Always… Patsy Cline
Always… Patsy Cline
Westchester Broadway Theatre, Elmsford, NY, February 21, 2016
Reviewed by Chip Deffaa for Cabaret Scenes
Photo: John Vecchiolla
I have mixed feelings about Always… Patsy Cline, which is now playing at the Westchester Broadway dinner theater. On the plus side, you’ll hear plenty of great songs that Cline loved to sing, including “Walkin’ After Midnight,” “I Fall to Pieces,” “Honky Tonk Angels,” “Anytime,” “Lovesick Blues,” and “Crazy.” I loved Patsy Cline, and I was glad to hear these terrific songs again. Erin McCracken, who portrays Cline, has a voice that is reminiscent of Cline’s in timbre. Ted Swindley, who wrote this amiable, but far-from-compelling two-character musical play, gives us an appealing character sketch of a very down-to-earth star. And Susan Fletcher does an outstanding job playing a fan who befriends Cline. (She is the stronger actor of the two, although she has the smaller role.)
But the show sort of skims the surface of Patsy Cline’s life. We don’t learn too much about her as a person. And for me, McCracken’s emulation of Cline wore thin after a while. She offers a kind of skin-deep evocation of Cline. She has a good voice, and she copies the phrasing well. Her performance is pleasant enough in its way. But Cline sang from the heart, with total conviction and sincerity. She had a remarkable voice. But with Cline, it wasn’t just a matter of having a great voice. She touched us as an artist, she compelled our attention, because she was opening up to us, sharing herself with us. McCracken’s performance, agreeable as it is, does not have nearly the emotional depth of Cline’s work.
Don’t get me wrong. Seeing Always… Patsy Cline was, in many ways, is a pleasant experience. And Westchester Broadway always gives you a lot for the money. (You’ll pay much less for dinner and a show at Westchester Broadway than you’d pay for just a show in NYC.) But I felt, well before the show was over, that I’d seen and heard enough. I never grow tired of listening to the actual voice of Patsy Cline. But, after a certain point, this well-rehearsed imitation of Patsy Cline had no more to offer.
Category: Musical Theatre Reviews, New York (State), New York (State) Theatre, Off-Broadway Reviews, Regional
