A Closer Walk With Patsy Cline
The Fiddlehead Theatre Company lives up to its reputation for first-class productions with A Closer Walk With Patsy Cline, now in a limited engagement through April 17 at the John Hancock Hall, at the Back Bay Events Center, located at 180 Berkeley Street in Boston.
The show’s return to Boston is fitting, given that after its world premiere in Canada, A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline enjoyed its U.S. premiere here. The show re-creates the sound and feel of an old-fashioned radio broadcast, with Cline’s hits alternating with DJ commentary, news breaks, and commercial jingles, all performed live by director Tom Frey (who plays the DJ, the sports announcer, the news reader, and various comics and jingle singers) together with a five-piece country music orchestra that includes Jeff Evans on piano, Mike Ihde on steel guitar, Gary Spellissey on drums, Steve Marchena on guitar, and Will slater on bass.
Frey’s vocal stylings and the band’s authentic country sound (complete with inventive touches meant to simulate the sound of old-style LPs, including one clever and funny moment when the DJ puts a record on at the wrong speed) are completely authentic--Frey masters half a dozen regional accents and old-time broadcast affects, from a perfect sports announcer to an Edward Murrow-alike, to various rural twangs and drawls. As Little Big Man, the DJ of West Virginia radio station WINC, Frey narrates the story of Cline’s sudden appearance on the music scene--right in the WINC studio, fifteen years before the play’s 1963 setting--and shares anecdotes about various live appearances by Cline, who performs her hits at venues like The Grand Ole Opry, the Mint Casino, and Carnegie Hall. Sound designer Mark Deluzio is to be commended for the clean, flawless sound of the show, which fills the space without being overwhelming, shrill, or too loud.
But the soul of the show is Cline--her music and her persona. Cline is played, with utmost conviction, by Boston actress Bridget Beirne, who has won critical acclaim--along with several IRNE nominations and an Elliot Norton Award--for her previous roles in area theater, including a turn in My Fair Lady with Fiddlehead. As Cline, Beirne re-creates the star’s voice and style, doing nveer less than excellent work on two dozen Cline classics, everything from "Seven Lonely Days" to "I Go Out Walkin’" and "I Fall to Pieces." Beirne brings a full range to her renditions: from a cheery hayseed bounce on "Come On In" to a sultry charisma on "Always" and a gospel joyousness on "Just A Closer Walk With Thee."
As the friend I brought to the play said to me, with delight, "She sounds just like her!" But Beirne doesn’t just leave the acting to her vocals; her mannerisms and affect on stage show a progression (as do the creations of costumer Renee Purdy) from talented, but girlish, newcomer to polished veteran performer. Purdy’s costumes are visually rich shorthand for Cline’s development: when we meet her, Cline’s attired in rustic, though pretty, dress, but before the evening’s done she transforms before our eyes, clad in a rhinestone-laden evening gown and--at her Carnegie Hall debut--a stunning black-and-white creation. For her final number, Patsy appears before the audience in a sensible, yet elegant, outfit all in white.
Eric Larson’s lighting design and Charles Morgan’s scenic design are effective at depicting different venues with projected images and long, classic curtains that unfurl to give the impression of a grand concert hall.
Whether singing gospel, country, or even a little rockabilly ("Lovesick Blues"), Cline was essentially a torch singer; how better to approach songs like "Crazy," "There He Goes," or even Cline’s riff on the Hank Williams hit "Your Cheatin’ Heart?" It’s no wonder Cline had (and still has) legions of admirers, including a big gay following. So will Beirne, as she channels Cline for Boston audiences.
A Closer Walk With Patsy Cline plays through April 17 at John Hancock Hall at the Back Bay Events Center, located at 180 Berkeley Street in Boston.
Tickets cost $45-$65, and can be purchased online at www.backbayeventscenter.com, at the Back Bay Events Center box office (starting two hours before show time), or via phone at 877-548-3237.
Performance schedule: Wednesday-Saturday nights at 8:00 p.m.; Sunday, April 11 and Saturday, April 17, at 2:00 p.m.
