Mr. Saturday Night at the Nederlander is an old-fashioned musical comedy, with an emphasis on the latter. Based on the 1992 film starring and co-written by Billy Crystal, this hilarious and somewhat soapy tuner has all the elements for a long run on Broadway: laughs every couple of seconds, slick, efficient staging by John Rando, a marquee name in Crystal, and just enough sentiment to balance the schtick.
Crystal is in splendid form repeating his role as Buddy Young, Jr., an over-the-hill, Don Rickles-like comic whose huge ego has sabotaged his career and damaged his relationships with his wife, his brother-manager, and his daughter. The veteran comedian combines stand-up, sketch work, and character delineation for a stand-out job. He can sing and dance decently as well.
The book by Crystal, Lowell Ganz, and Babaloo Mandel, is not a simple retread of the trio’s original screenplay. Several accommodations for the stage and changes are made which trim and streamline the story. The writers have fun with the conventions of musical theater and allow for Crystal to do extended stand-up bits in flashbacks and in the present as Buddy plays senior centers at 11 in the morning. (“You know you’re old when someone says they love your alligator shoes and you’re barefoot” is a typical zinger.) Another improvement is the addition of a Greek chorus of second bananas who play the supporting cast on Buddy’s 1950s variety TV show and all the other parts needed (Jordan Gelber, Brian Gonzalez, and Mylinda Hull are delightfully versatile.) The daughter’s role is beefed up, and Shoshanna Bean pours pathos and passion into her depiction of disappointment of a show-biz child growing up in the shadow of a famous parent.
Not every change is for the better. The ending is now overly saccharine with everything coming up roses for Buddy, whereas in the film the conclusion was more ambiguous. But that’s one of the few flaws in this otherwise tight and sparkling package.
The score by Jason Robert Brown and Amanda Green is clever and punchy. Green’s wordplay is particularly intricate and hilarious. Scott Pask’s flexible set, along with Jeff Sugg’s video and projection design and Paul Tazewell and Sky Switser’s character-defining costumes transport us to dozens of locals from the Catskills to the Friars Club to TV studios and apartments, from the 1950s to the 1990s.
As Buddy’s long-suffering spouse, Randy Graff feelingly conveys her unstinting support and her anger at Buddy’s crabbiness. She has been somewhat shortchanged with only one solo, a comic ode to escape called “Tahiti,” but Graff makes the most of it.
The moving David Paymer repeats his Oscar-nominated role of the put-upon brother from the film with the right combination of gentle humor and emotive depth. Chasten Harmon is bubbly and enthusiastic as Buddy’s new agent.
At the performance attended, Crystal chatted with the audience and took questions after the curtain call. Unlike the breaking of the fourth wall in the current Broadway Macbeth, this direct communication with the attendees was an extension of the production and of Crystal’s warm embrace of the crowd.
