Fun Home. Music by Jeanine Tesori, book and lyrics by Lisa Kron, directed by Terrence J. Nolen at the Arden Theatre, Philadelphia, through June 24, 2018.
Of the three productions I’ve seen of the provocative musical play, Fun Home, the new Arden staging is the most communicative.
The great achievement of Fun Home is that it portrays a dysfunctional family from the points of view of a child at different ages, and it combines this with the self-discovery of the young woman’s homosexuality. Many plays deal with dysfunction, and the perspectives are what make Fun Home unique.
Similarly, the great accomplishment of this production is how director Terrence Nolen and his cast harmonize the play’s varied facets. If actors or director underline any one of the themes, they risk upsetting the delicate balance — and the Arden maintains a gripping symmetry.
The cartoonist Alison Bechdel, author of the comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For, wrote a 2006 self-illustrated book about her own experiences called Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic. This musical play is based on Bechdel’s book but is not as graphic.
The subject is Alison’s relationship with her tyrannical father Bruce who was a funeral director and high school English teacher in a central Pennsylvania town. Alison gradually discovers that her father was a closeted gay who had sex with teenage boys. As Bruce realizes that his life is out of control he tries to regulate his family members and the design details of his home so that “everything is balanced and serene.”
Alison epitomizes the fears of all people that they’ll inherit the worst aspects of their parents. (Women frequently speak about becoming their mothers; men keep silent but also feel it.) In her case the fear is magnified because homosexuality, in that time and place, was considered to be a sickness. “Am I going to be the same?” is a terrifying prospect to her.
In the opening scene, Alison remembers herself as a child asking her father to play airplane with her, while he devoted hiself to playing with his personal collectibles. The show continues in an elliptical pattern through Alison’s life, taking detours with time which seem puzzling but which mirror her confusion and add to the play’s effectiveness.
Mary Tuomanen wins our hearts as the adult Alison as she stresses the curiosity of her character, rather than anger. Time after time her face discloses how she can hardly believe what she’s recalling. And sometimes she laughs sardonically as if to say “How did I survive this?” Her interpretation is endearing. Tuomanen has impressed Philadelphia theatergoers in roles comic and tragic, musical and non. We have recognized her interpretive talent, but I must add praise for her technical skill at projecting every nuance and articulating every syllable with vocal beauty, while appearing totally natural.
Ben Dibble as Bruce adds another achievement to his gallery of great work which, like Tuomanen, spans dramas and comedies as well as musicals. Here he conveys confusion under wraps, tension contained in a tight box. It’s a tough role, and a stellar accomplishment because the script doesn’t allow Bruce to talk about his feelings as the other characters do.
Izzy Castaldi as the college-age Medium Alison also is communicative in an appealing manner as she discovers her sexuality with fellow-student Joan, played excellently by Jackie Soro. Castaldi’s realization song, “I’m Changing My Major to Joan,” comes across as innocent and charming — and that’s an attainment because some of the lyrics are so over-the-top that they threaten to make the relationship (or any relationship) seem silly. Once again, director Nolen exquisitely balances wry humor with seriousness.
Lily Lexer plays Small Alison who is enchanted at the sight of a butch delivery woman and sings “Ring of Keys” about her attraction to such symbols of strength and authority as short hair and lace-up boots and keys. Again, we see wonderment, which communicates so much better than gloating.
Kim Carson as the mother beautifully sings her big ballad, “Days and Days.” Charles LaMonaca, Robi Hager and Liam David-Kilker are fine in the other roles. The show’s comic-relief number, “Come to the Fun Home,” is slightly handicapped when the children turn around to face sides of the circular stage and their words become indistinct. For the benefit of those who missed some of them, the kids sing “Our mourner’s are satisfied / They like the formaldehyde” while Jeanine Tesori’s music satirizes the Jackson Five.
Tesori’s songs are exquisitely crafted to express the drama without calling special attention to themselves. Ryan Touhey leads his small band in John Clancy’s original seven-piece orchestrations. James Kronzer designed the intentionally simple set and Rosemarie McKelvey the contemporary costumes.
For a discussion of controversy surrounding earlier productions of Fun Home, click here.