(Debargo Sanyal and Amir Arison)
Over the weekend we caught a matinee of Queens Boulevard (the musical) at a small, off-broadway theater in New York. The play has already been covered at both SAJAForum and Ultrabrown; this is my version.
The cast of Queens Boulevard has three people of South Asian descent in it, and Charles Mee, the playwright, mentions in the script that “Queens Boulevard (the musical) was inspired by the Katha-Kali play The Flower of Good Fortune by Kottayan Tampuran.” The central plot of the story is partly a reworking of the Shakuntala myth, and partly a version of Homer’s The Odyssey — and sometimes both at once.
I had a number of problems with the play, but I want to start with the positives.
First, the musical numbers are terrific. At times they create a really interesting sense of cross-cultural collage, and the choreography and dancing is well-done. The show makes good use of a Punjabi wedding song (twice), an Asian Karaoke rendition of Abba’s “Dancing Queen,” M.I.A.’s “10 Dollar,” French hip hop, a Gaelic ballad, and a half-dozen other songs. (Far and away, the high point of the show for me was the glam/nightclub dance sequence set to the M.I.A. song.)
Second, the set design by Mimi Lien is pretty brilliant — it’s a lively snapshot of a street in Jackson Heights, with Indo-Pak-Bangla shops, travel agencies, Chinese and Korean signs, and Bollywood film ads plastering every surface. It captures the energy and bustle of Queens without seeming busy.
Third, I liked the play’s appropriation of Kalidasa’s Shakuntala story (or see Wikipedia for a summary). Though it was introduced near the end of a play as a long monologue, it was done quite well.
Finally, the overall effect the play is going for is a multi-culti pastiche, with East Asian, South Asian, Middle Eastern, Caribbean, and Eastern European, cultures all moving together and interacting in the same space. Getting this to work on stage reflects a sincere and admirable kind of ambition on the part of the playwright and cast, and I wish people would try doing it more.
Unfortunately, in my opinion the actual plot and the dialogue in the play as written is often quite bad. There are numerous long, ponderous monologues about love and fidelity that drag the energy of the play down, again and again.
You don’t have to just take my word for it — Charles Mee has posted the entire text of his play online at his website. Here is one of the monologues I personally found to be cliché-ridden deadweight:
I mean, you know,
it’s wonderful that you’ve just been married
that you have found the love
we all hope for
even if we’re born
with parents we love
still we look for the one who is meant only for us
and then, it seems,
when the time comes that we lose our parents
we see that any love we find in life
lives amidst these other loves we’ve lost and found and lost,
the love of parents
family
if we’re lucky
if we grow as we’re meant to grow
nourished and protected by the love of our families and our friends
so that your love for your wife
belongs to this sea of love
of social love
and is nourished and sustained by that
because, as we all come to know,
it’s not enough just to experience carnal love
or erotic love
or personal love
because, none of us is safe in our own lives and loves
without the social love that makes a safe place
for our personal love to flourish
the regard, the respect,
and, then, too, as we have come to see,
the recognition of all kinds of love deepens each one
so that your love for your wife is deepened
and honored and sustained
when you act on your love for your friends and their families. (link)
If you go for that sort of thing, you might enjoy Queens Boulevard more than I did. My feeling is that Charles Mee’s mistake here is to try and impose long segments of “serious” and conventional “drama” between the surrealist, cross-cultural musical numbers. A better approach might have been to keep the “straight” plot and dialogue light — aim more for the tone of an intelligent romantic comedy perhaps — or lose it entirely, and go entirely surrealist (in the Richard Foreman vein).
I had some other problems with the play, but I don’t want to nitpick.
I should also point out that other people seem to have enjoyed Queens Boulevard more than I did. A commenter at Ultrabrown, for instance, wrote the following:
I just saw QUEENS BOULEVARD this past Friday night, and loved it! It was such a unique theatrical experience–there was music, singing, dancing, a fun script, smart direction, and strong actors. Most of the actors played multiple roles, including Debargo Sanyal, who was downright hilarious as the Paan Beedi Guy (that you mention above), as well as in his several other roles. Geeta Citygirl and Satya Bhabha were great also. And there’s a hysterical little dance set in a Russian bathhouse featuring three of the men (wearing nothing but towels and smiles!) that must be seen to be believed. I highly recommend this production for folks looking to spend a fun evening at the theater this holiday season.(link)
I agree with Ameera on Debargo Sanyal at least, who was indeed one of the standout members of the cast (I hope we’ll be seeing more of him down the road, either in the theater, or in TV/movies).
Queens Boulevard (the musical) is playing at the Signature Theatre until December 30. All seats are $20; it’s a small theater, so there’s no bad seats.
Wasnt “Queen’s Blvd” a made up movie on the show “Entourage” like 3 years ago?
And if that monologue that Amardeep posted is what is considered worthy of being produced, then screw dental school, off-broadway here I come!!
It was the name of the movie that the fictional Vinny Chase fictionally starred in.
But it’s also a real boulevard. 🙂 (sometimes known as the Boulevard of Death)
Well you’ll hear more of Debargo in this movie.
Paan Beedi Guy is the new Johnny Drama
I am Queens Boulevard.
I saw this show two weeks ago, and I agree with most of Amardeep’s review. And, I must say, I am now a big fan of the young desi cast member Debargo Sanyal–not only is he a fantastic comedic actor, but he’s quite a cutie too. Ladies, I have two words for you–Towel Dance! And if you go see this play, you’ll know what I am talking about, LOL.
This play was really goofy and colorful and fun–I had a great time. And I loved loved loved the Paan Beedi Guy played by the hilarous and talented Debargo Sanyal–that character reminded me of my uncle Ravi who always dishes out unwanted advice and always talks several decibals louder than most human beings, haha. I do agree that some of the dialogue (like the example above) needs editing, but, overall, I still really enjoyed myself at this show last week.
Saw the play last night, and had a very nice time. Beautiful set, and very talented and diverse cast of actors. I also agree that Debargo Sanyal as the Paan Cart Man was my favorite. He was very funny and very convincing in all of his various roles. I looked him up on IMDB, and it appears that he has a slew of films coming out in 2008. I also enjoyed very much the music and dancing in this show.
Veena, I loved the Towel Dance as well, LOL!! In fact, there were a number of pleasant (and funny) surprises in this show. Some of the long monologues could definitely use some editing/trimming, but, otherwise, I had a really enjoyable time. Long live Paan Beedi Guy (and his Sierra Mist Free)!!
Tangent– ‘This Is My Version’ is not just an ~amsp line, it’s also a fabulous Zerobridge track.
I went to see “Queens Boulevard” this afternoon. It was really lively and fun. Debargo Sanyal was a blast in the role of the Paan Cart Man, who, I must agree, is, indeed, the new Johnny Drama (“Entourage” reference)…
What a spectacular show. I have to compliment the casting of such talented actors – various types and ethnicities as well as the set, lights and costumes. Seems the lighting designer Marcus Doshi is also desi. I was really impressed with the lighting design on such an amazing set by Mimi Lien. The show is not for everyone – two women left the theatre halfway thru during the performance I attended. There are good things, great things and not-so-good things. Debargo overacts as the Paan Beedi guy but is definitely memorable. I loved all the guys in the cast EXCEPT the lead. It was unfortunate to see a portrayl of an Indian Man as such a wimp. He whines a lot. On the good side, he didn’t do some pathetic “indian” accent which was a pleasure. The role of the DJ doesn’t make much sense to me (anyone want to explain why Shakuntala’s story is in the prison by the invisible DJ who is suddenly visible to all). The lead bride (actress Michi Barall) is so natural on stage. Unfortunately the story doesn’t lend itself to the girls in this play. Girls don’t have as much to do as the guys. The mother of the bride is awesome – DANCING QUEEN is a must see. The four chorus girls are very talented but never get a chance to shine. Geeta Citygirl (a known desi-american actress) has great stage presence and when we first meet her character Vivian, you think there will be more to come. And then that character never appears again. But she does know how to dance! The M.I.A. $10 dance – another fun scene. The story itself reminded me of Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz combined with The Odyssey. The groom is on a journey to find a flower and gets caught in a web of characters he meets along his journey on Queens Blvd. Fun afternoon at the theatre!
I agree with many of Divya’s points about this play, which I just saw last night, and, overall, truly enjoyed. Like Divya, I also felt that the lead actor (Amir Arison, a non-desi actor) portrayed his character (a desi groom named Vijay) as somewhat of a wimp, which I did not really like. Yesterday’s New York Times review of the play also called his performance “stiff” ( http://theater2.nytimes.com/2007/12/04/theater/reviews/04quee.html?ref=theater ). But, my two favorite performers in the show were the beautiful lead actress (Michi Barall) who played the Japanese-American bride, and the very funny desi actor Debargo Sanyal who played many roles, including the Paan Cart Man–yesterday’s Village Voice review of the play also called these two performers the best in the play ( http://www.villagevoice.com/theater/0749,soloski,78535,11.html ). I also very much liked all the dancing and music. The stage set was very impressive as well. I highly recommend people to see this theater show.
While I did enjoy several moments throughout the show, I must admit that I did not LOVE it, as a whole. Some of the long speeches tended to drag, and the lead actor who played Vijay delivered a rather boring performance. But there were definitely memorable highlights as well: 1) The beautiful set, 2) The lead actress who played the Japanese bride, 3) Debargo Sanyal in his various roles (including the Paan Wallah), 4) The Towel Dance and 5) The eclectic music from different cultures/languages. For just $20 (cheaper than a Broadway ticket), I definitely felt like I got my money’s worth.
This play was great! I had a great time. It was funny, but also touching in moments, and also had a great set, and great costumes, and very enjoyable performances from the actors.
A wonderfully entertaining theater program. The Paan Wallah was my favorite–“Sierra Mist Free is free from sugar. Not free to take!” Very funny!!
I saw this on Saturday afternoon, and had a fun time. I did understand every single scene in the show, but I understand the main story of the script, which I liked. The stage was beautifully designed, and the acting was terrific–particularly Paan Beedi Man (Debargo Sanyel), who was the show’s comic highlight. I also thought the costuming was very beautiful and colorful.
“Queens Boulevard” was so much fun (I just saw it last night)! So colorful and vibrant and, at points, heartwarming. I do agree with Amardeep that some of the long monologues in the show got in the way of the momentum that the rest of the production had, but, still I really liked it. And, yes, ladies, Veena is absolutely right about the towel dance–it is one of the best moments in the show!
Saw this show on Sunday afternoon. Overall it was unlike anything I’d seen before. Not a typical musical at all. As for the good things – wonderful sets, lights and costumes. Couldn’t enjoy the technical aspects enough. Music selections were also fun. As for the cast, overall a great energetic cast. I heard in the lobby afterwards that many of of the actors were sick but it was not obvious at all. They gave it all they had. Unfortunately, I really did not like the lead desi guy who played his character like a pathetic wimpering fool nor did I like the Paan Bedi guy. Both actors pushed their performances to get laughs or reactions. They were both way too over-the-top for my taste. And I would have liked to see an older actor take on the Paan Beedi character with the depth he could have had. The girls in the show are good – the bride is exceptional and natural. The friends of the bride (including desi, Geeta CityGirl) were good but had much less to do than the guys. As for the guys, my favorites were three non-desis that played several roles – Bill Buell, Demosthenes and William Harper. The show is not for everyone. It was a fun afternoon for myself and a friend but there were others in the audience that walked out in the middle. C’est la vie.
I went to see the show last night, and it was completely sold-out! Not one seat was empty. And the audience loved the show, as did I. It was most certainly not what I was expecting, which was part of the fun. I enjoyed all of the performances immensely, and they were only enhanced by the lovely costumes, lights, sets, music, and dancing. It was a fun and unique theater experience that I would heartily recommend, regardless of whether you are desi or not (although the desi content in the show was great too).
This was a very enjoyable show. I decided to see it after reading this review — http://www.nytheatre.com/nytheatre/quee5448.htm — which does a great job of explaining the show. The actors were terrific and very energetic. I definitely had a fun time.
I was able to get tickets to the final closing performance of the show last night, and got to sit next to a bunch of cool celebrities (e.g. Milena Govich from “Law & Order”, Bobby Cannavale from “Will & Grace”, Alison Pill from “Dan in Real Life”). It was a really awesome and fun production. My favorite moment was probably the hilarious towel dance. The cast was very talented. Of course, I also loved the amazing set. It was a very fun night. I am glad I went to see it. Wonderful music and dancing as well.
Isn’t that Debargo Sanyal who is in the cute New York Lotto scratch-off card commercials with all the students sitting in an ESL class? I’m pretty sure Debargo is the adorably earnest desi dude at the end who says “Monkey!! Monkey?? Orangutan??”. Hahaha. I crack up every time I see it!