The Star-Power of Idina Menzel Can’t Save ‘Redwood’

metroweekly.com:

Playbill cover of Broadway’s newest musical, Redwood.Over the course of two intermission-less hours, Menzel — who is also the show’s co-conceiver and collaborator — plays Jesse, a stereotypical high-strung New Yorker who belts songs, drives from Manhattan to California, talks excessively about grief, experiences flashbacks and memories of her deceased son, Spencer (Zachary Noah Piser) fights with her wife, Mel (De’Adre Aziza), and befriends two tree scientists, charming them in song with the following request:I can hold a tree pose/I can do a downward dog/’Cause I did yoga once at my old synagogue/and I don’t have a fear of heights/I work out all the time/So what I’m really trying to say is: Would you ever let me climb?Obviously, the scientists, Finn (Michael Park) and Becca (Khaila Wilcoxon), enjoy botany more than clever lyrics.

Reluctantly, Jesse’s wish is granted. Unfortunately, the audience’s hope for a better show goes unfulfilled.Since humankind began, nature has been an endless source of fascination, strength, and wonder.

Books solely on the subject could fill an entire library, and there is no deficit of movies and television shows about the great outdoors.

Even a basic walk through the park can be rejuvenating and soul-reviving.These universal discoveries on nature’s healing and restorative properties are personal and unique but leave their mystical qualities inexplicable.