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If ever
you’ve had a dream, says Margaret Johnson,
the protagonist of Adam Guettel’s lushly
romantic musical The Light in the Piazza,
then best that you don’t come to Italy, for
it is in Italy that you will once again be
confronted by that dream, no matter how
deeply-repressed or long-ignored. And for
Margaret Johnson, that dream is love, to be
loved and to love in return, as the 1950s
song “Nature Boy” would have it. That Nat
King Cole chestnut might even be a
subconscious soundtrack for Margaret Johnson
as she and her daughter Clara wander through
Florence in Margaret’s attempt to
resuscitate some of the feelings she had for
her husband when she and he honeymooned in
Italy. It is 1953 in this luminous
production, marvelously adapted by Craig
Lucas from an Elizabeth Spencer novella
(first published in its entirety in the New
Yorker), and never has Italy and all its
post-war allures looked so appealing
onstage. While the United States is in the
throes of Eisenhower repression and
conformity, life in Italy is lived con molta
passione, where every apertivo leads
inevitably to la passeggiata. Beautifully
rendered by oversized arches and portals,
fluid sets which glide and turn, and a
golden light streaked with gloaming, this
Italy is a walker’s paradise, and the cast,
merely by walking this way and that, evokes
a city of narrow streets and piazzi where
around every corner is the promise of love.
Primarily, this is a story of a mother’s
love, and Victoria Clark gives a brilliant
performance of a Southern woman duty-bound
by her background to honor the dictates of
her class and upbringing. Mind you, Margaret
Johnson sees the humor peculiar to her
predicament – the desire to let Clara
experience life even as she fears letting
her go – for she is acutely aware of how
much her own life revolves around caring for
Clara. Without Clara, what will become of
her – a question which brings out the
lioness in her, before allowing herself to
surrender to the transcendent power of love.
This transformation, when it occurs, is
miraculous to witness – but then, so is the
entire production. With a highly-intelligent
book by Lucas and passionate music and
lyrics by Guettel, this is a love story
which takes seriously the pursuit of love.
No quest in life is more honorable in the
minds of these characters – and when
Margaret Johnson realizes the depth of
Clara’s feelings for Fabrizio, nothing can
keep her from honoring love’s power.
Not unlike the very best of relationships,
The Light in the Piazza is a musical built
upon small and intimate moments, which, upon
reflection and with time, become expansive
and resonant, much like Guettel’s
chamber-like score. A straw boater lifting
into the air, the pause before a kiss upon a
gloved hand, the shattering of a glass, the
turn of a wrist, a tap on the chest – all
these moments add up to one of the most
beautiful love stories ever performed
onstage. Given the many strengths of this
tasteful production (an exemplary cast,
evocative lighting, stunning sets, and
drop-dead costuming, as well as
pitch-perfect direction by Bartlett Sher),
it is no small wonder that you leave the
Lincoln Center Theater believing in
unconditional love – and your heart
reflecting its own light across the plaza.
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