You can see why this project has been in development for more than two decades – and why composer Barry Manilow and lyricist-book writer Bruce Sussman have struggled to wrestle the many characters, the dramatic shifts in tone and the sheer weight of the history into a coherent production. The highlights of Manilow’s score are the ballads, particularly an Act One declaration of love by Danny Kornfeld’s Young Rabbi called “Every Single Day” and a charming (and beautifully sung) duet by Sierra Boggess and Julie Benko, “Where You Go,” that seems to borrow its melodic line from a prelude by Chopin. It’s said that history doesn’t repeat itself, but it rhymes. And Manilow’s Harmony offers a timely opportunity to delve into those rhymes, and embrace both their beauty and their horror.
Read my full review in the December/January issue of Musicals magazine.
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