Reviews

Complete review from the New York Times

Listening for Love
by Anita Gates
Published: November 16, 2006

It is so great to see people under 40 (maybe even under 30!) going to the theater. All it takes, apparently, is a sassy little number like “How to Save the World and Find True Love in 90 Minutes,” which started out at the New York International Fringe Festival two years ago and has landed uptown, at New World Stages.

This is the sort of musical in which the lyric “Oh God, why are all the good men unconscious?” makes sense.

Michael McEachran plays Miles Muldoon, a cowardly United Nations bookstore clerk. At a demonstration he is knocked out by a barrage of Guatemalan melons, after which he can read minds. Like Mel Gibson's character in the film “What Women Want,” he hears mostly emotional and sexual revelations from women.

This could be helpful. Miles worships Violet Zipper (Nicole Ruth Snelson), a glamorous diplomat in a sexy red suit, and he wants a job in her department. His colleague and best friend, Julie Lemmon the slacker (Anika Larsen ), secretly loves him. “How can he be so moronic/To think we're platonic?” she sings.

There are complications, including Violet's secret affair with a terrorist. Violet's comments about their relationship range from the facile (“He was on a hunger strike, and I was on the South Beach Diet.”) to the socially insightful (“I never have to pick the restaurant. Do you know what a relief that is?”). The terrorist plans to release a dangerous new virus at the General Assembly, and Miles isn't sure he has what it takes to stop him. “What's the most daunting task I've ever faced in my life?”'', Miles asks himself, “The S.A.T.?”

Miles is followed by his own Greek chorus (Stephen Bienskie, Natalie Joy Johnson and Kevin Smith Kirkwood), who sometimes morph into other characters. Mr. Kirkwood is fabulous in drag as Bonquisha, who answers the phone at the Office of Homeland Security. (“Are you calling to report a threat, baby?”) Mr. Kirkwood also briefly plays Condoleezza Rice.

Other great moments include an appearance by Céline Dion (Ms. Snelson), a two-character back-and-forth by Mr. McEachran that vaguely recalls Charles Ludlam's old days at the Ridiculous Theatrical Company, a less than meditative yoga class and the gospel number “Save the People.”

Seth Weinstein wrote the diverse music. The witty book and lyrics are by Jonathan Karp , who now heads Twelve, a new imprint of Hachette Book Group.

Christopher Gattelli , best known as a choreographer, directed with an untethered sense of fun.

“How to Save the World” may not go as far as the first Fringe Festival success story, “Urinetown,” which sailed to Broadway and won three Tony Awards, including best book and best score.

But its refreshingly amateurish feel and Miles's refreshingly youthful outlook should at least make for a long run.

Complete review from nytheatre.com

Lisa Ferber
November 11, 2006

How to Save the World and Fine True Love in 90 Minutes , the new musical comedy by librettist/lyricist Jonathan Karp and composer Seth Weinstein, is timely and a lot of fun.

Miles Muldoon (Michael McEachran) works in the United Nations bookstore and harbors a crush on savvy, disinterested diplomat Violet Zipper (Nicole Ruth Snelson). Miles's kooky slacker work-best-friend Julie Lemmon (Anika Larsen), harbors the same kind of crush on him. Violet is having a fling with the mysterious, hunky "He" (also played by McEachran, who shines about 10 times more as He and has a lot more room to be big here), who is plotting a terrorist attack against the U.N.

Added to this, during an anti-melon demonstration, Miles is konked on the head with a melon and develops the power to read people's minds. (For what it's worth, I wasn't too amused when during the anti-melon demonstration, the chorus members came out holding fake melons and the female member of the group wore fake melon breasts and a melon butt—with no fake melon butt for the fellows. This is a smart enough production to not have to resort to this kind of humor.)

How to Save the World is not so much a comedy making light of terrorism as it is a romance, though it does tap into the fact that many of us live today with a sense of constant fear, and so does Miles. He's afraid to really make a play for Violet, and he's generally afraid of life. The story is a classic boy-wants-girl, girl-wants-other-boy, boy-is-wanted-by-other-girl-who-he-doesn't-want-or-does-he? The character He is a sexy bad boy, but in this case instead of being some kind of street hood, he happens to be, oops, a terrorist. Terrorism really only comes into play here plotwise the way any other catastrophe or evil plot (murder, theft) would have pre-9/11, though the stakes are bigger because it is a global catastrophe at risk.

The show employs a kind of Greek chorus (Stephen Bienskie, Natalie Joy Johnson, Kevin Smith Kirkwood), who have an adorable presence: They start off singing behind Miles during his opening speech, and continue to show up during various other performers' songs, holding hands and swaying in the background, singing throughout various parts of the show, and playing different roles throughout the play, which is charming.

Some of the dialogue tries a bit too hard to be au courant/smart, such as a dig about one character fearing being adopted by Madonna, but for the most part the jokes are truly funny, as when Miles's introduces himself: "I am not a potato—I am a man in search of a couch."

There are 16 songs during this 90-minute show—it's a true musical and the songs are very naturally interspersed. There is never a moment that feels like a stop-action where "now we sing." Kudos to Karp and Weinstein for making the musical bits blend so organically with the book.

Karp's lyrics contain laugh-getting lines: "I'm afraid of everything / afraid of drugs, afraid of guns / afraid of Barbara Bush's sons"; "Oh, God, why are all the good men unconscious / where is my prince, I've kissed enough frogs / why did you give him ears when he only hears what he has to say"; and "He's as dangerous as sin / with daggers of stubble on his chin / he's a man on a mission / who knows every position."

The cast sings well, in particular Kirkwood (who can elongate notes in the gospel tradition to the point where one just watches and listens thinking, "wow") and Larsen. Larsen's voice is so clear and so pretty that I felt happy when she got to deliver a power-ballad tribute to Celine Dion. This was not only funny, but it really gave Larsen a chance to show her stuff. There's a difference between actors who can sing well enough to sing onstage and actors who are singers, and Larsen is one heck of a singer.

Everyone here is doing good work and How to Save the World and Fine True Love in 90 Minutes is a fun night out.

Other review quotes

"A daffy musical delight....It has a go-for-broke spirit that more shows need." Entertainment Weekly

"Writer Jonathan Karp and composer Seth Weinstein have accomplished an improbable feat: They've created a giddily irreverent musical comedy in which romance blooms despite the escalating threat of terrorism. Joyfully swinging from one kooky tune to the next... How to Save the World stays true to the aw-shucks simplicity of its boy-meet-girl premise without sidestepping post-9/11 cynicism." New York Magazine.com

"If laughter is the best medicine, then How to Save the World and Find True Love in 90 Minutes is a panacea. Sit down, buckle up, and prepare to laugh yourself silly! Save the World is the ultimate musical farce of love, sex, and politics. It's clever, fast-paced and thoroughly enjoyable." The Improper

"A lovable meringue....Its silliness and verve are delightful....Ms. Larsen is effortlessly charming and Ms. Snelson pulls off the toughest role with wit and elan....Seth Weinstein's score is engaging and ambitious." The New York Sun

"Peppy....occupied with high-speed costume changes, quippy metatheatrical aides, and all sorts of zestful schtik." The New Yorker

"Perfect for theatergoers looking for a goofball night out." The Village Voice

"Barrages the stage with a grab-bag of skits and songs and plots and parodies and gags and googs -- and yes, it does so in an hour and a half.....How To Save the World is like a party pinata, the six gifted performers onstage taking turns at bat, with candy spilling out all over the floor...Some delights the senses...." Edge

"Crowd-pleasing....uproarious....Frantic international hijinks....It's enjoyable once you embrace the ridiculousness." Associated Press

"Jonathan Karp has given them enough witty lines to keep the theater buzzing with laughter...Michael McEachran will win your heart with a performance that is entirely natural, outgoing, and reminiscent of Martin Short....Nicole Ruth Snelson is cool and convincing as the blonde beauty, and Anika Larsen is lovable." UPI

"Charming...Timely and a lot of fun....There are 16 songs during this 90-minute show­it's a true musical and the songs are very naturally interspersed. There is never a moment that feels like a stop-action where "now we sing." Kudos to Karp and Weinstein for making the musical bits blend so organically with the book." New York Theatre.com

"With its great title, it moves as fast as sound without let-up for those 90 minutes. It offers six talented and attractive performers, with fine musical-comedy tunes that are neatly performed by vibrating vocals and frantic feet....Relax and have a good time watching this sextet move the ball with more panache than a professional basketball team." "The New Yorkers" (NYC TV)

"The clever dialogue and lyrics make it work....McEachran shows comic flair in the dual roles of Miles and He....Larsen has a dynamite voice and sounds just as strong here as she did in Zanna, Don't! Snelson is also terrific -- and looks hot in her red dress to boot..." broadway.com

Show history

How to Save the World and Find True Love in 90 Minutes is presented by Lawrence Anderson and The Singing Comedians.

Anderson produced How to Save the World... at the New York International Fringe Festival and the New York Musical Theatre Festival in 2004 with Nancy Nagel Gibbs & Greg Schaffert. How to Save the World... was a Fringe audience favorite, playing to capacity crowds at the 299-seat Lucille Lortel Theatre and drawing praise from critics and fans alike.

The Singing Comedians (Jonathan Karp, Anika Larsen, Michael McEachran & Seth Weinstein) presented a staged reading of the musical in 2000 and have been working on it ever since through readings, the 2004 New York International Fringe Festival, the 2004 New York Musical Theater Festival, and a presentation at the Kaufman Center's 2005 "Bound for Broadway" event at Merkin Concert Hall. How to Save the World... was developed in the Musical Writers' Playground, a group devoted to the creation and promotion of new musicals.