My Life with Albertine (2003 Original Off-Broadway Cast)

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Music reviews of My Life with Albertine (2003 Original Off-Broadway Cast)

Music Review: Beautiful and deeply expressive music
Rating: 5 Stars

Because Marcel sees Albertine only through the lens of his own need and desire, he is unable to grasp the whole person behind her apparently inconsistent behavior ("The Different Albertines"). That there is a unified person behind the changing appearances is indicated by the descending minor third Gordon uses whenever her name is sung. Albertine may be a mystery to Marcel, but the songs Gordon gives her to sing help us recognize her `transformations' as natural stages in her development from child to mature woman. The first of these is represented by the "Ferret Song." On the surface this is a simple and charming children's chant, but the slightly dissonant accompaniment suggests that Albertine is self-consciously prolonging her last days of childhood innocence. In "My Soul Weeps," Albertine tries to share with Marcel the adolescent melancholy that distresses her (again the long arching vocal line), but all Marcel can do is try to kiss her, to her great disgust. Some months later, having apparently been initiated into [intercourse] in the interim, Albertine sleeps with Marcel. Having had what he wanted, he discards her. Disappointed in Marcel, Albertine tries forging connections with women, transforming "My Soul Weeps" into a desperate tango.

When Albertine and Marcel once again try to live together they find it difficult to reveal their true feelings to each other ("What [I] think is, don't hurt me, don't leave me, don't lie to me, but what I say is, kiss me"). The audience can recognize Albertine's growing cynicism when she sings the raucous "I Need Me a Girl" (the men and women she describes all "need" a girl but treat that girl as a thing), but Marcel reacts by locking her up in his Paris apartment. Soon the lovers are unable to say anything at all (reprise of "But What I Say"), leaving Marcel to be consumed by his own jealous imaginings. At last, unable to tolerate Marcel's suspicion and possessiveness, Albertine runs away from him. In her farewell letter, she tells him that she leaves him her "best part, my heart," but he is unable to recognize the truth of that. In his sexual jealousy, Marcel initiates an escalating battle of words ("The Letters") that ends only when they both realize that being apart is more painful than the sacrifices they must make to stay together. Marcel at last gives up his claim of ownership ("I beg you to come home. I make no conditions"), while Albertine gives up her autonomy ("whatever you decide, I shall abide by your decision"). But before Albertine can return to him, she is killed in a fall from her horse.

"Albertine's Last Letter" reaches Marcel just after the news of her death. This song is sung by Albertine when the musical opens and again toward the end by the Narrator and it is typical of both the skill and the depth of feeling that Ricky Ian Gordon brings to this work. The characteristic arching vocal line for the opening words "Is it too late for me to return to you?" extends for a full measure longer than one expects it to, suggesting Albertine's willingness to go the extra mile to bridge the gap between herself and Marcel. Throughout the song, the orchestration expresses her changing emotions so clearly that they seem to be living in the listener's own heart. We hear both her hope and longing and also her nervous fear as she steels herself for possible rejection right through to the wonderful diminished triad that ends the voice line, creating a painful sense of uncertainty even while the harmonies underneath are trying to resolve it.

The songs mentioned above are primarily those that mark Albertine's development. Others represent the various settings: the seaside resort where the lovers first meet ("Balbec by the Sea," which sounds as if it was inspired by Poulenc at his most frivolous), drawing room society in Paris ("Talk about the Weather")¸ and the bordello demi-monde of Albertine's lesbian friends ("I Want You"). But best of all is Gordon's contribution to the centuries-old tradition of songs based on street vendors' cries in which Marcel imagines Albertine's name being cried out, like the artichokes and periwinkles, as if she too were for sale on "The Street."

"My Life with Albertine" is not for people who prefer simple stories and melodies on the lines of Kum ba yah. But it repays repeated and thoughtful listening with some of the most subtle and satisfying delights that musical story-telling can deliver.

Description of My Life with Albertine (2003 Original Off-Broadway Cast)

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