Review: ‘Pretty Woman’ musical can’t match movie’s charm
If you just can’t get Roy Orbison’s signature tune out of your head and you have a nostalgic sweet spot for the blockbuster 1990 movie, you too may find yourself inescapably drawn to “Pretty Woman: The Musical,” which plays through the weekend in San Jose and returns to San Francisco next month.
Trust me, you may want to fight this urge. Now, I’m not suggesting that the iconic Julia Roberts star vehicle was a cinematic masterpiece a la Bergman but it had more than enough sass and charm to make up for what it may have lacked in class and gender sensitivity.
At least for me, the dazzling Roberts seem to radiate chutzpah and she and Richard Gere generated tingly, off-the-charts chemistry. It was impossible to fight the urge to ship them as a couple.
I also loved the fact that Gere’s corrupt Wall Street raider character, Edward Lewis, learned how to be less morally bankrupt from a Hollywood sex worker, Vivian Ward.
The greedy fat cat decides to stop slashing and burning whole industries for a fast buck and decides to actually build something instead. What could be more relevant? (Looking at you, banking crisis du jour.)
Unfortunately the new musical, directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell, doesn’t capture any of the magic of the movie. The leads have zilch romantic chemistry, alas.
Adam Pascal, beloved for “Rent,” seems to be going through the motions as Edward. It’s left to the charismatic Jessie Davidson as Vivian to give the production what little effervescence it has.
Despite Davidson’s best efforts, along with Gregg Barnes’ flashy costumes and David Rockwell’s slick set design, the tuner feels tired.
It doesn’t help matters that the songs (music and lyrics by Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance) are entirely forgettable. Many seem like filler, bland tunes injecting unnecessary backstory.
The staging also cuts some of the best moments from the film, including the singing Prince amid the bubbles in the bathtub bit, and botches the beloved Rodeo Drive snub. There’s also a shoeless Shakespearean sonnet shtick that falls flat.To be fair, a George Bernard Shaw line is a winner and understudy Mia Gerachis exudes spunk as Vivian’s feisty sidekick Kit. The sing-a-long at the finale is also fun, but too little, too late.
Overall, the musical somehow manages to be more superficial and formulaic than the original, an Age of Spandex homage to “Cinderella.”
This seems to me to be a fundamental misunderstanding of who the theater audience is and what it wants. If I just longed for a cheesy guilty pleasure night, I could stay at home with Netflix and a bone-dry French rose. Especially on a stormy night.
What the theater can bring to beloved old stories is fresh eyes, quick wits and big hearts. Think of the sparkling recent revival of “My Fair Lady” or the inedible beauty of “Hadestown.” Both shows used old tropes as a starting point for a breathtaking new vision of the familiar.
This “Pretty Woman” revamp, by comparison, just makes you sorely wish you had heeded Orbison’s words, the part about walking on by.
Contact Karen D’Souza at karenpdsouza@yahoo.com.
‘PRETTY WOMAN: THE MUSICAL’
Book by Garry Marshall and J. F. Lawton, music and lyrics by Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance, based on the Touchstone Pictures film.
In San Jose: Presented by Broadway San Jose; Through March 26; Center for the Performing Arts, 255 S. Almaden Blvd.; $38-$103; 800-982-2787, www.broadwaysanjose.com.
In San Francisco: Presented by BroadwaySF; April 25-30; Orpheum Theatre, 1192 Market St., San Francisco; 55-$172; 888-746-1799, www.broadwaysf.com