Photo by Amy Mahon

Jason (Jackson Goddard) insists to his mother, Trina (Seana Nicol) that he will not see a psychiatrist. 

By AARON KRAUSE

Sometimes, even adults must grow up before they can properly help the children in their life mature. That is one of the timely takeaway messages of Falsettos. This 1992 Tony Award-winning Broadway chamber musical takes place in New York City during the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Certainly, you could argue that Falsettos has become a period piece, with its repetitive musical recitative and its setting at the start of the AIDS crisis. But that hardly means the musical doesn’t carry relevance for today. In fact, with themes such as family, faith, love, loss, mortality, coming of age, gender roles, and the human condition, the musical speaks to us strongly and clearly today. As a matter of fact, Falsettos was revived on Broadway in 2016 and received five Tony Award nominations, including Best Revival of a Musical.

With all this in mind, kudos to Ft. Lauderdale’s ArtBuzz Theatrics and Empire Stage for tackling a timely, complex, and moving show.

This mostly winning professional co-production of Falsettos runs through May 19 in Empire Stage’s intimate black box space in Ft. Lauderdale.

Empire Stage is tiny, with just three rows of seating. But while performances can sell out quickly due to the theater’s size, those with tickets can experience a visceral, moving production thanks to the space’s intimacy and the talent onstage.

The actors disappear into their roles and sing the show’s sophisticated, practically sung-thru score with apparent ease. For the most part, recorded music ably backs performers. While one wishes for live musicians for a live show, space constraints may not have allowed it this time.

In addition to beautiful ballads, Falsettos features fast-paced patter-like songs that can trip up inexperienced performers. But the seven-member cast in this co-production is experienced and obviously talented. Under Michael Ursua’s inspired direction and musical direction, the actors meld seamlessly to form an in-sync, energetic ensemble. In addition, the performers individually create distinct, believable characters.

ArtBuzz Theatrics Artistic Director Larry Buzzeo leads a cast that also encompasses Steven Fuentes, Jackson Goddard, Seana Nicol, Christopher Ross-Dybash, Casey Sacco, and Heather Simsay.

Falsettos carries a libretto by William Finn and James Lapine, as well as music and lyrics by Finn. The musical consists of March of the Falsettos (1981) and Falsettoland (1990), the last two installments in a trio of one-act musicals that premiered off-Broadway.

The story centers around Marvin. He is a Jewish bi-sexual man who has left his wife, Trina, and pre-teenage son, Jason, for his male lover, Whizzer. But Marvin still strives to be a father to Jason. Trina, meanwhile, falls in love with the family’s psychiatrist, Mendel. Two sympathetic lesbians, Cordelia and Charlotte, complete the picture.

This group may hardly resemble the traditional “nuclear” family. But families can come in many sizes and shapes and be as loving as any “traditional” family comprising biological parents, kids, and family dog. But the clan in Falsettos is dysfunctional. Can they come together civilly enough to help Jason, nearing 13, prepare for his bar mitzvah, a Jewish coming of age ceremony?

You’d be hard pressed to find a musical as bipolar as Falsettos. Indeed, some lighthearted scenes, especially early on, feature manic energy and silliness. But at least one scene toward the end is about as moving as any I have witnessed in more than four decades of theatergoing. Consider the comic material as a means of disarming audiences for the more serious content to follow.

The tears that you will likely spill will stem from laughter and sadness, but also compassion and amazement. It’s not a spoiler to reveal that Jason makes a decision that shows he may be more mature and compassionate than any adult in his life.

As it is, children and teenagers face pressure and conflicting messages from a myriad of sources. Of course, puberty means these young people are undergoing changes, and change is hard for many people. When you couple the pressures and changes that Jason is facing with his unusual family situation, your heart can’t help but go out to the boy.

Speaking of him, Goddard, an NSU University School seventh grader, imbues Jason with the proper mix of confusion, awkwardness, innocence, and anger. Also, during appropriate times, Goddard’s Jason becomes briefly and believably happy. Sometimes, he could project more so that the audience can clearly hear and understand him over the recorded music. Overall, though, the young actor delivers an impressively natural performance.

Buzzeo, meanwhile, demonstrates his ability to movingly and convincingly bring a character to vivid life. The performer lends manic energy and intensity to Marvin early on, infusing the character with an argumentative, selfish streak that is off-putting. But as the production progresses, Buzzeo gradually allows Marvin’s sensitivity and compassion to shine through. Doubtless, toward the end, Buzzeo’s Marvin has matured to the point that he’s become a mensch.

As Trina, Nicol looks and sounds like a woman who is emotionally distraught but trying her best to keep herself together. You sense a tension in the character as her present circumstances are pulling her apart, while she tries to keep her composure together. During one scene, Nicol’s Trina slowly makes her way to the ground, symbolically suggesting that this woman is falling apart after her husband left her and upset their young son. Nicol also plays Trina with a mother’s affection.

Fuentes radiates positivity and confidence as psychiatrist Mendel. They are qualities that may mask the fact that, deep down, Mendel has more issues than he is willing to reveal.

Ross-Dybash manages to be droll as Whizzer and injects him with an emotional strength that comes in handy when Whizzer is dying. To enhance his performance even further, Ross-Dybash could have broken down or at least fought back tears to make his character more sympathetic.

Sacco glows with cheerfulness as Cordelia, one of the two lesbians in the show. Specifically, she is a non-Jewish caterer who specializes in Jewish food. Her connection to the clan is that she lives nearby and caters Jason’s bar mitzvah.

Simsay portrays Dr. Charlotte, an internist who is seeing more male patients display symptoms of what we know will become AIDS (at the time, the medical community referred to the mysterious condition as Gay Related Immune Deficiency (GRID)). Dr. Charlotte ends up treating Whizzer.

Simsay conveys genuine concern as the physician and gravely sings the song “Something Bad is Happening.” Certainly, this is the show’s most chilling song.

Sacco and Simsay demonstrate strong chemistry as a loving lesbian couple.

While Ursua’s direction is generally strong, a couple of staging decisions are curious. During at least one scene, Goddard’s Jason, for some reason, stands amid the audience, a distance away from the other on-stage performers. Also, a couple of times, actors’ backs face the audience while they sing, so we can’t see their facial expressions. In addition, while the scene at the end is touching, one may expect the shedding of a few tears.

On a more positive note, at least one stage picture nicely conveys the state of the characters. Specifically, Jason stands between his parents with his hands on his ears as they sing seemingly competing messages at him.

Behind the scenes, the simple set design features a structure shaped into a skyline of New York City. Also, basic set pieces come together to suggest locations and furniture such as a bed. The basic set design ensures that we can concentrate on the story and characters rather than the scenery. The program credits Buzzeo as the production designer.

Preston Bircher designed the lighting. At times, it features different hues, perhaps to suggest diversity. Also, the lighting instruments move during lively moments, infusing the production with even more energy. And the lighting is dimmer during serious moments.

While we are well passed the AIDS crisis, the COVID pandemic is still fresh in our minds. There are unknowns about the virus, just as people didn’t know anything about AIDS when it first emerged. So, the pandemic makes Falsettos and other shows set during the AIDS crisis more timely than they might otherwise be. Still, other theater companies may be hesitant to stage Falsettos due to its complexity. But ArtBuzz Theatrics and Empire Stage demonstrates boldness by taking on this award-winning, difficult show.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: ArtBuzz Theatrics and Empire Stage present Falsettos

WHEN: Through May 19.

WHERE: Empire Stage, 1140 N. Flagler Drive in Ft. Lauderdale.

TICKETS: Go to www.empirestage.com or call (954) 678-1496.