In Paris in the 1890s there was a popular music-hall performer called "Le Petomaine" who played tunes by passing gas. He was a huge star for about a decade.
The Fartiste, book by Charles Schulman, songs by Michael Roberts, a fanciful, fun-filled look at his life, is a full-blown comic musical with a Broadway cast. It's smart, funny, full of beautiful, sexy chorus girls who can really sing and dance, and sparkly clever lyrics. The choreography by Richard Move innovates on classic Can-Can moves, and the women in the chorus are adept, agile and beautiful. Plus, they sing up a storm. The men -- Nick Wyman, Mark Baker, Kevin Kraft, and the amazing Steven Scott, who makes all the sounds vocally into a mike, are top-level performers. Jokes have a contemporary flavor, and the show is always in good taste (or scent). Jim Corti does a Gene Kelly-type dance number that, for me, lifts the show even higher into Broadway-level fun. I saw it at the Fringe, but this show, directed with great comic flair by John Gould Rubin and costumed perfectly by Melinda C. Basaca, is too entertaining not to have a long run at a New York theater.
Opened:
August 11, 2006
Ended:
August 20, 2006
Country:
USA
State:
New York
City:
New York
Company/Producers:
Wet Knee Productions, Loose Canon Productions, DRD Productions in assoc w/ The Drama Center for the New York International Fringe Festival
Theater Type:
off-Broadway
Theater:
Harry De Jur Playhouse
Director:
John Gould Rubin
Review:
Cast:
Nick Wyman, Mark Baker, Kevin Kraft, Steven Scott
Technical:
Costumes: Melinda C. Basaca; Choreog: Richard Move; Music Dir/Arr/Orchestr: John Baxindine; Casting: Stephanie Klapper; Lighting: Nicole Pearce.
Critic:
Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
August 2006
