Jerry Springer: The Opera got much of its mileage out of the discontinuity implied in the title. “Jerry Springer” referenced the talk show host who focused on tabloid subject matter, but the show was written in the style of 19th-century opera. A classical voice singing “chicks with dicks” was an absurd mismatch. Most people laughed. The show was a hit in London.
I Became We treats in a similar mismatch. Sixteen vocalists assemble on risers, open their binders and, conducted by a choirmaster, sing what, as straight text, would be a monologue for a 35-year-old woman. The language, mostly by Mona Pirnot with input from composer Jack D. Coen, is colloquial. It begins with an extended section describing a bit on the Jimmy Kimmel Show in which men on the street are stopped, shown illustrations and asked to identify parts of the female anatomy. And, of course, the men get it wrong. This section sets up one of the themes of the show – the gap between women and men even in loving relationships.
Nothing approaches the raunch level that Jerry Springer reveled in, but setting words like “Zillow” and “Adam Sandler” to a score owing more than a little to Schubert makes the humor in the text even funnier. Coen’s music, including intricate passages played by Blair McMillen, the accompanying pianist, is tuneful and elegant. This elegance, featuring some gorgeous choral writing, continues to clash with the colloquial words, but, somehow, the effect stays fresh.
Then, magically, though the language doesn’t change, the music’s beauty becomes a perfect match for the depth of feeling beneath the words. A show that starts with a cascade of laughs ends up being deeply moving.
It’s a shade less than 75 minutes long, it has a large cast, and the score is in a classical mode. Can there be further life for such a quirky piece beyond the Atlantic Theater? I hope so.
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