Review of Fiorello! - Highly Recommended

Chicago Sun-Times
reviewed by Hedy Weiss
May 10, 2006

Think of "Fiorello!" as a kind of "Guys & Dolls" for the political set, or as the city government equivalent of the French court. Whatever your perspective, you might very well watch TimeLine Theatre's hugely ambitious, high-energy, strikingly sung production of the musical and wonder why it has been revived so rarely since its Broadway debut in 1959.

The show's zesty book by Jerome Weidman and George Abbott recounts the remarkable story of the rise of Fiorello LaGuardia, a reformist lawyer in early 20th century New York who championed the rights of workers and the immigrant poor, went on to do battle with the all-powerful Tammany Hall bosses who ruled the city for years and served as both a congressman and the Depression-era mayor of his city. But the show also has a slew of intriguing romances that add great spice to the tale. And the score -- the work of Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick (who would go on to pen "Fiddler on the Roof") -- has that wonderfully literate, comically brassy quality that signifies this is indeed a work from the Golden Age of Broadway.

Just listen to the song titles: "Politics and Poker," "On the Side of the Angels," "The Name's LaGuardia," "The Bum's Won," "Gentleman Jimmy" and the particularly memorable "Little Tin Box," and you begin to see a sea of placards at rallies and smell the smoke in the back room.

LaGuardia (played by PJ Powers) was a man who burst with equal parts of emotion and ego. A short, loud little tuba of a man with Italian-Jewish-Episcopalian roots, he was a classic populist -- a man who fought for the downtrodden and, after supporting the draft, went into World War I as a fighter pilot.

The women in his life -- whether his beautiful Italian-bred first wife, Thea (Cassie Wooley), or Marie (Rebecca Finnegan), the legal assistant who helped set his career, hopelessly adored him for years and ultimately became his second wife -- often had a tough time. But he had a mission, and politically he did what some thought was near impossible.

Director Nick Bowling -- aided and abetted by Doug Peck's bristling music direction and Kevin Hagen's multifaceted tenement-like Manhattan set -- has assembled one of those stellar Chicago companies that mixes veterans and newcomers.

All 16 actors burst with talent and vocal prowess. Powers, with his chest puffed out and his lungs on "bellow," captures the verve and volatility of LaGuardia, a tireless power player, and Michael Kingston brings comic perfection to the role of Morris, a devoted fellow attorney. The peerless Terry Hamilton is just jaded and savvy enough as Ben, the Republican kingmaker.

In this man's world, the women pull no punches, either, with Finnegan sensational in her big numbers ("Marie's Law" and "The Very Next Man"), Wooley lushly operatic ("When Did I Fall in Love") and the hugely engaging Maris Hudson as Dora, the upwardly mobile factory girl with a heart (who is a hoot in the beguiling song "I Love a Cop").

And you thought LaGuardia was just the name of that traffic-clogged little airport in Queens, N.Y. Put your luggage through the security check, but sing "Fiorello!"