By Howard Pousner
hpousner@ajc.com

Reviews and other coverage of the Alliance Theatre’s world premiere of the Stephen King-John Mellencamp musical “Ghost Brothers of Darkland County” are showing up in newspapers and on blogs. Here’s a roundup of what’s out there so far:

Reviews

• Atlanta Journal-Constitution reviewer Bert Osborne gave the production a rare grade of “A.” “All the advance hype surrounding ‘Ghost Brothers’ has been somewhat scary,” he wrote. “How could it not be, as a world-premiere (no doubt Broadway-bound) collaboration between none other than Stephen King, John Mellencamp and T Bone Burnett? But never fear: Under the mesmerizing direction of [Alliance artistic director] Susan V. Booth, the Alliance production lives up to it with an almost supernatural ease.” www.accessatlanta.com/atlanta-events/ghost-brothers-of-darkland-1415099.html

• Variety critic Frank Rizzo: “It takes more than a groove and gore to make this tedious tale of brotherly bile work on stage. Sketchy character development, awkward staging and unclear storytelling make prospects for future life iffy beyond this world preem at Atlanta’s Alliance Theater. …

“While giving the show some percussive power, [Mellencamp's songs] rarely lift the proceedings emotionally. T. Bone’s Burnett’s music direction and Andy York’s arrangements are tops. …

“But the principal weakness is King’s unfocused storytelling. The pairs of brothers are ill-defined beyond a few broad strokes and the dialogue is clunky and crude. By the end of the show, you may be yearning for ‘Carrie.’ … [Director Booth] doesn’t help matters with a lot of the playing done upstage, characters wandering in and out of the cabin for little purpose, tableau vivant poses and lovers’ leaps that are almost comic.” www.variety.com/review/VE1117947386

• Creative Loafing critic Curt Holman: “Mellencamp’s driving beats and catchy melodies, largely influenced by country, rock, and blues, have an instrumental richness and auditory clarity like I’ve never heard in a stage musical. …  [Ghost Brothers] constructs sequences of enormous dramatic impact, but as a whole, the new play doesn’t hang together as smoothly. …

“Over the years the Alliance has debuted stage musicals of national interest, from ‘Aida’ to ‘Bring It On,’ which left few memories outside of the big stunts or giant props. ‘Ghost Brothers’ instead proves to be a unique, risky, and ambitious show uninterested in offering audiences splashy escapism. It may still be in the process of self-discovery, but King and Mellencamp should keep digging into the material.” www.clatl.com/atlanta/past-haunts-present-in-the-alliance-theatres-long-awaited-ghost-brothers/Content?oid=5199009

• ArtsATL.com critic Jim Farmer: “Few world premieres get it all right the first time. With some tightening and first-act restructuring, the ambitious [musical] holds exceptional promise. Die-hard Mellencamp and King fans will probably want to see it for the spectacle, but it’s not yet quite where it needs to be.” http://www.artsatl.com/2012/04/review-%E2%80%9Cghost-brothers%E2%80%9D-soars-with-mellencamp%E2%80%99s-music-but-is-very-much-a-work-in-progress/

• Adam Moore, Indianapolis Statehouse Examiner: “Could be the most talented cast to grace the stage at the Alliance Theatre in a long time. …  While the story takes a bit too long to develop, the music takes your mind off that. … This musical challenges the traditional rules of Broadway, and in doing so will probably never run in New York; but it is good.” www.examiner.com/statehouse-in-indianapolis/ghost-brothers-of-darkland-county-rocks-atlanta-review

Other recent coverage

• New York Post theater columnist Michael Riedel, writing based on reports from “one of my spies” and other unnamed observers: “Stephen King has killed off all sorts of characters in his 49 or so novels. Now that he’s working in the theater, he might have a go at killing off his director. Toughminded Broadway insiders who caught the show say [Booth] should be interred in ‘Pet Sematary.’” www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/theater/not_scary_enough_for_way_xBhroeeVlltBwYqs5TpiaP?utm_medium=rss&utm_content=Theater
• Wendell Brock’s (AJC contributor) report for the Los Angeles Times:  “The Spanish moss fairly drips over ‘Ghost Brothers’ … First-time musical theater writers [King and Mellencamp] are infatuated with the idea of the Southern Gothic.” http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2012/04/stephen-king-john-mellencamp.html
  
• AJC arts reporter Rosalind Bentley’s profile of star Shuler Hensley: “I like dealing with the darker side of a character because if you can find their humanity and show sides of them that everyone has, that everyone can relate to, that’s much more unsettling for the audience because they can see a little bit of themselves in that character.” www.ajc.com/lifestyle/tony-award-winner-returns-1410754.html
• AJC TV/radio reporter Rodney Ho interviews cast member Justin Guarini: “The coolest part is getting direct feedback from Stephen and John and T Bone [Burnett]. It was inspiring to be able to sit with T-Bone and work with him on these songs, to see how organic his creative process is.” blogs.ajc.com/radio-tv-talk/2012/04/13/talking-with-justin-guarini-starring-in-ghost-brothers-of-darkland-county/
• AJC music reporter Melissa Ruggieri’s First Look at the show’s music: “There are no fancy orchestrations or swelling symphonies; simply the type of instruments you’d expect to hear in Mellencamp’s own music – slide guitar, bass, drums, harmonica, accordion – and songs that range from guttural and goofy (’That’s Me’) to a barroom stomper (’Put Me in the Ground’) to melancholy pop balladry (’Away From This World’).” blogs.ajc.com/atlanta-music-scene/2012/04/05/ghost-brothers-of-darkland-county-scores-with-honest-rustic-tunes/