Valencia College’s production
of “My Dear Watson” musical needs a few clues on conveying emotional complexities, writes Matthew J. Palm.
Everyone has a friend that just drives them nuts, right? They say the most exasperating things, and their actions can be baffling — but, still, life would be poorer without them in it.
That scenario is why we all can empathize with Dr. John Watson, confidant, roommate and friend to the great Sherlock Holmes. The relationship between the two men is at the heart of “My Dear Watson,” a new musical by Longwood resident Jami-Leigh Bartschi. After a run at the New York Musical Festival this spring, the show is now onstage at Valencia College.
It was shrewd of Bartschi to focus on the unconventional friendship of Holmes and Watson as the emotional centerpiece of her musical: How to love a difficult person is a fascinating question. But that focus exposes a problem at the core of the Valencia production, directed by John DiDonna. The underlying affection between Holmes and Watson doesn’t clearly register, despite the dialogue and songs. It may be that the student actors simply aren’t experienced enough to convey such a complicated emotional relationship.
Bartschi wrote the music, lyrics and storyline, which is filled with pleasing twists and turns. An Act One murder mystery lets the audience see violin-loving Holmes strut his stuff and is solved with his usual, nearly omniscient flair.
Bartschi’s music delightfully hints at a bygone era and is full of motion, like the whirring of focused brain waves. She has composed it in such a way that the very notes sound intelligent. The lyrics occasionally are too obvious, but serve the story well. Among the best numbers: “It’s Like a Game” and “Before You,” both of which add humor to the drama.
The actors don’t always let the songs shine to their full potential, and several don’t sound quite confident in their singing; there’s a sameness in the vocals that doesn’t account for whether the song is meant to be funny, angry or heartfelt. As the villainous Moriarty, Chase Curtis fares best with his mustache-twirling number, “Be Like Me.”
Malcolm Boniface gives Sherlock a nice air of abstraction, though his rapidfire speech — while conveying the quickness of Holmes’ mental processes — leads to swallowed words. Kyle Meehan’s Watson maintains second-banana status to the great one, as usual, but could stand to pop a little more. The show bears his name, after all.
A three-piece musical ensemble adds greatly to the show’s atmosphere. The orchestration allows each to shine: piano, cello and, of course violin — just how Holmes would want it.