Bright Star: Florida Studio Theatre’s Shining, Foot-Stompin’ “Dramedy”

By Ryan G. Van Cleave

I’ve been a fan of Steve Martin since his frequent “The Tonight Show” visits, his many SNL guest appearances, and the Parenthood movie series. And I was so impressed by his Grammy-winning (Best Bluegrass Album) The Crow: New Songs for the 5-String Banjo that when I heard he’d partnered with 1980s indie star Edie Brickell on a musical entitled Bright Star, I made a point of planning to see it.

“Planning to” is key, because while I intended to go, I managed to miss its short Broadway run that both began and ended in 2016. Imagine my surprise and joy when I heard Bright Star had a new regional theater run and was coming to Florida Studio Theatre, which always has an intimacy and immediacy that often makes their shows as impactful as Broadway productions!

Here’s what you need to know about Bright Star. Set in the 1920s through the 1940s in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, it’s the story of an editor of a Southern literary journal, Alice Murphy, at two points in her life. Figuring prominently in her world is young writer Billy Cane, whom she chooses to mentor. In many interviews he’s given about the musical, Martin himself explains that “it’s a story about a baby that had been thrown from a train in a suitcase, and it lives. And someone discovered the baby in the suitcase and raised it.” He sums it up by saying that it’s about love lost and found, and of lives that intersect in surprising ways.

FST’s Music Director for this musical, Paul Helm, provides insight into this show, which was inspired by the Grammy-winning collaboration on the 2013 bluegrass album Love Has Come for You by Martin and Brickell. “I got to see it on Broadway and was charmed by the original production,” he says. “It’s full of Americana but also features dark tones and powerful emotions to this love story.”

He first notes that bluegrass isn’t a genre you easily find in musicals. It’s much more than that, though. It’s also got 1940s swing and jazz, all with a Southern flair to it. Helm notes that part of what makes things interesting in FST’s production is that there’s no band off on the side playing all the music. Many of the cast members themselves play instruments, which really helps bring this tale into the realm of a more intimate, collaborative storytelling experience. “It’s so unique—a first of its kind.”

Bright Star is an original musical, too, versus being tied to a novel or movie in any way, like so many are these days, it seems. Helm’s also especially excited to be working with the lead, Meredith Jones. “Her voice? Oh my gosh, it fills a whole room and then some. She’s got this Southern charm about her, too. She’s a perfect fit.”

Jones—who captured audiences’ hearts as the eponymous character in last summer’s Mainstage hit Always…Patsy Cline—explains that her character, Alice, is a multi-dimensional woman full of flaws, doubts, and weaknesses, as well as strength, talent, and pluck. “She’s 100% human,” says Jones, “making her character one that most people can relate to. It makes it easy for the audience to instantly connect with her and have a stake in wanting to see her story play out on stage.” 

Though Steve Martin is perhaps best-known as a comedian, Jones says that she wouldn’t describe Bright Star as only a comedy, just as she wouldn’t describe Steve Martin as only a comedian. “There are absolutely some laugh-out-loud moments that help to break up the dramatic nature of the show,” she says, “but to label it as a comedy doesn’t capture the show in its entirety. If I had to label the show, I would call it a ‘dramedy,’ because it leans more toward drama.”

Like most who’ve heard the Bright Star music, she recognizes that it’s the result of a special partnership between Martin and Brickell. “When you look at Edie Brickell and the artist that she is, you begin to understand how the musical turned into the complex piece it is. It’s funny, and heartbreaking, and beautiful, and sad, and loving and hateful and so many things wrapped up into one.” What this does, Jones explains, is put the musical into a very real place, steering away from any cynicism or irony. How is this accomplished in terms of the craft of acting? “When you root yourself into a character that is so real and human, the work in turn comes from a place of heart and truth.”

Martin is a genius. Brickell is amazing. FST, Paul Helm, and Meredith Jones are all assets that our community appreciates. Taken together, “Bright Star” looks to be another magical experience for us all where feet will stomp, hearts will be warmed, and love will win the day once again.

For more information on “Bright Star” or any of this season’s shows, please visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org or call 941.366.9000.