THE MAN IN THE CEILING – Studio Cast Recording (Ghostlight Records – CD and download)
Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩
The artwork for this CD put a smile on my face and it remained there for the entirety of the album.
The Man in the Ceiling is based on the 1995 graphic novel by Jules Feiffer. The musical is about a 12-year-old boy, Jimmy, who is bad at sports and he does not really like life in the seventh grade either. However, Jimmy draws wonderful cartoons and would like to be recognised for what he likes doing most – making comic books, inventing characters and creating adventures for his characters. Feiffer also wrote the book for the musical and the music and lyrics are by Andrew Lippa.
I love cast recordings of shows that I haven’t seen but that I can follow easily within the context of the musical numbers and this is one of them. That does have its downside of course, as when I hear a musical and have the idea of the plot and scenario in my head, it is usually a disappointment when I see the show as it never lives up to my exceptionally vivid imagination.
Saying I had a smile on my face all the way through doesn’t mean that I found it funny – the smile was there because the emotion brought out in the musical numbers is amazing. Some did make my smile with amusement, such as ‘Hands’, whereas others brought a lump to the throat – a rollercoaster of emotions but a very enjoyable one at that.
The cast is exemplary: Kate Baldwin, Gavin Creel, Grady Miranda, John-Michael Lyles, Ashley Park and Andrew Lippa. The production is great and, although not every single track hits the high spots, I think that overall it is a wonderful musical probably aimed more at the younger end of the market.
Nick Wakeham
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