Theatre in Review: Good Ol' Girls (Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre)

	Photo credit: Carol Rosegg

Good Ol' Girls: That title worries me. It instantly sounds like the kind of high-concept, low-achievement effort that often turns up at the New York Musical Theatre Festival, never to be heard from again. And it might scare off anyone eager to avoid one of those pandering hen parties -- like Menopause, the Musical -- that have infested the theatre in recent years. Fortunately, this new musical entertainment is far more sophisticated than that.

The title is truthful in one respect: Good Ol' Girls is an exploration of the female experience, as lived beneath the Mason-Dixon line, in most, if not all, of its variety. (The ladies under consideration are entirely white, and race relations are largely off the table.) The format blends country-style songs with bits of prose and character sketches drawn, by Paul Ferguson, from the works of the noted authors Lee Smith and Jill McCorkle -- not the kind of names you associate with a hootin'-and-hollerin' night out.

Thanks to them, a show that could easily have settled for a bunch of sub-Steel Magnolias wisecracks offers words that are surprisingly tough, penetrating, and observant. A sketch about a young woman's foolish addiction to an abusive boyfriend is set on the beach, so a narrator can note how the breeze rustles the young lady's hair, making her black eye smart. As in a good short story, that single detail tells you all you need to know about her. There are many quotable lines. "I had long hoped for a wasting disease, to test my mettle," one of them says with amusement, recalling her childhood desire to be a heroine. "I used to be a scandal, but now I'm an institution," another points out, with no small satisfaction. "Being in love and being dumb are often simultaneous actions," says a third--- a statement that will resonate with nearly everyone in the audience.

The songs, by Matraca Berg and Marshall Chapman, are not all on the same high level. A saccharine ballad titled "Happy Childhood" simply has to be endured, and "Back in the Saddle" is, to my mind, more synthetic than sexy. But there's a lot to be said for a lyric, in the title tune, invoking a woman who, "with her hair piled up, she feels closer to God." Also, "Lying to the Moon" is a melancholy tale of unrequited love. "Back When We Were Beautiful" is a moving account of older lovers looking back, and "Alice in the Looking Glass," about a small-town beautician, is practically a short story in itself.

The director, Randal Myler -- a specialist in this sort of revue -- has also assembled an uncommonly agreeable company of good ol' girls. We can never get enough of Sally Mayes, and the good news is her remarkable scat-singing abilities are on display in "Late Date with the Blues," as are her distinctive comic skills. Lauren Kennedy, the youngest of the group, gives a full account of a number of fillies, floozies, and women who love too much. Teri Ralston is the warmhearted voice of experience, especially in the touching ballad "Appalachian Rain." Liza Vann has less to do in the vocal department -- as an actress, she has the most authentic look and sound, no small achievement in a cast that projects a totally convincing Southern vibe -- but she does get to score with the lusty "Bad Debt." Gina Stewart often pops out of the band, guitar in hand, to juice up some of the bigger numbers; she also solos on the bluesy "Booze in Your Blood."

The Steinberg Center, located in the bowels of the Roundabout Theatre's Off Broadway venue (this is not a Roundabout production) is not the most felicitous place to stage a show, but Myler's designers are up to the challenge. Timothy R. Mackabee's setting features an upstage drop depicting a highway map of both Carolinas; it is, in fact, a scrim through which the band can occasionally be seen. Brian Nason's lighting is occasionally a tad too kinetic for my taste -- in a small space like this, I would prefer fewer chase sequences -- but there's no question he wraps the cast in a warm and colorful atmosphere. Michael Bevins' costumes provide each lady with a distinctive look. Lew Mead's sound design is thoroughly natural -- a blessing in this small space -- allowing us to enjoy Keith Levenson's lively orchestrations and the work of the superb band. (Several numbers feature some lovely choral work, as well.)

Good Ol' Girls isn't anyone's idea of a blockbuster, but it's something quite rare these days -- a musical entertainment devoted to sensibility rather than to corny jokes and tunes you've heard a hundred times before. It's an original, and it's better than it needs to be. For those reasons alone, it's worth a look.--David Barbour