“Tarzan” original cast album showcases show’s strong cast, masks this Broadway musical’s many flaws

Jim Hill

18 years ago

Well, the good news is that the original cast recording of “Tarzan” went on sale yesterday. And this CD is a highly polished, very professional produced representation of Disney’s newest Broadway musical.

The bad news is … Though “Tarzan” ‘s talented cast labors mightily to make this show’s score soar, this musical keeps missing the mark.

“And why is that, Jim?” Man, I wish I knew. I wish that I could put my finger on where it is exactly that “Tarzan” goes off track. I’m really reluctant to lay blame at the feet of the show’s composer, Phil Collins. Given that Phil didn’t pull an Elton John (I.E. Quickly throw together the show’s score, then basically drop from sight ’til the musical’s opening night on Broadway). But — rather — Collins was said to be an active participant in the development process of this new Disney Theatrical production. Sitting in on “Tarzan” ‘s casting sessions and rehearsals, even regularly attending performances during the show’s extended in-town previews at the Richard Rodgers theatre.

Okay. By behaving like that, Phil Collins proved that he’s a mensch. Which is a pretty rare thing in show business today.

But just because Phil’s a mensch doesn’t automatically mean that this guy is a great Broadway composer. By that I mean that most of the new pop-style numbers that Collins wrote to supplement the five songs that he originally wrote for Disney’s animated “Tarzan” are pleasant enough. But they are also almost instantly forgettable.

Well, that’s not entirely true. There is Jane and Tarzan’s duet from the show’s second act, “For the First Time.” That number truly gives you the sense that — somewhere under all of those green streamers and bungee cords that currently clutter up the Broadway production of “Tarzan” — that there is a really-for-real musical lurking in there. Somewhere.

Anyway … As I mentioned earlier, “Tarzan” ‘s cast goes all out in order to put this somewhat thin material across. And you really get a sense of that as you listen to the original cast recording, starting with the very first track on this CD, “Two Worlds.” Which is one of the songs that was lifted directly from the 1999 animated film and dropped into the Broadway show. The ensemble does an awfully nice job with this choral number.

From there, we move quickly through a number of character songs from the show. Starting with Merle Dandridge’s warm & moving rendition of “You’ll Be in My Heart” (Which won the 2000 Academy Award for “Song of the Year“).

Then it’s Terk’s time to shine in the show. And — as Tarzan’s hairy best friend — Chester Gregory II really rocks the house with “Who Better Than Me.” A song where Terk shows Young Tarzan (Daniel Marche) the ropes … er … the vines when it comes to how one gets along in the jungle.

Of course, there are those who think that this young human doesn’t actually belong in the jungle. Which Shuler Hensley (Who plays Kerchak, the leader of the gorilla clan) tries to express in song with the somewhat awkward ballad, “No Other Way.”

From there, we transition to another somewhat thin song, Young Tarzan’s first act “I want” ballad, “I Need to Know.” Alex Rutherford (Who trades off playing the part of the Ape Man’s younger self with Daniel Marche) does what he can with this tune. Which admittedly isn’t much.

Then it’s time to drop in yet another song from the 1999 animated film, “Son of Man.” Which is the number in the show where the full grown version of Tarzan (played by “American Idol” national finalist Josh Strickland) finally makes his entrance. I just wish that the Broadway version of “Son of Man” could match the energy & the fun of the movie version of this Phil Collins song.

Then it’s time for “Sure as Sun Turns to Moon,” a song that demonstrates how truly talented the cast of “Tarzan” is. Though this back-and-forth number between Kala & Kerchak is slight (To say the least), Dandridge & Shuler still invest this song with so much feeling and soul that they actually rise above the material that they’re working with. These two Broadway pros turn “Sure as Sun Turns to Moon” into a memorable moment in the show. Which (given what they were working with) is no small accomplishment.

Then it’s time for Jane Porter to enter the proceedings. And — God bless her — Jenn Gambatese does what she can with Jane’s big entrance number, “Waiting for This Moment.” But given that Jenn’s playing this attractive academic who’s so overwhelmed by the exotic flora & fauna that surrounds her that Miss Porter just starts singing out their phylum & subphylum … Well, there’s only so much that a musical performer can do with a number like that.

Next comes “Different,” which does a halfway decent job of musicalizing the moment where Jane and Tarzan initially connect. Followed by another favorite from the 1999 animated film, “Trashin’ the Camp.” Chester Gregory does a nice job here of leading the ensemble through this energetic and somewhat skatty piece.

From there, it’s a slight but sweet duet between Jane and her dad, Professor Porter (Tim Jerome). It’s with this song — “Like No Man That I’ve Ever Seen” — that Phil Collins once again demonstrates that he could be a good Broadway composer, if given half the chance. The way that Phil has Professor Porter read between the lines and suddenly realize that his daughter is falling for the Ape Man proves that Collins is capable of producing more than pop ballads.

Speaking of pop ballads, it’s time for yet another song from the 1999 animated film, “Strangers Like Me.” Which Josh does a really nice job with. Then we get that “For the First Time” number that I mentioned earlier in this article. Which Gambatese and Strickland really make soar.

For here on in, the show’s basically a series of reprises. With Gregory belting out “Who Better Than Me” once again, followed by Strickland & Dandridge crooning “You’ll be in My Heart” together and Merle then delivering a mournful reprise of “Sure as Sun Turns to Moon.” With “Everything That I Am” (sung by young Mr. Rutherford) being the only new number in this portion of “Tarzan.”

Beyond that, this new Broadway musical ends just like it began. With the entire cast belting out a heartfelt version of “Two Worlds.” Mind you, the CD continues for yet another track. As Phil Collins performs his own rendition of “Everything That I Am.”

I know, I know. I haven’t exactly been piling on the praise here, have I? But let’s face facts, folks. You can’t really pull an amazing original cast recording out of what is actually a fairly lackluster Broadway musical.

Speaking of which: “Tarzan” ‘s word-of-mouth must be getting rather poisonous. By that I mean, did you see that Fourth of July e-mailer that Playbill.com sent out last week?

It doesn’t exactly bode well for Disney Theatrical’s latest production if — just six weeks after “Tarzan” officially opened on Broadway — ads have already begun to pop up saying that there are “… Great Seats … still available” for this new musical.

Oh, sure. The Broadway version of “Tarzan” had a $20 million advance. Which means that — in theory — this new Disney Theatrical production actually opened in the black. But (based on what I’ve been hearing) seats for performances in early 2007 haven’t been selling all that well. Which is why it’s going to be really interesting to see what happens once “Tarzan” burns through that $20 million advance.

Anyway … That’s my take on the original cast recording of “Tarzan.” Which pretty much mirrors what I thought of the Broadway production of this show. In that a lot of talented people seemed to have worked very hard on a show that didn’t quite come together.

Mind you, there are great individual pieces to be found in this new Broadway musical. A nice performance here, a good song there, an occasional visual that absolutely knocks your socks off. But all of these great individual moments don’t actually add up to a memorable evening of theater. Which is really what I had been hoping “Tarzan” would turn out to be.

But — of course — your mileage may vary. What did you folks think of “Tarzan”? The Broadway musical and/or the original cast recording?

Your thoughts?