The prospect of dying at 16 doesn’t seem like obvious fodder for musical comedy. But Kimberly Akembo, who moved to Broadway after an acclaimed show at Atlantic Theater, is a kind of refreshingly unexpected music that delivers an exhilarating case for the form’s vibrancy and potential. It asks big questions about family and mortality. He is unabashedly forthright and irresistibly funny. Like life, it is inherently sad and a bit absurd, and like its subject matter, “Kimberly akimbo” is extremely rare and almost impossible not to love.
Adolescence experiences can feel like life and death matters, but time is really running out for Kimberly Levako — and her feelings about it have nothing to do with hormones. A genetic disorder that speeds up the aging process means she will be 16 years old, but with the body of someone four times older than her. Despite, or perhaps because of, Kimberly’s imminent end, there is a playful, youthful, self-aware tone to the material, based on a 2000 play by David Lindsey Abeer, who wrote the book and lyrics, and music by Janine Tessori. It’s a bit like an amusement park ride: half the fun is knowing your heart is about to break.
The title character proves a great show for the knockout cycle of Victoria Clarke (Tony winner for The Light in the Piazza), striking a delicate balance in challenging acting on a tightrope. How do you play the role of a child as an adult without appearing liar, impressionable, or worst of all? The answer lies in everything from the way Clarke looks in a denim dress (designed by Sarah Lukes) to the way she makes even her features look unstable and still about to mature. Her operatic voice is modified here, to suit the non-technical grace of a girl whose greatest wish is for her family to coexist and feel wanted. It’s the kind of performance whose subtlety almost conceals his brilliance, but Clarke’s feat is nothing short of amazing.
Aside from Kimberly’s case, the story is familiar in many ways. It’s 1999 in suburban New Jersey, and my mom (Ally Mosey) and dad (Stephen Boyer) are both narcissists, ignoring Kimberly even when they care about her in their own spoiled ways. Mom became pregnant again, not hiding that she hopes that this will turn out differently (that is, normal), while the father is an alcoholic streak of false promises. However, they are not easy villains, but they are flawed, well-meaning, and mired in their own issues – in other words, parents. Both Mauzey and Boyer are cutesy, smart, and humane in ways that are insensitive without being cruel.
As Kimberly’s criminal aunt, Bonnie Milligan is the angry comedic force of the musician, controlling laughter with the authority and competence of a trained sergeant. Her every move and her reading of the line is a test of whether the audience can avoid the meltdown. It’s amazing to see an artist in control of her talents, especially as she plays Bed Piper in the young band, the chorus-obsessed of the show who are desperate for money to make flashy costumes. Don’t you know, she has a money-making scheme up her sleeve?
The romantic plot for Kimberly, who might otherwise die without ever being kissed, is a tricky plot to master given the optics of her age compared to her classmates. But Justin Cooley, who plays her lab partner and eventual admirer, is another of the show’s highlights. A Toba player who also works at a local ice rink, is an expert in anagrams, the verbal equivalent of finding unexpected ways to look at the world – an elegant summation of the guiding principle of the show.
“Kimberly Akimbo” wraps its deep emotional core within the colorful and vibrant surfaces of YA comedy, a poignant juxtaposition that reflects the character of its title. The production, directed by Jessica Stone, has the sweet, earnest vibe of a well-executed school project, especially when it comes to a quartet of drama nerds (whose asymmetrically crushes are a bit too asymmetric). The mood and aesthetics of the stage, combined with the steadfast design of David Zinn and lighting by Janet Ue Suk Yeo, lend a playful look to a show that ultimately seems death in the eye.
Lindsey Abeer, whose previous work includes “Rabbit Hole” about a married couple mourning the death of their son and for which he won a 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, is a clever cartographer of the bonds that hold families together and the devastating distances that keep them apart. Who among us has not felt that it is not the version that their parents dreamed of? And who does not wonder about the roads that were not taken and slack with regret? Winner of the Tony Award for “House of Fun,” Tesori is brilliantly innovative in finding new ways for music to express people and how they feel. Her scores feature a popular buoyancy that gives way to softer, more intimate reflections that reveal what makes each character tick. They want what almost everyone does – love, adventure, and a sense of life worth living.
In a field crowded with fan service, from jukebox juggernauts to obedient (and often boring) movie remakes, “Kimberly Akimbo” is an exception – proving that musicals can be whimsical and grotesque, and can challenge audiences to see things from another point of view. Now, isn’t that a worthwhile way to spend our limited time on Earth?
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