Alicia's Falsettos Paper

Please do not reproduce without permission
-Alicia (Holub) Volkheimer

27 March 1995

WILLIAM FINN

William Finn's, Falsettoland, the third musical in the Marvin trilogy, started "when his 5-year-old nephew stood up at Thanksgiving dinner and said, 'I love Uncle Arthur'" (Witchel B8). That may not seem to be anything special, until you learn that Uncle Arthur is Mr. Finn's live-in gay lover of over a decade. Finn's family took his sexuality in stride and his parents have long considered Arthur Salvatore one of their own. Finn based the central character of his trilogy on himself. This character is a charmingly witty, intelligent, spoiled, neurotic hero named Marvin who also happens to be gay.

In Trousers, the first musical of the Marvin trilogy, begins when Marvin has a wife named Trina and a young son named Jason who he loves very much. He feels, however, that something is missing in his life. He realizes that he is homosexual, but does not want to loose or hurt his family. Eventually, he does leave them for his new male lover, Whizzer Brown. In the middle of this, when the intimacies become too hot for Marvin, he reverts back to himself at age fourteen. At this age, he has a high-school sweetheart, who does not understand why Marvin does not want to get physical with her, and an English teacher who he has a crush on. Finn explains the story very simply when he writes, "Marvin grows up (after a fashion), says goodbye to the ladies (more to the point), and learns to live with always getting what he wants - which is the story of In Trousers" (Finn, Introduction).

March of the Falsettos, the second musical in the Marvin trilogy begins when Marvin leaves Trina and Jason for Whizzer. Marvin is distressed because he is having trouble communicating with Jason, who is afraid that homosexuality is contagious and wants nothing to do with it. Marvin is also disturbed by the fact that his psychiatrist, Mendel, seems to be moving in on Trina. Throughout, Marvin is trying to keep his relationship with Whizzer enjoyable, but he fails, and they eventually break up. At the end, he is left with nothing but the hope for a renewed relationship with Jason, who is now interested in girls and no longer afraid of his father's homosexuality.

The third musical, Falsettoland, begins two years later. Trina, now married to Mendel, and Marvin are planning Jason's Bar Mitzvah. They see Whizzer at Jason's little league baseball game, and he and Marvin are reunited. Just when they learn to love and become content with their relationship, Whizzer becomes sick and ultimately dies of AIDS. Marvin is alone at the end, aware that he too may die, yet he sings proudly that he would do it again. Then, from the darkness, his new family, which consists of all the characters, surrounds him lovingly and comforts him.

By the end, we as the audience feel for Marvin as though he is a real person. We have seen him grow and mature from a spoiled fourteen-year-old who is afraid to love into a very loving grown man. He has worked so hard for so long to learn to love, but just as he does, we see him crushed as he looses Whizzer. One critic writes, "I have little doubt that you will cry tears of heartbreak at 'Falsettos'" (Richards, "Ode" B1). We cry for Marvin as an actual individual or even as a friend. Through train-of-thought monologues and revealing dialogues, William Finn characterizes Marvin as having common fears, faults, and desires to allow the reader to come to care about him as a real person.

In In Trousers, Marvin reveals an inner conflict which he expresses with such urgency that it becomes important to everyone. He proclaims to the reader early in the story that he is homosexual, but as much as he wants to be with men, he cannot because he is responsible for a family. He knows that his family depends on him. He loves his wife and son, but he is not content with them. "'Something's missing/ In my mind I'm kissing/ Men.../ No. No. No. No. Start again./ I have a family'" (Finn, In 18). Marvin wants to leave, but in a way he also wants to stay. He feels confused and does not know exactly what he wants, and therefore comes to want everything. Everyone knows that he will eventually need to choose. The reader starts to think about what to do in a situation when faced with a difficult decision and so begins to identify with Marvin. At this point, the reader really has no preference as to what Marvin decides, but is curious what will happen.

The reader is first persuaded to side with the family because Trina, his wife, soon begins to tell about her relationship with Marvin. She tells about when they first met and how she wants him to love her again. She wants to be loved for what she is, not what she tries to be. She confesses that she is "'a person who likes to lie too much/ I try too much/ to impress other people.../ often my inferiors'" (47). She seems to think that this is why he does not love her anymore. However, Marvin then begins to sing the same lines back to her - to love him for what he is, not what he tries to be. Now the reader feels that he should leave her because he cannot continue to try to be someone he is not. He wants her to understand why he must leave, but she does not. The reader can understand this feeling that it would not be fair to either party to remain a couple under such circumstances; most people have been in relationships that ended not because of a fight but because one party did not love the other anymore.

When Marvin recollects his wedding day, he remembers that he had doubts even then. He had not really wanted to marry, but that seemed to be what he was supposed to do. Marvin remembers thinking, "'Will I end what I start?/ Will I break a few rules?/ Will I break the girl's heart?'" (53). Marvin does not want to end up hurting her, but he continues with the wedding anyway. The reader can probably relate to doing something purely out of a sense of obligation and feels sorry for Marvin.

Then Trina appears singing about how she feels him slipping away. She knows he must be having an affair, and she tries to figure out what kind of girl his mistress must be. The reader knows, however, that Marvin must be having an affair with a man. Again the reader feels sorry for Trina and believes that Marvin should stay with her. Every time one of them sings a song, the reader switches sides and cannot decide who is "right."

The final decision is made, however, when Marvin sings about Whizzer, his new lover. For the first time, Marvin is not confused, he is not depressed; he is ecstatic! The song is fast and upbeat, and when seen on stage, Marvin runs and jumps around, and the words are also exciting. "'Oh Whizzer, Whizzer Brown/ Isn't it delightful playing easy?/ Yes, Whizzer, Whizzer Brown/ I care'" (59). For the first time, the reader sees Marvin happy and knows that Marvin must leave his family for this happiness. The reader can surely identify with finding someone who makes him so happy that he would go to extremes to be with this person. Most people can identify with Marvin by this point and are now pleased to see him happy.

Although Marvin and the reader have finally decided that he must be with Whizzer, leaving is still very difficult. As Marvin is packing, he sings sadly, "'Packing up a crazy wife./ Packed a crazy son./ Packing up a crazy life./ God.../ What have I done?'" (70). He still loves them and he is not eager to leave this major part of his life behind, but he realizes that he must leave.

Perhaps the saddest part of the story is when Marvin actually leaves Trina, and the reader sees both of their sides simultaneously for the first time. During the song, "A Breakfast Over Sugar," nobody knows what anybody wants. Finn writes at the beginning of the song, "His wife, understanding everything, wants him to stay. Marvin wants to go. Or Marvin wants to stay. She wants him to go. Anyway, nothing's resolved. He's going" (98). During the song, they finally confront each other.

She begs him to stay and he begs her to accept that he must leave until neither one knows what to say except to pass the sugar. This song summarizes the inner conflict of the entire play and brings it to a late climax. The reader feels the need for him to leave, but wishes that a way existed for Marvin to stay with his wife too.

Throughout this main plot, there are two other basic storylines. The first is that of the fourteen-year-old Marvin. Whenever Marvin becomes too upset or nervous, he regresses back to himself at age fourteen. He has temper tantrums and giddy seizures, and he seems to be very self-absorbed. His excuse for not doing anything physical with his high school sweetheart is that he has a crush on his English teacher, Miss Goldberg, who cast him in the school play as Christopher Columbus. Occasionally, Marvin will discuss Columbus, and when he does, Columbus is an obvious symbol for Marvin. At the end of the play, Marvin sums up Columbus' fate which turns out to be much like Marvin's. After cheating on Isabella with a young man who had red hair and broad shoulders, Columbus is sent out to sea with known homosexuals. He eventually gives up apologizing to Isabella and gets on with his life in the new land. As a result, Columbus decides not to call the new land Isabellaland, but America - after Amerigo Vespucci, the young man with red hair and broad shoulders. The Columbus play ends with the lines, "'The thing about explorers is: they discover things that are already there. Columbus signed his last letter 'Love Christopher' - and went ashore'" (77). This shows that the solution to Marvin's problem always exists, the hard part is finding it. He must let go of his wife, and join Whizzer in the new land.

The other sub-plot is Marvin's relationship with his son, Jason. Marvin is afraid that if he leaves the family, Jason will come to hate him for leaving him. Marvin wants to keep a good relationship with Jason: "'My kid, my son,/ He needs a plan./ In short,/ A man to lead him./ I'll make it fun-/ My only son-/ Daddy hears his boychick talk/ Daddy wants to be the best guy on the block'" (31). He feels that if given the chance, he could be a wonderful father, but he does not think Jason will give him this chance if he leaves. He feels the conflict of whether he should stay with the family or leave to be with Whizzer. He finally decides to take the chance and go with Whizzer. He tells himself that Jason and Whizzer will get along, and everything will be alright. "'When this thing's played out,/ My kid's made out well./ Whizzer will act very parental,/ Completely gentle,/ Absolutely swell'" (69). He hopes he is doing the right thing, and he is attempting to justify his actions to himself. As with most of Marvin's feelings, the reader can identify with this need to justify actions that may not be right.

The reader learns about Marvin by hearing his inner thoughts. Marvin tells exactly what he is thinking, whether he is ecstatic or mournful. He can be very confused because he does not know what he wants or very logical because he knows what he must do and what must eventually happen. As Frank Rich, a critic for the New York Times, says, "Mr. Finn's words trail madly after stream-of-consciousness ruminations" (C19). The reader is pulled through Marvin's thoughts in order to get to know him and his problems better. This is how the reader comes to identify with Marvin and see that he has common problems and just wants to be happy like anyone else. The reader also learns to see Marvin as a real person by watching him through his day-to-day activities. John Corty, another critic for the New York Times, does not understand that this is an effective method of characterization. He writes that "the fault is the notion that we will find Marvin as engaging as Mr. Finn does. Watch Marvin shower. Watch Marvin eat breakfast. Watch Marvin ignore the women in his life" (C20). By seeing Marvin do things that everyone does, such as eat breakfast, take a shower, go to sleep, and even go to the bathroom, the reader can identify with Marvin as an average person. This attention to the seemingly mundane helps the reader relate to Marvin as more than a mere character.

In March of the Falsettos, Marvin matures from someone who wants it all to someone who realizes that life on these terms is impossible. At the beginning of the play Marvin tells the reader that he wants it all. He wants his family and Whizzer to get along. By the end of this play, he is so confused as to what he wants that he becomes enraged and slaps Trina. "Marvin slaps Trina's face. Jason stares at Marvin. All is totally still" (Finn and Lapine, "March" 90). Everyone is shocked. Jason is frightened that since his father hit Trina, he might hit him too. Trina and Whizzer are disappointed in his immaturity. Now Marvin finally realizes that he cannot have it all. He has lost both his family and his lover.

The fact that Marvin wants it all can be seen as his selfishness. This is one of his faults that makes him seem realistic. Many people are selfish; Marvin is just one of those people. Marvin shows this characteristic often. One reason he seems selfish is because he does not know what he wants. After he slaps Trina, he looks around the room telling everyone that he never wanted to love them, implying that he did not intend to create this situation, this is just what happened. He is trying to convince them that it is not his fault. He does not want to accept responsibility for his actions, which is another fault that people can identify with.

Marvin is selfish with his ex-wife, Trina. It was alright for him to leave her for Whizzer, but now that she wants to marry Mendel, Marvin is jealous and possessive. He tells Mendel, "'I...I can't believe she loves you./ Why,/ I'm sure she cannot love you'" (67). He feels that she should not love another man. She should be there for him when he wants to play family games. He even tells her not to deny what they had. She is offended and hurt by his greediness.

Marvin shows his selfishness to Whizzer by always having to be superior in their relationship and win in their games. He insists that "'Whizzer's supposed to always be here,/ Making dinner, set to screw./ That's what pretty boys should do./ Check their hairlines, make the dinner,/ And love me'" (47), implying that Whizzer is inferior to him. Needless to say, this behavior bothers Whizzer. When Marvin and Whizzer are playing chess, Whizzer decides he wants to win, and challenges Marvin's opinion that winning is everything. Marvin cannot handle Whizzer challenging him and becomes violently angry. "'Marvin, in a rage, throws all the furniture at Whizzer'" (Finn and Lapine, "March" 81). Most people can identify with wanting their own way and getting upset when they do not, although they may not react with such extreme.

As much as Marvin longs to love and be loved, he is afraid to do so. "'March of the Falsettos,' the playwright said, is 'a passionate work about being scared to death of love' and is 'very earnest' - although he's not sure audiences realize that" (Blau C5). The thing people identify with most about Marvin is his fear of love. He is so afraid of the pain that he would feel if the relationship were to fail that he fears love.

Nevertheless, Marvin is in love with Whizzer. The problem is that he does not know how to handle it. He talks to Mendel, his psychiatrist about the problem:

The reader can see Marvin's character being revealed through this conversation with his psychiatrist. He talks tenderly of Whizzer and shows his love. The reader does not need to figure out how Marvin feels because he tells Mendel. The reader can easily relate to his ecstacy of new love. Another point is that Finn uses common language, such as "sorta" and "kinda," to make Marvin seem more realistic.

Another of Marvin's characteristics that people can relate to is that he feels like no one understands him. As he and Whizzer break up, Marvin complains, "'Anyone understand?/ All I want's a kiss./ Anyone understand?'" (81). He feels lost, insecure, and isolated, which are all common feelings.

Marvin also feels that he is isolated from his son. He feels that what he feared in In Trousers, that Jason would not give him a chance to be a good father, has happened. Marvin's feelings are justified. Jason doesnot want to grow up like his father because he is afraid of the homosexuality. He tells Mendel, "'I get apoplexy thinking of my father./ I resemble him in far too many ways./ His sad demeanor,/ The way he acts the swine;/ At least his room is cleaner than mine./ Is it fatal?/ Do you see real similarities between us?/ He and Whizzer live like.../ Well, I think it's clear.''' (59) This time Jason tells the psychiatrist his inner thoughts. Marvin is losing his son. There is a lack of communication between them, but Marvin is trying to correct this. The problem is that he does not know how. He asks Mendel, "'How do I reach him?/ What words of wisdom?/ What should I do now?'" (38). Marvin has tried taking Jason to ball games and museums, but he still cannot seem to communicate with him. Most people can understand having problems with a child due to lack of communication.

During the last song of the play, Marvin apologizes to Jason for forgetting during his confusion what was important, not the distance, but the love between him and his son. "'I kept marching in one place./ Marching in time to a tune I'd forgotten./ I loved you./ I love you./ I meant no disgrace'" (94). He tries to explain himself and make amends. He has matured and can now take responsibility for his actions. He decides to be a father to his son and give him some good advice - that he will grow up to be a man whatever song he decides to sing. Jason forgives him easily. The play concludes as "Jason puts out his hand to shake. Marvin stands, lifts Jason to his feet, and, on the final note of the song, Jason throws his arms around Marvin" (Finn and Lapine, "March" 94).

In Falsettoland, Marvin eventually matures into a wonderful father, friend, and lover. Marvin and Jason both grow up as they plan Jason's bar mitzvah, the Jewish coming-of-age ceremony. Marvin and Trina try to plan it together, but they only fight. They each want the bar mitzvah their own way. In a song called "Round Tables, Square Tables," they fight about such issues as guests, musicians, catering, color themes, and obviously table shapes. Jason, who is now almost thirteen, is tired of hearing his parents constantly fighting. "'And each Sunday night/ Mother comes to get me/ And I hear them fight./ Everybody's yelling about the bar mitzvah'" (Finn and Lapine, "Falsettoland" 132). He thinks that they are ruining everything and decides that he will simply cancel the celebration to stop them from bickering.

Eventually though, he does have a bar mitzvah. When Whizzer gets sick, Jason, who by now has become quite close to him, makes a deal with God that he will have the bar mitzvah in exchange for Whizzer's health. Jason has his bar mitzvah in Whizzer's hospital room so Whizzer can attend. Marvin is extremely proud of how Jason has grown up to be so warm and caring. Jason has matured and allows his father into his life because he "is no longer terrified of growing up just like Dad" (Bishop, Introduction). Marvin with pride sings at Jason's bar mitzvah: "How did you turn out so great?/ Who do I thank for the man you turned into?/ Kid, do you know/ How proud I am?/ If I don't show/ How proud I am . . ./ You hold my dreams,/ Kid, I burst at the seams/ 'Cause of you" (Finn and Lapine, "Falsettoland" 170). Most people can relate to beaming with pride for their child.

In this play, when Marvin and Whizzer reunite, they are both more mature and their relationship reflects this. They accept their love, rather than fearing and playing games with it. Marvin sings a song in bed called "What More Can I Say" about how much he loves Whizzer and how much he has changed since learning to love. "During the whole song, Marvin barely moves. Whizzer, sleeping, is slowly moving - next to Marvin or apart, into Marvin's arms, onto his stomach or his back. Whatever, it's both hot and incredibly innocent" (Finn and Lapine, "Falsettoland" 138). They are a lovable couple with just enough passion and just enough purity to seem refreshingly sweet. The reader can probably relate to the love expressed by this couple as "'more than words can tell'" (139). Marvin says about Whizzer, "'I'm not usually indiscreet./ But when he sparkles,/ The earth begins to sway./ What more can I say?'" (139). Marvin has finally learned to love and he shows the reader just how much Whizzer means to him. The reader is touched by how much Marvin has changed since the beginning of the play, and especially since the beginning of the trilogy.

This is why, it is so devastating when Whizzer falls ill: Marvin has finally learned to love and now he might lose Whizzer, the one person who made that possible. Nobody knows why he is sick or if he will ever get better. Understandably, they are both scared, as is the reader. Marvin tells his lover, "'Whizzer, but/ I can't help but feeling/ I've failed./ Let's be scared together./ Let's pretend that nothing is awful'" (158). He wants to help Whizzer and face their fears together. This shows how much he has matured. After all of this, Whizzer does die, leaving Marvin seemingly alone. Marvin reflects on what he has learned from being with Whizzer: "'Who would I be/ If I had not loved you?/ How would I know what love is?'" (171). This forces the reader to think about how much Marvin has changed. Just when everyone thinks that Marvin is all alone again, his "family," consisting of all the characters, gathers around him to comfort him. This family consists of Jason, Trina, Mendel, and the lesbians from next door, Charlotte and Cordelia. "By play's end, when Whizzer dies of AIDS, a new kind of family has formed. 'It's not just Mom, Dad and kids anymore - now family is who's there for you when you need them,' Finn says" (Hubbard 45). Marvin has his tight-knit family that he has always wanted, except without Whizzer. The reader feels sorry for Marvin because Marvin has worked so hard to learn to love, and just when he does he loses it as he was afraid he would. At the same time the reader is glad that he has family to help him through this time.

A big reason that the reader comes to care for Marvin as a real person is that he has not only seen Marvin deal with his problems, but mature. At the beginning of the play, Marvin declares that it is time to grow up, which is just what he proceeds to do. He aspires to one day be "'As mature as my son,/ Who is twelve and a half/ And this tall/ That's all I'd like to be'" (Finn and Lapine "Falsettoland" 104). He still feels the need to feel superior to Whizzer when they first meet again. He tells Whizzer, "'Move in front of me./ It gives me pleasure to see the bald spot./ Since it's the only physical imperfection that you've got'" (116). He takes pleasure in Whizzer's only imperfection because it allows him to feel superior. When he matures, however, he realizes how wonderful love is. "Can you tell/ I have been revised?/ It's so swell,/ Damn it, even I'm surprised'" (140). Marvin can see a change in himself as can the reader.

Marvin's greatest lesson comes when Whizzer dies. "In the musical's final song, "What Would I Do," he stands tall and brave and proclaims that love is greater than the terrible pain of its ending" (Richards, "Ode" B7). He has overcome his fear of loving because of this realization. Through the trilogy the reader has seen him change from a spoiled child to a man truly worth caring for. The reader not only feels sad for his loss, but proud for his achievements.

Another reason Finn was able to characterized Marvin so well was because he based Marvin on himself. Marvin seems authentic because he is based not only on a real person, but the author himself. David Richards writes, "Whether or not 'Falsettoland' is rooted in biography, I cannot say. It certainly appears to derive its authenticity from lived, not imagined experience" ("Learning" B46). Even though Richards does not know that it is biographical, he suspects that it is because Marvin seems so realistic. In fact, Finn readily admits that Marvin is based on himself. Finn makes no bones about the piece's autobiographical flavor: 'Though his history bears no relationship to mine, temperamentally Marvin is me. He is not easy. He is no joy to live with But there is something to admire, I think, in the way he wants it all. When people say he's a spoiled brat, I just don't understand.' (Henry 57) Marvin as a character is based on Finn himself, not Marvin's story. The story is purely fiction, but the character is very close to home. Finn can easily judge how Marvin should react in certain situations by thinking of what he himself would do. Finn succeeds in making Marvin gay without being campy or the object of pity. "He knows whereof he speaks. For the past decade Finn' most immediate family has been his live-in lover, an AT&T executive named Arthur Salvatore" (Hubbard 45). Finn can characterize Marvin well because he knows from personal experience that gay people are basically like anyone else.

Finn also worked with Marvin for such a long period of time that he got to know him very well, making it easy for him to describe Marvin better. When Finn first wrote In Trousers, he played Marvin in the first staging, being the first to ever play the role. He continued to write about the same character for over a decade. One critic writes that "the longstanding association has allowed for a progressive deepening of the vision and a continual refinement of the presentation rare in the theater" (Richards, "Ode" B7). He has come to know the character so well that he could almost be real, making him much easier for Finn to describe and characterize. Marvin and the others became obsessions for Finn. Says Finn: 'I realized that I was obsessed with these characters. I still am. I am not interested in writing about anyone else. Everything that moves and grips me in the theater can be told through these people. And they all seem to sing quite naturally, which is vital for a musical. They are all given to that level of emotional excess.' (Henry 57)These characters have become almost real to Finn. Because they are almost real to the author, it is more likely that they will become almost real to the reader.

Marvin is a character that Finn portrays so well that the reader comes to care for him as a real person. The reader watches Marvin mature and learn to love. The reader can relate to many of Marvin's feelings, faults, fears, and desires because of his common problems with relationships, communication, and loving. Because Marvin is based on Finn himself, he seems even more realistic.

In Trousers is more emotional than March of the Falsettos or Falsettoland. This is because it contains more material characterizing Marvin. ""'In Trousers" contained the best music I've written,' he asserted. 'Falsettos' is more 'cohesive,' But 'In Trousers,' according to Mr. Finn, 'had one show-stopper after another; it had material to die for'" (Blau C5). Finn is more emotional about the quality of In Trousers because it is often misunderstood. In Trousers actually contains more symbolism and musical and verbal twists, and if one takes the time to look for them, it can be very exciting.

Finn has always liked to write and sing. "As a boy growing up in Natick, Mass., Bill says he spent hours 'in my room in the dark, writing and singing'" (Hubbard 46). These activities come naturally to him. That time in the dark seems to have paid off well.

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