Rob Tucker as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Hannah Elliott as Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald. Photo by Sammy Jungwirth.
The love story of F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda is one that would make for a pretty engaging movie, a lively limited series, or perhaps even a musical. A musical had actually been produced centering on the tempestuous relationship between Fitzgerald and his young “flapper” wife, Zelda. “Beautiful and Damned” (original music and Lyrics by Les Reed and Roger Cook, book by Kit Hesketh Harvey) premiered in London’s West End in 2004. It enjoyed a modest, short-lived run and then was never to be heard from again…Until that is, an enterprising teenager got a hold of it. Enter 17-year-old Sammy Jungwirth ( Read our Quick 5 here). Jungwirth, in his director’s note, explains that he came across the West End production on YouTube during the peak of the pandemic. After reaching out to one of the show’s producers, Jungwirth was granted permission to bring his version of the production to the States. The staged reading/concert of “Zelda” that I had the opportunity to see at CCBC Essex is the semi-finished version of Jungwirth’s highly creative, reimagining of this musical.
…Jungwirth’s highly creative, reimagining of this musical…Impressive is an understatement.
The story here is not necessarily the thing, as many people are at least somewhat familiar with the rollercoaster ride of a relationship that the Fitzgeralds had. They married young; they lived lavishly; they believed in the 1920s version of an “open” marriage; they loved, hurt one another, and eventually lived separate lives with Zelda institutionalized. Both Fitzgeralds were authors in their own right, though F. Scott would ultimately emerge as the iconic American novelist and Zelda would linger (and die) in relative obscurity—a theme that the play emphatically touches upon.
What is “the thing” in Jungwirth’s production is the music combined with what a young director managed to do with just a staged reading/concert. Impressive is an understatement. The musical numbers are minimally choreographed and yet, the brief interactions that we do get between the actors are emotionally fraught and blocked so as to unquestionably draw one in. The overall ambiance and mood lend themselves to making audiences wholeheartedly believe in the love story and tragic end of F. Scott and Zelda.
The eponymous Zelda is the true center of this production. DC-based actor Hannah Elliot does an incredible job of conveying the full range of Zelda’s emotional ups and downs—the audience at once cheers for her and also weeps with her. Elliot’s vocals are the perfect combination of tenuous ingénue and girl from small Alabama town makes good chasing her New York City dreams. Rob Tucker’s F. Scott Fitzgerald is just cocky enough to make you dislike him, but endearing enough to make you want to see him come through and do the right thing in the end. Both actors deftly and charmingly fill the shoes of these historic personalities.
The rest of the cast does a truly commendable job selling an eclectic mix of characters. From a by-the-book Alabama judge; to an arrogant Ernest Hemingway; to an enchanting actress with whom Scott has an affair; to the caught-in-the-middle daughter of the tumultuous couple; and to the tortured French lover of a wavering Zelda, this cast most definitely knows how to put on a show. Most notably, Darren McConnell as Zelda’s father, and later as Hemingway, brings a play-centering gravitas to just about every scene he’s in.
Ed Lake’s lighting and sound in tandem with Eli Golding’s media design really do take this production up a critical notch. It goes from staged reading to a more fully-realized and highly enjoyable night of theatre. Of course, what would a musical be without the music. The orchestra quickly emerges as the artistic backbone that carries this production start to finish. Musical director Charlotte Evans Crowley pulls double duty on piano and she is certainly working hard to a fantastic result. Pitch perfect, the orchestra in and of itself could have been a standalone delight. When that ultra-talented orchestra comes together with this cast of wonderful actors, Robyn Alvarez’s smart costume design, and the inspired direction of Sammy Jungwirth, Zelda comes to life. I can’t wait to see where they take this production next.
Running time: Approximately two hours with one 15-minute intermission.
“Zelda” ran from January 20-21, 2023 at CCBC Essex campus located at 7201 Rossville Boulevard Baltimore, MD 21237 under the sponsorship of the Performing Arts at CCBC. To find out more about Sammy Jungwirth, go to his website.
