Can
a national tragedy become an award winning Broadway production? In the case of the Lindbergh kidnapping, the answer is yes. Baby Case, winner of four Barrymore
awards in Philadelphia, including best musical production, opened for a
limited engagement in New York on July 16th. As part of a preview event held on
42nd street in New York's theater district as part
of the New York Musical Theater Festival, I was invited to be part of a
wide-ranging panel discussion about the infamous case. Also on the panel were
Jim Fisher, former FBI agent and author of The Lindbergh Case, Charlie
Fink, the show's producer, and Michael Ogborn, the show's writer. The discussion
followed a preview of excerpts from the show and covered the facts of the case,
the personalities of those involved, and the role of the media in the tragic
events.
The discussion was stimulating, and I was
very impressed with how Baby Case treats the material in a way that is clever
and entertaining, yet respectful of the events and personalities involved.(The fact that the actors all had superb voices didn't hurt, either.) They
showcased each character and what part that person played in the tragedy. The
people responsible for the production really did their homework and were true to
the facts without either sensationalizing the case, or treating it
lightly.
If you get a chance to see Baby Case, don't miss it.
Left to right: Producer Charlie Fink, Jim
Fisher, author of The Lindbergh Case, John Reisinger, author
of Master Detective, and Michael Ogborn, Baby Case
writer
