REVIEW: "A Little Night Music" in New York City

Performance: Wednesday, March 17^th @ 2:00pm

Location: Walter Kerr Theatre, New York, NY

I’m embarrassed to say that I almost passed up the opportunity to see A Little Night Music during my three day stay in Manhattan. How can anyone pass up a Sondheim in good conscience? I was pleasantly surprised to find myself in the second row, close enough to reach out and touch the stage.

Who knew one could find so much humor in infidelity, though humor there was. Initially my motivation for seeing the show was to not miss out on the opportunity to see Angela Lansbury on Broadway. With her long and coveted career on Broadway, she is a presence. While I enjoyed her portrayal of Madame Armfeld, I was far more taken by Catherine Zeta-Jones (Desiree Armfeld) and Leigh Ann Larkin (Petra).

Zeta-Jones was both sultry and full of grace. I enjoyed her burning quips, but even more her sense of vulnerability during Send in the Clowns. She flawlessly stitched together the face of Desiree Armfeld. Both she and Larkin embraced the free spirited nature of these women.

Larkin’s performance brought a smile to my face from the moment she spoke her first line. All you had to do was look into her eyes to see the mischief. She was free spirited, dramatic, but not overly dramatic and just plain fun! I thoroughly enjoyed the life she brought to Petra.

I, in no way, want to ignore the overall cohesion and talent of this cast. There was not a misstep from start to end and I left the theatre with a smile on my face and even a few tears in my eyes.

I am now very interested to see what the Indiana University Theatre Department does with this show, as I will see their production the first weekend in April. While I don’t think it would be fair to compare the two casts, I welcome the opportunity to take in A Little Night Music one more time.