Entertainment :: Theatre
Eric Kunze: Musical Brando by Robert Nesti
EDGE National Arts & Entertainment EditorThursday Jan 31, 2008 Andrew Lloyd Webber may be responsible for the two longest running hits in Broadway history - "Phantom of the Opera" and "Cats" - but the past decade hasn’t been too kind for the British composer. His most recent musical - "The Woman in White" - ran only 108 performances when it came over from London; and both "The Beautiful Game" and "Whistle Down the Wind" never made it to New York. (Of course, don’t cry for Webber - the sun likely never sets on a production of one of his musicals.)
And he’s a composer in the enviable position to be able to return to his less-than-successful works and tinker with them. Such is the case of "Whistle," which opened in Washington DC in 1996 enroute to Broadway in a production directed by his "Phantom" director Harold Prince only to close there after a poor critical reception. Based on a cult 1961 film that starred Hayley Mills, it concerned three children who discover an escaped convict hiding in their family’s barn and believe he’s Jesus Christ. Webber and his collaborators (lyricist Jim Steinman, and book writers Patricia Knop and Gale Edward) reset the show to bayou Louisiana in the late 1950s to take advantage of indigenous American musical styles of the Deep South.
Webber toyed with the show and reopened it in London in 1998, where it ran for more than 1000 performances. Soon after writer/director Bill Kenwright (best-known for "Blood Brothers") directed a version that toured the British Isles that impressed Webber so much he brought it to London. Now America is having its chance with the tour of Kenwright’s production that is currently at the Wang Theatre through Sunday.
The critical response has been mixed, yet not without praise for its cast, most notably Erick Kunze who plays the escaped con, known as The Man. "Kunze is rightly charismatic, and God knows he has a Bible Belt of a voice well suited to the character’s big ballads," wrote Variety. And Theatermania.com said "As the convict-escapee, all Kunze needs in the way of costuming is a ripped tee baring burnished biceps. And when he nails his anguished high notes, you get some sense of what all the fuss about Enrico Caruso was about. Yes, he’s that good."
Kunze is no stranger to Webber’s scores. He starred as Jesus in the National tour of Jesus Christ Superstar and, more recently, a West Coast production of "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." His Broadway credits include Marius in "Les Miserables," Chris in "Miss Saigon" (which he toured) and Joe Hardy in Damn Yankees."
Kunze’s potent tenor made him a natural for the role, yet the actor, whom EDGE spoke with last week, said luck had just as much to do with why he was cast.
"I got lucky," he said with a chuckle. "I was one of the last people to be cast and I think was familiar to the Really Useful people because I had toured ’Superstar.’ So I might have had a bit of the edge there."
But did he have any reluctance to appearing in a musical with such a checkered past?
"None at all," he said. "But when I was thinking of taking the role I asked my friend Davis Gaines, who played the role in 1996, and he said it was a beautiful story. And I was told it had been reworked with a new concept and a new director - Bill Kenwright who has an amazing track rep - I had no reservations of all.
"And," he continued, "It seems like I’ve filled with my career with Andrew Lloyd Webber shows, so I was happy to have another one."
As in "Superstar," Kunze gets a huge Webber showstopper. "I have a song in the second act - it’s like I have a song in the second act - it’s like ’Gethsemane’ - it’s his insight into his character and his past, and you get to see what’s going on in his head. It’s my big 10 o’clock number and I love it. I get a rush every time I do it. It’s Andrew Lloyd Webber’s thing, and I get to show off, so to speak. The song gives the audience insight into his character and his past, and you get to see what’s going on in his head. It’s my big 10 o’clock number and I love it. I get a rush every time I do it. It’s Andrew Lloyd Webber’s thing, and I get to show off, so to speak."
On the tour he isn’t surprised that so many think the musical is brand new. "It doesn’t have the name recognition of other Webber shows, yet we get people in every city who come by the stage door and tell us how glad it was that they came. I think its success comes from its simplicity. We don’t have any chandeliers or helicopters, just a beautiful story simply told. And then there’s Andrew Lloyd Webber’s music. People are telling me all the time how glad they are that they came to see it."
How does Kunze like playing another Jesus character?
"He’s not Jesus. The kids just think he is. I’m an escaped convict. He’s hardened - there’s nothing Jesus-like about him, except for the factg that he’s bloodied and in raggedy clothes and the kids find him lying in their barn. They’ve just come from their mother’s funeral - it’s the late 1950s in the Deep South - a very religious community. The show opens with the funeral and the preacher saying that Jesus will return and those who do not recognize him will be thrown into the fire. That’s the mindset of the children. I basically let them believe what they want to believe so they will nurse me and feed me. But in the meantime I develop a really intense bond with Swallow, the oldest girl. The musical ends up being about her coming into her womanhood and dealing with the loss of her mother. It’s just beautifully told."
Some have criticized the show because they find Swallow a bit unbelievable in believing that Kunze is Jesus. "Not if you saw our actress - Whitney Bashor - perform the role. I think in our times you may wonder how she would believe such a thing; but with it being the late 1950s in a highly religious, dirt-poor town with no outside communication, you can understand how. All these people have is their faith. And losing her mother at 16 - she has nothing to grab onto."
Kunze came to singing late - not until high school. He pursued acting in college, and moved to New York in his twenties where he stayed for eight years before moving back to his hometown of San Diego. "I don’t feel the competition that I found in New York living there. Now I go out on gigs as they come if it’s something I want to do. When I don’t, I do real estate. I have a job when I’m not singing, and it gives me some freedom. And San Diego gives me a good quality life - I get to work in the yard, go to the beach."
He would, though, like to return to New York with the show, which may happen. "There is a chance that we may make it to New York. We are doing it until June, and then we’ll see what happens after that. Audiences love the piece - they’re on their feet every night. It’s a good gig."
With his pin-up good looks and torn t-shirt, reviewers have been as impressed with his Brando-like looks as with his voice. The critic in the Detroit News recently wrote "a studly Christ figure with a strong presence and terrific voice."
"No, I haven’t had any dates from being in the show," he said laughing.
And what of the comparisons to Caruso?
"I’m flattered, but I don’t really see the comparisons. I do pop/rock as opposed to what he did. I just love to sing."
Robert Nesti can be reached at rnesti@edgepublications.com.
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