STAGE REVIEW : Well-Balanced ‘Gypsy’ Still Wears Its Relevance

Gypsy Rose Lee’s mother had a dream.

Not a lofty dream. A very specific dream that one of her two daughters would become a star.

Given the Depression era that Mama Rose lived in, it was a brave and gutsy dream--one that her daughter, Rose Louise, didn’t really want, but one she later embraced when she pirated Mama Rose’s vaudeville training to become a star stripper.

Gypsy Rose Lee’s real-life reminiscences are the basis for “Gypsy,” now in a classy presentation by Starlight Musical Theatre. The company’s 47th-season opener runs through June 7 at the Civic Theatre.

One of the secrets to this production’s success is its exquisite balance.

“Gypsy” has traditionally been considered a star vehicle, ever since Ethel Merman wowed audiences as Mama Rose in 1959--in a part created especially for her. The show was revived with Angela Lansbury in 1973 and Tyne Daly in 1989, both of whom won Tonys for the part.

But it is not a star vehicle for Karen Morrow, who stars here as Mama Rose. Morrow is an excellent Rose, with an extraordinary voice and presence, but she does not steal the show. Instead, she creates a terrific dynamic tension with Heather Lee, who plays the forlorn little girl destined to become Gypsy, and Vaughn Armstrong, a strong Herbie, the man Rose cajoles into representing (and loving) her and the kids.

The result is a show that gives the poignant story itself the star status it deserves.

Kenneth Foy’s sets, fresh from Tyne Daly’s Broadway excursion, suggest the grinding poverty in which Mama Rose’s dreams were fostered; the brick walls of the theaters seem impenetrably high and hard to climb. The spectacular costumes by Theoni V. Aldredge, also from Broadway, pit the family’s grim beginnings with the flash of Gypsy’s later success. Jule Styne’s sweeping music is as big and broad as dreams themselves (“Everything’s Coming Up Roses”) and Stephen Sondheim’s ironic lyrics keep the comic-sad specificity of some of these aspirations in perspective (“You can do it/Mama is gonna see to it”).

The “Gypsy” story begins with Mama Rose pushing her little girls, June and sidekick Louise, in their hokey, baton-twirling act at an audition. June’s “Let Me Entertain You” theme song doesn’t change much over the years, even as they grow from kids (a talented Lauren Silva as the precocious June and a poignant Aspen Miller as the shunted-aside Louise) to young adults.

What does change is their feelings about Mama. The adult June (a high-spirited Karyn Overstreet), who has always gotten too much of Mama’s attention, runs away. In real life, she became the actress June Havoc. The adult Louise (an eloquent Heather Lee), who is still looking for Mama’s approval, stays and, with the mute dignity of a sacrificial lamb, lets Mama mold her into June’s replacement--even though it is clear to everyone that she does not have June’s talent.

Then, just as they reach bottom--a strip joint--Mama, Louise and Herbie hit a critical impasse. Is it time to forget the dream and leave show business, or should Louise go on as a star stripper?

Despite some opening-night miking problems, the show moved smoothly, segueing from tap-dancing comedy to drama, as Don and Bonnie Ward, co-artistic directors of Starlight, took pains to re-create Jerome Robbins’ original direction, and choreographer Toni Kaye followed Robbins’ original choreography. The lighting by Gregory Allen Hirsch captured the brightness of the vaudeville numbers and the dinginess behind the scenes--framing individual moments with skill.

Much has happened in the 63 years since Gypsy Rose Lee made her burlesque debut and the 43 years since the Broadway debut of “Gypsy,” yet the musical remains shockingly relevant as choices in American society seem to have come full circle, particularly for women.

That’s what makes this “Gypsy” a show for the ‘90s. Underneath its easy charm, it’s a show packed with cutting commentary, particularly in a time such as now, when a dream, no matter how far-fetched, can sometimes be the only conduit between the world of the haves and the have-nots.

“GYPSY”

By Arthur Laurents from the autobiography of Gypsy Rose Lee. Music by Jule Styne. Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Original production by David Merrick and Leland Hayward. Original direction and choreography by Jerome Robbins. Directors are Don and Bonnie Ward. Choreographer is Toni Kaye. Sets by Kenneth Foy. Costumes by Theoni V. Aldredge. Lighting by Gregory Allen Hirsch. Sound by Bill Lewis. Stage manager is Elizabeth Stephens. Musical director/conductor is Lloyd Cooper. With Karen Morrow, Vaughn Armstrong, Pat White, Cathy Susan Pyles, Julie Greathouse, Karyn Overstreet, Brad Bradley and Heather Lee.