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| John Forster, Timothy Jerome, Judy Kahan, Jane Curtin. |
Done originally as a showcase sponsored by the Phoenix
Theatre Company, this tasty little tidbit went down smoothly enough to warrant
its resuscitation as an Off-Broadway effort. In that guise, it kept breathing for
a comfortable three and a half months. It was a “Bright, bland and blithe”
delectation, vowed Clive Barnes, who called it “small, modest, yet chic.” Martin
Gottfried agreed that it was “modest,” while Douglas Watt called it “slight.”
Three comedian-singers (Jane Curtin, Timothy Jerome, and
Judy Kahan) and an amusing pianist (John Forster), who occasionally joined in
the fun, used Stuart Wurtzel’s simple but surprisingly adaptable set to run
through a series of 15 skits on the theme of “mild urban disillusion,” as
Barnes put it. The title referred to an old rock and roll trio who, years after
splitting up and becoming successful as important people in science and
politics, have a reunion and sing “Pretzels,” their 1961 hit single. Other bits
included one about a would-be ladies man from Greenwich Village who comes on
strong with pre-planned, arty talk about Ingmar Bergan or museum tapestries to
girls at cocktail parties; one about Mozart’s efforts to come up with a
commercial hit; another about a Spanish actress on an unemployment line who suddenly
bursts out in the only English she knows, learned for a TV commercial; one dealing
with a bored housewife who wants to sing and dance more than to play hostess at
dinner parties; one in which an anthropologist working as a coffee waitress, for
the experience, enjoys talking about a South Pacific tribe’s sexual habits,
and so on.
The satire was rather weak, the program was uneven, and the
music, while pleasant, in the pastiche vein reminiscent of familiar tunes.
However, the lyrics were clever and laugh-provoking.
Most critics were impressed by the versatile cast, who had
worked together in the popular improv revue, The Proposition. Barnes wrote, “The blonde Miss Curtin showed just
the kind of range one hopes for in a revue performer, moving easily from a snob
cosmetics lady to a Ninth Avenue harridan. Miss Kahan was equally versatile and
spontaneous. I liked particularly her chirpy divorced mother, while Timothy
Jerome showed consistent energy and style.” Although each went on to a
successful career, the one who became a household name, of course, was Curtin after she hit
it big on “SNL.”