#upsettoland

Trina Weisenbachfeld Appreciation Week

It was in a tiny theatre. TINY, black box style, <50 seats. we were RIGHT IN FRONT. it was amazing.

-the set was literally: 6 chairs, 10 boxes, a hospital bed -4 jews started as a sock puppet show from behind the boxes (except for Trina) and then they all popped up as they said their names -(the cast was all so pretty and i am so gay) -their Jason was a college age woman and I believed her wholly, she was so good -at the end of 4 jews, they posed like they were taking a family photo and then marvin got up and started singing tight knit family -for love is blind, marvin and whizzer were in the background reading, marvin was on a chair and whizzer on the floor leaning into him. it was cute.  -the transitions between songs required additional music a lot but that was ok -thrill of first love was??? so good? -whizzer pulled a silly pose at “i was trained in karate” it was great -they yelled the 9/10 months bit and the won’t/don’t bit -the fight choreo happened as whizzer stealing marvin’s scarf and them fighting over it -they ended up on the floor after whizzer pulled marvin in with the scarf and sat on his lap??? which i think is actually better than on the couch but ya know. sightlines are important i guess -can i just reiterate how good jason was like she was SO GOOD -throughout marvin at the psychiatrist, whizzer and trina had super visible but subtle reactions like eye rolling -for “my father’s a homo,” and for a lot of the show, jason sang right at the audience -he jumped on the table it was so cute! -trina’s indicating to whizzer behind jason’s back was NOT SUBTLE AT ALL there was no way the kid didn’t notice that -when the “late for dinner late again” section started, a strip of unexpected disco lights came on!!! it was great -trina belted “and still the bastard divorced me!!!!” and it made my night -I’M BREAKING DOWN WAS SO GOOD -she used the space a lot it was great; she covered the whole stage -she came onstage with a bunch of bananas and i heard someone behind me say “oh no” -she did eat a piece of banana but earlier in the song, before “you ask me is it fun to cry over nothing” -she made eye contact with my friend at “help me!!!!” and she DIED -she crushed pieces of banana in her hands so she had to wipe them on her apron before picking up the phone to call mendel -mendel answered with “yes this is mendel weisenbachfeld” like in the revival! -the disco lights came on for the final section of “feel alright for the rest of your life” -marriage proposal was simple and cute -”this is how you do a marriage proposal” and then jason went “GO” and shoved them together omg. then he ran off -tkf reprise was simple -at this point i am in love with the actress playing trina because she KILLS trina’s song. wow. -march of the falsettos was very jewish! they were all sitting on boxes, with scarves like tallitot, and prayer books covering their faces. simple box switching choreography -trina is wonderful -in the chess game it was SUPER clear that whizzer was mocking marvin in the 2nd verse. -he got up at “more’s the pity” -marvin got his suitcase immediately, then whizzer walked off sadly. he turned around when he was almost out to sing his part of the argument. “whizzer’s supposed to make the dinner” etc -in making a home they put a mezuzah on the door!!!!! !!!!!! -when they sang “yes we love the bed” mendel slapped her ass and she giggled -at the end they each sat down to read and froze for the games i play -omg whizzer was so good!!! -he started the song smiling like he was trying to make light of his situation but got serious fast -he made eye contact with me and i DIED -during marvin hits trina, trina just looked so DONE and ANNOYED during the beginning of i never wanted to love you, mendel was holding her and touched her face where she’d been slapped, and she told him stop, and he stopped. that was nice. -jason was practically screaming during that song and it was so heartbreaking -father to son has everyone crying. i could hear it. at the end, it was only jason who got up, and it looked like he was gonna leave marvin there alone, but then he went for the hug and we started crying more

act 2!!! -ppl laughed a lot at the weird woodwind/chime wiggle thing that happens in the intro music -mendel only had once flashlight and made it look like he was telling a ghost story when he said “homosexuals” which was really funny -PRETTY BOYS ARE IN DEMAND -charlotte and cordelia!!!!! holy fuck they were perfect!  -for the whee! woo! part they were all sitting on blocks. it was trina on mendel’s lap, whizzer, marvin, jason, cordelia on charlotte’s lap -JASON HAD SUCH FUNKY DANCE MOVES FOR YEAR OF THE CHILD -the whole audience knew what the words were it was glorious. i know because they laughed -mendel gave the spiel about how his own bar mitzvah was bad to marvin and trina rather than to jason, like he was convincing them not to have jason do it -during the beginning of miracle of judaism, jason was pulling on baseball clothes over his clothes and packing a backpack to take to a game -at one point he held the bat between his legs like a giant dick and sang “girls with whom i always wake up” -the baseball game!!!! was so similar to the revival version!! staging wise -marvin was SO touchy with whizzer’s hair and trina was so annoyed lmao -the actor playing whizzer had so much hair but they did the bald spot anyway -jason’s actor played caroline instead of cordelia’s, which i guess makes more sense if it works -she got angrier when she said “you always do this” -trina’s workout gear involved a leotard and leg warmers. when she came on people whistled (I think they were her irl friends) -it looked like they used actual gefilte fish for the nouvelle bar mitzvah cuisine??? -whizzer was in tiny jean shorts to play tennis. so impractical honestly, all that chafing -instead of marvin collapsing and whizzer standing over him, they got really close to each other and almost kissed like 3 times. shit was cute. -i didn’t realize that in the original script jason wanders onstage during the last overlapping bit of a day in falsettoland and says “you guys are so white” but it was funny -when “i want the appelbaums” started, people laughed in recognition (i tell you boston is full of jews lmao. love it.) -mendel got up on a chair for his imitation of god, and stole the tablecloth to cover his head with -near the end of the song, mendel cleared a space for himself very dramatically, psyched himself up, and did the worst cartwheel i have ever seen. jason then did the same. -for what more can i say, they didn’t have a bed or anything resembling one, so marvin sat at the end of a row of 4 or 5 chairs and whizzer laid across them with his head in marvin’s lap -for the final “what more can i say” whizzer sat up and they gazed into each others’ eyes for a second -hoo boy here comes the pain train -charlotte and cordelia’s dynamic was a+ honestly. -tbh I know every word to this show and something bad is happening was still worrying and terrifying -in more raquetball, marvin was getting SUPER cocky. and then it all just went away when wizzer fell. heartbreaking. -in between something bad and holding to the ground, marvin helped whizzer over to dr charlotte and you could see him nonverbally insisting he was fine before collapsing onto her shoulder and allowing himself to be led away -trina’s performance in holding to the ground was phenomenal. so much emotion. marvelous and amazing. -i swear i heard sobs as the hospital bed came on -there was real chicken soup in cordelia’s tupperware!!! -jason set up the chess board fully after climbing onto the bed with whizzer, he then just packed it right back up again -mendel and trina in cancelling the bar mitzvah was just. lovely. and fucking sad too -unlikely lovers was SO TENDER i swear -when the lesbians showed up, marvin and whizzer were sitting there with their foreheads touching and marvin was almost in whizzer’s lap which was kind of an inversion??? idk it was great -just pure love -jason was so cute and innocent during another miracle. it was much needed. -then holy fuck -dr charlotte pulled marvin away for something bad reprise and she was crying. full on. she hit all the words and notes but shit. it got to me. -ok so you gotta die sometime is one of my favorite songs of all time. certainly my fave solo song to sing myself. -he nailed it. he was just so callous at the beginning morphing to fucking terrified at the end. it looked like if jason had come one second later he would’ve given up and died. -but there was a gap between it and the beginning of jason’s bar mitzvah still which was completely silent. pin drop silent. it was interesting -jason came in already in a suit -at “mendel get this thing in gear” the bed was rolled off and didn’t come back which must’ve been convenient -at “oh mummy” they actually kissed for a few seconds and trina looked,,, unamused -they all wore white kippot -at the end. oh god. -jason finished his torah and whizzer almost collapsed. mendel caught him. and jason just started sobbing. silently, but think harry-potter-after-sirius-fell-through-the-veil levels of despair. fuck it was sad. trina took him away. -the cast cleared the stage during the beginning of what would i do, but they left the “table” made of blocks that jason read torah on -marvin forgot the words so he substituted “once i was told that all men get what they deserve” for “god only knows too soon i’ll remember your faults” but it was ok -i swear the whole theatre started crying 2x as much when whizzer came out dressed like he had been -they circled each other unable to touch a few times. it killed me. -at the end, marvin put a rose that trina brought him on the table, now clearly a gravestone. then he cried into his family.  -jason was on stage after everyone had left. i knew about the chess piece but he also kissed his hand and touched the grave which is??? so jewish??? and so touching??? idk but it was terrible and horrible and ripped my heart out of its socket -after the final piano faded out you could hear how many people were sniffling.

in conclusion this was a monumental experience. we got to see backstage after because the music director, who invited us, is also the music director for our school’s musicals (fiddler this year!) i met the actress who played cordelia and she said she could tell i knew the show which probably meant i was unconsciously mouthing the words despite my best efforts not to.

hi this is my new brainchild (with the help of @upsettoland and @poledancingghostson) so here’s the breakdown

i really recommend listening/watching the musical for extra details!! it’s so cute and lovely and ugh

for those who don’t know, she loves me is about george nowack and amalia balash who work at the same perfumery and are constantly at each other’s throats but are unaware that they’re each other’s secret pen pal through a lonely hearts ad (they address each other as dear friend)

while all the characters and minor plotlines wouldn’t carry over, marvin would be georg and whizzer is amalia

they all work at the weisenbachfeld perfumery which is owned by mendel and trina

jason is arpad who helps out at the shop before and after school, cordelia is ilona and charlotte is the optometrist who cordelia meets at the library, but is also a common patron of the shop

(more under the cut)

What a great question that could have been asked way morenicely!

But yes, I guess I do “constantly” say that I love Marvin.He is definitely my all-time favorite character of the musical, hands down. Now,and let me just stress this as much as I possibly can, just because he’s my favorite character doesn’t mean that I will ever tryto excuse/justify his toxic behavior and abusive actions. He was veryselfish and overly controlling of everyone in his life, and he was emotionallyabusive to others, and he physically struck Trina. That is not okay behavior,and I will never defend Marvin for that. It doesn’t matter if he was insecureor overwhelmed or scared. That doesn’t negate abuse.

To me, Marvin is not my favorite person in the musical (as in, I don’t love his personality aboveall the others and I don’t blindly agree with all his decisions and I don’t support/forgiveeverything that he did) but he is definitely my favorite character.

Indisputably, Marvin is the one character that shows themost character growth over the musical (/trilogy, if you want me to include InTrousers). In In Trousers, Marvin was aconfused, frustrated, miserable man who overcame his insecurity in his sexualityand grew to embrace himself as a gay man. In Act One of Falsettos, Marvin’scharacter development was even furthered ashe eventually abandoned his overly selfish, controlling, narcissistic, insecureself and became more humble and aware that not everything is about him and thathe needed to both realize and acknowledge his faults and wrong-doings. InAct Two, Marvin is shown to be a better person – he’s kinder and lesscontrolling and less selfish – but he isstill shown to be harboring some remaining selfishness and self-absorption (see:“Year of the Child” and “Everyone Hates His Parents”), which is then further depleted when Whizzer gets sick and Marvinstruggles to comfort and care for him.

To say that Marvin is just “an abusive man who hit hisex-wife” is very trivializing to the character itself. Marvin was also a clearlymentally ill patient of Mendel, an imperfect but adoring father to Jason, a dearfriend to the lesbians next-door, a flawed but nonetheless loving partner toWhizzer. Guys, Marvin wasn’t always terrible all the time – he supported Jasonin “Father to Son” and “Jason’s Bar Mitzvah,” he tried to help Cordelia get abooking in “Year of the Child,” he nervously flirted with Whizzer in “BaseballGame” and “A Day in Falsettoland,” he comforted Whizzer in “Days Like This” and“Unlikely Lovers” and “What Would I Do?” Sure, he had his imperfect moments, and I’m not saying that his kinder momentscancel out his less-than-kinder ones. What I am saying is that hisless-than-kinder moments do not cancel out his kinder moments.

Also, by trivializing Marvin like that, you’re completelymissing the the points that I believe William Finn was trying to get across.

First of all, Marvin’s flaws were carefully cultivated andframed in such a way that it is a very clear societal critique on William Finn’spart. Marvin’s selfishness and need forcontrol is based on his preconception of what masculinity and family means – asif those two concepts have concrete, constraining, narrow definitions. Societytold Marvin that being a man means being the bread-winner and coming home to a doting,domestic partner. Society told Marvin that a family means a husband, wife, andson (and a friend – it should benoted that Marvin did not call Whizzer his boyfriend or partner during “TightKnit Family,” as if he was still trying to keep up a façade of heterosexuality byreferring to Whizzer as just a friend).Marvin is a character shown to have a very narrow mind of what is “right” (see:accepted), and so he tries to follow these suffocating “guidelines” as if thatwill make him happy and content. Marvin is a very insecure man, and by showing how not only that he fails tokeep up these appearances but that he loses nearly everyone in his life,William Finn demonstrates that adhering to societal norms and “going by thebook” can lead to devastating consequences. Marvin is not only a flawed characterin this musical; he’s an example of what not to do, a lesson to those scared ofbeing different and unconventional.

He is also a prime example of just how cruel and unfair thatthe AIDS crisis was. One line in Unlikely Lovers has always stuck with me (it’sarguably the most devastating line of the whole trilogy), and it’s Marvin’s “I can’t help but feeling I’ve failed.”

Because in Act One, the misery wrought to Marvin’s life wascaused by Marvin’s actions. He lost his tight-knit family because he divorcedTrina and left Jason. He alienated Jason by abandoning him and not living up tothe minimum standard of a good father. He lost Whizzer because he was unwillingto ever be emasculated in the slightest regard. He caused his own undoing and unhappiness by being a bad person.

But in Act Two, things are different, right? He’s nicer,more willing to be proven wrong and “emasculated,” more doting on andsupportive of Jason, finally content with not “having it all.” So, by this logic, Marvin deserved ahappy ending, didn’t he?

But he didn’t get that happy ending. The love of his lifebecame sick, and it’s strongly implied that Marvin was also infected. Marvin feels like he’s failed to be thebest version of himself, that he’s being punished. In “What Would I Do?” There’sthe line, “Once I was told that good menget what they deserve.” But Marvin and Whizzer didn’t get what theydeserve.

Marvin’s redemption arc was so profound and pivotal to themusical, but it didn’t guarantee him a happy ending. It didn’t save him orthose that he loves from heartbreak and shatter. Because AIDS doesn’t care if you’re a good or bad person, if you “deserve”a happy or bad ending. Because “deserves” has nothing to do with it.

“I can’t help butfeeling I’ve failed.” Marvin tried to be a better person and get thathappiness, but he failed. And that’s – that’s devastating. And just the messagethat Falsettos was trying to send.

So, yes, I love Marvin. I won’t be shamed or guilted into lyingand saying that I don’t.

In Summary (in case you just skimmed through all that anddidn’t bother to read it):

Adam it’s going on 3 am and I don’t know why I’m awake but I am and I’m crying and I love you??? so much??? Thank you for showing me Indecent so I can even have that tag. You truly are a bright light in my life and,,,, you know, I’m not gonna go into cheesy metaphors (I get extra cheesy and pretentious late at night…*shakespeare voice* occupational hazard) but just believe me when I say that you make me smile so often and I don’t know what I did before we became friends because I can no longer imagine not having you in my life. You deserve all the happiness you provide me and more and I hope your day is absolutely incredible! 

You simply can’t know how much this message means to me but let me just assure you that it means the world!