Word: greasepainted
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...Roar of the Greasepaint-the Smell of the Crowd brings back Anthony Newley, the versatile book-song-mime-and-dance man of Stop the World, to belabor his favorite subject -what a raw deal the Little Man gets in this worst of all possible worlds. This time, Newley's ubiquitous underdog is called Cocky instead of Littlechap, though the aptest name for him would be Poppycocky...
...often been used as a soapbox, but Newley's brand of social protest is stale, sour and weary. Since the same message would cost nothing on a street corner, it takes a certain amount of bogus adornment and gall to charge $9.60 for it in the theater. Greasepaint has plenty of both...
...year ago, I did find exactly the right teacher, Clair Gelda. She told me, 'You must be careful not to push to the point of losing the wonderful velvet on your voice.'" This "velvet," which is readily apparent in the restrained opening of "Feeling Good" in Roar of the Greasepaint, should not be confused with the quite different, if attractive, breathy tone characteristic of Belafonte or the late Nat King Cole...
...fact, no part of Greasepaint shows any thought by the author. They have picked ideas they considered cute or topical and piled them one upon another. They thought civil rights were a good topic, so in the middle of the second act a Negro runs in and asks to play the game. When Cocky and Sir reluctantly acquiesce, the Negro wins, but by disregarding Sir's rules. He then sings a rousing celebration of his victory, all of which, song and victory, seem irrelevant to what's been going...
Under Newley's imaginative direction, and Gillian Lynne's lively choreography, Greasepaint bounces idiotically along, though its sound and fury ends with a thud. Newley, a director as well as an author and actor, certainly is talented enough to stage, with decent material, an intelligent and entertaining show. But as long as he builds his castles out of ashes, they will, like this one, all fall down...