Memphis

In Philly at the Kimmel Center for a limited time is the Tony-award winning musical "Memphis," and having gotten a chance to see it last night, it was quite apparent where all of the acclaim is derived. It is a musically bombastic exploration of the progression of rock 'n roll music, the civil rights movement, and the ever-changing definition of love.

Memphis follows the story of ahead-of-his-time music enthusiast Huey Calhoun (somewhat heavily influenced by the story of real-life Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips) and his fight for civil rights by way of music enthusiasm. A fan of the lively "race records", Calhoun finds his way to the black side of town and into a blues bar.

After initial distrust, the patrons of owner Delray's bar grow to like Calhoun and his unending love for their blues music. Particularly taken with Calhoun (and vice versa) is Felicia, the lead singer and aspiring star and Delray's little sister. The show tracks Calhoun and Felicia's slow ascent to Memphis superstardom and the many violent and scary turns that this journey entailed in a racially intolerant city.

While this story is endearing, Memphis' true strong suit belongs to the subtle yet remarkable way that the show integrates the evolution of the music of the 1950's, and the way that it truly reflected the racial tensions of the time. Each number was positively bursting with energy and you could almost feel the audience waiting on the edge of its seats for the end of each song so the burst of applause could resume.

While the cast was uniformly and overwhelmingly talented, I would be remiss in not mentioning the breathtaking performance by Felicia Boswell in her eponymous role as Felicia. Boswell is the type of singer that sucks the air out of you every time she performs and one that can take a song to unexpected places. Possibly one of the best singers I have ever personally seen live, she brought an entirely different excitement to the show.

While the show was an overall smash, there were certainly some glaring problems with the experience. Most of these difficulties became particularly bothersome in the second half of the show. First of all, there are the inevitable comparisons to "Hairspray" that are harmful to the show.

Following a similar narrative of a forward-thinking white person swooping in and using his white privilege to help the poor, talented black folks...the entire progression was just a bit too similar without many of "Hairspray's" strongest aspects.

More in depth is the generally confusing direction that the show takes. For example, "Hairspray" addressed the nastiness of that time with an overwhelming exuberance on the part of the civil rights fighters. The hope that people had about the changing times was what drove the narrative. None of this is seen in "Memphis"...which isn't a problem by itself.

However, "Memphis" deals with race relations with a swiveling hope and despair that may be more accurate but lacks focus. If more time were spent letting the characters delve into their fear and anger over the situation, then perhaps it would have had a clearer point of view.

Too often, however, the characters are made to take the situation lightly and it is difficult for the audience to emotionally engage with them. This mix of approaches left me with very little connection with the characters and the show itself.

Lack of focus aside, "Memphis" was immensely entertaining and varied in its approaches to musical theatre, and I recommend it highly. The cast was just incredibly lovely and talented, the production seamless and impressive, and it was an all-around positive experience.

I may somewhat question "Memphis'" chops in storytelling, but not in its overall entertainment value. Be sure to catch it before it leaves Philly!