In this week's issue of TOC I review two world premieres (an appellation that makes me uncomfortable for reasons that may or may not be warranted). A Minister's Wife, the musicalization of Shaw's Candida by Josh Schmidt, Jan Tranen and Austin Pendleton, is charming if a bit meandering. Schmidt's score strikes me as lush, romantic and altogether different from his angular, intentionally mechanical work on Adding Machine (which I'm sad to say I've heard only via the New York cast recording—missing the original production at Next is high on my list of Great Theatrical Regrets).
Pavement Group's debut of Mallery Avidon's fracture/mechanics had me working hard to like a script I just couldn't. As much as there is to admire in David Perez's production, I just couldn't get down with Avidon's facile, ultra-slight play.
Meanwhile, I'll have a full report later today at the TOC Blog on last night's Non-Equity Jeff Awards ceremony.
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