NEW YORK—It may have seemed like a good idea, indeed actor/playwright Harvey Fierstein has long said he loved the 1956 movie A Catered Affair, which was the starting point for the Broadway musical version (book by Fierstein, music and lyrics by John Bucchino), but the finished product, while powerful at points, just doesn't come together as it should.
Set in the Bronx, New York in early June 1953, the plot deals with a blue-collar family living in an apartment building and barely making ends meet. Husband Tom (Tom Wopat) drives a cab, which he owns with two other drivers, while wife Aggie (Faith Prince) stays home and is bitter about the way her life has turned out. (Tom and Aggie had to get married when Aggie became pregnant.) Also part of the household (though not living with them) is Aggie's garrulous bachelor brother Winston (Fierstein).
As the story begins Tom and Aggie and are returning from a memorial service to honor the memory of their only son, who was killed in the Korean War. Daughter Janey (Leslie Kritzer) meanwhile, has taken the opportunity to spend some serious quality time with her boyfriend Ralph (Matt Cavenaugh). Desperate to escape her stifling home life, and very much in love, Janey enthusiastically accepts Ralph's proposal of marriage. The two plan to combine a honeymoon trip with doing a favor for a friend by driving the friend's car to California.
However the trip is on a tight time schedule, meaning Janey and Ralph have to get married quickly, and decide to have a simple ceremony at City Hall. This doesn't please Aggie, who has always dreamed of giving her daughter the fancy wedding she herself never had. Also none too happy is Winston, who will not be invited to the wedding as it is only for immediate family and friends.
Things change when a benefits check arrives from the army as compensation for Tom and Aggie's son's death. Tom wants to use the money to purchase a retiring partner's share of the cab, but Aggie insists on throwing a lavish wedding for her daughter and her fiancé. The stronger-willed Aggie quickly gets her way—a move which causes complications and tension for all concerned and finally causes long-held bitterness between Tom and his wife to come roaring to the surface.
A nice "kitchen sink drama," with nicely drawn characters, the show offers a strong commentary on class distinction, as seen via Ralph's wealthy parents and family connections, as well as Janey's best friend's tearful admission that she can't be her matron of honor because she can't afford a wedding outfit. There's also a nice touch about the closeness of city life via the various women in the building exchanging gossip from their apartment windows.
Unfortunately, the piece is basically undone by the inclusion of songs in a story which doesn't really need them. Instead of musical numbers that would move the plot along and expand the story though a few minutes of song, we get lengthy sections of singing telling what a few spoken lines would have done so much better. This is especially true when Tom rages at Aggie, screaming that despite all the abuse and scorn she's heaped on him over the years, he's stayed in the marriage, always making sure she and the children have had food on the table and a roof over their heads. Both Prince and Wopat are excellent actors with strong singing voices (Prince especially in the latter category), but the attempted melding of the musical and dramatic genres simply doesn't work in this case, and the talents of both actors get the short shrift because of it.
In addition, Fierstein's portrayal of Winston is too over the top to evoke much sympathy. Coming in drunk while Ralph's parents are visiting Tom and Aggie, Winston's righteous rage over his being excluded from the wedding quickly turns into self-pity, with Fierstein hammering the point home again and again, where softer and more subtle jabs would work better. Fierstein needs a strong guiding hand to keep him on track, (and the show on an even keel), something director John Doyle fails to do. There's also a moment at the end of the play when, after delivering his final line, Fierstein walks to the back of the stage (instead of off), waiting to come back for the final tableau. Having him remain visible while there is other action on stage is a rather curious choice.
The rest of the cast, many of which play multiple roles, work together rather well. Kritzer is wonderful as a young girl trying to make a new life for herself but forever caught between the battles of her parents; while Cavenaugh is nice (if somewhat bland) as her fiancé/lifeline. The sets by David Gallo are enjoyable and the costumes by Ann Hould-Ward and lighting by Brian MacDevitt are fine.
Also in the cast are Lori Wilner, Heather Mac Rae, Kristine Zbornik, Philip Hoffman and Katie Klaus.
A Catered Affair
Walter Kerr Theatre
219 West 48th Street
Tickets: 212-239-6200 or www.telecharge.com
Information: www.acateredaffaironbroadway.com
Running time: 90 minutes
Open Run
Judd Hollander is the New York Correspondent for the London publication The Stage.
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