Review: In 'Only Gold,' each move is worth 1,000 words

The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Friday, March 29, 2024


Review: In 'Only Gold,' each move is worth 1,000 words
Ryan Steele and Gaby Diaz, with Kate Nash at the piano, in the musical “Only Gold” at MCC Theater in New York, Oct. 7, 2022. The new Kate Nash dance musical, choreographed by Andy Blankenbuehler, is spectacular as long as you pay no attention to what it’s saying. (Jeenah Moon/The New York Times)

by Jesse Green



NEW YORK, NY.- The cutesy Frenchness of “Only Gold,” a dance-musical hybrid directed and choreographed by Andy Blankenbuehler, begins even before the lights go up. (The preshow announcement is winkingly bilingual.) But it really moves into overdrive when Kate Nash, an English singer-songwriter who provided the music and lyrics, arrives onstage and says: “Paris. 1928. A time when rules were ready to be broken.” A show that starts that way should come with a content warning: These cliches may hurt your teeth.

The upside of “Only Gold,” which opened Monday at MCC Theater, is that it is so pretty to look at, and so musically dreamy, you can mostly tune out the words. Nash’s are hard to decipher anyway; because rhyme and scansion aren’t her thing, the ear gets no help. In the song “Misery,” for instance, the line “I will never leave you behind” is repeatedly misaccented to make the last word sound like a synonym for “derriere.” It’s an odd sentiment that way.

As for the spoken words — the book is by Blankenbuehler and Ted Malawer — they have the skeletal feebleness of a fable, except when occasionally larded with triple-creme tropes such as “listening to your heart,” Paris “working her charm” and “magic in the cobblestones.”

Because “Only Gold” is, in fact, a fable — its title apparently drawn from the Alfred, Lord Tennyson line “love is the only gold” — you may not mind that. What sort of language would you suggest for a story about the arrival in Paris of the royal family of Cosimo? To that inevitable city King Belenus (Terrence Mann) drags Queen Roksana (Karine Plantadit) to prepare for the wedding of their daughter, Tooba, pronounced like the brass instrument and portrayed by Gaby Diaz. I believe the characters’ names were generated by a malfunctioning anagram app.

In any case, the parents’ marriage has turned cold over the years, and Tooba’s incipient one to a douchey count (Tyler Hanes) might as well come with a sign saying “Not Gonna Happen.” Within minutes of Tooba’s arrival, she’s out on the town in her underwear, buying out Cartier and Chanel and locating a bellhop (Ryan Steele) who will make a suitably inappropriate substitute fiance.

Tiresomely, each of these characters has a lesson to learn. (Well, not the douche; he’s the disposable kind.) Belenus’ is to stop being such a royal pain, especially to Roksana, whom he has hurt in some way we are not privileged to learn. To rekindle their love, he commissions a humble watchmaker (Ryan VanDenBoom) to create a bejeweled peace necklace; Roksana’s lesson is to accept it. And when the watchmaker’s fame as a royal provisioner drives a wedge between him and his frustrated wife (Hannah Cruz), even they must learn something — I’m not sure what, but it involves a piano.

At least Tooba’s assignment is clear: to stand up for herself as a woman wearing dainties in public. No man will tell her what to do! — except Blankenbuehler, who has given her some terrific dances. In one of them, to the song “Mouthwash” from Nash’s 2007 debut album, she stomps out her feelings of thwarted privilege better than anything the book itself can muster, while the bellhop alternately supports her ferocity and waits out her tantrum. Diaz and Steele are thrilling.

But then all the dancing is thrilling; perhaps it’s the magic in the cobblestones. And if it comes as no surprise that Blankenbuehler, the choreographer of “Hamilton,” can assemble eye-catching sequences into long narrative arcs, it’s nice to see him working with a full cast of dancers, not just an ensemble. Well, maybe not a full cast. Nash mostly just walks around or sits at the piano, singing tartly while others push it around like a tea cart; Mann doesn’t dance much, either, but his posture tells his story.




The sensational Plantadit more than compensates. Showing off her line and power with every move she makes, she reminds you of the shows she did with Twyla Tharp: “Movin’ Out,” in 2002, and “Come Fly Away,” in 2010. “Only Gold” sometimes achieves their kind of thrust and physical splendor.

It’s also splendid to look at, with the art nouveau swirls of David Korins’ set lit in rich purples and pinks by Jeff Croiter. Anita Yavich’s costumes, nodding to the period but also shredding it, are spectacular. The cast sings prettily, too.

Whether the prettiness outweighs the silliness will involve a personal calculus. For me, the hybridization of dance and musical theater is problematic, as it all but dares you to find one or the other set of genes defective in the resultant offspring. Had “Only Gold” been merely an evening of choreography set to songs, I would have gotten no less from it, even if Nash’s lyrics kept drawing my attention in the wrong direction. Some of the numbers, especially those from her back catalog, have an entirely mystifying relationship to the story, or to any story.

But her music, with its funky accents and faux baroque curlicues on a girl-pop foundation, was evidently inspirational for Blankenbuehler. As he recently told Elisabeth Vincentelli in The New York Times, he thrives on syncopation and (in both senses of the word, I think) the offbeat.

It’s a devil’s bargain: If you want the music, you’re pretty much forced to take the words. In “Movin’ Out” (with the words of Billy Joel) and “Come Fly Away” (with the words of Frank Sinatra hits), that isn’t fatally awkward; the shows, essentially dance revues, use the lyrics for mood and just a suggestion of plot. Crucially, neither has much, if any, dialogue, because once you have dialogue, you have a fight on your hands, or rather your feet. The two means of delivering information can’t help but squabble for primacy.

When it’s a fair fight, so much the better — see “West Side Story,” or “Hamilton” for that matter. But in “Only Gold,” the simplistic story and trite dialogue drag the dancing down. Perhaps the authors spent too much time listening to their hearts and not enough to organs higher and lower.



‘Only Gold’

Through Nov. 27 at MCC Theater, Manhattan; mcctheater.org. Running time: 2 hours, 10 minutes.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.










Today's News

November 9, 2022

Artemis Gallery to host Nov. 10 Antiquities & Ethnographic Fine Art Auction ranked as one of the finest in its history

The Whitney Museum organizes the first exhibition to focus on Edward Hopper's life in New York City

Significant modern & contemporary works from private collections to be offered at Koller Auctions

Lehmann Maupin opens a dual exhibition of new work by Mandy El-Sayegh and Seoul-based artist Keunmin Lee

Tate Britain celebrating British photographer Bill Brandt with "Bill Brandt: Inside the Mirror"

Mark Smith automobilia collection kept bidders engaged at Milestone's $600K auction

Rijksmuseum Schiphol presents landscapes from the Rijksmuseum collection

Almine Rech opens Huang Yuxing's first-ever New York exhibition

Musée Matisse hosts Agnés Thurnauerin "See You at Yours"

Gordon Parks: Stokely Carmichael and Black Power opens at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

Icons of 20th century and contemporary art lead Phillips' November Day Sale in New York

Mathias Deutsch - Bruschcleaning Landscapes recently opened at the Drawing Room

Gagosian opens an exhibition of new paintings, sculptures, and drawings by Glenn Brown

Review: In 'Only Gold,' each move is worth 1,000 words

James Cohan now represents Los Angeles-based painter Jesse Mockrin

Miller, & Miller Auctions, Ltd. announces results of online-only Petroliana & Advertising auction

Ata Doğruel's "Light Source" performance kicked off at OMM - Odunpazarı Modern Museum

Anna Laudel Istanbul presents an extensive solo exhibition of Mehmet Sinan Kuran's work

Ancient Roman medallion brings $312,000 to lead Heritage Auctions World & Ancient Coins event

Lucia Laguna opens an exhibition at Sadie Coles HQ

Ruiz-Healy Art presents two concurrent solo exhibitions from Consuelo Jimenez Underwood

Sperone Westwater opens an exhibition of works by Guillermo Kuitca

'This Art Form is Beautiful and Magical": Jim Lee brings a career-spanning collection to Heritage for auction

Essay Writing Service: Hire an Expert Essay Writer

HappLuke Online Casino Review

Here's What You Need to Know about the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians and Their Headquarters

Best VPN for official Popcorn Time.app client

How to make your bike look cool

Artworks that capture the many aspects of gambling

3 Smart Light Bulbs to Brighten Your 2023

"LUVME Braids, HD lace wigs, and headband wig"

How Can The Arts And Philanthropists Work Together?




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez

sa gaming free credit
Attorneys
Truck Accident Attorneys
Accident Attorneys

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site Parroquia Natividad del Señor
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful