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A LOVING PORTRAIT OF A FUNCTIONAL FAMILY Review by: Beth M, Apr 29, 2008 |
Take Me Along at the Irish Repertory Theatre
By Beth Mandelbaum
It is really special to have opportunities to see musicals such as Take Me Along, a musical from the so called “Golden Age” of the American musical theater of the 1950’s and 60’s. Such musicals were old fashioned, traditional book musicals, in which the plots were linear and, along with the songs, moved the narrative forward.
I was very moved as I remember seeing the ... read more original productions with my family.
Take Me Along, which opened on Broadway in 1959 and which originally starred Jackie Gleason, is based on Eugene O’Neil’s only comedy, Ah, Wilderness. It takes place in a small, rural town in Connecticut in the early 20th century. The set, which consists of paintings displayed just about everywhere, evoked a kind of age of innocence: that of a seemingly simpler, less complicated, less technologically (except for the new and modern fire machine!) oriented time.
Take Me Along reminded me of The Music Man, another “Golden Ager,” which opened on Broadway just two years earlier. Both are set in small towns on the 4th of July. I also noted some similarities between the demeanor and situation of the male and female leads: in both we have female protagonist who seem destined for “old maid hood:” one a librarian, the other a school teacher. Both fall in love with men who have flawed characters, and whom they initially reject, though ultimately forgive them and are swept off their feet. Both are truly American musicals.
Take Me Along tells the story of a family, The Millers, Nat and Essie and their three sons, Richard, Art and Tommy; Nat’s sister Lily and Essie’s brother Sid (this was the role was originally played by Jackie Gleason), with some additional townsfolk.
To me, one of the most compelling aspects of Take Me Along, and Ah Wilderness, is that O’Neil tells us that the Miller family came to him in a dream as the family that he wished that he had been born into, warts and all. His own family had been nightmarish (I believe that his powerful drama about a dysfunctional family, Long Days Journey into Night, was based on his actual family experience.)
The focus of O’Neil’s play and this musical adaptation are two love stories. One delightfully depicts the agony of teenage love, that between Richard, who reads poetry to his beloved young girlfriend Muriel who, while not understanding what he is talking about, is a willing and coy listener.
One night, Muriel’s rather strict and mean spirited father watches them, and concludes that Richard is reading what he perceives to be lascivious poetry and drawings (those of Aubrey Beardsley) to his daughter. Muriel is grounded for a month. Richard receives a letter which was signed in Muriel’s name but which was actually written by her father, saying that she no longer loves him nor wants to see him anymore. Completely devastated and in total adolescent despair, Richard is lured by a friend to a local den of iniquity along the beach, to drown his deep sorrows; he becomes totally inebriated. Fascinated yet repulsed by he prostitute that he meets up, Richard pays her money so that she will leave him alone and go away!
The other story is a very touching mature love story between the alcoholic but ever joking Sid, who is the family “loser,” I guess one could say,” and Lily, who truly loves him. Sid has returned to Centerville from the big city of Waterbury because he has lost his job in an argument with his boss, and has no money and no job, though he keeps this secret at first.
And perhaps even worse, he has failed to keep the promise that he made to Lily years ago, when she decided not to marry him because of his drinking: that he would become sober.
Lily is still clearly still in love with him, has always waited for him for years, and is able to find total forgives, despite all of his flaws. She realize |
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My recommendation:
Go see if you get a chance
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I saw this show with:
Spouse/Partner
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Recommended for:
Romantic Date, Seniors, Adults
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