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Desmond, first seen in Billy Wilder\u2019s classic 1950 noir film \u201cSunset Boulevard,\u201d became a Broadway musical heroine in 1994 in a show with book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber.<\/p>\n
Glenn Close won a Tony Award as Desmond (and the show six others) for that production \u2014 though a snarker noted that a Best Musical win doesn\u2019t mean much when only two are nominated.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s admit it up front: \u201cSunset Boulevard\u201d is not a great musical. Still, there\u2019s entertainment value in Moonlight Stage Production\u2019s sumptuous San Diego regional premiere, running through Sept. 2 under the assured direction of Larry Raben.<\/p>\n Robert J. Townsend, frequently seen on this stage, is excellent as starving writer Joe Gillis, the narrator and co-star of the piece. The plot has Gillis needing a job to pay off his car before those repossessors show up.<\/p>\n Joe finds tentative romance (as well as a writing partner) in Katie Sapper\u2019s pert Betty Schaefer, who also helps him elude those bill collectors early on.<\/p>\n Gillis stumbles into Desmond\u2019s path accidentally, only to find himself in the clutches of a needy former diva who doesn\u2019t know the meaning of the word \u201csurrender\u201d (or \u201cretire\u201d or even \u201cno\u201d) \u2014 unless she\u2019s using them. Dependency issues arise, as does Norma\u2019s fragile sanity. When she says she wants Joe\u2019s opinion on a screenplay she is writing, she means that opinion had better be to her liking. Soon Joe finds himself a near prisoner in that mansion.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s Norma you\u2019ve come to see, and she is played with impeccably high style (if a tenuous grip on reality) by Valerie Perri, who looks, acts and sings the part wonderfully.<\/p>\n Also in the Desmond orbit is Norma\u2019s valet\/protector Max von Mayerling, who turns out to have a pretty interesting history with her. Norman Large is excellent as Max, going above and beyond to keep her on as even a keel as possible.<\/p>\n This is a big production, with 24 actors and 23 musicians (under the capable direction of Kenneth Gammie), clever rented sets and costumes that won\u2019t quit. (One notable exception: Norma\u2019s spectacular costumes, built from scratch by Moonlight\u2019s Renetta Lloyd.)<\/p>\n There isn\u2019t much plot, but there are plenty of amusing vignettes with actors, wannabe actors and those who may or may not employ them in songs like \u201cLet\u2019s Have Lunch\u201d and \u201cThis Time Next Year,\u201d and cynical songs about the business of movies in the title song (\u201cSmile a rented smile\/Fill someone\u2019s glass\/Kiss someone\u2019s wife\/Kiss someone\u2019s ass\/We do whatever pays the wages\u201d).<\/p>\n \u201cSunset Boulevard\u201d is, as the title song says, \u201cswamped with every kind of false emotion.\u201d But Perri\u2019s Norma will likely convince you that her emotions are real, albeit outsized. This is, at heart, a very sad story.<\/p>\n![\"\u2018Sunset](\"https:\/\/sduptownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/web-35.jpg\")
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There are even projections of the Boulevard back in the day. They give a good feel for that behemoth up north that takes in talented youngsters, sometimes makes them stars for a time, and kicks them out the door when a newer\/better model arrives.<\/p>\n