The Light in the Piazza is a musical that takes place in Italy (mostly in Florence, with a brief visit to Rome in the second act) in 1953. The story revolves around a mother and daughter from North Carolina, Margaret and Clara Johnson, who are revisiting the places that Margaret saw during her honeymoon many years ago. During the course of their sightseeing, Clara loses her hat in a brief gust of wind, which is recovered by a handsome Italian boy, Fabrizio Nacarelli. It’s love at first sight for Clara and Fabrizio, but Margaret does not approve of the relationship for various reasons, some obvious and some not. We also meet Fabrizio’s family, including the charming Signor Nacarelli played by Chris Sarandon (formerly the villainous prince in the motion picture The Princess Bride).

I was very excited to see this show, which is at the Vivian Beaumont Theater in Lincoln Center. I had heard the singers in this musical had incredible voices and that it had won six Tony awards: Best Original Score, Best Actress in a Musical (for Victoria Clark’s portrayal of Margaret Johnson), Best Scenic Design, Best Costume Design Best Lighting Design, and Best Orchestration. I couldn’t pass up the discount offered by Playbill either—so off I went on a Friday evening for what I hoped would be excellent entertainment.

Upon entering the theater, I saw a well-designed set representing a small town square in Italy. The lighting was particularly striking; very soft and warm for a theater set. To set the mood, the public announcement regarding cell phones and pagers was in Italian. Little did I know that the Italian characters would be speaking and singing in Italian for most of the first act and there was no place for subtitles as there would be for an opera. I found this to be irritating because I believe the lyrics in a musical are essential to the story. It also didn’t help that the orchestra often drowned out the singers, thus making the English lyrics difficult to understand and I couldn’t enjoy the singers’ voices as much as I felt I should. If the imbalance between the orchestra and the singers was due to the fact that I was seated more to the side of the stage, then I would think they would have figured out the acoustics of the space by now. I also think the singers were not using microphones (I couldn’t tell as I can in most shows)—that’s refreshing, but then the orchestra should have been playing at a lower volume to accommodate the lack of electronic amplification. When I could hear the singers, it was evident that I had been missing out on a lot as I found the cast to be very talented both as actors and musicians.

Victoria Clark, is an excellent singer and actress; her Margaret is a protective mother but also a woman appreciative of love. She sometimes portrayed the “ugly American tourist” stereotype but also showed sophistication and good manners in the Nacarelli home. Kelli O’Hara plays Clara Johnson radiantly—and her opera training shows through in her performance of the songs. She is also a good actress although I didn’t feel there was a lot of chemistry between her and Aaron Lazar, who plays Fabrizio. The women in the Nacarelli family are both portrayed by opera singers with amazing ranges who also have great comic timing. The strong vocal component seemed to clash with the orchestral score, which was dissonant in many places. Perhaps I have an unsophisticated ear, but it was a little jarring to hear clashing notes and strange harmonies throughout the performance of a romantic storyline. My companion simply stated that he liked the story, but found the music to be “weird.” I certainly overheard other people in the audience who thought the music was incredible. So, this could be a matter of taste.

Another thing that made my experience of The Light in the Piazza less than enjoyable was that the characters often lit and smoked pungent herbal cigarettes, and I found the smell of the tobacco and herbs to be very strong and unpleasant. Keep this in mind if you are sensitive to cigarette smoke—you may want to sit further from the stage, although that would mean you couldn’t get close and personal with the characters.

I have to admit I felt some regret in seeing this show—it wasn’t terrible, but it didn’t meet my expectations for a musical with so many accolades. While I can appreciate the talents of the cast, my evaluation of a performance is based on the overall experience. In this case, it wasn’t a spectacular one for me. Caveat emptor!

Editor’s note: The role of Clara is currently played by Katie Clarke.