I’ve never seen the movie, The Notebook. It came out when I was younger and, for whatever reason, it just never grabbed me. And that’s coming from someone who really likes Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams. That being said, if it had originally been a musical and they both burst into song, I probably would have seen it ten times by now.
Directed by Schele Williams and San Diego’s Michael Greif, with a book by Bekah Brunstetter, the show is based on Nicholas Sparks’ beloved novel and the film of the same name. And when I say beloved, I could tell just by the audience reactions how much people cherish this story.
This version of The Notebook unfolds in a way that feels both familiar and fresh, blending three timelines together at once. It’s a love story between Allie and Noah, but instead of telling it straight through, we see them as young (Chloë Cheers and Kyle Mangold), middle-adults (Alysha Deslorieux and Ken Wulf Clark), and older versions (Sharon Catherine Brown and Beau Gravitte) of themselves, all occasionally sharing the stage together at the same time.
The younger Allie and Noah meet one summer in a small coastal town and fall for each other almost instantly. Of course, life has other plans for them, especially Allie’s parents and war, which pulls them apart for years.
Allie eventually meets someone and makes a life, but when Noah makes his way back to town, they find their way back to each other.
As this story is being told, we shift back and forth to present-day, where older Noah is caring for older Allie, who now has dementia. Noah’s love for Allie has never faded, as we can see and his devotion to her is the show’s superpower in its impact, thanks to excellent performances by Brown and Gravitte, particularly in the second half of the show. You could hear a pin drop by the end with the audience was hanging on their every word.
Photo by Roger Mastroianni
The rest of the cast is terrific. The task of portraying characters that have lived for so long in people’s minds, Gosling and McAdams, and James Garner and Gena Rowlands as their older counterparts, and making them your own is pretty monumental, but from what I saw, they did it perfectly.
Ingrid Michaelson handles the music and lyrics, and it’s a perfect fit, particularly “We Have to Try” at the top of Act 2 and Middle Allie’s (Deslorieux) ballad, “My Days.”
I do have to say that I wasn’t a big fan of David Zinn and Brett J. Banakis’ set design. It was mostly dark colors, even in scenes that take place outside. I don’t think I saw the color green the entire show. I’m sure it was intentional, but for the life of me, I can’t figure out why. It made the show feel a little boxed in, instead of opening it up to the world around it.
Still, even with that, The Notebook works. It took what people loved about the story and gives it a twist that only live theater can do, which makes it new again. And judging by the reactions around me, it’s exactly the kind of experience audiences are hoping for when they walk into the theater.
The Notebook is currently playing at the San Diego Civic Theatre. For more info and tickets: Broadway San Diego
