“Storyville” is unique for Galveston Island Musicals because it’s not their standard fare of shows such as “No, No Nanette,” and “Brigadoon.” This is darker and more compelling, with characters that have bigger, more realistic problems than which boy gets to be the groom. Most of the ensemble members are prostitutes, and while there is nothing in the show that would offend even the most prudish parent, jazz was born of passion, and Kayden didn’t overlook that. While somewhat more serious than a lot of musical theater, the show still manages to send the audience out smiling and whistling.
The show is a revision of Kayden’s original three-hour production. Director Kate Arecchi pared it down to a watchable length by focusing on the leads. Kayden had a hand in the revisions and they work well; the show — which has been produced only three times previously — may become more marketable as a consequence of Arecchi’s talented hand.
There are occasions when a young performer dazzles an audience and leaves them wondering what he’s doing in Galveston. The 20-year-old Breckenridge is a proverbial triple threat who can sing, dance and act — if he’s not on Broadway before his 25th birthday it will be because he didn’t go to any auditions. Can one performer in a 25-member cast make the show worth seeing? Yes, and Breckenridge proves it.
Take nothing away, though, from Patrice Bell’s solos as Tigre, nor the talented Maurice E. Parent who has great moves of his own as Hot Licks Sam.
This incarnation of “Storyville” is heavier on dance than its predecessors and the choreography adds a great deal — especially the passionate routine inserted into the Breckenridge solo, “Louisiana Woman.” Credit Paula Sloan for the choreography and Arecchi for having the foresight to put it in — it sizzles.
Here is a daring show, one that’s out of bounds for the company that’s keeping it, and it may be the best thing they’ve done this season if not several seasons.
Review: 'Storyville' worth the ticket price
By Ted Streuli
The Daily News
Published July 30, 2004
Mildred Kayden wrote the music, lyrics and spine almost 30 years ago, but the three-hour show has played only three times: It opened in San Diego in 1977 and had a three-month run at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C., in 1979. The show sat unproduced until 2001, when the Shores Theatre in Miami Shores, Fla., gave it a run. That precipitated a new round of press packets, one of which found its way into the hands of Galveston Island Musicals Executive Producer Mike Skiles.
Skiles wanted to do the show, but it had issues. The first was that the full script, written by Ed Bullins, was three hours long and included 23 musical numbers. The second problem for Skiles was that his audiences tend to expect family theater, and “Storyville” had its racier moments.
But Kayden was open to a revised version, and the book fell into the hands of freelance director Kate Arecchi. She trimmed the script to just under two hours by eliminating scenes that didn’t tie to the main story line and, with Kayden’s help, cut the musical numbers to a more manageable 13 with some revised lyrics to fit their new places in the show.
“Mildred feels it sticks with the core of that original story and illuminates the work that was already there,” Arecchi said.
Set in 1917 New Orleans, the script focuses on the struggles of a boxer-turned-trumpeter and his quest to win the heart of a cabaret singer. Together they learn that they are stronger as a pair, stronger still as part of a community, and that music has the power to coalesce and lift the human spirit. Set and scenic design for the revised “Storyville” kept the century-old New Orleans feel but Arecchi dimmed the red lights in the script.
Kayden, who was in the audience for the show’s opening, said the dance numbers added more spice than anything Arecchi might have toned down in the script.
“They amplified the dancing,” Kayden said. “They got into the soul when they did that pas-de-deux in the second act. That’s what jazz was — American soul.”
The Galveston production has renewed interest in the show and early returns suggest that Arecchi’s shortened version is more saleable than the original book. She said both versions are going out with the marketing materials.
“I think they both have strengths,” Kayden said. “This version is more focused, but there’s less empathy in Act One.”
Arecchi and Kayden have become friends and are talking about future collaborations, but the 10-day run in Galveston will be a litmus test see how well the changes play.
“It’s a really beautiful story about the birth of jazz and how a beautiful music form could evolve out of a place and time that could be ugly,” Arecchi said. “It’s a real tribute to Dixieland jazz and other forms of jazz.”
Kayden said the show was about people and how jazz was a manifestation of their spirit.
Reworked 'Storyville' makes debut
By Ted Streuli
The Daily News
Published July 30, 2004
