Musicalized 'Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice' – Nice, but Forgettable

Paul Mazursky's seminal 1969 film, "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice," captured the radically changing views of sex and sexuality as the rebellious '60s came to a close and birthed the me-generation '70s. Part of the perspicacity of the storytelling was that it seemed to nail the excitement, desire, confusion, anxiety and trepidation of the thirtysomething set who wanted to be hip but were raised during the morally policed Eisenhower years, so they now found themselves stumbling through free love (as opposed to the younger gen, many of whom were happily swimming in it).

Most of the joys found in the film came from co-writer/director Mazursky's ability to fashion a biting script that felt fresh and improvised and was onion-like in the character reveals and deceptively satiric. And the actors who played the titular characters were perfectly cast--from stunning Natalie Wood in her image changing role of free-spirit Carol to vet TV actor Robert Culp as hippie Bob, to newcomers Elliott Gould and Dyan Cannon, walking off with Oscar nominations, as horny Ted and apprehensive Alice.

So, not surprisingly, I arrived at The New Group's new musical incarnation with a great deal of excitement, desire, confusion, anxiety and trepidation. And the results are mixed at best. Some of it works really well, but a lot of it falls flat. Part of the problem – as is often the case with so many of the legion of film-to-stage musical adaptations – is the creatives try to follow the movie almost scene for scene, reusing the same dialogue, instead of simply capturing the spirit of the thing. Case in point, the film opens with a terrifically shot and acted conscious-raising session where doc filmmaker Bob and his wife Carol, along with a gaggle of other fascinating attendees, get in touch with their true feelings. The rest of the film springs from this fascinating sequence via a series of long scenes from the lives of the quartet.

The creatives here, Jonathan Marc Sherman (Book), the ubiquitous Duncan Sheik (Music, Lyrics) and Amanda Green (Lyrics) have basically taken the vignette-like plot and filled in some (unnecessary) character backstory, composing some nice songs to go along with it. "The Wind in Your Hair," the opening number, sets the right mood. Sheik and Green's score is more in keeping with Burt Bacharach-inspired soft rock than the popular rock music of the '60s/early '70s, but that choice completely makes sense since these folks are stuck somewhere in the middle.

They've also created a "Band Leader" to play all the other characters while mostly remaining stationary, upstage center. It's a daring move but because they've cast the fabulous Suzanne Vega, it mostly works (and provides much of the evening's comedy).

Now, back to the opening: director Scott Elliott, and the team have chosen to also start the show with that same conscious-raising session and use audience members to populate the encounter group. Had they gone all out with this idea it might have worked, meaning had they actually allowed people to take part. Instead, we get confused and odd reactions (and we pay attention to them) while Bob (Jo�l P�rez) and Carol (Jennifer Damiano) have their revelatory moments. The entire sequence falls flat. Ditto for later moments where the same device is used.

And here I must add that the show might have been stronger had the leads not been miscast. Both actors seem game, but somehow I never believed they were living in the 1960s. Damiano, in particular, shows little signs of being a free spirit and pales in Natalie Wood's shadow.

Ted (Michael Zegen) and Alice (Ana Nogueira) are much more believable and both actors do good work, especially Zegen, easily delivering the best performance. "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel"-thesp etches his own version of Ted, sharing some of Gould's neuroses but creating his own ball of oddness. Zegen also performs the best and most revealing song, "A Little Misbehavior."

The team does a great job of creating the mood and feel of the period. Kudos to Derek McLane for his moveable sets, Jeff Mahshie for period perfect costumes, Jeff Croiter for a super effective lighting design and Jessica Paz for a terrific sound design.

Elliott does do a swell job of keeping things moving but the awkward blend of unmiked singing with hand-held is off-putting.

So why turn the film into a stage musical? To what end? Nothing new is revealed. Fifty-years later there is no new insight into the sexual revolution being examined here. Now had the writers and director chosen to be bold and take the promised exploration to another level (past the films ambiguous ending) perhaps this could have been something new and exciting. Alas, as it stands now, it's a nice 105-minute sit that's regrettable forgettable once you leave the lobby.

"Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice" continues through March 22 at The Pershing Square Signature Center. For tickets, info & more, we direct to www.thenewgroup.org

Running Time: 105 minutes with no intermission.