Pasadena Playhouse Mare Winningham and
Dennis Christopher star in "Side Man."
By Alicia Cheak
Daily Bruin Contributor
Often regarded as true artists, individuals who dedicate
themselves to their passion exist on the fringe of society, living
according to a different set of rules. Many get by only living from
gig to gig, waiting for the next opportunity to express their
art.
“Side Man,” Warren Leight’s Pulitzer Prize
finalist piece, which also won the 1999 Tony Award for Best Play,
is an atmospheric and bittersweet play about the joy and despair of
when art and life collide. It unfolds in a dreamlike manner through
the eyes of Clifford, the only son of Gene, a skilled and
passionate jazz trumpet player and Terry, an alcoholic mother.
Set in 1953 and spanning some 30 years, “Side Man”
traces the dissolution of a marriage against the backdrop of a
larger event ““ the decline of jazz. The production opens with
a 30-year-old Clifford, played with ironic detachment by JD Cullum
who, overly responsible and self-effacing, takes too much upon
himself. He believes his birth marked the end of his father’s
freedom and his parent’s happiness. The retrospect is an
attempt to frame the circumstances in his father’s life off
the stage and the effect it has on his family.
Gene, his father, is the center of the story. A brilliant
musician who is oblivious to the world around him, who steals the
show but is unaware of it, Gene is maladapted for the real world.
Governed by jazzonomics, a simple theory that places playing jazz
on the top of a to-do list, Gene is headed for financial ruin and
neither his wife nor son are able to prevent it. Instead, for
different reasons, each hold on as long as possible before leaving
but not without considerable damage.
Dennis Christopher puts on a convincing performance as Gene, the
flawed father and husband. A tough role to play because it consists
mainly of distant detached looks and a tempo slower than the rest
of the cast, Christopher effectively delivers a man who, true to
character, never takes the spotlight even if he is in it.
While Gene remains relatively unchanged throughout the play, he
nevertheless evokes changes in those around him, namely Terry, a
once tough but naive girl, now a disillusioned, hard drinking,
three-packs-a-day smoker.
As Terry, Mare Winningham (“Wyatt Earp,”
“Georgia”) is not up to the level of her counterpart
but that could be because the audience is more accustomed to seeing
her in more sober and restrained roles. It’s difficult to
look beyond her history and see a woman acting out her discontent
against the inertia around her.
Winningham’s outbursts are overplayed, staged and often
forced. But although she may falter in this area, Winningham
nonetheless charms as the unwitting wit ““ a clairvoyant, who
sees potential in others but is, like Gene, oblivious to her own
worth.
As Clifford, Cullum moves easily between narrator, observer in
the scene, and center of the play ““ equally convincing as a
30-year-old disillusioned commentator and as a 10-year-old marriage
counselor. He’s got issues of his own, namely the inability
to be vulnerable, and chooses to let his words contain the irony
rather than his attitude. In this regard, Clifford is more like his
father.
Director Andrew J. Robinson recognizes the importance of his
three central characters and allows each their moment on stage,
while the others retreat graciously. Just as in jazz, each gets a
solo, a chance to shine in the spot light.
Rounding up the cast is a cacophonous trio played smoothly by
Gareth Williams, Ethan Phillips and Daniel Reichert, each eccentric
in their own way and each adding humor to an otherwise harsh
landscape of booze, drugs and gambling.
Beyond a domestic drama, what makes this production worth
viewing is the music. Jazz composer Peter Erskine’s original
score accompanies selections from jazz legends such as Clifford
Brown, Benny Golson, Donald Byrd and Ella Fitzgerald. Together,
they work harmoniously to create a graceful and moving
experience.
“Side Man” is a poignant and at times humorous play
of music and love lost. And while it would never be possible to
truly recreate the era of smoke-filled music clubs in New York
where musicians, as Clifford says in closing, lived and
“mastered their obsession, who ignored or didn’t even
notice anything else,” Leight’s play comes persuasively
close.
THEATER: “Side Man” is playing
through June 17 at Pasadena Playhouse, 39 S. El Molina Ave.,
Pasadena, Tuesdays through Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 5 p.m.
and 9 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets are $15 to $42.50.
For more information call (626) 356-PLAY.