Review: Floyd and Clea Under the Western Sky

Moxie attended good ole' pay-what-you-can night at Playwrights Horizons, and enjoyed the first preview of Floyd and Clea Under the Western Sky. Here's the Playwrights Horizons blurb:

It’s a freewheeling musical journey from Montana to Austin (with a side trip to Hollywood) when a burnt out former country & western star joins forces with a 20 year-old free-spirit with an electrifying voice. Their meeting and unlikely friendship, and the musical partnership that arises from it form a tale of sweet heartbreak, a parable about finding the strength, against all odds, to keep on keepin’ on.

Well, "freewheeling musical journey" makes it sound a bit too much like Dixie Chicks: The Musical. David Cale's quiet, heartfelt musical (is it a musical? really?) is more melancholy than boot-stompin', for the most part. It begins with Floyd, a country music performer (real country, nothing like what you'd see on the CMA's) having a breakdown, one which results in him living out of his clunker of a car and waiting to die of alcohol poisoning. The journey begins in that very grim place, and chronicles his slow climb out of desparation, with encouragement and companionship from a spunky and determined teenager.

David Cale has written and composed (with Jonathan Kreisberg) what might turn out to be a quiet masterpiece. The music is solid, and accurately portrays the real country-western music world, an admirable risk when a more musical theater style would have increased the show's marketability. The fact that he performs it with such gentleness and humility makes it an accomplishment that other musical and theatrical artists ought to celebrate. Not once does Cale dip into the well of arrogance as a performer or a writer. Instead, his character is painfully shy, shrugging and hiding behind huge glasses, opening up to Clea and the audience one hesitating, painful stitch at a time. His ultimate flourishing recovery is beautifully simple and based in reality, making the play soar beyond the realm of the expected troubled-man-makes-good story.

Mary Faber (Avenue Q's recent Kate Monster) at first smacks of musical-theater characterization, popping around the stage and playing Clea's perkiness to the hilt. This, combined with a few of the weaker songs, makes act one border on tedious, at points. However, as Clea's eyes are opened to life's complications and sadness, Faber becomes increasingly entrancing, channeling a young Sissy Spacek mixed with pre-Grey's-Anatomy-hatefulness Ellen Pompeo (speaking of which, check out Ellen Pompeo's episode of Punk'd... bitch is crazy, no lie). Faber's performance will surely deepen as previews continue, and Moxie thinks that by opening night, Floyd and Clea will be a force to reckon with.

As always, when Moxie reviews shows that are in previews, especially very early previews such as this, the show is still very much a work in progress. Please keep in mind that most shows change, shift, and oftentimes vastly improve over the course of previews, up through opening night, when most "real" reviews are written.

Floyd & Clea Under the Western Sky runs through Dec. 17th at Playwrights Horizons.