Harmony, the long-gestating musical about the Comedian Harmonists, a real-life singing group in 1920s and ’30s Germany, whose careers and lives were destroyed by Hitler’s anti-semitic policies, has its heart in the right place, but hits a few discordant notes along with melodious ones.
Pop icon Barry Manilow and librettist Bruce Sussman tackle one of modern history’s greatest atrocities by musical means. Harmony premiered at the La Jolla Playhouse in 1997 and played Atlanta and Los Angeles before premiering Off-Broadway at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in 2022. The tuner, based on the true story of the Comedian Harmonists, was uneven with too many melodramatic moments, but those were balanced out by Warren Carlyle’s innovative staging and some clever, Brechtian numbers. In the transfer to Broadway, one of my favorites musical sequences has been cut, lessening the show’s sharp, satiric edge. However, there are still enough captivating and moving vignettes, particularly the specialty numbers arranged by Manilow and John O’Neill and performed with stunning vocal virtuosity by the sextette playing the Harmonists, to put the production in the plus column.
The basic plot structure remains the same as it did Off-Broadway. The six-member singing group rose to fame in the late 1920s and early ’30s. They played around the world including Carnegie Hall and even had an offer to play Broadway in the Ziegfeld Follies, but opted to remain in Germany, hoping Hitler’s nightmarish regime would “blow over.” Because three members were Jewish, the Nazis eventually banned the group, scattering them to either fight at the front, flee to other countries or to suffer in concentration camps. The story is narrated by the sole survivor into the 21st century, nicknamed Rabbi from his previous religious experience. Chip Zien repeats his passionate performance, leading us through the group’s devastating story, often taking on famous personae such as Albert Einstein and Richard Strauss (his drag turn as Marlene Dietrich has been unfortunately eliminated).
The show does move at a faster clip than it did Off-Broadway, but I miss one stunning coup de theater. At the top of the second act, we’re supposedly at the Ziegfeld Follies and the Harmonists perform a delightfully campy production number called “We’re Goin’ Loco” where they support the dazzling Josephine Baker (an irresistible Allison Semmes), with bongo drums and a wink to Carmen Miranda’s nuttiness and Baker’s own banana dance. In the midst of this glorious madness, Rabbi announces they never did work with Baker, but returned to Hitler’s Germany. Off-Broadway, the scene abruptly transitioned to a grim steamship embarkation with dark ominous music. Musical hijinks clashed with harsh reality. Much more effective and chilling than Rabbi’s simple announcement.
There are still excessive melodramatic scenes such as the one with the group sharing a train with Der Fuehrer and the young Rabbi imagining grabbing a gun from Hitler’s bodyguards and shooting him. The program notes this actually happened, but it’s staged like a Tom Cruise action film. Fortunately, the haunting music by Manilow, smart lyrics by Sussman and clean, crisp staging by Carlyle positively compensates for them.
As they did Off-Broadway, the Harmonists are given vibrant life and voice by the amazing Sean Bell, Danny Kornfeld, Zal Owen, Eric Peters, Blake Roman, and Steven Telsey. Sierra Boggess and Julie Benko provide sturdy support and effectively deliver sterling ballads as spouses of two of the members. Carlyle’s staging and dance direction flow seamlessly, complemented by the flexible set by Beowulf Boritt, the sensitive lighting by Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer, and the context-creating projections and videos by batwin + robin productions. Though it has its flaws, Harmony is a strangely beautiful and sad production.
