THEATRE REVIEW: "Kimberly Akimbo" at the Booth Theatre (New York, NY)

      On May 17th, 2023, I saw the 2pm performance of the musical "Kimberly Akimbo" at the Booth Theatre in New York City.  "Kimberly Akimbo" opened for previews on Broadway on October 12th, 2022.  Prior to that, the musical had a successful off-Broadway run at the Linda Gross Theatre, where the production began previews on November 6th, 2021 and ran until January 15th, 2022.  The off-Broadway Production of "Kimberly Akimbo" won three Lucille Lortel Awards, one Clive Barnes Award, one Drama Desk Award, four Outer Critic Circle Awards, and one Theatre World Award.  The Broadway Production of "Kimberly Akimbo" has been nominated for eight Tony Awards.  As emotionally charged as this musical is, it fell short of "Some Like it Hot," which was nominated for thirteen Tony Awards.  

     

     The cast of "Kimberly Akimbo" includes Victoria Clark (Kimberly), Justin Cooley (Seth), Olivia Elease Hardy (Delia), Fernell Hogan (Martin), Nina White (Teresa), Michael Iskander (Aaron), Steven Boyer (Buddy), Alli Mauzey (Pattie), and Bonnie Milligan (Debra).  The musical features a book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire, and music by Jeanine Tesori.  The scenic design for the Broadway Production is by David Zinn.  The show is about a girl named Kimberly who has a rare genetic condition that causes her to age more rapidly than her peers, to the extent that, at the age of nearly sixteen years old, she appears to be in her seventies.  One of the problems that arises from this is that few people with this disease live past the age of sixteen.  Add to this family drama and typical teenage anxt, and you have "Kimberly Akimbo."

The marquee of thr Booth Theatre (I took this photo).

       My seat for "Kimberly Akimbo" was located in the front row, center of the orchestra level.  I won the ticket lottery again through Telecharge, so my mom and dad didn't have to pay full price for the theatre ticket.  I was worried when I first got to my seat that I was too close to the stage.  But it turned out to be a great vantage point to see the musical.  The only difference between sitting that close to the stage and sitting elsewhere is that I had to move my head more throughout the show to see everything that was happening on stage.  I loved being able to see the actors' facial expressions though.  

     The evening before I saw "Kimberly Akimbo," I listened to the Original Broadway Cast Recording of the musical through the app of my local library.  I enjoyed the music but I had trouble telling which character was singing what song.  Seeing the show live helped clarify some of the confusion and the grey areas.  Also, even though I saw "Kimberly Akimbo" six months after it began previews last October, I'm pretty sure I saw the Original Broadway Cast (Yup!  Just checked).  After the show, I bought a cheeseburger again at a food cart in Times Square, just like last month.  It was delicious and so was the ginger ale I bought too.  

     Among the cast of this production, Ali Mauzey is the only person I've seen in a show before.  In July of 2012, my dad and I saw her as Glinda in the National Tour of "Wicked" at the Civic Theatre in San Diego.  In fact, I actually saw "Wicked" twice during that San Diego trip.  The Standby performer for Pattie (Ali Mauzey's role) is Betsy Morgan, who I saw play the role of Fantine three times in the 25th Anniversary Tour of "Les Misérables."  I went to see "Kimberly Akimbo" wondering if she'd normally had an ensemble role, but she didn't.  The cast for the musical us pretty small.  

      One of the things I love about this show are the references to the Wild Safari Park at Six Flags Great Adventure, and Great Adventure itself.  I've never been to the Wild Safari Park, but I've been to Great Adventure two times.  I have gone to Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois, many more times, since I've spent much more of my life in the Chicago area.  But I went to Great Adventure in New Jersey in 2001 and 2006.  My parents grew up in New York, and went to Great Adventure a lot.  My mom remembers going on Rolling Thunder and Lightnin' Loops.  Rolling Thunder is still there, I think.  I went on that ride in 2001.  I guess I have gone off on a tangent.  That's ok.  My attention span is what it is.

Point-of-view photo from my front-row seat at "Kimberly Akimbo" at the Booth Theatre (Obviously, I took this photo). 

     The stagecraft of "Kimberly Akimbo" was pretty neat.  There was a small turntable mechanism, a trap door mechanism, apparent ice skating, and new sets that appeared to come out of nowhere.  During some scene changes, the cast members would assist in pulling a wall out or pushing it offstage.  The orchestra was not located in the orchestra pit, but elevated on the second level behind the actors.  I might be mistaken, but I think one of the orchestra members laughed loudly at one of the jokes within the musical.  The show has been running since last October, so I figure he'd heard the joke a bunch of ttimes by now.

   

     All in all, I enjoyed this show.  Even though the music was great, I think my favorite part was when Kimberly came out on stage dressed as a grandmother for a heist of some sort and Debra says she looked like Barbara Bush.  It was funny lines and sad moments during the show that helped me forget my own woes--such as a sore backside from sitting too long and how I might kill time after the show before my return train upstate.  It's amazing how selfless I am.  Isn't it?  I also liked the recurring theme of anagrams... It reminded me a little of "Rosemary's Baby."  

Victoria Clark and the cast of "Kimberly Akimbo" (photo by Joan Marcus).

     The musical "Kimberly Akimbo" is based on the David Lindsay-Abaire play of the same name.  The play had its World Premiere from April 13th through May 13th, 2001 at the South Coast Repertory in Coasta Mesa, California.  From February 4th through April 6th, 2003, the play ran off-Broadway at the Manhattan Theatre Club of the New York City Center.  Among the cast was Ana Gasteyer, who played Debra.  I had never heard of the play, let alone the musical, until very recently.  I'm glad I at least got to see the musical.  

 

         The final song of this musical, "Great Adventure," contains the lyrics "no one gets a second time around."  I don't know where that leaves people who believe in past lives or reincarnation, but I think the purpose of those lyrics is to encourage the audience to make the most out of life (responsibly, I'm sure).  After the sad and emotional moments leading up to the Finale, I guess I was hoping for something more uplifting to give me enough of an emotional lift for my walk back to Grand Central Station.  Yet, if the song was instead about reincarnation or the like, maybe that would have made making the most out of life seem pointless.  Who knows?  The show is certainly thought provoking.  

The cast of "Kimberly Akimbo" (photo by Joan Marcus).