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Camelot-The Graying of the King
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Cast
Photo by Craig Schwartz
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By Roxie Lee
You wonder how these things get started. One producer turns to another and says, “Hey, here’s an idea: Let’s mount a play around Michael York! He’s classy, he’s British and he’s more accessible than Jeremy Irons!”
“Great idea! What do you suggest?”
“A Musical!”
“A MUSICAL?!?! With Michael York?”
“He was in Cabaret, remember?”
“Yeah, but he didn’t sing –mostly he held Liza’s coat.”
“He was Judas in “Superstar!”
“When?”
“Long time ago – maybe the original.”
“Wasn’t Carl Anderson in the Original?”
“No, the ORIGINAL.”
“Ah….”
”But don’t worry, we’ll do something with style and class, something where the lead doesn’t even have to sing… Maybe something by Lerner and Lowe.”
“Right! He could be Henry Higgins in ‘My Fair Lady,’ or the Maurice Chevalier part in ‘Gigi.’”
“Or he could play King Arthur in ‘Camelot’.”
“Right ---What? I mean I know he doesn’t have to sing, but he has to dance and move and woo a younger woman.”
“Perfect! We can cast almost anyone as Guenevere if he’s Arthur.” And so a production is born.
In all honesty, I am a huge fan of Mr. York from ‘way back in the days of Logan’s Run and The Three Musketeers.” And I’m pleased to report that he has a very nice voice. But he is a little short on breath, particularly after the numbers with the aforementioned dancing or lots of moving; and frankly, unless an actor is playing Darth Vader, heavy breathing does not enhance the performance. Ideally, Arthur has a decade or so on Guenevere and Lancelot; in this production it’s a generation, and the overall effect is not good. And speaking of effects, as viewed from the balcony, there were moments when the soft pink spot hitting the top of Arthur’s head caused the illusion that he had a pink spot on the top of his head, although, again, I’m happy to report that among his many attributes, he still has is a lovely head of hair.
The other principals are terrific. Rachel York is lovely as the conflicted Queen, and James Barbour is just as hunky as he can be as Lancelot. He even manages enough of a French accent while belting out our favorites to remind us that he is the Kid from du Lac. “If Ever I Would Leave You,” is the best received number in the show. The whole audience seems relieved that it is there, intact, and as lyrical and full of longing as originally written.
But this brings me to the issue of cutting musical numbers. You know that things are not quite right when the audience leaves the theatre talking about the favorite song(s) they didn’t hear. Very few productions present the “Fie on Goodness” number, funny as it is, but when the aching confession “I Loved You Once in Silence” goes missing, and the rollicking “Seven Deadly Virtues” is edited to a couple of spoken lines, people are going to notice… and comment. “Silence” is sad, bittersweet and perhaps a bit redundant, since the lovers have solos that say much the same thing. So okay. But if you cut both Mordred’s songs, you leave him with precious little to do, and he has much less opportunity to establish how truly vile he is.
This is particularly true if you also cut his main henchperson, Morgan LeFey, who usually shares a rather disturbing pas-de-deux with the nasty little bastard (hey, that‘s the story line) that sets Arthur’s downfall in motion. Shannon Stoeke does his best with what he was given, and he gets props for that, but the songs in this particular show are very good at moving along both the action and the character development. Without them, the production suffers from too much talk and not enough action.
Action does replace the “talk” in the jousting scene – instead of the chorus reporting the outcome of the joust in song, you get to see the contest fought with swords. Perhaps the producers thought it better to give the audience a fight than make them picture it in their heads, but I’ve got a fair imagination and have always been able to work up quite a joust in my head while the chorus sang. A little more faith—in both the audience and the material -- might have made that scene more exciting. Ditto for the final chorus number, “Guenevere,” which recounts the rescue of the Queen by her champion at the cost of the Round Table and Arthur’s dream. There are two quick cuts of that song, but we miss some of the best stuff and, most importantly, the opportunity to hear and see Camelot’s collapse in the escalating voices and the horror etched in the faces of Arthur and the chorus.
A word or two about the production values: the sets are absolutely sumptuous – how many drops were there anyhow? The effects with lighting and scrims were really cool. The costumes were a Renaissance Faire freak’s dream (and yes, I know we are about 1000 years too early for that; I’m just saying). The armor and mail looked good, and the swords didn’t look fake – well, a little, but not a lot, and not at all except in the big tournament scene.
Also, what in the world is that abduction scene with Nimue and Merlin (played all too briefly by a personal favorite of mine, Eric Anderson, in yet another amazing disguise)? I realize that McCoy and Rigby are part of the production team, and they probably get the flying wires at a discount, but there is something very strange and awkward about it. My friend pointed out that although hoisted about 20 feet in the air, the characters weren’t flying; they were floating under the water to the crystal cave. If that was the case, okay, but I think it might help to have a note in the program to that effect, in case she can’t sit beside every patron in every performance and explain that to them.
So, to sum it all up:
1) Michael York is too old to play Arthur, Damn it! But he’d make a great Henry Higgins and I hope he gets the chance.
2) Some of my favorite music was missing in favor of dialog that I didn’t care about – If you have to make a choice about what to cut, ask yourself what you loved the first time you saw the play – bet it wasn’t the chat.
3) Nostalgia will carry this show a long way. People who love “Camelot” will like this production in spite of cuts. People who have never seen it before may wonder what all the enthusiasm is about. Then again, they may wonder why someone named Caroline Schlossberg is addressing the Democratic National Convention.
On the other hand, it’s pretty to look at, it’s got beautiful music and a competent, professional cast, and if the ending reprise of the title song doesn’t at least bring a tear to your eye, then your heart is made of stone harder than the one holding Excalibur.
Camelot at the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, 14900 La Mirada Blvd., La Mirada. Tues-Thurs. at 7:30; Fri. at 8; Sat. at 2 and 8; Sun. 2 and 7. No evening performance on Sun., Jan. 28. $37.50 to 45. (562) 944-9801 or (714) 994-6310. Tickets also at lamiradatheatre.com. Closes Jan. 28. This is the first leg of the national tour.
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