Review: Tammy Faye, A New Broadway Musical Review
Despite a tremendous performance by Katie Brayben, Tammy Faye’s huge personality is muffled by wordy dialogue, too-long musical numbers, and a hopscotch plot.
Review: Tammy Faye, A New Broadway Musical Review
Tammy Faye on Broadway. Image: Matthew Murphy.
The queen of mascara-streaked televangelism, Tammy Faye soared to fame in the 1970s and '80s as the bedazzled co-host of The PTL Club, a Christian television program that ran from 1974 to 1989. Often featuring a wide-range of disadvantaged and marginalized people living against an undercurrent of growing conservatism, her prolific preaching and open-minded perspective made her a eccentric and glamorous star before her fate was sealed with a tremendous downfall in partnership with her husband, Jim Bakker (played by Christian Borle).
Tammy’s curious mix of kitsch, resilience, and a gospel of unyielding acceptance garnered her adoring fans and a globally-syndicated television program before seen and unseen forces brought an empire down. Although Tammy passed away in 2007 after a long battle with cancer, her legend lives on as a fixture on the drag circuit and the subject of major works (including an excellent 2021 release of The Eyes of Tammy Faye, starring Jessica Chastain and Andrew Garfield).
Setting the stage
In theory, the story of Tammy Faye Bakker has enough heart, cultural relevancy, and plot to drive a winning Broadway show. The conflict was clear: Tammy and her tribe of vibrant supporters against the dark forces of conservative America. The material for a musical was ready: Faye’s obsessive music recording spawned more than a dozen albums. Finally, the aesthetic was clear: a golden age of television paired with the strange and exciting in-between of two distinct cultural eras.
Despite all that, Tammy Faye falls flat. The architects of the musical are, without a doubt, heavyweights in the industry: music by Elton John. Lyrics by Jake Shears. Choreography by Lynne Page. A set design by Bunny Christie is a larger-than-life masterclass in semi-surrealist detail and taste (the opening scenes mildly evoking the bedroom in 2001 : A Space Odyssey).
But practically none of Tammy Faye’s own music made it into the production. Her wardrobe— famously trendy, colorful, and so stiff it was practically upholstered upon her— is often replaced with a suite of too-modern garments in steely, sad colors.
The pacing of the show is at once frenetic and frustratingly slow, driven by long periods of dialogue met with a series rapid-fire musical numbers, as if a quota of lyrics needed to be reached. The songs are wordy and feature somewhat unoriginal in melodies and sentiments, usually saved only by Katie Brayben’s extraordinary vocals.
Lost in the Details
There is also the bizarre drive for accuracy despite clear historical errors and omissions. Among other effects, the cadre of conservative voices (including Jerry Falwell (Michael Cerveris), Pat Robertson (Andy Taylor), Jimmy Swaggart (Ian Lassiter) and Marvin Gorman (Max Gordon Moore)) that drive the opposition to the Bakkers’ practice eventually blend together.
These individually rich personalities could have been further differentiated with darker music and a more villainous aesthetic undertone. At some moments, you don’t know who to cheer for as everyone seems so strangely reasonable. Any way you look at it, American Evangelical culture is extremely white and male, and a more adventurous display could have made it easier to keep a mental who’s-who of the story.
Big personalities made minor
Frustratingly, The Bakkers— despite coming from a small evangelical context— never seem truly down on their luck until the final moments of the musical, effectively muting the truly extraordinary rise of their ministry. As for an individual finding her voice, the breakout moments that made Tammy a true star are highlighted but then quickly washed away— her unmistakable turn-on-a-dime improvisation and passion gets muddled by the tepid dialogue and the pervasive move along now sentiment.
A key aspect of the downfall of the Bakkers was real-life model Jessica Hahn’s (Alana Pollard) accusation of sexual assault by Jim Bakker. This important plot line is handled with respect, but amid the mounting bills, lawsuits, and drug abuse, it eventually feels like a minor footnote in an avalanche of misfortune. The musical resolves in an unsatisfying way and the evil Evangelicals essentially win.
Katie Brayben shines
The final word lies with Katie Brayben, a thorough talent whose closeness to her character is evident, even with the challenged scripts and plots. An infectious mix of enthusiasm, charm, and vocal capabilities, Brayben successfully brings down the house with several solo numbers along with a tender delivery of the script. She is cemented as a singular acting force, joining a long list of strong women essentially carrying an entire production, reminiscent of Amy Adams in Arrival or Carey Mulligan in Wildlife.
Perhaps the most touching moment of the musical (and the key reinforcement of Brayben’s talent) involves Tammy embracing an AIDS survivor as her world is crashing around her. The stage is visually crowded in that moment, but you’re completely locked into every word she says.
In that moment, the theater was breathless. If you go to see Tammy Faye for any reason, make it for Brayben’s impassioned and raw performance.
Tammy Faye opens November 14, 2024 at the Palace Theater. The musical was reviewed by The Interior Review on Nov. 18th, 2024. Running time: 2 hours, 35 mins with one intermission. Tickets here.
Credits
Production: A presentation by Rocket Stage, Greene Light Stage and James L. Nederlander; co-produced by AEG Presents, Hunter Arnold, No Guarantees Productions, Universal Music Group, John Gore Organization, The Shubert Organization, Iris Smith, Takonkiet Viravan, 50 Fathoms Properties, Independent Presenters Network, Kors Le Pere Theatricals and Tilted Productions of a musical in two acts with a book by James Graham; music by Elton John, lyrics by Jake Shears.
Crew: Direction, Rupert Goold; sets, Bunny Christie; costumes,Katrina Lindsay; lighting, Neil Austin; sound, Nick Lidster for Autograph; video, Finn Ross; orchestrations, Mark Dickman and Tom Deering; music supervision, arrangements, and additional music, Tom Deering. production manager: Aurora Productions; production stage manager: Timothy R. Semon.
Cast: Katie Brayben, Christian Borle, Michael Cerveris, Autumn Hurlbert, Nick Bailey, Charl Brown, Mark Evans, Allison Guinn, Ian Lassiter, Raymond J. Lee, Max Gordon Moore, Alana Pollard, and Andy Taylor, as well as Amanda Clement, Michael Di Liberto, Jonathan Duvelson, Lily Kaufmann, Denis Lambert, Elliott Mattox, Brittany Nicholas, Keven Quillon, Aveena Sawyer, Allysa Shorte, TJ Tapp, Daniel Torres, Dana Wilton.
