In a slimmed down one-act version, following its US premiere in Chicago, Tomorrow Morning has arrived in New York, courtesy of The York Theatre Company, an off-Broadway troupe which focuses exclusively on producing musicals, both new and revivals.
The story follows two couples on the eve of large events in their respective lives. What we get is an interesting concept that puts a spin on The Fourposter, showing the simultaneous progression and degradation of a relationship at its beginning and end. For the first, living ten years ago, John (Matthew Hydzik) and Kat (Autumn Hurlbert), they are about to be married. The second, living in the present, Jack (D.B. Bonds) and Catherine (Mary Mossberg) are about to divorce.
Spoiler alert
John and Kat are eager about everything, as twenty-somethings tend to be, their careers, their relationship, their plans for the future of both. They're passionate and as absolutely certain of themselves as callow youth propels them.
Jack and Kat separated after Jack's affair with a co-worker. And she's angry. Really angry. What she doesn't see is that her own ambition is what pushed him away in the first place. She also wields custody of their son like a sword.
In the single night, many twists and turns arise. John sneaks over to see Kat against her mother's wishes to give her a present, a childhood picture of Kat dressed up like a bride. Later, Kat learns that she's pregnant when the lab calls to confirm their marital blood test.
Similarly, Catherine panics when her son, after overhearing yet another argument between his parents, takes off in the night to find his dad.
The first half follows very familiar territory for both couples with no new insights to the situation of either. It's only once the child becomes part of the story that some true feeling and emotion turn up. The music is pleasant enough, though occasionally unremarkable.
Performances are generally even, though Mr. Bonds seems to get the short end of the stick in an apology of a role. To his credit, he still manages to fill in a third dimension to the very limited writing. He and Mr. Hydzik also create a very touching moment as they sing of the child in "Look at What We Made."
Director Tom Mullen keeps things moving well, fortunate to have an excellent set by Dan P. Conley to facilitate the multitude of shifts in time and place.
Tomorrow Morning runs through April 23, 2011. Get tickets here.
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