'Pippin' Captures Audiences with Spectacle and Substance
Bridget McCarthy ‘17/ Emertainment Monthly Co-Executive Stage Editor
Fosse would not stray from musical comedy until the Broadway debut of Pippin in 1972. Although on surface-level the show had the same Fosse-pizazz, shrouded under the familiar display was the title-characters’ existential crisis. Pippin’s search for fulfillment in a superficial environment was similar to Fosse’s own journey in his direction of the production. The constant clash between colorful Broadway-extravagance and darker, more meaningful themes such as sex, depression and suicide highlights the hypocrisy of show business.
Director Diane Paulus took this contrast to new heights for the revival at American Repertory Theater. Paulus increased the drama with a circus aspect, complete with people swinging from trapezes, contortion artists and balancing acts. Audience members bite their nails and awe over the tricks, but still, as with Fosse’s original, the real meaning lies behind the grandeur.
The circus players manifest the extravaganza of Pippin’s desire to be “extraordinary,” and they are nothing less. Under the creation of Gypsy Snider, their athletic performances turn the show into visual artistry. Leading Player Gabrielle McClinton commands the stage. Her presence alone overpowers the fleet of daredevils surrounding her, and her vocal chords make her even fiercer. New choreography by Chet Walker keeps the necessary Fosse-elements intact, and McClinton executes with precision.
The lively artifice of the round circus tent designed by Scott Pask isn’t enough to take away from the core darkness of Pippin. In the final scene, McClinton’s Leading Player shows no mercy for “compromisers.” She strips the set and cuts the lighting. Costumes and makeup are wiped away. No magic. The breaking of the fourth-wall is chilling as actors ask the audience to join them in the masquerade. The abrupt switch from the revival’s loud circus spectacle to an empty stage is cutting. Audience members are left with nothing to watch, but leave with a message.