Brothers Charlie and Sydney Chaplin are striving to make some coin while their talented mother, Hannah, sings in a local saloon. They could probably do allright, if their drunken dad weren’t robbing them, and fulfilling his destiny to be a schmuck. As luck would have it, Charlie is pulled in at the last minute, when Hannah’s unable to perform. Inherited from his mother, he’s a natural, intuitive performer, with a knack for timing. Suddenly the Chaplins have some leverage. Before you know it, Charlie is invited to a Hollywood film studio (by none other than Mack Sennett) and invites Sydney to come along.
Things don’t start very well on Charlie’s first visit to a film set. He’s told if he doesn’t deliver, he’ll be sent packing. I suppose this triggers Charlie to panic, and panic sparks his epiphany, i. e., The Little Tramp. Performers and artisans of every stripe might search for years before they find the vehicle for their particular talent. The Little Tramp was a sort of everyman: bumbling, tripping, mocked, but always trying his best, and never phony. It took extraordinary vision to concoct this character, and was only the beginning of Chaplin’s inspirations.
Not long after, he starts his own movie studio and his phenomenal rise to success. But not so fast. At this point he wrestles with quandaries of conscience. Making sure his ailing mother has company and attention, resolving a longtime feud with Sydney, stumping for controversial political causes. Some of his choices are reprehensible. Ironically he is typecast by his own brainchild: the good-natured nebbish with a derby and cane.
Written and composed by Christopher Curtis and Thomas Meehan: Chaplin: The Musical
is absorbing, touching and frank without resorting to adulation. Perhaps it tiptoes past melodrama. Curtis and Meehan have fashioned the narrative of Chaplin’s life, with competent, intelligent dialogue and song. It reminded me of the biopics of yesteryear. The hero or heroine barely stays afloat, until their big break sneaks up on them. Then they walk a tightrope, lest they take a nosedive into failure. Knowing what to do when grace comes your way, before it slips through your fingers. Understanding that: anything worth having, has its price. (Thank you, Joan Didion.)
Water Tower Theatre’s production of Chaplin: The Musical was spot-on, smooth and flawless, with just the right measure of pathos. The cast was poised, vibrant: lots of moxie, and chutspah. Max Swarner was ideal as Charlie Chaplin. His precise singing and emulation of Chaplin’s familiar shtick, was evocative, bracing, with a tangible sense of luster. It never came off as impression or imitation. It felt charming, spontaneous and confident.
Water Tower Theatre’s production of Chaplin the Musical played November 8th-19th, 2023. 15650 Addison Road, Addison, Texas. 972-450-6232. watertowertheatre.org