Porgy and Bess

2012 is off to a good start. I caught my first show of the new year today, visiting the Richard Rodgers Theatre to see a performance of the just-opened adaptation of The Gershwin's Porgy and Bess.

As someone very unfamiliar with Porgy and Bess before attending this performance, I found this production to be quite satisfying. I can't comment on changes made to the script or score (though I did find Suzan-Lori Park's to be suitable for this more musical theatre-driven approach) , but I found the performances to be incredible and several of the stage pictures to be quite affecting.

This production's two stars, Audra McDonald and Norm Lewis as Bess and Porgy, respectively, are outstanding. I was thrilled to finally get the opportunity to see four-time Tony winner McDonald, and she didn't disappoint. Her Bess was a wonder to behold; her rendition of "I Loves You, Porgy" alone is enough to warrant buying a ticket to this production. But beyond that, her transformation from a Bess that is bold and brassy to gentle and loving is touching, and made her climactic decision all the more powerful. Lewis matches her every step of the way with his Porgy, embodying the role both physically (with a rather serious limp) and vocally (his "Bess, You Is My Woman Now" was another highlight).

Director Diane Paulus (a 2009 Tony nominee for Hair, has done a great job here, especially with the shows final scenes. Two moments that I thought were beautifully staged were Bess's decision to succumb to the pressures of her old life late in the second act and Porgy's decision to follow her to New York in the finale. My emotional reaction to Porgy limping off into the darkness in his hopes of finding Bess once again was a confirmation of why I love live theatre so much.

Physically, the production isn't anything outstanding. The set is rather unattractive (though much better than that of another new revival playing two blocks away), though I suppose that should be expected considering the setting is a wharf in South Carolina. I did enjoy the lighting effects when the hurricane hit Catfish Row in the second act.

Along with Follies, Porgy and Bess is one of the best performed musicals of this season. McDonald and Lewis are truly amazing, and I'm so happy that I got to experience this beautiful and heartbreaking story for the first time with them at the wheel.