THEATER REVIEW; It's a Lovely Day in an Adult Neighborhood
Published: March 20, 2003
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But the show is remarkable for sustaining a tone that never seems either precious or smirky. This is true even when Princeton and Kate strip down (warning: naked puppets appear in this production) to illustrate the principle that it's O.K. to be loud when you make love. Or when Rod, eager to prove he is heterosexual, winds up going past the bounds of good taste in describing an imaginary girlfriend.
''Avenue Q'' isn't nearly as outrageous as the blissful, foul-mouthed ''South Park'' cartoons, clearly a source of inspiration here. Nor are its leaps of imagination as radical. This show rides comfortably down the middle of the road, at least as that part of the road might be defined by young adults for whom one-night stands and hangovers are not exotic phenomena.
The musical numbers, brightly performed by a four-piece band led by Gary Adler, are frighteningly infectious, capturing exactly the pop-flavored perkiness of ''Sesame Street'' tunes. They also make you realize how savvy those original songs were in adapting everything from Top 40 hits to nightclub standards. (At one point, Ms. Harada thrillingly switches on a voice that seems to combine every Broadway diva from the 1950's.)
Mr. Lopez and Mr. Marx have said that for them the songs of ''Sesame Street'' were not unlike the musical comedy scores that earlier generations grew up with. And in an age in which nearly every popular musical form has been turned into pastiche (''Dames at Sea,'' ''Grease,'' ''Little Shop of Horrors''), what's left to take off from?
This may sound like a thin basis for a full-length musical. Yet ''Avenue Q'' has a stealthy emotional resonance. The creeds of self-acceptance and learning from experience that ''Sesame Street'' preaches really do have their uses in a world that Princeton describes as ''a big scary place.'' Theatergoers venturing back into that world after ''Avenue Q'' are likely to find themselves wrapped in a glow that feels very much like a security blanket.
Music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx; book by Jeff Whitty; based on an original concept by Mr. Lopez and Mr. Marx; directed by Jason Moore; choreography by Ken Roberson; music supervision, arrangements and orchestrations by Stephen Oremus; puppets conceived and designed by Rick Lyon; sets by Anna Louizos; costumes by Mirena Rada; lighting by Frances Aronson; sound by Brett Jarvis; music director, Gary Adler; production managers, Kai Brothers and Bridget Markov; production stage manager, Christine M. Daly; general manager, Jodi Schoenbrun. Presented by the Vineyard Theater, Douglas Aibel, artistic director; Bardo S. Ramirez, managing director; and the New Group, Scott Elliott, artistic director; Geoffrey Rich, executive director. At 108 East 15th Street, Manhattan.
WITH: John Tartaglia, Jordan Gelber, Stephanie D'Abruzzo, Rick Lyon, Ann Harada, Natalie Venetia Belcon and Jen Barnhart.
Photos: The puppet Princeton with John Tartaglia, the partly obscured Jennifer Barnhart and Stephanie D'Abruzzo in ''Avenue Q.'' (Sara Krulwich/The New York Times)