Mandy Patinkin began a 30-city national tour in Philadelphia on October 30. It was a program of songs on somber topics. This was unlike the many concerts in Patinkin’s earlier days which, mostly, were love fests of romantic songs. I have greatly admired Mandy in numerous Broadway roles and in concerts, but this outing left me depressed. Clad in black, on a stage that was bare except for the piano of his accompanist, Adam Ben-David, Patinkin was dark, like the character of Saul Berenson which he’s played on “Homeland.” And many of his words were half-spoken, parlando rather than sung. Patinkin’s program started with “Trouble” from The Music Man. Instead of the song’s joyful playfulness, Mandy stressed nostalgia for a long-gone way of life. Then he sang a reminiscence of Chicago that he composed in 1978 when he started dating his wife. From that point on, the mood was gloomy. “Bohemian Rhapsody” starts with: “Mama, just killed a man / Put a gun against his head.” In Randy Newman’s “A Few Words in Defense of Our Country,” the lyrics partially defended Trump, Putin, et. al., by saying “at least they’re not sleeping with their sister, stashing little boys in swimming pools, and burning down the city” like some historical despots. Rufus Wainwright’s “Going to a Town” complains “I'm going to a place that has already been disgraced, I’m so tired of you, America.” Patinkin got Wainwright’s permission to change the lyric from “America” to “Jerusalem.” Despite widespread disapproval of the current Netanyahu government’s policies, this switch seemed offensive. The only comparison that I see is that both places are, in separate ways, deeply divided. A better-received number was Laurie Anderson’s “From the Air,” accompanied by black-and-white newsreels of World War II refugees seeking asylum. A comparison with today’s people seeking entry to America was obvious. Patinkin says that he was inspired by an episode of Homeland that took place in a Syrian refugee camp. “When I saw the pictures of 125,000 people fleeing the conflict in Syria, trying to reach a new beginning...they reminded me of my family.” This dramatic use of film makes me wonder why Patinkin didn’t use visual imagery anywhere else during his program. Many audience members seemed unfamiliar with his non-Broadway numbers and puzzled about their meaning. It would have been helpful if Mandy had shared with the audience the reasons why he made some of his morbid song choices. The Sondheim excerpts that he sang on this program were melancholy, such as “Good Thing Going” from Merrily We Roll Along and “Sorry/Grateful” from Company. From Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George came “Children and Art” (“After I go, this is all that you've got”) and, finally, “Sunday,” for an electrifying climax. He spoke extemporaneously between numbers, complaining about the infirmities of aging. He’s 65, his beard is longer and grayer, but he still has exceptional breath control. On this occasion there was less velvet than in the past, but plenty of power. Ben-David’s piano-playing was intimately in synch with Patinkin’s personal choices. He has worked closely with Mandy since the retirement of longtime accompanist/collaborator Paul Ford.
