"A Never-Ending Line - A Female Song Cycle" by Jaime Lozano - At Players Theatre, West Village

MacDougal Street in the West Village is the site of a thrilling song cycle entitled "A Never Ending Line," composed and directed by Jaime Lozano. Lin-Manuel Miranda has called Mr. Lozano "the next big thing on Broadway." He has collaborated with nine different lyricists in writing the seventeen songs that make up  this "female song cycle." Four gifted women sing the songs - as solos, trio, and quartets. The result is an intriguing evening of theater and music.

• Emily Esposito was most impressive in the solo "If You Break My Sister's Heart."
• Kat Blackwood had her best moments in "Diet or Die."
• Florencia Cuenca was heartbreakingly effective in the haunting "Maybe In Florence."
• Erica Wilpon, looking like a young Bernadette Peters, really sold "Hello Forty." 

The loose thread that ties together the songs in this cycle are women and their struggles - with men, with body image, with weight, with looks, with relationships, with hope for the future.

These four gifted singers were backed up by Music Director, Geraldine Anello on piano, Karen Speyer on Harp, Melanie Mason on Cello. My only complaint was that the amplification of the piano sometimes drowned out the singers in the intimate space that is Players Theatre.

The Lyricists are Lindsay Erin Anderson, Neena Beber, Lauren Epsenhart, Sami Horneff, Victoria Kuhne, Lisa Mongillo, Marina Pires, Noemi de la Puente, and June Rachelson-Ospa.

Choreography is by Fernanda Aldaz.

The show runs through September 12.

Enjoy!

Al