This a Bronx Tale and just like they all do, it starts right here on Belmont Avenue. Well, the mockup of Belmont Avenue by way of Dundalk Community Theatre. Making its area premiere, A Bronx Tale: The Musical (Book: Chazz Palminteri, Music: Alan Menken, Lyrics: Glenn Slater) is based on the play of the same name and has the musical atmosphere of Hairspray and Jersey Boys with some plot structures along similar lines. Directed by Robert W. Oppel, with Musical Direction by Nathan Scavilla, and Choreography by Rachel Lynnae Byers, the show is sure to move you with some of its brilliant performers.
Dundalk Community Theatre has done an impressive job in recent productions bringing together some sensational talent to really amp up the level of impressive performance being experienced on their stage (last season’s closing offering of A Chorus Line comes immediately to mind.) And while the same is true of the cast featured in A Bronx Tale: The Musical, the libretto itself isn’t terribly sound. Chazz Palminteri’s narrative, while entertaining when it was a one-man show or even as a blockbuster style film-gem, falls to a mixed bag of confused opportunities as a musical. The opening number is just shy of a carbon copy of Hairspray’s “Good Morning, Baltimore!” save for the lyrics, and the overall plot progression isn’t sure if it wants to be about Calogero’s ‘coming of age’ and the dichotomy between honest blue-collar living and mob-gangster stuff or the racial disparity of the clashing neighborhoods in the Bronx and the love that could potentially blossom between two people, one from each neighborhood. And a well-constructed musical could seamlessly blend both into a functional show. A Bronx Tale: The Musical, misses the mark, introducing the romantic component and the racial tensions far too late in the show for the conclusion of those elements to feel anything other than forced.
But don’t let the sloppy libretto and confused plot compounds detract from the sensational talent singing and dancing and storytelling on the stage. And what a stage! Technical Director Marc W. Smith (lighting, scenic, and sound design) has really nestled into the Bronx neighborhood by way of projections and fly-drop scenic elements. You get the feeling of truly being transported, especially when Calogero (the show’s narrative conduit and protagonist) starts talking about the stoop (though Smith needs to ensure that the show’s run-crew really locks those wheels into place on those stoops, or build sturdier stoops, as they wobble and jiggle around quite a bit when people are gathering on them or going up and down them; the concern for potential collapse and actor injury pulls you right out of the beautiful world that Smith has crafted.) It’s a real picturesque scenic design that can truly only be described as transportive. (Forgive some of the more slapdash elements like the sloppily hand-painted crates that say ‘beer’ and ‘liquor’ whenever the scene rolls into the bar, because the attention to detail in the hanging signs of the street scenes and the hanging tenement windows to craft the illusion of two-story buildings cancels out some the lackluster components)
Lighting and Sound are well conceptualized and executed too. When Sonny’s crew (a bunch of thuggish gangsters who are introduced all at once) are identified, each gets a frozen moment where they face and turn, lights flashing and flashbulb SFX echoing around to create the impression that they’ve all had their mugshots done at least once. It’s a clever series of well-integrated effects. You get a lot of blue mood lighting early on as well, primarily to ‘set the mood’ when Calogero starts narrating, which leads into the opening number, “Belmont Avenue.” There are some sound balance issues (a consistent problem for Dundalk Community Theatre) but in this case it’s with the delightful Doo-Wop quartet, whose harmonies and background singing often overpower Calogero when he’s starting one of his anecdotes. While the Doo-Wop quartet is pleasant on the ear, with sublime harmonies, and impressive falsetto and top-tenor sounds, I imagine that director, cast, crew, and Chazz Palminteri would prefer the audience hear what Calogero is saying rather than the wordless-Doo-Wop of the background.
Choreographer Rachel Lynnae Byers infuses the bigger group numbers with movements that heed the call of the1960’s. There’s a lot of crafty, albeit simple, steps featured in the big opening number, which gives the audience the flavor of the era. “Roll ‘Em” (a gambling number) gets a lot of stomp-and-step based movements while “Webster Avenue”, which is the opening of Act II on the black side of town, features movements that more rhythmically align with the song, shifting the Jersey Boys feel of the show to something more along the lines of Ain’t Too Proud or Memphis. Byers has a good handle on what moves accurately represent the time frame as well as the varied musical styles in the two halves of the Bronx but keeps the steps simple and clean for all levels of community-theatre dancing talent.
Musical Director Nathan Scavilla has an impressive handle on the live orchestra as well as the singers on the stage. Some of the pristine harmonies that float out of the mouths of the Doo-Wop boys are— much like the scenic design— truly transportive. You find yourself right beside them on Belmont Avenue under that lamppost. Quinten Patrick, Ethan Kehring, Christopher Fessler, and Caden Wise comprise the Doo-Wop quartet with Kehring providing some of those Frankie Valli style high notes and delivering them with a crisp clearness during “Ain’t It The Truth.” Scavilla provides balanced sounds from the pit, strongly blended harmonies across the board on stage, and keeps the show’s pacing rolling along smoothly when it comes to the tempo of them music.
Director Robert W, Oppel has knuckled down into the emotional meat of the libretto (despite the lackluster organization of the show’s narrative components— introducing the love interest and the conflict therein too late in the production to have naturally earned conclusions, etc.) The honest, raw emotions that you get— particularly from Lorenzo Annello, Calogero’s father— is inspiring. And keeping an ensemble looking busy without the audience feeling as if they’re meant to “look busy” is another feather in Oppel’s directorial cap. The show is peppered liberally with foul-mouthed language (the appropriate F-bomb here, there, and all around the square as it were and some more loaded racial slurs, which reflect only the time in which the show takes place, etc.) and Oppel does an impressive job of fitting these naturally into the flow of the show so that they don’t jar or disrupt. Ultimately Oppel finds a level of flow to the show that helps both libretto and music find its footing, which is a great service to the extraordinary cast he’s put on the stage for A Bronx Tale: The Musical.
Children on stage are always a gamble, as you never quite know what you’re going to get, but in this case— it’s a sure bet, put all your chips on Noah Anderson (playing Young Calogero) and you’ll come out a winner. Such spunk and pluck and a whole lot of gumption, Anderson is clearly going places. With a wildly emphatic voice that just bursts all through “I Like It.” The number itself is a little silly but Anderson sells it like P.T. Barnum selling tickets to his menagerie and the audience eats it up, and his vocals are impressive. Anderson also manages to bring an emotional purity to the character that really makes you feel all of the frustrations and joys of the young protagonist on an invigorating level.
We talked about the young crooning Doo-Wop quartet (who double up as Calogero’s thugs/gang at various points throughout the performance) but we haven’t talked about Sonny’s band of buffoons. They’ve all got cleverish monikers and get introduced as such in a fly-by-night moment (with the nifty ‘mugshot’ sound and lighting effect.) Rudy the Voice (E. Lee Nicol), Eddie Mush (Aaron Dalton), Jojo the Whale (Wayne Ivusich), Frankie Coffeecake (Jim Morgan) and Tony-Ten-To-Two (Ryan Geiger.) This quintet of ne’er-do-wells mostly stand around like bodyguards for Sonny, though Nicol’s character literally sings every line he’s given (which is a great showcase of Nicol’s sensational sound) and several of the others make hilarious little side bars, mostly Geiger physically hauling the rest of them off during “Roll ‘Em” because Sonny doesn’t want them ‘tainting the bet’ as it were. Strong bunch of guys who sing and blend well and cut imposing figures. What more could you ask for in these bit-part roles?
While Calogero’s love interest, Jane (A’nya Cox) doesn’t really get the full plot development that the character deserves, Cox does a superb job of getting her song on as well as giving the character some emotional complexity. Cox has a powerful voice, which features in both “Out of Your Head” and its reprise (her true feature solo) and you get to see her more playful side, opening the second act with “Webster Avenue.” Supported by powerhouse vocalist Eric Bray Jr., in the role of her brother Tyrone, you get a sense of emotional charge between the pair, particularly when the scenes get rocky between the races on stage. Both Cox and Bray Jr., have stellar vocal capabilities and do an excellent job of fleshing out these characters in ways that the libretto seemed to forget to do.
The heavy-hitting influences in Calogero’s life in A Bronx Tale: The Musical come by way of his father Lorenzo (Brandon Nicholas Pfeltz) and his ‘faddah’ Sonny (Peter N. Crews.) And the two couldn’t be more opposite if they tried. Pfeltz, as the hard-working, blue-collar, do-what’s-right, Italian papa figure, is extraordinary in the role. (You can readily forgive his youthful age because of how well he performs as the character.) You get this extremely compassionate sound, earnest and open, from Pfeltz during “Look To Your Heart”, a number delivered to Young Calogero early in the production. And that same sentiment of caring for his boy carries through though in a much colder, harsher, ‘tough-love’ vibe for “These Streets”, the act one finale. You get to hear a bit from Calogero’s mother, Rosina (Rachel Weir) in this number as well. Pfeltz has a solid Italian-Bronx accent that carries into his singing voice and remains consistent throughout the production too.
Sonny (Crews) is that slick-talking, fast-moving, wannabe-Godfather type, who knows the rules of the street, is the boss of the Bronx, and for all intents and purposes is the reactionary catalyst in Calogero’s narrative. Crews is stellar in the role, wearing the street-savvy character like a second skin. Given a chance to showcase his triple-threat capabilities, you get to see some serious singing and dancing along with gangster-style acting during “Roll ‘Em” and “Nicky Machiavelli”, which is this show’s “Butter Outta Cream”, same style, same rhythms, similar message. Crews brings a genuine nature to the character— hard-ass and ball-busting-all-business when he needs to be, but it is clear from his portrayal that he cares about Calogero like the kid is his own son.
Al Tony Conte, taking up the leading role of Calogero, has a striking stage presence that really captures the audiences’ attentions right from the moment he opens the show. He’s got that lyrically infused crooning/storytelling singer voice that feels like it came straight out of the 60’s by way of a time machine and it settles into this beautiful, mellifluous tenor range that does each of Calogero’s numbers a great justice. You just swoon along when Conte sings. But he’s more than just a pretty voice. Conte has a keen understanding of the Bronx accent and delivery as well as how to build tension into his storytelling moments. The character is both narrative-external and action-happening-internal, hopping in and out of the scenes, flipping from one mode to another and doing so succinctly. Conte is a remarkable new talent that certainly elevates this production. “Out Of Your Head” is one of his most impressive moments in song.
So this is A Bronx Tale and it’s happening right now, (no, not on Belmont Avenue…Sollers Point Road…which is sort of like a Belmont Avenue?) and while the libretto is a confused hodgepodge, surfacing in the golden-Oprah-era of musicals, the talented cast really does a number on making it worth your while to see.
Running Time: Approximately 2 hours and five minutes with one intermission
A Bronx Tale: The Musical plays through October 30, 2022 Theatre located on the campus of the Community College of Baltimore County Dundalk in the John E. Ravekes Theatre— 7200 Sollers Point Road in Dundalk, MD. Tickets are available for purchase by calling the box office at (443) 840-2787 or by purchasing them in advance online.
