Liz Chidester as Patsy Cline. Photo by Michael Brosilow.
Always…Patsy Cline invites audiences into its honky tonk setting overflowing with the memories, music, and larger-than-life personality of its titular figure. Less a musical and more a journey through her greatest hits, the two-hour revue—playing now at American Blues Theater with direction by Harmony France—features the character of Louise Seger as our narrator and navigator through the true story of her friendship with arguably the most influential American female vocalist of the twentieth century. Whatever your degree of familiarity with the life and work of Patsy Cline, Always…Patsy Cline hits every banger in her juke box for a sonically charged good time that will make you want to leave your seat and Texas two-step down the aisle.
If it is true that an artist only dies after their work is no longer celebrated, then Louise (Molly Hernández) is a one-woman bullhorn unceasingly cheering on the life, career, and voice of Patsy Cline (Liz Chidester). The show follows their first meeting at a Houston honky tonk in 1961 and concludes with Cline’s untimely death in a 1963 plane crash. In fact, the title of the show is lifted from the valediction of Cline’s letters to Louise: “Love always, Patsy Cline.” Molly Hernández is tour-de-force as Louise. She is emcee for our musical experience and our window into the person of Patsy Cline. Through Louise, we learn about Cline’s rise to fame, her challenges as a woman and touring singer, her marital struggles, as well as the powerful effect of her vocal prowess on audiences then and today. Hernández is infectiously charming as Louise, enjoyably extending the party to us in the aisles, picking out dance partners, and working the crowd with an improvisational flair that feels pulled from the honky tonk stage rather than from a traditional theatre. Though—if there is one criticism to lay—it is her southern accent, which (from this born-and-raised southerner’s perspective) is exactly as approximated from a midwesterner as you might expect. Nevertheless, Hernández expertly handles the task of matching the size and scope of the figure cut by Patsy Cline with aplomb and applause.
The story of the friendship between Louise and Patsy provides a loose framework for the real cornerstone of the show: spotlighting the vocal range and abilities of Cline. Liz Chidester is not only up to the challenge of capturing Patsy Cline’s prowess as a singer but also brings a vulnerability to the beloved artist that invites us into her humanity. Chidester puts on a masterclass in vocal stylings, covering the range of musical abilities that made Patsy Cline a feature on the radios and record players of people across the country. From traditional country-western songs like the opening “Honky Tonk Merry Go Round,” to popular hits like “Stupid Cupid,” to hymns like “How Great Thou Art,” audiences are treated to a full course of auditory delicacies courtesy of Chidester and her capable skills. The moments shared by both women in Louise’s kitchen after the honky tonk show provide a window into Cline’s struggles, grounding the story in the pull she feels between balancing a career as a touring artist and being present for her son back at home. Chidester brings to bear Cline’s interiority with each drag of a cigarette and swig of Schlitz before seamlessly transitioning to the stage presence of the artist inspiringly connected to the music she shares with the audience.
Beyond the music, Cline was an incredibly fashionable artist capable of navigating trends and styles that widened the span of her reach—especially as it pertained to the dichotomous split of the time between country and popular music. Patsy Cline’s abilities to navigate a wide range of stylistic aesthetics is perfectly captured in her costume design by Lily Walls. Stretching from the traditional dresses of ranch wear to the popular looks of the “Swinging 60’s,” Walls presents Cline’s fashion as a metaphor for her ability to cross from the country-western charts and reach deep into the popular Top 40 charts. And contributing to Patsy Cline’s success was her backing band, The Jordanaires, represented in the show as a hokey but lovable group of musicians who also act as her cheerleaders—called the Bobcats, as they all share the surname of “Bob.” Altogether, the design of the show brings together the timeless feel of a great honky tonk with a musical theatre staging for the most exciting revue.
Always…Patsy Cline at American Blues Theater is recommended. The show runs Thursdays through Sundays until June 7th and tickets are available at www.americanbluestheater.com.