she loves me paper

8/10/2019 She Loves Me Paper

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She Loves Me , with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book

by Joe Masteroff, is one of Americas classic Golden Age musicals . The story is

simple: Amalia and Georg are coworkers in a Budapest parfumerie, and they despise

each other. Little do they know, they have actually been anonymously writing letters

to each other for the last several months, and they have slowly fallen in love with

this dear friend to whom the letters are sent. There are various subplots (a young

boy with his sights set on a real job at the parfumerie, a betrayed manager dealing

with the aftermath of his wifes adulterous behavior, etc.), but at its heart, She Loves

Me is a basic love story, in which both lovers must grow into themselves before truly

being able to accept a relationship with the other. Amalia begins the show as a nave,

slightly frumpy, and very stubborn girl. Georg, equally as stubborn, begins the show

as a slightly gawky, easily bothered young man. It takes the entirety of the show for

Amalia and Georg to blossom into the woman and man they are supposed to be, and

when they finally do become those people, they are able to become the dear friend

with whom the other had fallen in love.

The Jerry Herman Ring Theatres production of She Loves Me was remarkably

successful at transporting the audience to 1931 Budapest. Everything from the set

to the costumes to the minute details of the props reflected the time period. K. April

Soroko designed the set, which had many intricate details, including an elaborate

proscenium arch over the entire stage. The most impressive aspect of the set was

(with matching details from the proscenium arch) the rotating center turntable,

which represented both the interior and the exterior of the parfumerie

(Maraczeks) . The turntable was used in it seemed like nearly every set change,


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and it was remarkable how they adjusted it to fit a store, a romantic caf, a hospital,

a bedroom, etc. The set adapted beautifully to fit in with every scene and location

change, most notably the romantic caf, otherwise known as Caf Imperiale.

Amazingly, the set changed in mere seconds from a barren stage outside of an office,

to a full caf complete with dining cart, tables, chairs, wine glasses, and more. This

scene change was more than just brilliant set design, however. It quite obviously

pointed towards wonderful directing as well. There was not a second onstage when

an actor was not present and telling a story in some way: first, dapper playboys

danced their way across the stage to remove set pieces, and then elegant women

sexily strutted to their spots while pulling chairs onstage. It perfectly set the mood

for the subsequent song, featuring some raucous and wickedly sensual dancing; all

of it was to contrast between the caf s happily coupled patrons, and the solemnly

single Amalia waiting for her dear friend.

The director of this production was William Roudebush, who clearly thought

out every minute moment, as evidenced by the previously mentioned seamless set

change. He created a show that effortlessly told the story of Georg and Amalia, as

well as showcasing the stories of countless secondary characters. There was a scene,

however, that just didnt seem to fit in with the rest of the show, and as She Loves Me

is such a timeless classic, it seems obvious that the problem does not lie with the

writing. T he scene takes place in Act II during the song Wheres My Shoe? Georg

has just come to Amalias apartmen t to ensure that she is all right after learning that

she is ill, and Amalia tries to prove to him that she is well enough to go to work, just

to show him that she is not slacking off. The scene, as directed by Roudebush, was


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frantic and hysterical and disorganized, and it seemed to be merely a distraction

from the actual story rather than another piece in the puzzle. The song itself seems

obvious: Amalia is trying to stop Georg from any potential criticism of her by going

to work, despite being ill. Georg shows, for the first time, true concern for Amalias

wellbeing, and requests that she goes back to bed. It should be an endearing,

lighthearted tipping point in the musical, a moment when the audience should think,

okay I really can see those two as a couple. This productions version of Wheres

My Shoe? proved to be more dizzying than lighthearted, and more confusing than

endearing. There was so much moving around the stage and too many actions

without meaning that it was difficult to see the spark between these two characters,

and that made the transition into the shows most exuberant and declaratory songs

(Vanilla Ice Cream and the titular She Loves Me both declarations of love, or at

least the possibility of not hate) less justified. Perhaps if Wheres My Shoe? had

been more determined and less flighty, the comedy of the song would have played

out more.

Other than Wheres My Shoe? th e show seemed quite successful in all

aspects. Lighting designer Bryan Kaschube perfectly captured the romance of the

caf with dim, red lighting, and sound engineer Megan Ayers made the show run

completely smoothly. One particularly memorable moment from both the lighting

and the sound design was the moment in which Mr. Maraczek attempts suicide: a

young employee sees what he is about to do and tries to stop him, but in a sudden

burst of light and a resounding gun shot, we know that Maraczek was not stopped. It


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is a shocking moment that garnered several gasps from the audience, and it was

executed perfectly.

In addition to lighting and sound design, the costume designer, Michiko

Kitayama Skinner told a complete story with her costumes. In the beginning, Amalia

enters the store looking nothing like the young, beautiful woman that she is. Amalia

wears a frumpy blue dress and floppy brown hat, neither of which do anything to

accentuate Amalias beauty. This is purposeful, as Amalia gets told later on that she

is no pageant winner. B y the end of the production, however, once Amalia has lost

some of her stubbornness and becomes more friendly and open to Georg, she wears

a beautiful form-fitting red dress that accentuates her figure, and she wears no

distracting accessories. Her beauty is on display for everyone (namely Georg) to see.

Finally, it is impossible to ignore the giant impact the actors had on the

production, and while Blair Brownstein as Amalia and Brian Reiff as Georg were

great, the secondary characters, such as Chris Goodrich as Ladislav Sipos, were

particularly amusing to watch. Goodrich had a very compliant character, who only

sought to please his boss in order to ensure his jobs security. Sipos describes

himself as an idiot, and with Goodrich s constantly furrowed unibrow, Sipos seemed

to be perpetually confused in an adorable, oafish kind of way. Sipos only has one

song, Perspective in which he describes his shallow way of keeping his job to

Georg but Goodrich made sure to make the most of every tiny moment of the song.

Using a sort of charade-like approach to the song, Goodrich spelled out each detail of

his story, explaining it in a childlike simplicity much the way one would imagine

Sipos needs to be talked to. When Sipos has to reveal his part in the firing of Georg


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and attempted suicide of Maraczek, he does it in a sheepish, unsophisticated

manner, almost as if he is the bad child telling the truth to his disapproving father.

Every action that Goodrich made led to Sipos seeming more and more uncultured,

stupid, and lovable. The audience cant help but feel a genuine affection for Ladislav

Sipos, and that is all due to Chris Goodrichs brilliant portrayal.

Ultimately, the Jerry Herman Ring Theatres production of She Loves Me

accomplished exactly what it wanted to do: it transported us into a lovely tale of two

unlikely lovers. We are in 1931 Budapest right along with Amalia and Georg. While

the direction wasnt perfect, overall it is a delightful take on a classic story, and there

was not an audience member in sight co mplaining about the show s lack of charm.

Did the production seem professional? No there were too many inelegant set

changes and too awkward a staging of several scenes for this show to seem

professional, but the performances were solid, and the design team did a wonderful

job with the time, money, and space that they were provided.

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