"Chicago" is meant to be experienced live. The theatrical qualities that make it, well, "Chicago," have an in-your-face immediacy lost in film. Those who have only experienced "Chicago" in its Hollywood version will be startled by how much more vibrant the production is on stage. The current staging of "Chicago" at the downtown National Theatre returns the familiar story of fame won and lost to its theatrical roots, heightening both its authenticity and famous tawdry musical intensity.
"Chicago" tells the story of Roxie Hart, an aspiring vaudeville actress who shoots and kills her lover when he walks out on her. She joins the ranks of the other murderesses at the Chicago jail, including Velma, an older and bitter actress who yearns to return to the stage and claim the fame she feels she deserves. With the help of the charismatic and famous lawyer Billy Flynn, Hart manipulates her story to win the hearts of the jury but also an express route to center stage upon her release.
Through the interplay between Hart, Velma and Flynn, "Chicago" makes powerful commentary about the whims of fame. Reflecting this theme, each of the play's central characters has his moment in the spotlight to tell his story, including Hart's loyal, befuddled husband Amos, who sings the poignant "Mister Cellophane" to illustrate his invisibility. Hart chases "a world of yes," as she describes it: a world where her dreams actually come true and where she realizes her fame. Despite the fervor of her aspirations, public sentiment loses Hart. She flirts with the public, but in the end must come to learn that fame is not a loyal lover.
Charlotte d'Amboise, who plays Hart, leads a talented group of actors. Their mannerisms coax to life a certain authenticity to the characters lost in the Hollywood version. The women on death row seem a little sadder, a little more contemplative, a little more real. And in turn, the story becomes that much more real and transcendent. D'Amboise has played Hart more than any other actress in history, and it shows in how she expertly works out Hart's high-energy desperation. The actors recreated the show's intensity and bravado without cinematic finesse, restoring in the process the production's original electricity. Their voices soar and their choreography syncs.
Further, the live staging of "Chicago" adds an immediate complexity to a story about the stage. The murderesses go about their lives casually dressed in skimpy nighttime wear, as if perpetually whoring themselves out for the spotlight. Unfolding against the background of a seedy jazz club, the women embody both the pursuit of fame and its inevitable flight. Theirs is a sad but casual desperation, illuminated more in the moment when the spotlight shifts than during their moment of fame. However, skillful acting allows measured dignity to pervade the murderesses' presentation of cheapness.
What more to say of a play that lives up to its electric expectations? "Chicago" is a musical of buoyant and jazzy tunes you'll want to sing along to on your walk home. But menace lies through all of its jazz. "Chicago" also shares a view of the world with a calculated bite, turning society's values of love, justice and fame on their heads.
"Chicago" is on stage at the National Theatre through April 12.
You can reach this staff writer at agoldstein@theeagleonline.com.
