In his current engagement at the Goodman Studio Theatre (which is not entirely sold-out despite reports), Mandy Patinkin redefines the musical-theater concert from the moment he walks onstage. Dressed in black slacks, a loose-fitting coral-colored T-shirt, and gym shoes, he pops out from the wings carrying two pots of flowers with which to decorate a stage that is bare except for a couple of ladders, a standing lamp with a naked light bulb, and a man sitting at the piano. Adjusting to the audience–and allowing them to adjust to his decidedly unorthodox manner–Patinkin stands still and begins to sing: “When the red, red robin comes bob-, bob-, bobbin’ along.” His voice is perfectly focused and pitched but weirdly bland, almost deadpan, as if he can’t believe the optimistic tune he’s mouthing. Yet he wants to believe it; that’s why he chose it.
Best of Chicago voting is live now. Vote for your favorites »
Over the next two intermissionless hours of singing, story telling, and occasional dancing, Patinkin continues this unsettling blend of show-biz ballsiness and quirky, emotionally fragile introspection. This isn’t the kind of show we’ve come to expect from singing stars; this is something new, the concert as performance art. And–more than his brilliant starring performances on Broadway in Evita and Sunday in the Park With George–it establishes Patinkin as the most innovative and dynamic musical-theater singer since Barbra Streisand back when she was good.
And in a virtuosic medley from Rodgers and Hart’s Pal Joey, he’s the perfect Joey Evans–two-bit hustler, would-be musician, and sleazoid womanizer. He seethes with defensive anger as he confesses “I could never spell” before launching into a lyrical chorus of “I Could Write a Book,” designed to win the favors of a skeptical lady; moves with snaky grace in a silent tap dance to the strains of “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered”; and spits out a defiant assertion of his voluntary isolation in “Talking to My Pal,” a seldom-heard song cut from the 1940 show. (The songs in this sequence are tied together with dialogue from Robert Falls’s script for his revised revival of the John O’Hara-inspired show at the Goodman three years ago; if Patinkin and Falls are thinking of bringing Pal Joey to Broadway, it should be a sensation.)
