Road Show (previously titled Bounce) is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by John Weidman. It tells the story of Addison Mizner and his brother Wilson Mizner's adventures across America from the beginning of the 20th century during the Alaskan Gold rush to the Florida real estate boom in the 1930s.

After a 1999 workshop in New York City, the musical (titled Bounce) was produced in Chicago and Washington, D.C. in 2003 but did not achieve much success. A revised version of the musical premiered Off-Broadway in New York in October 2008.

Production history

The musical premiered at the New York Theatre Workshop from October through November 1999 under the title Wise Guys. It was directed by Sam Mendes and starred Nathan Lane and Victor Garber as brothers Addison Mizner and Wilson Mizner.

A legal case involving Scott Rudin and Weidman and Sondheim held up further production, until the case was resolved. Rewritten and retitled as Bounce, the show opened on June 20, 2003 at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago. The production was directed by Harold Prince and starred Richard Kind and Howard McGillin as Addison and Wilson Mizner, with Jane Powell as the brothers' mother and Michele Pawk as a dance–hall girl. The musical then ran at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. in October and November 2003 with the Chicago cast. It received mixed–to–negative reviews and was not produced in New York.

A private reading of Bounce was held at the Public Theater on February 6, 2006. Playbill reported that Eric Schaeffer directed, with Richard Kind and Bernadette Peters among the cast.

A new production of the show, titled Road Show, opened Off-Broadway at The Public's Newman Theater in previews on October 28, 2008, official opening on November 18, and closing December 28, 2008. John Doyle is the director and designer, with Michael Cerveris and Alexander Gemignani playing brothers Wilson and Addison Mizner respectively, Alma Cuervo as Mama, Claybourne Elder as Hollis, and William Parry as Papa. This production won the 2009 Obie Award for Music and Lyrics and the Drama Desk Award, Outstanding Lyrics (Sondheim).

The title changes reflect the creators' attempts to hone the show's story and themes. "Ideally the title is connected to what we hope the show is about," Weidman says.

Plot

(Note: The synopsis here, including the musical numbers, reflects the show in its most recent incarnation.)After the death of Addison Mizner, people who knew him, including his estranged lover Hollis Bessemer, comment on his life and the way he squandered his talents ("Waste"). Addison's brother Wilson appears and speaks to Addison, who angrily claims that Wilson was the cause of all his failures. Wilson brushes off Addison's anger and reminds him of the days when they were a team. The time shifts to Papa Mizner's death at the beginning of the 20th century. On his deathbed, Papa Mizner charges his sons with the task of using their gifts to shape America ("It's In Your Hands Now"), telling them that there's a "road" for them to follow. Mama Mizner tells the brothers that their family's wealth has been eaten away by Papa's long illness and advises them to seek gold in Alaska; Addison is reluctant, but goes along with Wilson anyway ("Gold!").

In Alaska, the brothers share a sleeping bag and reminisce about their childhood ("Brotherly Love"). Wilson leaves to get supplies while Addison works the claim; away from Addison, Wilson is lured into a game of poker, which he is initially bad at but masters quickly. Addison comes to find him, and is shocked to discover that his brother has become a gambler. Wilson tries to explain his newfound love of taking risks regardless of what's at stake ("The Game"), and Addison is almost convinced, but when Wilson stakes their gold claim in a poker game and wins the saloon in which the game is taking place, the shade of Papa Mizner appears and tells Addison that this was not what he had in mind for his sons.

Addison leaves in disgust with his share of Wilson's winnings and travels around the world searching for business opportunities and a sense of purpose ("Addison's Trip"). All of his ventures fail due to bad luck, and he is left with nothing but a collection of souvenirs -- but the souvenirs inspire him to take up architecture (so that he can design a house in which to show them off). Meanwhile, Wilson's businesses in Alaska have failed, and he comes south in the hopes of getting help from Addison. Addison has only just begun to practice as an architect, and Wilson seduces and marries his first client, a rich widow, and fritters away her money on various flashy endeavours, including promoting fixed boxing matches and horse races ("That Was A Year"). Although Wilson's various partners lose out by being associated with him, they remain fond of him because of the verve and energy with which he lives. Even Mama Mizner, who is being looked after by Addison and never receives any visits from Wilson, enjoys reading about Wilson's exploits, saying that she can live through him ("Isn't He Something!"). Only Addison remains uncharmed by Wilson, and when Wilson finally comes back, his resources exhausted, intending to ask Addison for help, he finds that Mama has died in his absence. Addison angrily throws Wilson out of the house.

Later, there is a land boom in Florida ("Land Boom!"). Addison decides to travel to Palm Beach to take advantage of the many rich people settling there who will be needing to have houses built. On the train he meets Hollis Bessemer, with whom he is instantly smitten. Hollis explains his situation: he is the son of a wealthy industrialist, but he has been cut off by his father for refusing to enter the family business. His real passion is art, and although he is not himself talented enough to become an artist, he dreams of creating an artists' colony in Palm Beach with the help of his aunt, who is staying there in a hotel ("Talent").

Hollis and Addison arrive at Palm Beach, and Addison shows Hollis's aunt a plan for a house he proposes to build for her. Impressed, she agrees and offers to sponsor Hollis's artists' colony. However, Hollis and Addison, now lovers, are too busy designing resort homes for the rich ("You") and enjoying each other's company ("The Best Thing That Ever Has Happened") to follow up on Hollis's original plan -- until Wilson arrives at Hollis and Addison's house, destitute and sick ("The Game [Reprise]"). Addison reluctantly takes him in, and when Wilson has recovered he begins to work on Hollis, persuading him to be a patron to his newest scheme: to build a brand-new city in Boca Raton with Wilson as promoter and Addison as chief architect ("Addison's City").

But Wilson's conman instincts resurge, and he promotes the Boca Raton real estate scheme with increasingly extravagant and eventually fraudulent claims, creating a price bubble ("Boca Raton"). Addison goes along with this, and it is Hollis who finally puts a stop to both the real estate scheme and his relationship with Addison. Brought to a state of desperation by all that has happened, Addison tells Wilson to get out of his life ("Get Out"), but Wilson responds by saying that Addison doesn't actually want Wilson to go because he loves him too much ("Go"). Addison admits that he does love Wilson, but he still wants him to go. Wilson finally leaves for good.

But not quite, for in the finale (returning to the first scene) all the characters leave the stage except for Wilson and Addison, and Wilson realises that he, too, has died. Their differences no longer mattering enough to keep them apart, the brothers set out together on the road to eternity -- or, as Wilson calls it, "the greatest opportunity of all!"

Musical numbers

As presented in June 2003 at the Goodman Theatre, Chicago

Act I

• Bounce
• Opportunity
• Gold!
• Gold! (Reprise)
• What's Your Rush?
• Next to You
• Addison's Trip Around the World
• What's Your Rush? (Reprise)
• Alaska
• New York Sequence
• The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me
• Isn't He Something?
• Bounce (Reprise)

Act II

• The Game
• Talent
• You
• Addison's City
• Boca Raton
• Last Fight
• Bounce (Reprise)

As presented in November 2008 at the Public Theater, New York

• Waste
• It's in Your Hands Now
• Gold!
• Brotherly Love
• The Game
• Addison's Trip
• That Was a Year
• Isn't He Something!
• Land Boom!
• Talent
• You
• The Best Thing That Ever Has Happened
• The Game (Reprise)
• Addison's City
• Boca Raton
• Get Out
• Go
• Finale

Critical response

Ben Brantley, writing in The New York Times, praised Ceveris and Gemignani, and noted that the songs were "...often brisk, forward-moving songs – with unusually simple and straightforward lyrics". He further wrote that the musical is a "trimmed-down, toughened-up and seriously darkened new edition of the musical formerly known as Bounce... the show’s greatest interest for fans of Mr. Sondheim lies in seeing how what was once meant to be light and buoyant fare has been reshaped into something more somber. The great living master of the American musical has returned to the shadows where, artistically at least, he has always felt most at home."

Recordings

An original cast recording of the 2003 version (then titled Bounce) was released on May 4, 2004 by Nonesuch Records.

An original cast recording of the 2008 Public Theater production was made by PS Classics and Nonesuch Records, and was released on June 30, 2009.

References

External links

• 2003 Interview with Richard Kind and Howard McGillin
• 2004 Interview with Stephen Sondheim, John Weidman, and Jonathan Tunick
• 2003 Story about recording the original cast CD
• Bounce on The Stephen Sondheim Reference Guide
• talkinbroadway.co review, November 2, 2003
• Interview with Sondheim, August 12, 2008