Melissa Etheridge (Photo: Jenny Anderson)

Review of Melissa Etheridge: My Window

By Cammy Paglia 

Melissa Etheridge: My Window is essentially a one woman show, a dazzling rock concert with a narrated journey into Etheridge's many joys: a humorous encounter with her college roommate (She attended The Berklee College of Music in Boston for a while); her many romances with various women; gigs and fun times at lesbian bars; and also a gaping, oozing wound that has certainly left a scar on her heart but has not destroyed her.

 

Her performance credits music as the balm that gets her through. Etheridge surrenders her soul in rockstar grandeur throughout the show. Her anguish and guilt over the passing of her son at age 21 from an overdose of fentanyl is at the crux of her torment. Born to her one-time partner through artificial insemination, he was prescribed painkillers after he severely injured his ankle in a snowboarding accident.

With a sense of raw vulnerability, the show also pays tribute to her father who, while she was growing up in Leavenworth, Kansas, chauffeured her to all of her musical gigs as a teenager. He died of cancer in 1991. He was the inspiration for her song, "Talking to My Angel," featured in the show. She loved him very much. She tenderly recalls how he not only believed in her and encouraged her in her dream of fame as a musician, he never passed judgment on her for being a lesbian. 

The show is titled after her very famous hit, "Come to My Window," for which she won a Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance. It was penned during a lonely period in her life when she spent many hours on the road. The manner in which she plays this song punches you in the gut, echoing the breakdown of a troubled relationship. Etheridge wrote it after coming out in 1993. "I am the Only One" and "I Want to Come Over" are two more hits that delight a  mesmerized the audience. 

At the beginning of Melissa Etheridge: My Window, the audience learns that this musical firebrand on stage before them, belting out brilliant hits, knew she wanted to be a rock star very early on. Etheridge was born on May 29, 1961. Despite her present age, one marvels at the notion that this strenuous endeavor on Broadway runs for an astonishing two hours and forty minutes.

Her energy never fails as she showcases her talent not only as a raspy voiced vocalist-her signature sound-but also as an accomplished drummer and pianist.
Melissa Etheridge: My Window was written by the show's star in collaboration with her present wife, Linda Wallem-Etheridge. As such, the narrative aspect of this piece is a bit flimsy. While the musical and song presentations are emblematic of a great performer, the monologues are not very rich.

 

However, the lackluster attempts to speak of her life are tantalizing in that they are clearly informative to the point where learning about this woman from Kansas could become an obsession for young, starstruck groupies. While the style in which the narrative is spoken is less than eloquent, you find yourself hanging on to every word.

 

Etheridge had two significant relationships which brought forth 4 children in total.
One of her partners was married to a famous movie star, a man she left to embark on her first lesbian sojourn with Etheridge. This relationship ended quite badly which has left Etheridge still needing to work through the pain. The audience shares in this sorrow but witnesses its release in the form of a big dose of this production's Broadway magic. 

Kate Owens, Melissa Etheridge (Photo: Jenny Anderson)

 

Kate Owens, another player in this production, is a funny addition to the proceedings, playing The Roadie who assists the rock star with "crew" type tasks like bringing out props, fitting her with her guitar or helping her change out of one type of jacket or another (costume design by Andrea Lauer). Etheridge dons a leather jacket, another one with fringe and various other embellishments. This comical and unique means of costume change happens in full view of the audience.

Etheridge wears thick, black eye makeup, which becomes distracting throughout the performance, especially when close to the audience  as she moves from the main stage in rock star fashion to powerfully let out another tune, and gets closer to the audience in other locations.

 

Melissa Etheridge (Photo: Jenny Anderson)

 

Projections designer Olivia Sebesky offers exquisite renderings of Etheridge as a child, her deceased son, rock concert tour photos and more. They come into focus as a backdrop at various points in the show. Amy Tinkham's direction techniques are quite innovative, using more than one section of the theater at specific intervals throughout the show. This combined with the genius of Shannon Slaton's sound design and the sublime lighting design of Abigail Rosen Holmes, leaves the audience is thunderstruck, vicariously becoming a part of Etheridge's psychedelic experiences with ayahuasca. (After her son overdosed, Etheridge established a foundation which fund's research for the use of plant-based substances like peyote [which are not addictive] in the field of pain management.)

 

Chris Blackwell, the music producer who made Etheridge's dream of becoming famous come true by putting her on his label, Island Records, in 1988, dubbed her-a woman- "The New Face of Rock and Roll." As a woman in her early 60s Melissa Etheridge now proves to be the pulsing heart of a musical legend.

Melissa Etheridge: My Window
Circle in the Square
235 West 50th Street 
Run Time: 2 hours 40 minutes 
Through November 19, 2023
Tickets: https://www.telecharge.com/Broadway/Melissa-Etheridge-My-Window/