BABY THAT’S ROCK ‘N’ ROLL, THE SONGS OF LEIBER AND STOLLER
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Frankel should be pleased with Baby That’s Rock ‘n’ Roll (the generic-sounding name is offset by the subtitle The Songs of Leiber and Stoller). Virtually the whole show’s a medley, a slickly staged stew of golden and moldy oldies penned by the most successful pop team of the 50s. Baby barges through about 45 songs (including several reprises) in an intermissionless 105 minutes, barely pausing for breath; the brisk pace generates considerable energy, but it also robs the performers of much chance to establish personas. Despite their tremendous talent (and costume designer William Ivey Long’s eye-popping ensembles of casual clothes and formal wear–what, no swimsuits?), the cast’s six men and four women remain fairly anonymous. The sentimental opening number “Neighborhood,” with its reference to “friends we used to know . . . where did they go?” leads the audience to expect sharply defined dramatic contexts for the songs; so does Heidi Landesman’s evocative 50s-urban set, with its abstract expressionist use of color, metal catwalks, and neon martini glasses and stiletto-heeled shoes.
But even with the uncredited help of Broadway director Susan Schulman, who was flown in as a technical consultant before the production opened, director-choreographer Otis Sallid rarely establishes any but the most simplistic situations: lonely guys looking longingly at passing girls, couples quarreling at cafe tables, synchronized male-quartet dancing. Sallid’s a solid choreographer–his movement has all the style, sass, and sexiness missing from the dances in Drury Lane Oakbrook Terrace’s West Side Story, for instance. But he tends to settle into predictable, two-dimensional patterns that reflect his background in TV commercials, music videos, and awards shows.
