Peter Pan (2005 Studio Cast) - Leonard Bernstein
Peter Panis Leonard Bernstein's least-known musical--or at least chunk of a musical. Featuring four Bernstein songs, the show opened on Broadway in 1950; it starred Jean Arthur (then nearly 50!) as Peter Pan and Boris Karloff as Captain Hook. The show used Alec Wilder's underscore, but Bernstein had composed one as well, and his finally sees the light of day on this CD after years of research and restoration by conductor Alexander Frey. Was it worth the effort? Absolutely. Bernstein fans will of course crave the CD, but it should delight newcomers as well. The instrumental tracks display a wide stylistic palette, and the songs are simply wonderful. Just check out "Who Am I" (sung by Linda Eder) and you will hear a ballad as lovely as any‹cabaret singers in search of rare material would be well advised to look into it. Baritone Daniel Nardiccio does warm justice to Bernstein's near-operatic passages in "Pirate Song" and "Captain Hook's Soliloquy" (reminiscent ofCandide). As if this weren't enough, the CD concludes with the wistful "Spring Will Come Again," which Bernstein had written for a possible musical adaptation ofThe Skin of Our Teeth.--Elisabeth Vincentelli