NO, NO, NANETTE at South Bay Musical Theatre—Making Happy

The flapper fun of No, No, Nanette will put a smile on your face

By Jeff Dunn

I know it's difficult today to imagine anyone except a former president making a fortune selling bibles. In the Roaring Twenties, however, Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel wrote the book for a musical whose lead character, Jimmy Smith, does just that. Moreover, unlike many today, Jimmy just gives his money away with no quid pro quo expected . "I won't be happy, till I make you happy too," he sings--only to pretty women, coincidentally. How could his generous intentions be misconstrued?

Such is the overly easy-breezy plot of No, No, Nanette. The 1924 show would have been a silly yawner today, but Vincent Youman's fusillade of great tunes ("Tea for Two," "I Want to Be Happy," "Too Many Rings Around Rosie," etc.*) is an opium for optimists. Moreover, South Bay Musical Theatre's team has put in more dance numbers than there are meteorologists in Florida, so there's plenty of action to toe-tap to.

Michael Paul Hirsch does a great job as the salesman who knows his bible, chapters and

skirts. His nice but conservative wife Sue is well portrayed by Christina Bolognini. Although her character must wear the relatively drab portion of otherwise fabulous collection of costumes provided by Amanda Seguin, Bolognini surprises with a terrific tap number and a lovely voice.

Michael Rhone is outstanding as BIlly Early, Jimmy's hapless lawyer. Billy's wife Lucille is superbly characterized by Jessica Whittemore as a shopaholic morphing into a person who realizes love is more important than gee-gaws. Pauline's Act 3 rendition of "Where Has My Hubby Gone Blues" brought out unexpected profundity in Youmans' music despite the song's trite lyrics replete with "you" rhymes.

 The third romantic pair of the musical, the title character Nanette and her boyfriend Tom, were a joy to watch and hear. For the performance I attended October 13th, Melissa Momboisse's understudy Anat Baird was every bit the impatient wannabe flapper. And, at 17, she perfectly embodied the dutiful but vapid privileged teen aspiring to mature womanhood. Ryan Liu's Tom, Nanette’s ardent beau, was one of the strongest voices in the cast.

The three buxom beneficiaries of Jimmy's financial largesse––Flora, Betty, and Winnie––are nicely individualized by Lauren Jiang, Heather Mae Steffen, and Beth McClelland. Jiang in particular perfected a Betty Boop persona that brought on big smiles from the well-filled auditorium. Scenes were delightfully amplified by the Ensemble, an octet of singers and dancers in new costumes for every occasion, adding even more zest and treat to the afternoon.

Finally, Judith Miller, as the cranky maid Pauline, entertained with her every quirk--including hilarious stints with a robotified vacuum cleaner designed by Dan Singletary. This might be the first time a robot deserves to be a featured performer, and should have had his own bow and credits. Director Doug Greer, set designer Brett Carlson, and choreographer Lee Ann Payne are to be especially commended for their hard work, along with the rest of the production staff.

In short, No, No, Nanette is a Yes,Yes for anyone up for a frothy soda of yesteryear.

* Interestingly, the melodic line and rhythm of the first eight notes of the catchy title song "No, No, Nanette" is strikingly similar to a tune in the last movement of Hungarian composer Ernst von Dohnányi's orchestral Suite in F# Minor. I'm guessing that Youmans attended the New York premiere of that work in Carnegie Hall conducted in 1921 by Dohnányi.