Fresh and vibrant, this is a delightful, elegant and witty intimate ‘chamber musical’, a wonderful way to start this year’s season at Darlinghurst Theatre.
With music and lyrics by Adam Gwon, wonderful Squabbalogic (who brought us [Title of show]) now bring us this Australian premiere. Director Grace Barnes has assembled a fabulous cast that gives very strong, finely tuned performances.
The show follows the story of four New Yorkers whose lives intersect on swarming streets and quiet rooftops as they embark on a quest for self discovery and fulfillment, happiness, love and elusive taxis. As in one of the songs of the show, ‘The Big Picture’, ORDINARY DAYS celebrates the way millions of individual stories can be interwoven in unexpected ways to make life an extraordinary journey.
We see the interlocking lives of the four characters: one of the younger two is geeky, nerdy Warren ( brilliant Jay James-Moody) , who is house and cat sitting for a rebellious artist .He finds touchy grad student Deb’s (marvelous Erica Lovell) notebook with all her work for her thesis on Virginia Woolf. They organise to meet at the Metropolitan Museum of Art .Deb is very stressed , yet confident within herself – until her supervising professor criticises her latest installment of work( her ‘I don’t want to be here’ and ‘Calm’ almost stop the show).
Meanwhile, we also meet the lovely Claire (excellent Rachael Beck) and her very toothily tall, handsome boyfriend Jason (Michael Falon) .They are struggling to cement their relationship and work out what is happening , especially when Jason first moves in ( ‘The Space Between’) . Jason is trying to establish himself in New York and Claire’s heart, and Claire can’t quite let go of her past (‘Let Things Go’).
All four of them end up at the Met on a Saturday afternoon – their characters interconnect and their ‘ordinary days’ end up being a tangle of conflict, loss , uncertainty and the search for the meaning of life. We see how an individual can feel worthless and insignificant, and yet simultaneously have an unconscious life changing effect on someone else.
Gwon’s lyrics are humorous, smart and satirical. Lovell’s Deb has great fun with writing emails to her supervising professor requesting an extension for her thesis work, and a very complicated order at Starbucks, not to mention becoming lost and extremely exasperated at the Met!. Claire has a momentary almost nervous breakdown ( ‘Gotta Get Out’ ).There is a daring , heart-warming moment for Warren and Deb ( ‘ Rooftop Duet’) that flows to ‘I’ll Be Here’ for Claire – which is extremely beautiful and moving ,again showing how a small interaction can change lives.
James Browne’s set designs are contemporary minimalist; Mondrian like reflecting sliding glass doors/windows with some movable benches and tables. All this is complimented by Sian James-Holland’s excellent , delightfully atmospheric lighting .
Paul Geddes as musical director is sparkling on the piano, complete with small Statue of Liberty.
ORDINARY DAYS is no ordinary musical. The show’s running time is 90 minutes without interval.
Adam Gwon’s ORDINARY DAYS opened at the Darlinghurst Theatre on Thursday 19th January, 2012 and runs until Sunday 19th February, 2012.
© Lynne Lancaster
28th January, 2012
Tags: Sydney Theatre Reviews- ORDINARY DAYS, Adam Gwon, Grace Barnes, Jay James- Moody, Erica Lovell, Rachel Beck, Michael Falon, James Browne, Sian James-Holland, Paul Geddes, Lynne Lancaster, Sydney Arts Guide.