
DATE: Sunday, April 13, 1997                TAG: 9704150520

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E10  EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Theater review

SOURCE: BY MAL VINCENT, THEATER CRITIC 

                                            LENGTH:   96 lines

YOU'D HAVE TO BE CRAZY TO MISS JESSICA WELCH AS PATSY CLINE

SHE'S NOT Patsy Cline, but then who is?

When Jessica Welch sidesteps the rather strained ``play'' that constrains her, she fairly soars with the strength and guttural emotion of Patsy Cline. It's easy to predict that ``Always. . . Patsy Cline'' will be one of the biggest crowd-pleasers in the 18-season history of Virginia Stage Company. When the dust is settled and the money counted, this show is likely to top the box office record formerly held by Bill Shakespeare.

Patsy Cline and Shakespeare competing for theatrical kudos? If that ain't a happening to shake the corn right out of the proverbial husks! As Cline's character states early in the evening, she's walking in tall cotton.

It is, however, more ``show'' than ``play,'' and the purists might well question if its pre-packaged gloss should have a place on the regular-season schedule, rather than, perhaps, being an ``extra'' booking.

No matter. They'll warm to the idea in the course of an evening that is sparked by the thrill of an individual triumph. Welch not only has the vocal prowess to suggest Cline, she also has something of the guts. Any singer who is willing to stand in the spotlight and undertake some 23 Cline standards in one evening has got to have daring to spare. To not only tolerate but invite comparison is the equivalent of trying a triple somersault with no net.

Cline purists might join theatrical purists in having some doubts about this show, but both will eventually join in the standing ovations that are being offered nightly (even if there is a bit of cheerleading to encourage the ovation).

Welch, 26, has Cline's phrasing down to a T - the kind of wrap-around emotion that can make three syllables out of the title ``Cr-aaa-zy.'' When she's singing, all is right with this show. The requisite standards are there: ``Walking After Midnight,'' ``I Fall to Pieces,'' ``Sweet Dreams'' and ``Crazy.'' But it's ``She's Got You,'' with its soulful lament for lost love, that comes closest to making the flesh crawl. Here is a woman who bares all in revealing her sorrow. It is a moment in which one is not sure if it is Welch or Cline.

The songs are best, though, when performed in performance situations - such as on the Arthur Godfrey Show or in concert. They don't work nearly as well when they are attempted as a part of the skimpy ``plot'' about the friendship between a female fan and the star. For example, much of the emotion of ``Crazy'' is missed by having it performed in the kitchen of the fan as a plot service to explain Cline's marital troubles.

There are long moments in which one wishes they had forgotten the rather flimsy skeleton of a two-character play and turned this into an outright simulation of a Cline concert.

Joy Hawkins, who portrays the obsessed fan, is often hilarious but eventually tiresome because she is asked to repeat her act so often. She is quite believable as the fan who gives up her personal life to follow Cline about and pursue the best for her. Many of the laughs, though, are cheap and predictable. Hawkins goes into the audience to pick dance partners and leads a hand-clapping rally, even resorting to a few pelvic gyrations along the way.

The script, by Ted Swindley, does little to dramatize the friendship of these two disparate women. It keeps Cline's personal life at a distance and even disposes of her death, in an airplane crash, in almost perfunctory manner. We learn little about Cline - perhaps a result of the fact that the project needed the approval of the Cline family and estate in order to get the rights to the songs.

The set, by Chris Pickart, is a detailed and rustic impression that ranges from the Opry to the fan's kitchen. The band, billed as the Bodacious Bobcats, is led by Dominion Theater producer Gary Spell and seems thoroughly at home with the music. There are some 10 costume changes, coordinated by Patty Darden, which reflect the singer's changing fortunes and styles.

If Patsy Cline was country, then the country was a universal one. She possessed the vocal equipment and the gutsiness to bypass categorizing. Welch has successfully engineered a tribute to the style of a unique artist. This is an evening that, in spite of the flimsy pretense at its edges, soars with entertainment. It should not be missed. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

Virginia Stage Company

Welch portrays the country singer in the Virginia Stage Company's

``Always...Patsy Cline.'' Ticket info, page E10.

Photo

HELEN JONES

Jessica Welch goes through some 10 costume changes in ``Always . . .

Patsy Cline.'

Graphic

REVIEW

``Always . . . Patsy Cline''

When: Tuesdays through Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 4 and 8

p.m., Sundays at 2 and 7 p.m. through April 27