‘Promises, Promises’ not entirely fulfilled

Sean Hayes is super in Swinging ‘60s musical

BY MICHAEL SOMMERS

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

BROADWAY REVIEW

Opening on Sunday night at the Broadway Theatre, a new revival of "Promises, Promises" is capitalizing on the "Mad Men" trend for everything 1960s.

It's an appropriate musical for just such a treatment: With its sinuous, propulsive rhythms and brassy highlights, Burt Bacharach's catchy score captures the cool surface and hot undertones of the Swinging ‘60s. Based on a cynical Billy Wilder flick, Neil Simon's story is an often funny look at sex and the single girl and boy amid the moral darkness of the era's corporate jungle.

Suits are sleek, secretaries are toys and everybody cheats and boozes. "Mad Men: The Musical."

Director-choreographer Rob Ashford's production, unfortunately, proves to be too much of a (mostly) good thing.

Far from being silly on "Will & Grace," an immensely appealing Sean Hayes is terrific in a nice guy hero role created by Jerry Orbach. A miscast if winsome Kristin Chenoweth creates a few lovely moments as Hayes' leading lady but her positive Breck Girl presence and unwise tinkering with the script and score throws the show off balance.

Don't expect a happy "How to Succeed..." slant on ‘60s office affairs. The story concerns Chuck (Hayes), a white collar minion climbing a rung or two up the corporate ladder of success by lending his nearby apartment to married execs needing a pad to bed their girls.

Chuck happens to be blindly in love with co-worker Fran (Chenoweth), a sweet soul troubled by her affair with Sheldrake (Tony Goldwyn), Chuck's boss who borrows the apartment to — well, you get the idea. A half-hearted suicide try in the second act wises up Chuck to a better mindset and an upbeat finale.

Two Bacharach-Hal David songs including "I Say A Little Prayer" have been interpolated into the original score to beef up the role of Fran. They're nice numbers and nicely done, but the musical was crafted to focus upon Chuck and stretching its fabric to fashion a co-starring vehicle for Hayes and Chenoweth results in an overlong and at times oddly slack production.

Besides, these songs don't really suit Fran's rather sorrowful disposition. Worse, the character does not comfortably fit Chenoweth's naturally sunny energy, much as she strives to suggest a woeful person.

The other significant flaw — we'll get to the good stuff in a sec — regards Scott Pask's screamingly ugly set design, which mostly loses this fairly intimate musical within the cavernous stage of the Broadway (lately the home for "Shrek"). Exuberantly performed by a fine ensemble, Ashford's athletic medley of sinewy ‘60s-style dance moves only intermittently fills the void.

Now let's mention some of the promises fulfilled.

Making a wonderful Broadway debut, Hayes is a total charmer and a shoo-in contender for a Tony Award. Brightly breezing through the show with his characteristic nimble physicality, Hayes portrays Chuck winningly, sings agreeably and easily commands the spotlight, which he generously shares with Chenoweth. Their cozy duet on "I'll Never Fall in Love Again" is an especially sweet highlight.

Among Simon's funniest-ever characters, the choice cameo role of a boozy barfly ("You like this coat? It's owl.") is a literal hoot thanks to the half-gassed hilarity of Katie Finneran's performance. Dick Latessa helpfully adds some laughs as Chuck's crusty neighbor while Goldwyn gives his adulterous Sheldrake a bit of a guilty conscience.

Of course, Bacharach's often delightful score — complete with glossy orchestral voices crooning behind the tunes — is a retro-pleasure to hear again and goes a long way to compensate for the production's shortcomings. Long after "Promises, Promises" concludes, I bet you'll be helplessly hum-humming those memorable songs.

"Promises, Promises" continues an open-end run at the Broadway Theatre, Broadway at 53rd St., New York. Call (212) 239-6200 or visit www.promisespromisesbroadway.com.