RSS 2.0 FeedSeptember 21, 2011, Theatre
One night with a troubled legend
With its production of “Nobody Lonesome For Me,” the American Heartland Theatre starts of its year with a one-man tribute to Hank Williams’s trying times and soulful music.
Celebrating two-and-a-half decades of productions in Kansas City, the American Heartland Theatre opened its 25th anniversary season with a local premier. Written by Lanie Robertson, Nobody Lonesome For Me depicts a night in the life of the legendary country singer-songwriter Hank Williams.
The play presents a look into the psychology and life of the iconic figure through some factual stories in a fictional setting. It is New Year's Eve 1952, and Williams (Matthew Brumlow) finds himself stranded in a gas station on his way to Ohio. During what turns out to be a very trying night, the singer shares his memories and his music with the audience.
Nobody Lonesome For Me is essentially a one-man show that places the audience in the place of an imaginary proprietor of the gas station. Williams conducts a one-on-one conversation with the audience throughout the night/performance, creating a sincere exchange of emotions at a personal level.
Chicago stage veteran Brumlow, who starred in the Milwaukee Repertory Theater's production of Nobody Lonesome For Me earlier in 2011, portrayed Williams with energy and complexity throughout. He took control of the stage effortlessly as his character was swept between the polarities of joy, sorrow, guilt, and confusion.
Brumlow is also a proficient guitar player and singer, and has a keen ear. He performed some of Williams’s greatest hits, such as You Are My Sunshine, I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry, Lovesick Blues, and several more, with ease and gusto.
For the musical numbers, Brumlow was joined by Russ Wever on steel guitar, dobro, and electric guitar, and Marshall Baker on fiddle. The accompaniment not only transformed a straight play into a musical performance, but also reflected Williams’s inner world, and the way he heard the music in its wholeness.
However, the fiddle was too loud, did not blend with the two guitars during the songs, and overpowered Brumlow’s lines, often making them indiscernible. I also did not understand why the fiddle player walked around, sometimes exiting and reentering the stage. As the instruments were amplified, the movement did not make any difference on the sound, and the levels stayed the same even when the fiddler was not in sight. It was unnecessary and distracting.
On the other hand, the set and the use of space onstage was very effective. Before the play began, I wondered about the simplicity of the décor. However, it all made sense when Williams, throughout the play, turned the minimally furnished gas station into a wayward teenager boy's bedroom with all his belongings; it was a powerful choice on the part of director Craig Fols, creating a multilayered presentation of Williams's cluttered mind and addled emotions. Fols empowered Brumlow's performance with silent clues and visual storytelling that drew the audience into the darker corners of Williams's personality.
During the intermission, some of the audience members complained about the strong language used in the play. They claimed that AHT advertised the performance differently. Perhaps these folks had seen the ad copy “New Year's Eve…sharing stories and music” and expected more of a holiday-season show. They were rightfully surprised.
Nobody Lonesome For Me includes moderately profane language, dark humor, and tragedy as well as good-old-fashioned fun. I was not offended by the language in the least; on the contrary, I found the writing witty and entertaining. The show offers a good balance of dramatic dialogue and musical performance, especially for fans of country music.
REVIEW:
American Heartland Theatre
Nobody Lonesome For Me
Runs September 9 through October 29 (reviewed Thursday, September 15)
2450 Grand Boulevard, Kansas City, MO
For tickets and more information, call 816-842-9999 or visit www.ahtkc.com
Top Photo: Matthew Brumlow as Hank Williams in AHT's Nobody Lonesome for Me
Classical, New Classical, Jazz, Theatre Contributor
Nihan Yesil is a composer/performance artist and currently a candidate of M.M.Composition at the UMKC Conservatory. She composes both acoustic and electroacoustic music and has a strong interest in experimenting with the perception of sound and language.
Nihan started studying classical music with her father, M. Emin Yesil, at an early age and earned a bachelor's degree in Jazz Composition in Istanbul, Turkey, studying with Lawrence D. "Butch" Morris, Ali Perret, and Aydin Esen. She participated in festivals and artist residencies inclduing the Henry Mancini Institute, Czech-American Summer Music Institute, Brevard Music Festival, Electronic Music Midwest Festival, Women in New Music, Oregon Bach Festival Composers Symposium, Escape to Create Artist-in-Residence Program and I-Park Artists' Enclave Residency where she also served as a selection committee member for the composition program. Her compositions have been performed at number of venues both in Turkey and the U.S.
Her favorite activity is experiencing or witnessing any form of artistic creativity. Nihan is a big fan of the Internet and keeps several blogs where she presents her unsolicited opinion on different subject matters.
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