Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Words by...at North Coast Rep

He's usually recognized, these days, as the three-letter answer to a crossword entry: "George's brother" - Ira Gershwin.

George Gershwin wrote the music first. Then older brother Ira wrote the lyrics. On Tin Pan Alley, Ira became known as the "Jeweler," because he could write precise, catchy, moving lyrics for music that often seemed to defy words (what Ira did for "Fascinatin' Rhythm" equals his brother's genius).

Here's Ira's "I Can't Get Started": "I've flown around the world in a plane. I've settled revolutions in Spain. The North Pole I have charted, but I can't get Started with you."

I've always been tempted to insert, for line three, "The Red Sea I have parted," but Ira, being a laser-eyed critic, would not have approved, since it breaks up the trio of feats of his era.

Ira "Izzy" Gershwin wrote not only for George (who died at age 38), he collaborated with many masters of the Great American Songbook, among them Harold Arlen, Kurt Weill, Jerome Kern, and Vernon Duke.

In Words by... - world premiering at the North Coast Rep. - Ira's the opposite of his extroverted brother. Ira's modest, contented. He feels no need to assert his place in the pantheon (though he does admit "we set the standards," even here he includes others). He's also a mite embarrassed to be talking about himself in public, which he suddenly realizes late in the long second act.

Joseph Vass's script takes a mostly chronological look back. Some descriptions of how Ira worked are vivid - and borrowed from his excellent 1959 book Lyrics on Several Occasions. And the self-deprecating characterization rings true, though it tones the potential for drama way down.

The show's a musical "greatest hits" revue with occasional commentary. It slides from song to song episodically, with no dramatic builds. The songs, of course, are wonderful. But the singers?

A famous photo shows Ira in a comfy chair, pipe in mouth, writing lyrics in longhand on a pad of paper. Nicholas Mongiardo-Cooper resembles the man in the photo, a lot, and soon convinces that his physical qualities and mindset are also akin. Mongiardo-Cooper sings unaffectedly, his hands at his sides, and feels the meaning of a song. This is a lyricist calling quiet attention to his words as well as the music.

Two other performers, called the Crooner (Andrew Ableson) and the Chanteuse (Meghan Andrews) try hard to sell their many songs. They raise their hands and shake their heads as if imitating a generic model. They are as much "watch me" as "listen" and don't seem to care about the lyrics. Each is, at best, marginally competent, though he comes off as cold and she needs a better breathing technique.

The keynote to David Ellenstein's direction appears to be "understatement." Even with a tight back-up quartet (and deft solos by guitarist Bob Boss), even the punched up songs don't rise that high. Only Mongiardo-Cooper captures what Ira calls the "craft, meaning, and beauty" of the man and his work.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Two poems by Marvin Bell

“To Dorothy” and “The Self and the Mulberry”

He's usually recognized, these days, as the three-letter answer to a crossword entry: "George's brother" - Ira Gershwin.

George Gershwin wrote the music first. Then older brother Ira wrote the lyrics. On Tin Pan Alley, Ira became known as the "Jeweler," because he could write precise, catchy, moving lyrics for music that often seemed to defy words (what Ira did for "Fascinatin' Rhythm" equals his brother's genius).

Here's Ira's "I Can't Get Started": "I've flown around the world in a plane. I've settled revolutions in Spain. The North Pole I have charted, but I can't get Started with you."

I've always been tempted to insert, for line three, "The Red Sea I have parted," but Ira, being a laser-eyed critic, would not have approved, since it breaks up the trio of feats of his era.

Ira "Izzy" Gershwin wrote not only for George (who died at age 38), he collaborated with many masters of the Great American Songbook, among them Harold Arlen, Kurt Weill, Jerome Kern, and Vernon Duke.

In Words by... - world premiering at the North Coast Rep. - Ira's the opposite of his extroverted brother. Ira's modest, contented. He feels no need to assert his place in the pantheon (though he does admit "we set the standards," even here he includes others). He's also a mite embarrassed to be talking about himself in public, which he suddenly realizes late in the long second act.

Joseph Vass's script takes a mostly chronological look back. Some descriptions of how Ira worked are vivid - and borrowed from his excellent 1959 book Lyrics on Several Occasions. And the self-deprecating characterization rings true, though it tones the potential for drama way down.

The show's a musical "greatest hits" revue with occasional commentary. It slides from song to song episodically, with no dramatic builds. The songs, of course, are wonderful. But the singers?

A famous photo shows Ira in a comfy chair, pipe in mouth, writing lyrics in longhand on a pad of paper. Nicholas Mongiardo-Cooper resembles the man in the photo, a lot, and soon convinces that his physical qualities and mindset are also akin. Mongiardo-Cooper sings unaffectedly, his hands at his sides, and feels the meaning of a song. This is a lyricist calling quiet attention to his words as well as the music.

Two other performers, called the Crooner (Andrew Ableson) and the Chanteuse (Meghan Andrews) try hard to sell their many songs. They raise their hands and shake their heads as if imitating a generic model. They are as much "watch me" as "listen" and don't seem to care about the lyrics. Each is, at best, marginally competent, though he comes off as cold and she needs a better breathing technique.

The keynote to David Ellenstein's direction appears to be "understatement." Even with a tight back-up quartet (and deft solos by guitarist Bob Boss), even the punched up songs don't rise that high. Only Mongiardo-Cooper captures what Ira calls the "craft, meaning, and beauty" of the man and his work.

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Hal David

Next Article

Ellington, Strayhorn Tribute At Liberty Hall

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader