HERSHEY FELDER AS GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE
Solo PerformanceBroadway Dallas
Reviewed Performance: 2/26/2023
Reviewed by Carla Wicks, Associate Critic for John Garcia's THE COLUMN
GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE is his life story, brought to the stage by HERSHEY FELDER. This Dallas Premiere, the 3006th performance by Mr. Felder as George Gershwin, takes the audience on a journey spanning the composers 38 years.
My biggest disappointment was no playbill for this performance. I had nothing to tell me, except my ticket stub, who was presenting this production, or the production team involved. It would have been nice to see Mr. Felder’s bio, and the inclusion of Gershwin history with pictures, as a wonderful bring home item to continue the experience.
Mr. Hershey Felder was enjoyable as he portrayed the life story of George Gershwin. You really felt as if you were listening to the man himself. You can tell he is comfortable in his vast knowledge of the Gershwin family. He was superior in storytelling as well as an excellent pianist of so many classics including Rhapsody in Blue. Superb and simply magnificent, Bravo!
The 90-minute show included a post show audience sing-along and Q & A session. This was unexpected and a nice additional 45-minute experience, however since the audience was mostly adults, having an intermission would have been wonderful as well as knowledge of post-show activity.
The Set design and production crew: I was excited to see how Mr. Felder would incorporate all the pieces in various areas on the stage. It was not until late in the show you discovered he was in a designed backstage area. He did not use many of the prop pieces and stage left was rarely used. This seemed unbalanced for a one-man show. Again, with no playbill, I do not know who gets credit for the backstage work. The show was well done from this crew. The set used back lighting with various pictures projected. There was an issue with the projection shining two lit shadow areas which interrupted the full pictorial display. From my seated position it did not distract from the performance of Mr. Felder but was noticeable.
The Music Hall venue was well fitted for this show with a welcoming atmosphere and seating easily accessible. The auditorium was comfortable and there were adequate sight lines for each audience member. The acoustics were good and balanced. My overall experience was very enjoyable.
My biggest disappointment was no playbill for this performance. I had nothing to tell me, except my ticket stub, who was presenting this production, or the production team involved. It would have been nice to see Mr. Felder’s bio, and the inclusion of Gershwin history with pictures, as a wonderful bring home item to continue the experience.
Mr. Hershey Felder was enjoyable as he portrayed the life story of George Gershwin. You really felt as if you were listening to the man himself. You can tell he is comfortable in his vast knowledge of the Gershwin family. He was superior in storytelling as well as an excellent pianist of so many classics including Rhapsody in Blue. Superb and simply magnificent, Bravo!
The 90-minute show included a post show audience sing-along and Q & A session. This was unexpected and a nice additional 45-minute experience, however since the audience was mostly adults, having an intermission would have been wonderful as well as knowledge of post-show activity.
The Set design and production crew: I was excited to see how Mr. Felder would incorporate all the pieces in various areas on the stage. It was not until late in the show you discovered he was in a designed backstage area. He did not use many of the prop pieces and stage left was rarely used. This seemed unbalanced for a one-man show. Again, with no playbill, I do not know who gets credit for the backstage work. The show was well done from this crew. The set used back lighting with various pictures projected. There was an issue with the projection shining two lit shadow areas which interrupted the full pictorial display. From my seated position it did not distract from the performance of Mr. Felder but was noticeable.
The Music Hall venue was well fitted for this show with a welcoming atmosphere and seating easily accessible. The auditorium was comfortable and there were adequate sight lines for each audience member. The acoustics were good and balanced. My overall experience was very enjoyable.
This production was a single performance at the Music Hall in Fair Park - 909 1st Avenue, Dallas, Texas 75210
