Four high-school kids in Garden City, NY struggle to make a success of their garage band in The Black Suits, the brash new musical now enjoying a world premiere run at the Kirk Douglas Theater in Los Angeles.
Led by Chris (Coby Getzug, remember the name), a talented but anxiety-ridden singer/composer, the four-person band has an important goal: to win a battle-of-the-bands competition at St Ann's church (first prize: a $50 gift certificate to Red Lobster). The youthful creative team behind The Black Suits really knows the adolescent world they’re writing about, knows how it thinks, talks and acts. They’re also unafraid of painting an honest portrait of that world, one that has warts and blotches to go with the beauty and idealism of youth.
Thus in the course of things, the kids bravely plunge ahead in their desire to succeed as musicians (as opposed to becoming shallow, narcissistic rock stars): they practice hard and long, try to do their best with the original songs Chris fashions for them, but life keeps throwing up problems (jealousy, petulance, insecurity, parental and girlfriend hassles). Before long, the band cracks under the pressure and breaks up.
The break-up's emotional toll is well-dramatized in some of the darker songs written by Maddock and Iconis; the kids' suffering comes across as real and touching. Equally affecting are the show's lighter, more upbeat tunes, the ones that reflect the bold, rebellious, courageous spirit of the music known as rock.
The Black Suits ends on a note of hope and joy but manages at the same time to avoid predictability and sentimentality. That's quite an achievement for all concerned with this slick production, especially the hard-working performers and their dynamic director, John Simpkins.
