PNC Broadway’s ‘Girl From The North Country’ Dishes Out Dylan in Style

Elias Burke (Aidan Wharton) finds eternal redemption, inspiring the cast of the musical ode to Bob Dylan.

Without jukebox musicals filling the seats of Broadway for the past ten years, the industry of staging fresh, original musicals for NYC tourists might have been mortally wounded well before COVID shut everything down. Call it a fad or a scourge, the rise of dramatized biographic odes to some of America’s greatest musical talents has made billions at theater box offices. While Mama Mia! (incorporating the music of ABBA) may have established the genre, shows like Jersey Boys (The Four Seasons) and Beautiful (Carole King) solidified a formula that has carried forward since. Girl From The North Country, incorporating the music of Bob Dylan, is the latest jukebox musical to arrive in Pittsburgh, thanks to the PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh 2024 season. The show, written and directed by acclaimed Irish playwright Conor McPherson, breaks all the established rules of this modern genre. And, for fans of Bob Dylan, the staged renditions of many of his greatest hits are beautifully delivered. The vehicle by which they are delivered, however, is something like the Joad family’s truck in “The Grapes of Wrath.”

Biding the Times

In a boardinghouse in Duluth, Minnesota, in 1934, wayward travelers find safe refuge from a threatening storm. No more worrisome is the economic collapse of America during the depression. Attending to their guests are Nick and Elizabeth Laine, husband and wife, and their son, Gene. Nick (John Schiappa) works overtime, repairing broken windows, cooking chicken stew, pouring drinks, and cleaning up the lobby. Elizabeth (Jennifer Blood) does little more than tickle the keys of a piano. Apparently, she is not expected to work, exhibiting certain signs of dementia along with massive mood swings. 

Their son Gene (Ben Biggers), a failed writer, has issues with alcohol. And they have a daughter, too, Marianne (Sharaé Moultrie); the young woman they have adopted is pregnant. Or may be pregnant; no one seems quite sure. In fact, one of their guests is a doctor (Alan Ariano) who has his doubts. 

(L. to r.) Gene Laine (Ben Biggers), Marianne Laine (Sharaé Moultrie), Elizabeth Laine (Jennifer Blood), and Nick Laine (John Schiappa) dish up a moment of faith during the Depression.

Others appearing in the lobby of the dank and weary boardinghouse include a single woman (Carla Woods) waiting for an inheritance, an older couple (David Benoit and Jill Van Velzer) whose adult son (Aidan Wharton) has cognitive issues, a lonely old shoe salesman (Jay Russell) who wishes to court Marianne, and, arriving late in the night, a slick bible salesman (Jeremy Webb) and a young man (Matt Manuel) who we learn is a boxer. The two may have just broken out of jail. No one seems certain. Least of all, the audience. 

Making Spirits Bright

Imposed between brief dramatic moments in which the audience learns about these many unstable characters are the songs of Pulitzer Prize-winning songwriter and folk musician Bob Dylan who, turning to rock in the 70s, earned cultural immortality. For the record, Dylan was born in Duluth in 1941, seven years after this fictional story unfolds onstage. The connection between the artist’s birthplace and this Depression era setting is suggested by large scrims that project images of dusty roads, empty plains and tired mining towns. As tangential as that imagery may be to Dylan’s actual career, the 22 songs that Conor McPherson inserts in this “Grand Hotel” ensemble of character study is completely vapid. Desolately void of any insight, neither Dylan’s tunes nor his lyrics lend the least understanding to the action of the drama. When, for example, the young boxer is challenged to a barroom fight, the strains of Dylan’s song about boxer Rubin “Hurricane” Carter, succinctly entitled “Hurricane,” gives some expectation of relevance, but then playwright-director McPherson enjoins the tune in a medley with “All Along The Watchtower,” a song, perhaps, about a joker and a thief. Is McPherson offering us context or juxtaposition? Again, no one seems certain. But, at least, the vocal delivery, supported by a melodious chorus of boardinghouse characters, is bright and spirited.

Second Act Hopes

Act Two opens with a rousing ensemble delivering Dylan’s “What Can I Do For You?” Thank you for asking because, albeit chaotically, McPherson has laid out a full house of story lines whose endings must come to some meaningful conclusion. Will Marianne have her baby? Will the Bible salesman find redemption? Will Gene, the writer, make his mark? Will the repressive storm outside ever end? Without risk of spoiling much, any promise of the second act answering these questions (and many more) devolves rapidly. In fact, in one fell swoop, amidst the songs “Señor (Tales of Yankee Power)” and “Is Your Love in Vain?” every character has cause to depart the boardinghouse. Some reasons are tragic, others merely lamentable, and none the least bit hopeful. Oh, America. How ever did we survive? How did McPherson’s jukebox tribute to Bob Dylan ever afford a national tour? The only answer Girl From The North Country seemingly offers is talent. 

Breakthrough Moments

Delivering Dylan in subtle harmony, guests at the Duluth boardinghouse come together. Cast members include (l. to r.) Jennifer Blood, Carla Woods, Ashley D. Brooks, Kelly McCormick, Jill Van Velzer, Chiara Trentalange, and Sharaé Moultrie.

Of course, there’s Dylan’s four-plus decades of hit songs, an eclectic (with a capital “E”) compendium of iconoclastic, reverent, hedonistic and romantic ballads, that we’ve revered for ages. Clearly this is a show for his many fans, because there’s very little else rewarding to those who prefer the drama of musicals. But then, there are the several standouts in this national touring production whose talents are worth great applause. Carla Woods, as Mrs. Neilsen, the woman expecting her inheritance, wows us with a voice that triumphs. Matt Manuel, the boxer, slays us with delicious and soulful vibrato. And Aidan Wharton, the son who has any number of issues communicating with his parents, stops the show in a scene that rises up from the ashes of this story’s denouement. Collectively, the ensemble of 13 characters perform one last song, “Pressing On,” as the curtain call. The harmony, the power and the syncopation are all stunning. It’s sad, though, that this is the best delivery of the evening.

Credit Due

As a dramatic vehicle for his work, Girl From The North Country, not unlike Dylan himself, is never flashy. These are working people and, indeed, the cast does much of the work, setting the stage with tables and chairs, transporting scenery, and playing the drums and piano onstage as their talents befit. McPherson and scenic designer Rae Smith make no brazen attempt to dazzle the stage other than with mood enhancing scrims. Likewise, lighting designer Mark Henderson makes mere use of a mirrored ball for starlit ambience. The production is supervised by Jeff Brancato, and Justin Myhre is the production stage manager. Girl From The North Country runs through January 14 at the Benedum Center in the Cultural District, Downtown.

Photos: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.

C. Prentiss Orr writes about theater for Entertainment Central. He has worked in theater management and has also taught theater. 

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