The esteemed Playhouse kicks off the 2017-18 season Sept. 28
MILLBURN -- Adapting a beloved television show like "The Honeymooners" for the musical stage is fraught with challenges. Yet in many ways the groundwork for this new interpretation -- which makes its world premiere at Paper Mill Playhouse Sept. 28 -- was laid during the series' run more than 50 years ago.
The production-- with music by Stephen Weiner and lyrics by Peter Mills -- features one of Ralph Kramden's infamous get-rich-quick schemes, Ed Norton tinkling the ivories and their oft-put-upon wives Alice and Trixie, sticking with them and scraping by in the most entertaining ways in 1950s Brooklyn.
"Ultimately, as all good musicals are, it's a sweet and fun love story," said Tony Award-winning director John Rando, who is steering the Paper Mill run. "Even if you don't know the TV show for some strange reason, you'll enjoy the comedy and the characters. You'll love the score and these two sweet romances."
"The Honeymooners" opens an ambitious 2017-18 season for Paper Mill. The Playhouse will also host the world premiere of "The Sting", a musical version of the 1973 movie of the same name, and two East Coast premieres: "The Outsider", a timely political comedy, and "Half Time", a musical based on the true story of the New Jersey Nets' over-60 hip-hop dance team, a local phenomena until the team moved to Brooklyn. The theater's holiday offering is the family-friendly musical "Annie."
Successful runs at the Millburn theater -- which was honored with a Regional Theater Tony Award in 2016, the first N.J. theater to take the prize in 17 years -- could propel most or all of these projects to the Great White Way, further cementing Paper Mill's growing reputation as a Broadway talent funnel. Two of the theater's recent shows -- "A Bronx Tale" and "Bandstand" -- are currently enjoying New York runs. Two other recent Broadway shows --"Newsies" and "Honeymoon in Vegas" -- also debuted in Essex County.
Paper Mill's Producing Artistic Director Mark Hoebee said planning a season begins years in advance -- the 2020-21 line-up is currently being laid out, he said -- and, while awards and recognition are welcome, the focus is on pleasing the theater's many stakeholders.
"We are following our mission: creating great experiences for the people of New Jersey," Hoebee said. "We want to prove we're worthy of all of their support. Exporting artistic products not just to Broadway but to national tours ... that makes our team very proud."
Hoebee believes the theater's well-earned reputation as a welcoming and supportive host is one reason artists choose it as a host to launch ambitious projects.
"Artists put their hearts and souls into these shows. They're like children, vulnerable toddlers who are learning to walk and can get easily knocked over or sent on a wrong path, so artists look for somewhere where they can get support and nurturing and their baby can grow and not just walk, but run, and become an international hit," he said. "It's really about trust and relationships."
Actors perform a musical number during a rehearsal for musical comedy The Honeymooners on Sept. 5, 2017, photographed at New 42nd Street Studios in New York City. The show, based on the 1950's CBS television series, will open Sept. 28 for a limited engagement at Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey. (Matt Smith | For NJ Advance Media)
Production of the musical version of "The Honeymooners," which has been in development since 2011, includes Paper Mill veterans. Tony Award-winning set designer Beowulf Boritt previously worked on "A Bronx Tale." Jess Goldstein, another Tony winner, created the costumes for "Newsies."
The creative team is rounded out by Emmy Award-winning choreographer Joshua Bergasse and musical director/vocal arranger Remy Kurs.
Based on the classic Jackie Gleason-helmed TV show that ran from 1955-56, "The Honeymooners" was unique in that it portrayed working-class couples in a realistic manner. Most of the action was set in the Brooklyn kitchen of bus driver Ralph Kramden and his wife, Alice. Best friends and neighbors Ed and Trixie Norton made frequent visits, coming in through the front door or via the fire escape window.
Rando, who will also direct "The Sting" in Spring 2018, said he grew up watching "The Honeymooners," which ended production after 39 30-minute episodes. He was a big fan of Art Carney's Ed Norton and loved dressing as the bus driver for Halloween.
"All I needed was a t-shirt and a vest," he said, "and I did the accent."
The musical, with a book by Dusty Kay and Bill Nuss, stars Tony Award winner Michael McGrath as Ralph, Michael Mastro as Norton, Leslie Kritzer as Alice and Tony Award nominee Laura Bell Bundy as Trixie. Ralph and Norton win a high-profile jingle contest, launching them from their familiar Brooklyn surroundings to the Madison Avenue advertising arena. Of course, the pair's happily ever after is threatened by ruthless executives and devious co-workers.
The production has 23 actors and is accompanied by a live orchestra. There's a sub-plot featuring Trixie, whose past career as a burlesque performer was largely passed over on the tv show, and a return to the stage. There's also a twist that pays homage to the 1950s cast and characters, Rando said.
"It's really funny and it has that old world charm," he said.
Modern audiences might balk at some elements of the original production including Ralph's often overbearing and seemingly threatening behavior towards his wife. Rando acknowledges that issue, noting that the musical's Alice gives as good as she gets while also singing about her marriage. Instead of Ralph shaking his fists and talking about one day sending Alice "to the moon," the music will note how he loves her to the moon.
"Alice is a wonderful challenge and a great joy to figure out. We've done a really good job of handling their relationship in an honest or romantic way," Rando said. "It's very clear that deep down these two love each other very much."
Devout fans of the original tv show will recognize and appreciate some of the show's references, but Rando stressed that these actors have made the roles their own, "staying away from imitation and instead inhabiting the characters."
"Jackie Gleason and Art Carney are icons," he said. "We definitely tip our hat to them while creating our own thing."
The Honeymooners
Paper Mill Playhouse
22 Brookside Dr., Millburn 39-127
Tickets: $34 - 127, available online at www.papermill.org. Sept. 28 - Oct. 29.
For more about Paper Mill Playhouse's complete 2017-18 season, visit www.papermill.org.
Natalie Pompilio is a freelance writer based in Philadelphia. She can be reached at nataliepompilio@yahoo.com. Find her on Twitter @nataliepompilio. Find NJ.com/Entertainment on Facebook.
