A new production about the 1960s doo-wop idol follows the usual rise-and-fall formula. Still, the songs are wonderful, as is the angel-voiced ensemble.
Sometimes, all a show needs is a harmonizing ensemble perched out of windows and fire escapes in a well-appointed street scene to win you over. That’s mostly what gets “The Wanderer,” a new jukebox bio-musical about the rise of the singer-songwriter Dion DiMucci, across the finish line. Despite its falling into the genre’s tiresome tropes, this long-gestating production, which opened at Paper Mill Playhouse in New Jersey on Sunday night, succeeds on sheer sonic strength.
Another story of a singin’ Italian American who could, “The Wanderer” features a divinely voiced Mike Wartella as Dion, best known by his first name. Bio-musicals have a formula that’s certainly “tried” but less convincingly “true.” There are Dion’s humble beginnings, with his initial backing trio, the Belmonts, named after the Bronx neighborhood where they grew up. There are flashes of glory — winning over, and eventually marrying, the new girl on the block (a sweet Christy Altomare). There are setbacks, of course, like Dion’s plunge into a heroin habit, maintained by a shady friend (Joey McIntyre of, yes, New Kids on the Block). And there are moments of writerly ridiculousness, like when a thunderous downbeat follows his tour-mate Buddy Holly’s suggestion that they charter a plane.
Aside from the typically inoffensive rise-and-fall-and-rise narrative, Charles Messina’s book hands Dion a lot of vaguely righteous tantrums about being sick of the doo-wop that made him without ever exploring why it is he’d rather be performing acoustic, singer-songwriter sounds. The song selection, while appropriate enough for the show’s nostalgia, is composed almost exclusively of the same rock ’n’ roll classics Dion claims no longer represent him artistically.
But, wow, do they sound good thanks to Wartella’s crooning vocals. The Belmonts, played by Stephen Cerf, Billy Finn and Jess LeProtto, work up an impressive amount of charm. But their a cappella charisma is virtually discarded after the first requisite recording booth scene, when the orchestrations go into full swing. John Shivers’s crisp sound design and Sonny Paladino’s terrific music direction present a paradox: the more complex the arrangements, the further they get from the story’s shaky insistence that all Dion wants is a guitar to crank out a simple tune. Even when his neighbor, amiably played by Kingsley Leggs, sets up a soulful number as an antidote to the ’60s hit parade, Paladino doesn’t allow one note to go unscored.
At least two scenes try to lend the book’s forced arguments weight by having the music stop, onlookers staring in awe. For a tight-knit Bronx community, these neighbors sure get startled by every little development. Credit must be given to Jasmine Rogers as a neighbor’s daughter, whose appealing stage presence surpasses what little her character gets to do, and Joli Tribuzio, for imbuing Dion’s mother with an interiority the book does not.
Beowulf Boritt’s scenic design, consisting mainly of Bronx streets, transcends its straightforwardness through old-fashioned craft. Revolving set pieces reveal jungle gym-like fire escapes and terraces, and an eye-popping scene set during the Feast of Saint Anthony gives Boritt and the lighting designer Jake DeGroot a chance to flex their candy-colored vision. Along with Sarah Laux’s costumes, the sets outshine Sarah O’Gleby’s busy choreography and Kenneth Ferrone’s unoriginal direction.
“The Wanderer” doesn’t reinvent the wheel, nor does it present a back story that was begging to be told; Dion’s highs and lows weren’t unique. Had it come out during the wave of Boomer traps like “Jersey Boys” and “Million Dollar Quartet,” it might have been buried under sickly nostalgia, its weaknesses amplified through market oversaturation. But, call me a sucker for some good doo-wop, I was continuously charmed by this throwback-y musical and its angel-voiced ensemble.
The Wanderer
Through April 24 at the Paper Mill Playhouse, Millburn, N.J.; papermill.org. Running time: 2 hours 35 minutes.
Source: Music - nytimes.com
