NEW YORK—Teenage angst, generational mores, and the rich girl/poor boy scenario is given a fresh new look in the very enjoyable Broadway musical Cry-Baby (book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, lyrics and music by David Javerbaum and Adam Schlesinger).
Set in Baltimore in 1954, a time when conformity was cool and being different was frowned upon, an anti-polio picnic is disrupted by a group of young rebels led by Wade Walker (James Snyder), a.k.a. Cry-Baby, whose parents were executed for arson, murder, and suspected communist ties. Explaining his nickname, he notes, "I cried when my parents died, but never since and never again."
Besides receiving scorn from the "better" members of the town, his presence rekindles unpleasant memories in Mrs. Vernon-Williams (a wonderful Harriet Harris), a pillar of the community who recalls all too well the fate of Walker's parents. Things take a sudden turn when Cry-Baby catches the eye of Vernon-Williams's granddaughter Allison (Elizabeth Stanley), and sparks fly between the two.
Eventually Allison sneaks away from a country-club dance to be with Cry-Baby at the Turkey Point roadhouse. There, Alison reveals her need to be "bad," or at least seek freedom for a little while from the rules and restrictions of polite society.
Any chance for a lasting romance, however, is nipped in the bud when someone burns down the Turkey Point club, and Cry-Baby is accused of the crime by Baldwin (Christopher J. Hanke), Allison's well-mannered (that is, snobby) boyfriend. Dashing any belief Allison has in Cry-Baby's innocence is the appearance of Lenora (Alli Mauzey), a more than slightly schizophrenic girl who has been stalking Wade, claiming she's pregnant with his child.
In short order Cry-Baby and his friends find themselves sent to various correctional institutions (such as the Maryland Vocational Lock-Up for Wayward Punks). Stuck making license plates, Cry-Baby has little hope that love and justice will triumph, especially when he hears Baldwin propose to Allison over the radio and she accepts. In a moment of desperation, Cry-Baby plans an escape so he can attempt to set things right before it's too late.
Despite the potentially heavy themes, the entire show hilariously parodies the era portrayed, with the villains coming across as comic and cartoonish (yet also the ones wielding the power) and the good guys imagined as honest and true—despite the way they look, talk, and act. "Cry-Baby" works not only because of the strong cast and direction, but because the various actors play their characters completely straight (no matter how ridiculous the dialogue), never slipping over the line into caricature.
After a very weak (one hopes deliberately so) first scene where the main characters are introduced, the tuner begins to take off. Originally seeming more like a James Dean wannabe, Snyder's Cry-Baby quickly becomes a rebel in his own right with the musical number "Nobody Gets Me."
After her own slow start, Stanley also quickly becomes more appealing as Allison discovers her own inner wild side, giving the audience a reason to root for Cry-Baby and her to ride triumphantly into the sunset.
Others in the cast deserving of mention include Harris as the woman with all the secrets; Carly Jibson, Lacey Kohl, and Tory Ross as members of Cry-Baby's gang; and Mauzey as Wade's obsessed stalker.
The score is rather light, but enjoyable (where else can you hear lyrics such as "I think Cupid slipped a mickey in my polio vaccine" and "I just don't see the harm in carving your name in my arm"). Some of the highlights include "A Whole Lot Worse," where Allison learns what one has to do to be really bad; the hilarious and sweet "Girl, Can I Kiss You?" about teenage courtship; and the electrifying "Jailyard Jubilee," which gives Rob Ashford's choreography, marvelous throughout the show, a chance to really explode.
Sets by Scott Pask are quite good and the costumes by Catherine Zuber work well. Tying it all together is the very nice directorial work by Mark Brokaw.
Cry-Baby is more high camp than high art, with an enjoyable story, score, and cast in a show that doesn't pretend to offer anything more than a good time—which is not at all a bad thing.
Also in the cast are Ryan Silverman, Chester Gregory II, Nick Blaemire, Colin Cunliffe, Peter Matthew Smith, Richard Poe, Cameron Adams, Ashley Amber, Michael Buchanan, Eric I. Christian, Stacey Todd Holt, Laura Jordan, Marty Lawson, Spencer Liff, Mayumi Miguel, Eric Sciotto, Allison Spratt, and Charlie Sutton.
Cry-Baby
Marquis Theatre
1535 Broadway
Tickets: 212-307-4100 or www.ticketmaster.com
Info: www.crybabyonbroadway.com
Running Time: Two Hours, 40 Minutes
Open Run
Judd Hollander is the New York correspondent for the London publication The Stage.
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