Everyone’s favorite tight-knit family has finally returned to the New York Stage! William Finn’s quirky musical Falsettos has come to Carnegie Hall for a limited run in celebration of the 2016 revival’s 10th anniversary.
This is a show with a storied history, from being separate one-act musicals off-Broadway to being a Tony-winning cult classic that brought the theatre community together into one big family. As they say in Falsettos, “Love can tell a million stories,” so let’s take a look at how the show made it all the way to Carnegie Hall.
The Original Show
Before the show could reach the hallowed halls of Carnegie Hall, it was part of a collection of three one-act musicals, most commonly known as The Marvin Trilogy. The three are entitled In Trousers, March of the Falsettos, and Falsettoland.
These all follow the life of Marvin, a slightly evil but heavily emotional man, as he deals with his sexuality and the reality of living as a gay man in the 70s and 80s. We’re taken through his high school years, his marriage to and divorce from Trina, his affair with Whizzer, his strenuous relationship with his son, Jason, and, finally, the AIDS crisis.
This version of the show never really took off, mostly because of the controversial nature of the first act of the trilogy, In Trousers, and its somewhat inappropriate portrayal of young people. In this state, the furthest it got commercially was off-Broadway. In order to appeal to a wider audience, Finn made another version that condensed the show into a traditional two-act musical structure that consisted of only the second and third acts of The Marvin Trilogy. He retitled it to the name we all know and love: Falsettos.
This version of the show, directed and co-written by the incomparable James Lapine, made it all the way to Broadway, getting acclaim for its unique story and the characterization of society during the AIDS crisis. This production went on to get seven Tony nominations in 1992 and ended up winning two, including the award for Best Book of a Musical.
The 2016 Revival
Almost 25 years later, we got the beloved Falsettos 2016 revival. This production starred some serious Broadway royalty, including Stephanie J. Block, Andrew Rannells, Christian Borle, and a few other familiar faces. The revival was also directed by Lapine.
Beyond the cast, this revival was interesting for its set, or lack thereof. The set consisted of a bunch of gray blocks that the cast moved around throughout the show to create different set pieces, which ties into how the people in this show directly influence each other’s lives.
This revival is really what brought Falsettos to the new generation of theatre kids. The other production was kind of isolated and not well-preserved. With this version, there was a high-quality pro shot available to watch online that was released during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing for the show to gain an entirely new audience.
The revival ran for 14 weeks with 84 performances, but those few weeks had a massive impact. The show was nominated for five Tony Awards and won none, but that doesn’t speak to the innovation of this piece.
Personally, this show had a profound effect on me. Those who know me can attest to how much I love this show and the fact that I couldn’t shut up about it. Not to flex, but I even got a voice memo from Block herself.
The Anniversary Concert
Ten years later, the cast of the 2016 revival is back for a limited concert run at Carnegie Hall in New York and at the London Palladium in the UK.
Originally, this was only going to be a one-night-only concert. Then, it proceeded to sell out in less than an hour. This only forced more and more dates to be added, leaving us with three New York dates: Oct. 18, Nov. 2, and Feb. 8. Even more than in New York City, they’re bringing the concert to the UK for three more nights on Feb. 23, 24, and 25.
With what we’ve seen from the opening show, it seems that fans of Falsettos are in for a treat. While this isn’t a fully staged production, the cast is doing more than just sitting in chairs. The choreography for the concert was done by Ellenore Scott, who’s worked on other renowned productions such as Ragtime and Titaníque.
I don’t want to give any spoilers, but the creators of this concert are definitely providing some serious fan service. One of the most notable ones is bringing back Anthony Rosenthal, the former child actor who played Jason in the 2016 revival, for a little cameo. He obviously couldn’t play the same role he did before because he’s much older now, but they found a rather creative way to include him.
It’s so special that this beloved cast gets to come together to perform such a magnificent show a few more times. If I could make it to New York, I would, but I’ll have to settle for living vicariously through all the fans who do go. Nevertheless, I can’t wait to see how this run goes and all the Falsettos content we’ll get after all this time. Finally, we can all be welcomed back into Falsettoland.
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