Irving Berlin's Music Box Revue 1921 - ToTRaA at MN Masonic Heritage Center

The Theatre of the Ridiculous and Absurd has been known to take rarely seen works and present them to a new audience. In the past they have produced two shows originally done by the Cockettes in the 1970's, and now Producer/Archivist Steven Katz has reached back to 1921 for this lovely show. Irving Berlin was working with the Ziegfield Follies but left them to open his own theater, and produce his own work. The Music Box was the theater he built, and the Music Box Revue 1921 was the first show that opened that theater. Surprisingly it played 400 performances and closed in 1922. To take a show that originally had over 40 performers, plus chorus and bring it to life in 2017 with a cast of 21 is an incredible feat.

Performing at the Ives Theatre located in the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center (just a little south of the Bloomington Center for the Arts), this show will escort you back into the start of American Musicals. Through much research, the script and the songs are original to the 1921 show. What that means to a modern audience is that there is a big style difference from musicals of today. First off, it is a revue so there is a very limited plot, or through line. Secondly the musicals of that time had a lot of featured performers and a chorus. Sometimes they performed together, but often times the feature performers would do their number/sketch, then the chorus would come on for a dance or number of their own. During scene or set changes, the curtains would close and a number or sketch would be done in one...which is the space in front of the curtain. Thanks to director Doug Dally, every detail like this has been followed in this production giving you a true taste of what theater was like in the 1920s. It is fascinating and a singular experience.

But I hear you ask, was it good? is it worth seeing beyond the history?

My answer is a resounding YES! First off, all music of Irving Berlin - the man Jerome Kern himself said had no place in American Music because he WAS American Music. I have heard a lot of Berlin and I can tell you that almost every single one of the 27 songs was new to me. So many great charming songs in this show - some cute, some a little dirty (in a classy way), and all of them tuneful. I found it really interesting how one scene could be made up of three or four songs that naturally flowed right into each other. Take a number like "Dining Out." It is essentially a sketch about a couple going out to dinner, both dreaming of the day they will have their own little kitchenette. What makes it so good is that it is sung almost all the way through - and when their food arrives, each portion has it's own song. They order oysters - and a chorus girl in an oyster headdress comes out and sings about being an oyster and pearls. Charming all the way through.

The sketches that don't have music are very funny (though casually misogynistic which is just part of that time frame). They are slightly scandalous or dirty, without resorting to being blunt, or swearing. All double/triple entendres which make the evening fly by. If you need an example, one of the sketches is called "Monkey Business." A cop is talking to a secretary whose boss just jumped out of the window and killed himself. He asks her if anything strange had happened. She replies that recently the boss had come in and told her that he couldn't get her off his mind and that he would pay her $100 to see her in her slip, but no monkey business. She explains to the cop that $100 is a lot of money for a working girl like herself and so she did it, and he was true to his word that there was no monkey business. This scene escalates until it is made clear why the boss jumped...but you'll have to see the show to find out. So slightly risque, but still family friendly.

With a cast of 21 it is difficult to pinpoint or highlight any specific performer. They all did wonderfully as an ensemble, and those with solo spots were fantastic in their solo spot. Suffice it to say that if you have any interest in seeing living history of American Musical Theater, you need to see this show. If it goes well, I have heard rumors that they are looking to do George White's Scandals (with all Gershwin music) or some of the other early works. The Ives Theater is a wonderful spot as it looks like a classic theater space. More than that they have original drops from the 1920s that they are using for this show. The band and singers under the direction of Wei Pai sounded great. The dancing and choreography (Heidi Spesard-Noble, Doug Dally, and Alejandra Iannone) was perfect for that time period, as was the costuming and set decoration. Overall it was a marvelous evening of fun. It only plays through Oct 14 so go get your tickets now.