EDGE: Boston review
Posted by on 8:01 am Sep 27th, 2008(More news)
Max and the Truffle Pig (NYMF)
by Joseph Pisano
EDGE Contributor
Wednesday Sep 24, 2008
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Prepubescent Francophiles, especially those partial to the Bourbon dynasty, probably will not like Max and the Truffle Pig, a children’s musical enjoying its world premiere as part of the 2008 New York Musical Theatre Festival.
Your average child, however, and your average parent too, will be charmed by the story of Max (Kevin Michael Murphy), a sweet-temperedplongeur with dreams of being more, and Suzette (Jen Albano), an endearing ditz whose aversion to dirt compromises her career as a truffle hunting pig.
The musical’s whimsical plot is set in motion by La Comtesse (the hilariously extravagant Antoinette LaVecchia), a descendent of Louis XVI vacationing in the countryside. She wants the local chef, Max’s father, to bake a twenty-three layer truffle cake (haute cuisine, indeed) for a soirée. After the death of the chef’s prized truffle hunting pig, the responsibility for obtaining sufficient truffles to satisfy La Comtesse’s "inventive" order falls to the fastidious Suzette. If she fails, well, as in many good children’s stories, there is an element of grotesque danger, or, to put it more bluntly, at the end of "Max and the Truffle Pig," either La Comtesse or the butcher will be smiling.
Based on a 1960s children’s book by Judith Gwyn Brown, Nancy Leeds (lyrics), Bert Draesel (music), and Suzanne Bradbeer (book), intelligently adapt "Max and the Truffle Pig" for the stage. The sets are certainly modest and the performance space is acoustically challenged, but, judging by the transfixed little faces (and the smiling older ones) in the audience, neither limitation matters. Talented, committed actors and clever material, as usual, are more than enough for anyone inclined to imagine.
The last NYMF 2008 performances of "Max and the Truffle Pig" are Tuesday, Sept. 23 at 8 p.m. and Thursday, Sept. 25 at 4:30 p.m. For tickets, visit www.nymf.org.
Joseph Pisano is a freelance writer living in New York.
