A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

Stephen Sondheim is not for everyone. His melodies stray heavily into the minor key and occasionally include some ear piercing chords (Sweeney Todd) and some of the plotlines of his shows are quite unusual (Assassins, Into the Woods), not your standard "Boy Meets Girl, Boy Loses Girl, Boy Wins Girl Back" formulatic fare. His lyrics are more complex than the typical "Rain in Spain Falls Mainly on the Plane" rhyming couplets of past musicals, and it is here where he especially excels, conveying intelligence, wit and depth. Consider a verse of the opening song "Now" from "A Little Night Music" (one of my favourite Sondheim shows). Frederick, a middle aged man is considering making romantic advances towards his new and significantly younger bride:

"Now, as the sweet imbecilities tumble so lavishly onto her lap,
Now, there are two possibilities: A, I could ravish her, B, I could nap."

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, currently playing at the Canon Theatre is a one of his earlier (1962) musicals. It is a comedy set in Roman times with a story so complicated that a flowchart might be needed to keep track of all the characters and interweaving plotlines. Described in the simpliest terms, the main plot involves the slave Pseudolus trying to win his freedom through numerous schemas and manipulations. It has all the elements of a farce including improbably, exaggerated situations, many quick entries and exits but the characters from all sides of the stage, mistaken identities, and slapstick, almost vaudevillian-like sight gags that make you roar with laughter.

This particular production originated as part of the past Stratford season and has two stars, Sean Cullen and Bruce Dow, playing the lead character of Pseudolus on alternate days. Bruce Dow was in the part on the day we saw the show, which I'm guessing would be a better choice since he is mainly a theatre performer whereas Sean Cullen is primarily a comic. Not having seen Sean Cullen, this is merely a guess. At any rate, Bruce Dow was excellent in the role and dominated the stage with his presense and spot-on comedic timing. Our only regret was not having closer seats to better see his hilarious facial expressions and guestures.

The opening number, "Comedy Tonight" was whipped up by Sondheim at the last minute when he was asked to add a song to prepare the audience for what was to come. This immediately became the most popular and well-known number of the show. Sondheim really is a genuis!

"Something aesthetic,
Something frenetic,
Something for everyone:
A comedy tonight!

Old situations,
New complications,
Nothing portentous or polite;
Tragedy tomorrow,
Comedy tonight!"