NYMF Roundup, Day 2
Wood
Book and Lyrics by Dan Collins
Music by Julianne Wick DavisThree watchwords (and one modifier) for
Wood: adorable, sexy, unbelievably gay. To borrow a phrase from an old Magic card, “it's gay. Really, really gay. No, gayer than that. It's GAY.” Or, to steal from a fellow I spoke to on the way in, “it's awesome. Gay as hell.”
The show—which began life two years ago as Collins and Davis's thesis at NYU Grad—is a very loose recasting of
A Midsummer Night's Deam (there are woods and there are fairies, although rather a different sort than in Shakespeare). It's essentially an ensemble piece, but it centers on Herman, an out-and-proud teen who just wants to meet his boyfriend in the the woods outside Normal, Anywhere for a little after-hours nookie. Attempting to summarize the twists and turns in the ensuing plot would be futile; suffice to say that it involves pornographic cross-stitch, prayers to Jesus, a color guardette hopelessly stuck on Herman, a policeman with equipment that would make John Holmes blush, and a game of naked Twister. Also, more “wood” puns than you can shake a stick at.
Despite a rough start (the opening number needs an overhaul), Wood quickly settles into itself. The strongest part is the music: Davis has crafter a richly melodic score that successfully blends pop and traditional musical theatre into a style all its own. Collins's lyrics, despite a handful of suspect passages (“boys” and “choice” don't quite rhyme, especially when the rest of the words rhyme pretty perfectly) are by and large witty.
The top-notch cast doesn't hurt, either. Jason Michael Snow is utterly lovable as Herman; ditto Ben Thompson (boyfriend Luke), the always-reliable Kate Wetherhead (marching nerd Diana) and Stanley Bahorek (lone straight guy Chad). The adults are splendid, too—Cady Huffman as Herman's overly supportive mom, Joe Cassidy as his dad (who spends his nights in the woods, masquerading as a size queen named Big Bottom), and Patrick Ryan Sullivan (the well-endowed cop, nicknamed, for obvious reasons, Big Top). Roland Rusinek, Maurice Murphy, and Ryan Ratliff cut amusing figures as the trio of archetypal fairies (Bear, Down-Low, and Twink, respectively).