BYE BYE BIRDIE
At City Center, West 55th Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues. Call CityTix, (212) 581-1212. Ends today.
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‘BYE Bye Birdie,” revived at Encores! this weekend, is pure bliss and deserves to be Broadway-bound.
Performed first in 1960 and filmed in 1963, it depicts the collision between Broadway and rock in a peppy, lighthearted way.
That spirit is emphasized in this concert staging, with lively direction by Jerry Zaks and dynamite musical direction by Rob Fisher.
Inspired by the enlistment of Elvis Presley, the play deals with the drafting of teen rock idol Conrad Birdie. Like Elvis, Conrad, played with snarling cool by Bob Gaynor, is manipulated by his manager, Albert, portrayed by Daniel Jenkins as a professionally smooth but personally inept guy.
Albert’s assistant and longtime fiancée, Rosie – the role is a Broadway cliché dating back at least to “Guys and Dolls” – is played by the ever-appealing Karen Ziemba; Albert’s nagging mother is done with comic zest by Doris Roberts in a fur coat.
Conrad and his handlers visit the home of the MacAfees so the rock star can say farewell to a typical American family.
The MacAfee father is a comically ridiculous type, originally done by the comedian Paul Lynde and here delightfully played by Walter Bobbie, who incorporates an imitation of Lynde into his performance. This irresistible parody of an irresistible parody works.
Teenagers talk on the phone in “The Telephone Hour,” swoon over their idol in “We Love You, Conrad” and “Honestly Sincere,” and Conrad gets to strut his stuff in “One Last Kiss.”
A few songs should probably be dropped – “Spanish Rose” and “Shriners’ Ballet” are racist and sexist period pieces.
But “Birdie,” as zestfully revived at Encores!, captures a key moment in a clash of cultures in a tangily tuneful way.