NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� When he was first asked to helm the Broadway hit musical director and choreographer Christopher Gattelli loved it, but refused to work on the big, splashy opening number. It was just too delicious.
鈥淲hen they sent it to me, I was cooking and I burnt dinner because my mind was spinning," he says. "I was, like, 鈥楾his is a gift. I will never get an opening number like this again.鈥欌��
So Gattelli worked out everything else about how to put 1992 comic cult classic onto a stage and only then turned to the big, brassy song, 鈥淔or the Gaze,鈥� a winking valentine to gay men, punning along the way.
鈥淚 was able to do the show and then have my full brain on that number because I knew the potential of what it could be,鈥� he says.
What Gattelli crafted is an opening number for the ages, led by There are mid-song costume changes, dance breaks, chorus boys hoisting Hilty, spangly jumpsuits and tuxedos, high-kicking Vegas showgirls with feather headdresses, a body double doing somersaults, a rainbow flag of top-hatted dancers, and Hilty doing a cameo, all ending with the grand finale of Hilty as Judy Garland's Dorothy from 鈥淭he Wizard of Oz,鈥� complete with a little stuffed dog.
鈥淚 heard the pocket in that song, and I was like, 鈥業 know there鈥檚 a giant laugh there. I can hear giant laughs, what鈥檚 that giant laugh?'鈥� says Gattelli. 鈥淲hat鈥檚 the biggest gay reference? Then I literally I just worked backwards.鈥�
That number telegraphs to the audience exactly what to expect for the rest of the night 鈥� a perfectly rehearsed, lushly costumed, silly, self-aware comedy.
鈥淥nce we hit 鈥楩or the Gaze,鈥� the audience knows exactly what the show is," he says. "And then I think they鈥檙e in for the ride.鈥�
A wheelbarrow of Tony nods
The work on 鈥淔or the Gaze鈥� has helped Gattelli see his show earn 10 Tony Award nominations, including one for his Broadway debut as a director and another for his choreography.
The musical is based on the film, which starred as a self-centered actor and as her suffering-in-the-shadows writer friend. Their mutual desperate measures for achieving eternal youth turn comically grotesque. Hilty plays the Streep role, while plays the Hawn one.
鈥淚t felt like just the perfect fit for what I do and what I love to do," Gattelli says. "I love comedy and I love to direct comedy and I love to do these big splashy numbers. It felt like everything I鈥檝e been itching to do.鈥�
Gattelli 鈥� who was a dancer in the original 鈥� has been a mainstay on Broadway of late, able to choreograph such venerable works as 鈥淭he King and I鈥� and 鈥淢y Fair Lady鈥� but also irreverent musicals as 鈥淪pongeBob SquarePants鈥� and the jukebox variety, like 鈥淭he Cher Show.鈥�
He made his directing debut off-Broadway in 2011 with 鈥淪ilence!鈥� a parody musical of 鈥淭he Silence of the Lambs,鈥� complete with a chorus of dancing lambs running across the stage.
Lowe Cunningham, lead producer of 鈥淒eath Becomes Her,鈥� saw it in Los Angeles and later asked Gattelli about the experience, how he collaborated and his approach to the work. She was impressed by his openness to all ideas and his caring.
鈥淚 think first and foremost, his talent is clear and it鈥檚 been out there in the world of choreography for a long time. He is innovative, he does things other people aren鈥檛 doing, but the other thing is that he鈥檚 renowned as being an incredibly kind human being,鈥� she says.
Gattelli, who won a 2012 Tony for choreographing 鈥淣ewsies the Musical鈥� 鈥� one of his show-stopping moments was dancers sliding on newspapers 鈥� was brought in relatively late to 鈥淒eath Becomes Her,鈥� only a year and half before opening on Broadway.
鈥淚t was a great lesson in trusting your instincts,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hey said, 鈥榃e want a lush, opulent, sexy, magical sparkling evening.鈥� And we just started taking big swings.鈥�
It started with 鈥� of all things 鈥� the curtain. The audience filing into the theater is greeted by a purple, royal fabric. 鈥淲hen people walk in, they immediately feel like that it鈥檚 lush and sexy and mysterious.鈥�
The challenge of one scene
The musical is filled with very funny special effects that are decidedly low-tech. At one point, the two leading ladies are replaced by two men duking it out in dresses and wigs. The audience roars at the deception and Gattelli even advised one of the male combatants not to shave his arm hair.
鈥淭he audience is in on the joke,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 love that they go on that ride with us. They鈥檙e laughing with us. We鈥檙e all laughing together and it feels good.鈥�
One scene from the movie needed a lot of planning to make it on stage: The tumble down the elegant mansion stairs by Hilty's character. Hollywood CGI magic would have to be replicated by Broadway ingenuity.
鈥淭he people that know the movie and the fans especially are going to go, 鈥楬ow are they going to do it?鈥� It was keeping me up at night forever because we tried everything,鈥� says Gattelli.
The creative team 鈥� which also included set designer lighting designer Justin Townsend and sound designer Peter Hylenski 鈥� decided to make it a dance punctuated by sound effects.
Warren Yang 鈥� an actor with a gymnastics background 鈥� wears Hilty's outfit and a wig as he tumbles slowly, acrobatically and theatrically down the stairs, somersaulting as thunder sounds crash and we hear what seems like bones cracking. (The stairs were made of the rubber Neoprene for safety.)
鈥淭here are very simple techniques that make a big impact,鈥� says Gattelli. 鈥淚 just went back to it鈥檚 a beautiful, lush, gorgeous show, but, at the core, it鈥檚 just theatrical magic and stagecraft.鈥�
Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press
