Brooklynite: Theater review by Adam Feldman
The comic-book musical Brooklynite is super shiny and often pretty cute, but what and whom is it for, exactly? The fetchingly understated Nicolette Robinson plays Astrolass, the leader of a motley team of costumed Brooklyn heroes; Matt Doyle, sweetly bespectacled, plays Trey, an orphaned science geek who wants to re-create the freak asteroid that gave them their powers; and the hilarious Nick Cordero is Avenging Angelo, a preening, lazy member of Astrolass’s group who resents the others’ superior gifts. (They got things like stength and speed; he got parking karma.) The sets by Donyale Werle and costumes by Andrea Lauer are knowingly cartoonish; there’s much silly dancing and running about.
A harmless two-dimensional diversion, Peter Lerman and Michael Mayer’s show has a glossy pop sound and some hipster jokes, but it's basically a throwback to the goofy-campy Batman TV series (and its Broadway equivalent, “It’s a Bird…It’s a Plane…It’s Superman”). Brooklynite is bright but insubstantial: all cape, no powers. Mayer’s production at the Vineyard is boosted, though, by a very appealing cast (including Ann Harada, Grace McLean, Andrew Call, Gerard Canonico and Tom Alan Robbins). It will be interesting to see how the show flies in what may be its most appropriate milieu: a high-school auditorium.—Adam Feldman
Vineyard Theatre (Off Broadway). Book by Michael Mayer and Peter Lerman. Music and lyrics by Lerman. Directed by Mayer. With ensemble cast. Running time: 2hrs 5mins. One intermission.
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