Galileo discovered more of the universe. Let’s keep discovering new work for the theater
Raúl Esparza (center) is Galileo Galilei alongside the cast of Galileo: A Rock Musical, making its world premiere at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Photo credit: Kevin Berne
There should be a different way of writing about shows that are just beginning their creative journey. A standard review of what works, what doesn’t, can be illustrative of one person’s view of that brand-new thing finding its legs on stage, but for whom? Is the creative team paying attention to a small (and getting smaller) number of critics in addition to the audiences themselves? Does the average reader of theater reviews decide to buy or not buy a ticket to a new show based on a review? If it’s a rave (along with other raves) and the show seems like it could be the next big thing, ticket sales could soar. But if, like so many developing shows, there are various plusses and minuses, would a ticket buyer be motivated to check out the fresh work and see for themselves?
If someone truly cares about theater, they should care about supporting new work. For the dedicated, that might mean public readings, new works workshops or even reading new plays that may never make it to their local theaters. The easier way for others is to buy tickets to world premieres and second productions of new plays wherever you might be able to see them – no matter what the reviews might be.
This has all been on my mind because I went to see a preview of the new musical Galileo: A Rock Musical at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. I knew I’d be traveling and would miss the press opening, but I’m always deeply curious about new musicals, especially when it seems they’ve got Broadway ambitions and they’re virtually in my backyard.
Esparza as Galileo. Photo credit: Kevin Berne
You don’t review previews because the show, in theory, is still in flux. Some shows may not need a lot of tweaks before the official opening, but most likely do. Musical theater is a complicated and notoriously impossible art form. To quote from Nathan Lane’s recent, beautiful speech, “that’s why there aren’t that many truly great musicals.”
Berkeley Rep has, for the last 15 or so years, been in the business of lending its stage and resources to shows in need of an out-of-town tryout. Passing Strange in 2006 and Green Day’s American Idiot in 2008, were both bold new musicals with a great sound and ended up making a splash in New York. Less splashy were Monsoon Wedding (2017) and Paradise Square (2019). Goddess from 2022 deserves to have continued life, and Swept Away, which also had its pandemic-delayed world premiere at Berkeley Rep in 2022, just announced a Broadway run later this fall.
Swept Away director Michael Mayer, who also directed American Idiot, is back at Berkeley Rep to helm Galileo, a new rock musical about science, truth and power.
I attended the preview performance on May 9 (the show opened the following week on May 15) and had the kind of experience I would expect at a big, Broadway-size new musical. It was all interesting, and you can feel the potential in certain areas, but it’s definitely a work in progress.
The idea of painting Galileo Galilee as a hotheaded genius changing the way we think about our planet/our place in the universe and making him a renegade rocker speaking truth to power (aka the Catholic Church) makes sense in musical terms. If you get Broadway star Raul Esparza to play Galileo, it makes even more sense, and his performance was by far the most powerful element of the show I saw. He has a passionate, electrifying voice, and he gives Galileo his all.
He has a worthy partner in Jeremy Kushnier, who plays Maffeo Barberini, who goes from Bishop and Galileo friend/supporter to Pope and villain. The transition from thoughtful, poetic man of the cloth to power-mad head of church and state lacks nuance, but so does the entire book by Danny Strong.
Jeremy Kushnier (left) is Bishop Maffeo Barberini) with Esparza’s Galileo. Photo credit: Kevin Berne
The design of the show is flashy. Think Vegas meets Vatican. That’s certainly a choice to make it feel contemporary, leaving it to the fabulous costumes to convey some period style. There are lots of projections, which is not always a good thing and tends to be a crutch when you’re lacking strength elsewhere.
And then there’s the score by Michael Weiner and Zoe Sarnak. This is where Galileo needs to assert itself, to take rock musical theater into a sound we haven’t heard before or a sound that feels exactly right for telling this particular story. The Weiner-Sarnak songs did not do that for me. They’re appealing in the moment but don’t particularly stick, nor do they really rage. Barberini’s transformation into a bad guy leans into a Jesus Christ Supestar mock-vaudeville moment, and Esparza has some impassioned ballads, but in general, there weren’t many musical moments I could feel.
Too many contemporary musicals have bland scores. Where’s the drama, the fun, the musical sophistication, the clever lyrics that sit on music that feels inseparable from the characters and narrative?
To be enraptured by musical theater storytelling, to let music and the glory of the human voice(s) lift us, whether it’s dramatic or comedic, old or new – that’s the whole point. At least it is for me. To go back to Nathan Lane, talking about why we love musicals and hope that artists continue creating them, producers and theater companies keep funding them and audiences continue adoring them. “When it does work, when the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, it’s a glorious thing,” Lane said. “And there’s nothing quite like it in the theater.”
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Galileo: A Rock Musical continues through June 23 at Berkeley Repertory Theatre’s Roda Theatre, 2025 Addison St., Berkeley. Tickets are $29.50-$139 (subject to change). Running time is nearly 3 hours (including intermission). Call 510-647-2949 or visit berkeleyrep.org
