“Fun Home” Outstanding, Interesting and Insightful Fun
Lyn Cramer as Alison Bechdel in “Fun Home” at Lyric Theatre Photo Courtesy of KO Rinearson
“Fun Home” is a musical based on the autobiographical graphic novel by Alison Bechdel. Bechdel writes of her experience growing up in a small town where her father owned the Bechdel Funeral Home-hence the name ‘Fun Home.’ Young Alison has an unusually creative family. Her father is an English teacher and her mother is an actress, performing in the local community theatre. Like many little girls she worships her dad and tries very hard to please him. As a young college student she ventures into a larger world and realizes that she is not now, nor ever has been comfortable as a girl in her own skin. She is attracted to girls, not boys, and she soon takes a lover, Joan. She sends a letter to her parents announcing her discovery and soon learns that her father is bisexual. They have more in common that she had thought. The book was first published in 2006. The musical premiered off Broadway in 2013 and on Broadway in 2015. For the musical, Lisa Kron created the lyrics and thebook with the music from Jeanine Tesori.
While “Fun Home” is specifically geared to the LGBTQ community the story appeals to a much wider audience and has received critical acclaim from mainstream viewers. This appeal comes from the literary quality and the humanity of the characters that is very real. The difference between the ‘straight’ lifestyle and the ‘alternate’ lifestyles is actually quite minimal. It is only on a surface level that character identification is dependent upon matching sexual identities. This may explain why identity politics seems to be failing; people are simply relating at a greater depth of common humanity, as are the characters in this play. “Fun Home” has earned multiple Tony Awards and the universality of the character emotions may account for that, as well as the excellent writing and musical approach.
The musical flows beautifully, but the flow is not necessarily linear. It follows a natural progression: circular at times. The success of “Fun Home” depends also upon the quality of each production. Lyric Theatre has a very talented Artistic Director, Michael Baron puts his artistic integrity into every production. In the case of “Fun Home” Baron directs. Creating the perfect mood, Baron begins with the set. He contacted Alison Bechdel directly about using her style as part of the set design and she agreed, most likely with delight. Dawn Drake then designed a beautiful emotive set that mirrors the effect of a graphic novel-including the margins. The color scheme is a soft bluish-gray tone evocative of newsprint. The tone is perfect for the show. Art Whaley’s lighting design enhances the set. In fact, all the technical aspects of this show are a solid foundation. Jeffrey Meeks’ costume designs takes us right back to the 70’s, although the more colorful costumesof Alison Bechdel as she appears in the present, works for several decades of her life. The color helps to define her separateness as she tells her story with visual memories.
Taylor Yancey as the ‘Medium Alison’ (left,in blue) and Sandra Mae Frank as Joan (right, vest) in Lyric’s “Fun Home” Photo Courtesy of KO Rinearson
Baron has the fine backing of Brian Hamilton as musical director with Matthew Sipress in choreography. The musical interpretation is subtle. It’s real (rather than flamboyant) giving the characters greater substance. Alison Bechdel’s life story as a struggle is told during different time periods, as she visualizes her family and herself. In addition to her father and mother, she has two brothers. She watches a younger teen self, unsure of her place in the world as well as a younger pre-adolescent self, confident, tom-boyish and delightfully daring.
Lyn Cramer plays Alison Bechdel (the Alison we know now). She is the creator of ‘Dykes to Watch Out For’ but she doesn’t seem to be very dangerous. She is merely another human being with a story not completely dissimilar to our own. She is 53 years of age as she recalls the incidents of her life while examining the artifacts of her past, haphazardly that are gathered in a box of assorted memories. Cramer makes the character someone interesting, someone we’d like to know as a fellow human being. Bechdel’s father is portrayed by Mateja Govich. Through him we see the conflict of a bisexual man who has chosen a heterosexual life style, but not one that ignores his homosexual impulses. He never seems to learn that as a sexual being, one cannot straddle the fence. Certainly his wife learns that lesson, and her story is heartbreaking. The performance of Mandy Jiran as mom, Helen, is certainly tragic, as she lives a life forced upon her. It is not the life she chose when she first fell in love with the handsome, talented, intelligent Bruce Bechdel. The humanity of Bruce Bechdel, is reflected in Helen’s eyes and we see him lose himself selfishly. We also see them both struggling to maintain normalcy in their family, striving to give their children the strength and the security they deserve. The two brothers are John and Christian Bechdel, and they are wonderfully played by Coulter Hershey and Connor Willis.
Cramer’s Alison is very real, but the reality of her character is enhanced with the performances of the two actresses who play Alison at a younger age. Taylor Yancey is charming and natural as the ‘Medium Alison’ and Reese Freund is precocious and delightful as the ‘Small Alison.’ They both are reminiscent of tomboy Jo from Little Women. Such a comparison should not suggest that Alcott’s iconic Jo Marsh is in any way a possible lesbian, it does suggest that the young Alison was a typical little girl, who might grow up to be anyone, and her sexuality may have been an integral part of her budding womanhood, it was never an integral part of her humanity. It is the quality performance of these two little girls that really makes “Fun Home” a story that is so appealing to mainstream audiences.
Sandra Mae Frank plays Joan, Alison’s friend and lover. It is Joan that allows Alison to accept herself without reservation. Her understanding and support is essential. Frank’s performance of the character is superb. As a deaf actress she conveys so much meaning in expression and attitude that it isn’t necessary to ‘hear’ any lines, she is heard with a resounding sound. Taylor Blackman plays the young friend of the family, Roy, with sensitivity. He seems to accept Bechdel’s sexual overtures with an innocent aplomb that is based on kind wisdom.
The Bechdel Children: Connor Willis as Christian Bechdel, (left) Coulter Hershey as John Bechdel (center) and Reese Freund as small Alison (right) Photo courtesy of KO Rinearson
“Fun Home” is an excellent production and the sensitivity of the subject is handled expertly by the cast and crew under Baron’s thoughtful, inspired direction. Moreover, the approach of the play maintains incredible integrity. “Fun Home” could easily become a just gay play for a gay audience, instead of the story of humanity it is. “Fun Home” plays through April 29, 2018. Enjoyable theatre that provides a very educational perspective as well, is important in any community. Excellent performances by all the actors are a joy to watch because of their depth, understanding and bravery. Lyric has amassed the crème de la crème of musicians as well, for the orchestra under Brian Hamilton as conductor. Additionally, Lyric has recruited the top of the line in artistic expression in scene design from Dawn Drake, (inspired by Alison Bechdel), the top-of-the-line in artistic expression and scene design, with excellent costumes by Jeffrey Meeks, designer and lighting by Art Whaley. , Lyric gathered a superbly talented and intelligent cast headed by Lyn Cramer as Alison Bechdel to tell the story of a smart, talented, (but simple) woman in a complex time with a different orientation. Lyric on the Plaza is located at 1727 NW 16th Street in the quaint Plaza district of Oklahoma City. For information and tickets visit www.lyrictheatreokc.com or call 405-524-9312.