!”

Based on an 1864 play by Edmond Rostand (who wrote Cyrano), the story is both a spoof and a tribute to ideals of romantic love.  In a twist on the Pyramus and Thisbe theme (think Midsummer Night’s Dream), fathers Hucklebee and Bellomy, using reverse psychology, build a wall between their houses and pretend to be feuding, in order to push their children to fall in love.

When Matt and Luisa notice each other, in order to seal the deal, the fathers hire the mysterious narrator El Gallo, to stage an attack on Luisa. Matt will come to her rescue — not realizing that the brigands are really only actors — and defeat the three of them in a dashing sword fight. The first act ends with the couple happily planning their future, with the blessings of their fond papas.

But alas, reality bites!

The sweetness  of the immediate moment starts to become cloying. The lovers notice flaws and limitations. They quarrel. Their fathers quarrel more. They reveal the truth about the heroic rescue. The wedding is off. Matt is tempted by the prospect of going out into the wide world.

El Gallo warns that the world holds pain and disappointment, but Matt is determined. All these people will suffer reality before they can rediscover what really matters.

What makes this production so effective and entertaining is that rather than stick to the bare, minimalist staging of the New York original, director Dehnert has chosen to set her interpretation of The Fantasticks in an abandoned seaside amusement park. Shades of Carousel immediately haunt one’s thoughts, with that show’s bittersweet mood casting long shadows.

Moody and frightening, El Gallo has become an itinerant magician, accompanied by his stooge, a cheerful mute who seems a cross between Harpo Marx and Gene Wilder. Together they perform casual magic tricks that begin by entertaining, but in the second act become more ominous.

His ability to summon birds, flowers and flames from empty spaces culminates in the crazy pair of actors who materialize as the brigands who attack Luisa. Quoting snatches of Shakespeare, and dropping modern references to shows such as Dirty Dancing and West Side Story, they turn into the alluring boon companions who trick Matt into a life of degradation and despair.

Michael Sharon gives a wonderful presence to the role of El Gallo, playing him with the haughty elegance of a tango dancer. Jonathan Randell Silver is an excellent foil as the mute.

Jessica Grove and David Nathan Perlow are appealing as the non-star-crossed lovers. Ray DeMattis and Dan Sharkey are well matched as the quarreling elders, and I particularly liked William Parry and Joseph Tisa as the jacks who came out of the boxes.

Along with Eugene Lee’s  eye-catching set design, Jeff Grow’s work as magic consultant and Craig Handel’s fight directing make the whole thing a fine show for the whole family.

(Performances continue at 222 Sargent Drive until November 1, with shows Tuesday through Sunday evenings, and Saturday, Sunday and Wednesday afternoon. Call 203-787-4282 for details and reservations.)