play by Maurine Dallas Watkins. These writers know how to structure an evening with dramatic arc,
smooth flow, narrative clarity, logical progression and strong theatrical images. All of those are
evident in Chicago. But more importantly, they know that a musical must have heart and wear that
heart on its sleeve. There is a deep-seated, salt-of-the-earth sentimentality to the piece that makes
any of its comic excesses, its occasional vulgarity and the ridiculousness of some of its situations
completely acceptable and even enjoyable.
Kander and Ebb start with the basic story of "Murder, greed, corruption, violence, exploitation,
adultery, treachery..." and the essential characteristics of Velma Kelly, Roxie Hart and the other
characters. They create fully defined individuals, giving clear presentations of the motivation of each.
Kander and Ebb's script moves beautifully into 'All That Jazz' and Velma sings while we see the
story of Roxie Hart.
As crucial to the success of a musical as the book is, it is the score that draws most attention and
here Chicago has Kander and Ebb, experienced veterans.
Kander and Ebb deliver a sure touch in both the music and lyrics departments. They can reach for a
tortured rhyme with the best of them: he rhymes "cojones" with "testosterone is" and lipo (as in
liposuction) with "hypo." He can use references that establish character and time with a drop of a
name: Buddy Grecko and Stan Kenton figure in the lyric of a character of just the right age and
background to drop those names. He can build an entire song on a concept: his opener is "Scrap"
as unemployed steelworkers describe the corrosion of the soul of prolonged joblessness.
While not all of the numbers work equally well, some are wonderful indeed. The aforementioned
"Scrap," "Man" and "Breeze Off The River" are particularly satisfying. "Yazbek has strong, jazzy
music for strip routines, sharply repetitive motifs for reinforcing patter and some very pleasant
melodies, although it is always difficult to assess these on a single hearing. I look forward to the
release of the Original Broadway Cast album which RCA Victor is to release. Some of the lyrics use
language that might result in the album being Broadway’s first with a parental advisory label (Hedwig
and the Angry Inch had a label but that was an off-Broadway show.) It should be a very spirited
recording of a very skillful score.
The two primary men’s roles, the ringleader and his overweight buddy are brought cleanly to life by
Patrick Wilson and John Ellisson Conlee. Two supporting characters will probably stick longest in
memory, however. One is Andre De Shields whose transformation from wobbly, stumbly old man to
gaily gyrating dance man known as "Horse" is about as entertaining and enervating a performance
as could be wished. The other is that of Kathleen Freeman, veteran of hundreds of movies and
television shows and whose face you will instantly recognize. She has a role not included in the
movie version of the story: she is the rehearsal pianist for the would-be strippers. It is a role that
looks for all the world as if it was constructed for Dorothy Loudon (the original, Tony-winning Miss
Hannigan in Annie) but she makes the most of it, strutting and wisecracking all the while.
With all it has going for it The Full Monty really has one thing to set it apart from other attempts to
stage a film as a musical, McNally’s clear understanding that musical plays, even musical
comedies, need to have a strong, clear, consistent and acceptable sense of sentimentality. Sure,
you can lampoon popular culture. Yes, you can titillate with a strip-tease that emphasizes the
tease. All of that is acceptable if, and only if, it is in the telling of a story that tugs at the heart and
asks the audience to care about characters who are worthy of the concern. The Full Monty has that
and all the rest as well. It should run for quite a while