With My Little Eye

This year’s Freshman Musical, I Spy, got off to an interesting start when executive producer Michael J. Hines ’04 thanked several people in the audience and then directed a comment to the pre-frosh: “If you don’t think we are the most talented student body at Harvard, then you’ll think we are the most sexually frustrated!” This unusual start was the precursor to a night of laughs and great music.

I Spy is certainly very different from previous Freshmen Musicals in that it does not focus on the subject of first-year or Harvard life. Instead, the writers went in a totally different direction and created the fantasy world of Delphinia and its medieval court. The story is of Jefferson (J. Andrew Pasquesi ’04), a Cognesian spy infiltrating the Delphinian court. His mission: Seize the Delphinian battle plans and ensure Cognesia’s triumph.

Jefferson enters the court posing as an ambassador from “England” a country of which none of the Delphinans have ever heard. He goes about his mission without difficulty and becomes an accepted member of the Delphinian court. But there is one problem: he falls in love with the king’s daughter, and is torn between loyalty to his country and professing his love to Princess Celeste (Raya D. Terry ’04). This, of course, causes Jefferson to question his allegiances and provides the conflict of the play.

Though the plot is not all that original, in general, this year’s production is much better than last year’s freshman musical. Also, despite some of its shortcomings, I Spy has several strong points, nearly justifying the six dollars for the tickets and the three hours spent in watching it.

By far the best aspect of the musical was, surprisingly, its music. Benjamin D. Scheuer ’04 and Timothy B. Urban ’04, the talented first-year composers, really outdid themselves. Though not all the songs were engaging, several were musically interesting and catchy, such as “Mansy’s Rant,” “The Art of War” and “Just One Man.” By far the best song of the production was the main theme, introduced during the Prologue, and incorporated throughout the play by the Minstrel’s (Flipz Aranow ’04) interludes.

Furthermore, the musical accompaniment in between scenes is excellent and worthy of praise. The orchestra, comprised of a guitar, a piano, a set of drums, a bass guitar and a violin, plays in a variety of styles, ranging from rock, to jazz and blues, to a Spanish tango—definitely the highlight of the show.

Several of the actors deliver memorable performances: Aranow’s court Minstrel is a strong addition to the musical, delivering his lines and his songs extremely well. Even though there are several characters and scenes that provide some comic relief, Mary Ellen Player ’04 (Studley, the Queen of Delphinia), probably has the most shocking and humorous role in the musical, embodying the “sexual frustration” of the Harvard students by coming on to almost every male character within arm’s reach.

Emily L. Connally ’04 (Loona, the court sorceress) is also a great addition to the comedy of the play, for her interpretation of the stereotypical little, old, lady is outstanding. Hunter A. Maat’s ’04 performance as Lord Sedarc, Communist dictator (à la Fidel Castro) and enemy to Delphinia, is also well done, and earns rounds of laugher from the audience.

However, it must be said that the Freshman Musical could have benefited from a bit more preparation. Although some of the scenes make decent use of space on the stage (like the scenes in the Delphinian war room and the march to the final battle), other scenes make the actors not only seem stiff and unnatural, but rooted to the same spot. Furthermore, a valiant effort was made to make the singing as good as possible; however, at times, the actors do not harmonize, and at other points are unable to communicate the lyrics well (due to the number of words packed in).

Regardless of its shortcomings, the 2001 Freshman Musical is an optimistic experience. Clearly, creating, writing and producing a musical from scratch is an enormous endeavor; The participants in I Spy deserve praise not only for their part in continuing a first-year tradition, but also for the sheer amount of work and effort they put into production.