It Shoulda Been You

It Shoulda Been You

Brook Atkinson Theatre

March 28, 2015

Photo courtesy of
It Shoulda Been You

I have to admit that I was a little disappointed with It Shoulda Been You.  I expected fluff and frivolity, but couldn’t that come with characters I care about and a plot that is not predictable?  I figured out the ending about twenty minutes in.  Yes, placing seeds in the earlier part of a script that grow and develop later in the play is excellent writing.  I just wish the journey of the play had been more entangled and caused me to doubt my forecasted ending.

The play centers around a wedding.  The main character, Jenny, boldly played by Lisa Howard, is the sister of the bride.  She is a little overweight, lacks self-confidence, and is a bit resentful that her younger sister, Rebecca, played by Sierra Boggess, is getting married before her.  These two actors have great singing voices and build a relationship that is both endearing and tenderly competitive.  Thank God for Tyne Daly, who plays their mother.  She is the reason to buy a ticket to this show.  Another strong performance is by Harriet Harris who plays a daring and biting mother of the groom.  The plot thickens, but not too much, when Rebecca’s old boyfriend, Marty, cleverly played by Josh Grisetti, enters and starts chasing Rebecca from room to room.  We all think we know what he wants, but the truth comes out in the final scenes.

Sierra Boggers, Tyne Daly, David Burtka, and Harriet Harris
in It Shoulda Been You
Photo courtesy of It Shoulda Been You

The set, beautifully designed by Anna Louizos,  has two levels with numerous doors that continually open and close.  Clearly a set up for a fast paced farce, but the pace never really gets to that level.  The music and lyrics by Barbara Abselmi and Brian Hargrove are catchy and entertaining.  Memorable and hummable tunes included the title song “It Shoulda Been You” (starting as a duet and building to a larger group number), “Where Did I Go Wrong” (keenly performed by Harriet Harris), and “Nice” (a stinging performance by Tyne Daly).  The soft shoe number (“Back in the Day”) is cunningly staged by choreographer Josh Rhodes, but is unfortunately not delivered with the sharpness and style it deserves.  David Hyde Pierce’s direction and vision for the show is clear and precise, yet the idea and book are lacking in the intricacies that can make the show farcical, audacious, and dynamic.

The performances were all strong and the audience seemed to enjoy the show.  I laughed out loud at a number of the bits, characterizations, and one-liners.  The quartet at the end (“That’s Family”) between the parents of the bride and groom brings everything to a decent close, unfortunately there was not much to tie together or wrap up by then.

Domenick Danza