Jean Françaix / Young Frankenstein

On this day in classical music: Jean Françaix’s “Piano Concerto” was given its premiere in Berlin in 1936. Françaix studied music at the Conservatoire of Le Mans where his father was director, and later at the Paris Conservatory, where he earned a first prize in piano. Françaix studied with noted pedagogue Nadia Boulanger and frequently was the featured soloist in his works for piano. Françaix was quite a prolific composer with more than 200 works to his credit. Françaix died in 1997. Listen to the composer play the Scherzo and Finale of his “Piano Concerto.” Nadia Boulanger conducts the Philharmonie Paris. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8a5Ea6ZGK8

On this day in the musical theatre: Mel Brooks’ “Young Frankenstein” opened on Broadway in 2007. Brooks was no doubt hoping to repeat his success with “The Producers” when he created a stage musical of his 1974 film. A parody of horror films, it’s a retelling of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Roger Bart starred as the nefarious Dr. Frankenstein, with Megan Mullally as Elizabeth, Christopher Fitzgerald as Igor, Sutton Foster as Inga, Andrea Martin as Frau Blucher and Shuler Hensley as the Monster. The musical had a 14-month run and though nominated for three Tony Awards, it lost in each category. Watch Sutton Foster and Roger Bart perform “Roll in the Hay” from “Young Frankenstein” on teh David Letterman Show. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtOlUqXPQFo

Musical musings: We may as well start with the obvious questions about “Young Frankenstein,” the really big show from Mel Brooks that opened last night at the Hilton Theater. The answer to all of them is no. No, it is not nearly as good as “The Producers,” Mr. Brooks’ previous Broadway musical. No, it is not as much fun as the 1974 Mel Brooks movie, also called “Young Frankenstein,” on which it is based. No, it does not provide $450 worth of pleasure (that being its record-setting price for “premier seating”). The show takes many of the elements that made “The Producers” such a delight and then saps them of their joy by overselling them. On the plus side (the slimmer side), Sutton Foster is delicious as Dr. Frankenstein’s voluptuous young assistant, who uses yodeling as foreplay. Andrea Martin, an inspired comedian, makes the role of Frau Blucher, the sinister housekeeper, all her own through artful exaggeration. And Shuler Hensley is terrific, turning Frankenstein’s monster into the most human character onstage. – Ben Brantley in The New York Times

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