Intimate and heartwarming, yet big enough to capture the feeling of the open road, 10 Million Miles (book by Keith Bunin, music and lyrics by Patty Griffin) is a wonderful gem of a musical about two twenty-something lost souls looking for love and a place where they can belong. Mounted with an eye towards the future, the show certainly looks destined for a long life beyond this initial run. After more than a decade of sex, booze and partying Molly (Irene Molloy) has gone on the wagon and is preparing to travel from her home in Florida to Worcester, Massachusetts to stay with her aunt, the only one in her family still speaking to her.
Also eager to leave what he calls "the armpit of the universe," is Duane (Matthew Morrison), a likeable bad-boy, who has no sense of responsibility and a penchant for telling tall tales. The two hooked up briefly about two months earlier and since he's heading the same way, Duane offers to give her a lift in his pickup truck. Molly initially declines, but relents on the condition they take it "one county at a time."
While Duane is intent on resuming their amorous relationship, Molly is simply trying to hold herself together and soon Duane finds out why. She's pregnant. Duane, who could be the daddy, accepts the child as his and wants to get married, doing all he can to court Molly in his own inimitable style.
However there's pain, loss and heartbreak on the road ahead, as both realize they have some serious growing to do before any thing permanent can develop. As the two continue their road trip (and journey of self-discovery) they meet an interesting collection of characters (all wonderfully played by Mare Winningham and Skipp Sudduth).
These include a drunken couple about to get married in Atlantic City, a truck stop waitress, Duane's estranged mom, Molly's aunt, a gas station attendant, a grease monkey and an old Army body of Duane's. Each of whom give Duane and Molly an idea of what life has to offer and how each choice made can set one on a course for the rest of their life. Bunin has crafted a tale with just the right mix of fun, pain, heartbreak and morality and one which feels fresh and alive, with just about every character in the piece one you'd like to spend time with. Griffin's tunes compliment the story perfectly, with no songs that feel forced or inserted just to add extra time to the production.
Michael Mayer's direction is quite strong, with some very inventive staging, which includes having a full-size pickup truck onstage for the entire show (as well it as being an integral part of the story). The cast is more than up to the task of bringing what's on the page to life. Winningham comes across as a sort of chameleon, effortlessly transforming herself from character to character; Sudduth a bit less so, but still quite good.
Molly is nicely poignant as a girl trying to put her life in order, while Morrison has great fun with the character of Duane; using his athletic ability to leap when he could walk and jump when he could stroll. His Duane becomes the perfect anti-hero with endearing qualities which make his fall from grace (both in Molly's eyes and the audience) all the more powerful. The only drawback with the show is that it's a bit too short (95 minutes, with no intermission) and it would have been nice to see some sections expanded slightly (such as Molly realizing Duane is the one for her) and perhaps a scene or two added at the end. Special mention goes to Derek McLane's set, Michael Krass's costumes and Tim Weil's very fine work on musical direction, arrangements and orchestrations.
10 Million Miles
Presented by the Atlantic Theater Company
Linda Gross Theater
336 West 20th Street
Tickets: 212-279-4200 or www.ticketcentral.com
Closes: July 15, 2007
Judd Hollander is the New York correspondent for the London publication THE STAGE.
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