A Night with Bill Murray, Jan Vogler and Friends Recreates Hemmingway, Twain, Gershwin, Bernstein (SHOW REVIEW)

If you mention the name Bill Murray to just about anyone, they will most likely smile and try their best to mimic his unique delivery with a quote from one of his classic comedies, such as Meatballs, Groundhog Day, Caddyshack, Ghostbusters or even from one of his iconic characters from his tenure on Saturday Night Live. Though, mostly known for his comedic performances, Murray has also successfully ventured to the other realm with more dramatic roles in such films as Lost in Translation, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic and St. Vincent. But, not many know that before becoming an actor, he had already established and made known his undying love for music by fronting a garage band before his acting career took off in the mid-seventies. And now, after a chance meeting on an airplane with cellist Jan Vogler, Murray has come full-circle and is performing in a band once again. This time, with a three-piece classical ensemble. In addition to the incomparable Murray (vocals) and Vogler (cello), New Worlds features Vogler’s wife, Mira Wang (violin) and Vanessa Perez (piano).

Most tickets to New Worlds’ performances have no-undoubtedly sold due to Murray’s notoriety and his fan-base being curious to find out what he has up his sleeve these days and wondering what this new project is all about. Well, Murray and Vogler share a sincere love, not only for music, but for literature too. The two decided to compose a project that would combine the two in a unique way – and unique it is.

At Boston’s Orpheum Theatre on April 12th, the house lights dimmed and a familiar voice, that of Murray’s, was broadcast over the house monitors, kindly asking the audience to, “reach into the pocket of your neighbor and turn their cellphone off” – which produced the first of many chuckles from the orchestra and up through the balcony seating. Seconds later, the Orpheum’s curtain raised and Murray, walking hand in hand with Wang and Perez descended upon the stage – silhouetted against a simple backdrop, lit in a warm pink hue. The audience rose to their feet, clapped and cheered. Vogler joined them seconds later with his cello in hand.

Murray sat down on a black stool, folded his hands and embraced a solemn stare out towards the audience as Wang, Vogler and Perez took their mark and played a selection of instrumentals. Murray then stood, looked towards his friends and gave them a humble and reassuring quarter bow and quarter smile before stepping behind a music stand with his collection of text that he would read or lyrics that he would sing through the evening. Murray, with a most serious visage, had already stumped the audience – as they were most-surely waiting for him to bestow a monologue of his dry, twisted humor. However, it was not to be. Instead, Murray opened the two-hour spectacle with an amazing reading of Did You Even Play a Musical Instrument? by Ernest Hemingway. Over the course of the twenty-plus individual performances of the night, the audience was treated to Murray reading selections with and without musical accompaniment, instrumentals from Vogler, Wang and Perez and several songs with Murray sincerely singing traditionals and a few nuggets where he couldn’t help himself but let the classic, loveable and laughable Murray-isms get the best of himself.

Highlights of the performance included the playfully over-the top “It Ain’t Necessarily So” from George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, where Murray asked for the house lights to be raised before asking the audience to sing along. Murray sarcastically acted flustered as he wanted a better reaction from the crowd. He said, “That not bad, but it’s not good. Would it change things if I told you that the Bruins are winning three to one and that the Red Sox are beating the Yankees six to zero?” That lit a fire under the seats of their pants and they sang the chorus a few more times together as Murray got them riled up more and more each time.

Murray’s reading of Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Fin was utterly mesmerizing. He flawlessly read the lengthy selection in the voices of multiple characters and it was more than impressive. In particular, he read through the selection without hesitating when he had to include the N-word. Murray didn’t flinch, but the audience was so taken, that up until that point, you could have heard a pin drop. After reading the N-word each time, there were more than just a few subtle gasps and moans lofted in the dark beyond the stage. A little discomfort was clearly present, but maybe it was intentional. Would the reading have been as effective had it been censored? Absolutely not and there was nothing funny about this segment. It was incredibly poignant, and Murray was brilliant a she sat and read from his stool.

Musically, Vogler, Wang and Perez were sensational. Vogler played his cello with both tender care and like a man possessed. Wang demonstrated her prowess on her violin by not only gingerly sweeping her bow side to side, but she also by plucking the strings violently with her fingers at times to accentuate the mood of a particular song. Perez’ finesse on the ivories was soothing, playful and deliberate. Together they were spectacular as they created a whimsical musical backing for Murray, whether he was being serious or not. It was also noticed that not one person on the stage received more attention than any other. Murray would humbly leave the stage or sit in a chair hidden behind Perez’ piano when not performing as not to distract from the musician’s performances, as seen while they played “Sonata for Cello and Piano in D minor”.

The initial set ended with a medley from West Side Story including “Somewhere”, “I Feel Pretty” and “America”. Murray let loose during “Pretty”, proving that he hadn’t lost a step in his ability to let it all hang out and make his fans laugh at all cost. Murray mugged and danced like a teenage-girl in love. He was in his element. Vogler, Wang and Perez watched him while they played their respective instruments and tried not to laugh. At one point, Murray acted as if to lift the far end of Perez’ piano. His delivery and physical behavior was reminiscent of his outlandish characters from years ago (i.e. Tripper Harrison from Meatballs). At one point, Murray took losing his bulky gold ring that rolled off the stage into the front row in stride. He casually reached for the accessory from a fan and seamlessly slipped it back on with a smile before busting out the multi-accent-laden “America”. The crowd ate it up, laughing, clapping and singing along.

What was to be the end of the initial set was scratched as Murray whispered into each of the musician’s ears. The troupe clearly went off script and continued with additional selections. No one complained. A fun-loving and rousing rendition of “Do You Believe in Magic” had even the most challenged singers in the audience howling along as the party continued. After a few more songs Murray announced, “I just got word from my boss. We’ve recorded an album and it’s for sale, for… $2800.” Then he quipped, “We’ve got no place to go, so we’re going to keep going.” Murray continued with “The Bonnie Banks o’ Loch Lomond” with a spot on Scottish accent and a sing-along rendition of “El Paso” to wrap up the show before the musicians took a bow and left the stage.

Some concert-goers made the mistake of leaving, maybe under the guise that the show was over. But, there was one last self-prescribed obligation to fulfill. Murray returned to the stage and was handed a hefty bouquet of roses. He smiled, bowed and then began to walk across the stage, tossing one rose at a time to his admirers in front and even hurling a few up into the balcony. Much to the audience’s surprise, he leapt from stage right and walked through the orchestra section, rubbing shoulders with one and all, passing out a stem here and a stem there for several minutes. After meandering back to the stage, he hopped back up and thanked the audience once and for all with a smile. And with a twinkle in his blue eyes, Murray left the stage with a wave and probably knowing that he had once again made some fans’ dreams come true with a most-memorable performance and ultimately, leaving them wondering, “What will Bill Murray do next?” One should hope that he continues with New Worlds, as more may just be what we need right now.

 

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