The Pitfalls of Pippin

Pippin

directed by Victor Chiu and Adam Hertzman

at the Dunster Dining Hall

December 9 through 11

The musical comedy--ahhh, we know thee well. From Broadway to the high school auditoriums across this fair nation, musical comedies occupy a cherished place in the arts. We remember rousing chorus numbers and witty repartee. We remember warmed hearts and corny love scenes. Ambitious, yes. Alas, it's proven too ambitious for the Harvard stage, or at least this Harvard stage.

Pippin is more ambitious than most, however, as the musical comedy that is painfully conscious of the fact that it is a musical comedy. A traveling troupe of performers present the Life and Times of Pippin, son of Charlemagne, an extraordinary youth who is in search of something to be extraordinary at. Pippin satirizes the genre while at the same time reveling in it. Unfortunately, in this production, neither the satire nor the reveling are fully realized. Pippin requires outrageous, over-the-top caricature and outrageous, over-the-top chorus numbers, neither of which it receives here.

This is not the fault of Aaron Sompong, whose clear voice and humorous mugs bring the unsatisfied Prince to life. Sompong has some genuinely funny moments, as when he mournfully sings "Prayer for a Duck" with a look somewhere between grief and self-disgust. He also does an excellent job of avoiding the trap of lapsing into sentimental cheesiness. Instead, his Pippin is slightly more bitter, cynical and world-weary.

Sarah Tuttleton as the Lead Player, the director of the troupe who narrates while keeping the action moving, also has some fine moments. Tuttleton especially shines in her final moments of fury. One could only wish that she could sing as well as she could act. On such numbers as "Simple Joys," her voice clearly strains and can't sustain the notes. A few other cast members, most notably Debby Margaritov as Pippin's love interest Catherine, also lapse in their solo numbers.

Most of the problems with Pippin can't be laid at the feet of the cast, however. Directors Victor Chiu and Adam Hertzman simply did not go as far as they should have. Or perhaps it would be better to say it was impossible for them to go as far as they should have. This show properly belonged on the mainstage, with a much larger cast, stage and budget. As it was, the small chorus seemed hard-pressed to avoid bumping into props during the big production numbers. The cramped choreography also served to restrain the enthusiasm of the songs. All in all, it's hard to avoid the impression that, in this case at least, bigger might have been better.