Andy Warhol Musical: In Rehearsal - singing and dancing at The Factory
12 Jul 2018

by Drew Rowsome -

Andy Warhol Musical: In Rehearsal could very well be, once it is done with workshopping, retitled Andy Warhol! The Musical!. A subtle distinction, but the current title is conceptual while the apparent aim is for one of those brash '80s musicals that strove to dazzle and entertain - Cats!, Chaplin!, Evil Dead the Musical!, or Stop the Planet of the Apes, I Want to Get Off! - by musicalizing an unlikely source.

Andy Warhol Musical: In Rehearsal is a straightforward docudrama illustrating the story of the rise and fall of Andy Warhol's famous/notorious The Factory and the famous/notorious people who worked or hung out there. The history lesson is narrated amiably by Christopher Wilson (Company, Assassins, Into the Woods) who uses his charisma to create a singing and dancing cross between Charles Gray's Criminologist and William Holden's Joe Gillis. Other members of the exceptionally talented cast occasionally take over, mainly to introduce the musical numbers meant to illustrate or emphasize the trajectory of the character being presented and discussed.

The two threads co-exist uneasily, while the story of The Factory inhabitants are inherently riveting, there is little new information presented, and the central thesis seems to be that Warhol callously used and then casually discarded everyone who entered his orbit. The conceptual framework of the "In Rehearsal" part of the title starts big with a production number featuring the entire cast singing and dancing "Love Me." It rivals the audition scenes from A Chorus Line or All That Jazz, with the extra high kick of dancer desperation applied to real life characters.

When the entire cast belts and gyrates, there is a power that rolls off the stage and carries the audience along. It is exciting that Toronto has such a pool of talent to choose from that it can fill a stage with powerhouses, but alas the music and lyrics don't quite match that level of expertise. The rhymes and tunes are generic except for a few unusual intervals that stumped the abilities of even such fine singers. This is particularly unfortunate because Andy Warhol Musical: In Rehearsal's intro music is Lou Reed's "I'm Waiting For My Man" and the extro is "Walk on the Wild Side," both of which are, decades later, groundbreaking, insanely catchy and speak volumes about the scene they were conceived in. Is it time for Lou!?

There is clever interplay with the looming projections, Warhol has never looked scarier, evoking the Exploding Plastic Inevitable, and a musical chairs bit lifted from Evita where the women, the bio-women, in Warhol's universe compete for his attention. Devin Chin-Cheong's dance number as Freddie Herko upstages the rest of the choreography, not only for its expansiveness compared to the vogue-esque group choreography, but for his skimpy costuming and breathtaking torso (even though the audience is brutally disappointed that it is not historically accurate, as we are told, Herko's suicide dance was done in the nude). Jewelle Blackman (Once on This Island) has Nico's sang-froid conjured to icy perfection except for her vocals which are blistering red hot. 

The first persona we meet is Duff MacDonald's feisty Jackie Curtis before he picks up large chunks of the narration as the rough trade Billy Linich. It is a deft exploration of duality, sexuality and the universal vulnerability of gender roles. The last is Chase Winnicky's Candy Darling who delivers a devastating monologue and a power ballad that would have broken hearts if it were as well written as it is delivered. Stacey Kay is a sassy Brigid Berlin and Sarah Gibbons (Obeah Opera, Falsettos) a regal Viva. The show itself may be "In Rehearsal," but the entire cast is ready for the spotlight.

The history lesson becomes contemporary commentary with the cast absorbed in their cell phones while singing what Andy Warhol Musical: In Rehearsal posits as Warhol's mantra, "You've got to be completely disconnected from the human race/If you want to get through the day face to face." It is a smart moment linking Warhol's philosophy to our current epidemic of alienation and incivility, but were there smart phones in the '60s? Or is that part of the "In Rehearsal" theme? A similar link between Warhol's misogyny and the #MeToo movement is tenuous if worthy of exploration, and linking his trans/drag superstars to misogyny puzzles. 

This Fringe workshop production should help pinpoint where some of the problems are and the creatives are requesting feedback on their website - I can hear theatre queens revving their engines from here. But the cast truly is stellar and they manage to pump the material into an engaging and fun show. It make take more than 15 minutes, but Andy Warhol! The Musical! is imminent.