[NEohioPAL]Berko review: NAT KING COLE (Actors' Summit)

[Roy Berko]

AUDIENCE LIKES NAT KING COLE TRIBUTE AT ACTOR’S SUMMIT

Roy Berko

(Member, American Theatre Critics Association)

--THE TIMES NEWSPAPERS--

Lorain County Times--Westlaker Times--Lakewood News
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What do the songs "Pretend," "Route 66," "Chestnuts
Roasting on an Open Fire," "Rambling Rose,” “It’s Only
a Paper Moon,” “Nature Boy,” “Mona Lisa” and “Too
Young” all have in common?  They are all  hit songs
recorded by Nathaniel Adams Cole, better known as Nat
King Cole whose life is showcased in Actors’ Studio’s
‘NAT “KING” COLE’  by Kent LeMar & A. Neil Thackberry.
 Most think of Cole as a singer, but  he was actually
trained to be a classical pianist and never considered
himself to be a singer, but as a jazz musician.

In 1943, Cole recorded "Straighten Up and Fly Right,"
which was based on one of his preacher father's
sermons.  It became a smash hit and changed his
musical life.

Cole had many firsts.  He was the first black jazz
musician to have his own weekly radio show and the
first black to have a weekly network television show.

A heavy smoker, he died of lung cancer in 1965, but
his music lives on.

Based on audience reactions, and the need to extend
the show several times due to positive reviews and
comments, ‘NAT “KING” COLE’ is a hit.  It is indeed a
very pleasant evening of musical reminiscences for
those brought up during the 50s and 60s.  

Do not go, however, expecting to see or hear Cole. 
What LeMar does is give a Cole impression, not a
recreation.  Though he has a nice voice, LeMar isn’t a
Cole duplicate.  We’ve seen duplicates on the Actors’
Summit stage.  In past seasons Thackaberry transformed
himself into Clarence Darrow and Wayne Turney morphed
into Harry Truman.  

LeMar feigns Cole facial expressions, attempts to
articulate the Cole speaking sound and give the deep
jazz based sounds of the great singer.  He is
inconsistent in those attempts.  Cole prided himself
on his diction.  He held his consonants and breathed
life into his words.  LeMar, though he tries, just
doesn’t give us the sound that allows us to close our
eyes and hear Cole.   His most Cole-esque
interpretations were:  “A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley
Square, “ “Sweet Embraceable You,” “Christmas Song”
and “When I Fall In Love.”

The script, though it does fill us with details of
Cole’s life, isn’t well structured.  Many of the songs
are dropped in, they don’t help develop the story as
in a well integrated reviews.  “Let There Be Love,”
“Too Young,” “When I Fall in Love,” “Wild Root Cream
Oil” and “Smile” fit in.   Most of the other songs
don’t.  The script is being rewritten and it can only
be hoped that more effort will be made to integrate
the songs into the story.

Because Cole was noted for sitting at the piano and
singing, the fact that pianist David Williams plays
most of the music, is off-setting.  Williams is
wonderful , but if this is supposed to be the real
Cole performing for us, then Williams’ presence
doesn’t make sense.  This aspect is confusing as LeMar
is an excellent pianist.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT:  ‘NAT “KING” COLE’ is an audience
pleaser.  Due to its appeal, the show will be reprised
on September 7 and run until the 24th on Friday and
Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees, with some
rewriting, including the addition of more musicians to
emulate The King Cole Trio.  Call for tickets now at
330-342-0800, as the show has been playing to sold out
audiences.



Roy Berko's web page can be found at www.royberko.info.  His theatre and dance reviews appear on NeOHIOpal, an on-line source.   To subscribe to this free service via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.fredsternfeld.com/mailman/listinfo/neohiopal.

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