Idina Menzel (Photo: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman)

Redwood

by Carol Rocamora

Two elements overpower the current production of Redwood now playing at the Nederlander Theatre on Broadway. One is the extraordinary voice of Idina Menzel, and the other is the equally extraordinary projection design by Hana S. Kim.

In Tina Landau's hyper-emotional new play, the protagonist Jesse (played by Menzel) is an art gallerist, living in New York with her partner, Mel. She's trying to cope with an unimaginable tragedy - the loss of her college graduate son Spencer. Numb with grief, she leaves New York and journeys west, seeking some kind of relief from her suffering. She ends up in Eureka, California, where she finds the majestic Redwood forests. There, she meets two arborist/researchers, Finn (Michael Park) and Becca (Khaila Wilcoxon). She entreats them to teach her how to climb to the height of the largest redwood in the forest. Atop this towering tree in that formidable forest, Jesse experiences an epiphany that launches her new journey of healing.

Idina Menzel's powerful voice needs no introduction - you've heard it in Wicked, in Rent, and many other Broadway productions. What's overwhelming in this particular show is that she sings at the top of her voice (augmented by a deafening mike) for two hours straight. Indeed, the play is constructed almost as an operetta (book by Tina Landau, music by Kate Diaz, lyrics by both). In the matinee I attended last week, I almost wished there had been an intermission for her sake.

The volume and intensity of Menzel's voice is matched by the thrilling video design of the Redwood forests. They are projected on floor-to-ceiling panels that encircle the stage and dominate everything in the production (except Menzel's voice). Center stage is the giant redwood tree (a massive structure designed by Jason Ardizzone-West) which Jesse is intent on climbing.

As she rides to the top of the tree, pulled by the cables that Finn lent her, the projected views of multiple ascending levels are truly awe-inspiring. Indeed, upon reaching the top, we in the audience thrill at the dazzling, open, blue California skies (lit by Scott Zielinski) from the vantage point of one of the highest trees in the world (roughly as high as the Statue of Liberty) - with the view of the massive forest disappearing below.

Wait: there's more. Jesse bonds with this tree and names it Stella. She further cajoles the kindly Finn into allowing her to spend a week on a platform high in the tree where she can commune with her new "friend," whose leaves (in the projections) begin to move in response, as if in conversation with Jesse.

Khaila Wilcoxon, Idina Menzel (Photo: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman)

All this tree-talking and tree-hugging may sound like a chapter out of a new age healing book. What saves it from descending into the maudlin is the unexpected, beautiful moment toward the end of the play when Jesse descends from her week atop the tree. Her dead son Spencer appears and sings her a song, consoling her, saying that it was not her fault that he died, that it was an accidental overdose. "While you are living, LIVE!"  Zachary Noah Piser sings out with all his heart. Of the nineteen songs that comprise the show, this penultimate one entitled "Still" is the most memorable, and provides an uplifting conclusion. (The whole cast, including Stella the tree, join in).

Khaila Wilcoxon, Michael Park, Idina Menzel, Zachary Noah Piser, De'Adre Aziza (Photo: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman)

As directed by Tina Landau (who also wrote the book) the talented ensemble does it best to balance this intense script with as much humor and empathy that it can.  Michael Park's Finn is especially convincing in his compassion for Jesse; Khaila Wilcoxon's Jesse is a caustic counterpart; De'Adre Aziza's Mel provides an emotional anchor to the piece.

So save yourself a trip to California and go to the Nederlander Theatre instead. Designers Ardizzone-West and Hana S. Kim will give you the spiritual lift you may be longing for, in these difficult times.

 

Redwood

At the Nederlander Theatre

208 W. 41^st St.

through July 6

Tickets: https://www.redwoodmusical.com/tickets/