In the transition from screen to stage, "An American in Paris" has lost little in terms of its lavish production design, its vibrant choreography or its popular score of hit songs by George and Ira Gershwin — give or take a bit, here and there.
Based on the 1951 Oscar-winning film, directed by Vincente Minnelli and starring (and choreographed by) Gene Kelly, this “new” musical version opened on Broadway in 2015, directed and choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon, who’s also at the helm of the national touring company that’s performing the show as part of the Broadway in Atlanta series, continuing through Sunday at the Fox Theatre.
Not even this fabulous venue can fully substitute for the expansive Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer backlot, to say nothing of the second-unit exteriors that were shot on location in Paris for the movie, but the stunning projections (designed by 59 Productions) prove to be about the next best thing. That goes for designer Bob Crowley’s elaborate sets and costumes, too.
While the impressions left by Hollywood co-stars Kelly and Leslie Caron remain fairly indelible some 65 years later, Wheeldon’s leads, McGee Maddox and Sara Esty, acquit themselves with amazing agility and expertise in their many demanding dance sequences. (He trained with the Houston Ballet before becoming a principal dancer with the National Ballet of Canada. She’s a former soloist with the Miami City Ballet who trained at the School of American Ballet.)
A number of the famous Gershwin tunes in the film (“Embraceable You,” “Our Love Is Here to Stay,” “Nice Work If You Can Get It”) have been dropped for the stage. Quite a few more (“The Man I Love,” “But Not for Me” and “They Can’t Take That Away From Me,” among lesser others) have been added. They are all performed with ample aplomb by a large orchestra and ensemble of singers, under the music direction of conductor David Andrews Rogers.
The plot is the weakest link in the show — as it was in the fluffy movie: here, three men (instead of two) vie for the affections of Esty’s enigmatic ballerina, although there’s scarcely any doubt that Maddox’s dashing ex-soldier and aspiring artist will prevail.
But this revamped script, adapted by Craig Lucas (“Prelude to a Kiss”) from the original screenplay by Alan Jay Lerner (of later “My Fair Lady” and “Camelot” fame), periodically strikes a darker tone. The action unfolds in 1945, right after World War II, and several of the main characters now have a battle-scarred edge to them, replete with back stories about their war-torn experiences and sacrifices.
Etai Benson offers a more serious and sensitive variation on the sidekick role that Oscar Levant initially played as pure comic relief. In other strong supporting turns, Emily Ferranti portrays a lonely heiress and arts “benefactress,” and Nick Spangler cuts a charming figure as a conflicted socialite and would-be song-and-dance man. The show’s best production number belongs to him, as well — a spectacular rendition of “I’ll Build a Stairway to Paradise” that pulls out all the stops.
Some things never change. For all of its newfangled talk about true love, fine art or life lessons, “An American in Paris” is still, first and foremost, a good old-fashioned musical extravaganza.
THEATER REVIEW
“An American in Paris”
Grade: B
Through Sunday. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday; 8 p.m. Friday; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday; 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. $33.50-$128.50. Fox Theatre, 660 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 1-855-285-8499, www.foxtheatre.org.
Bottom line: Everything old is (sort of) new again.
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