It’s been five years since Harry Connick Jr. has been on the Broadway stage and how that he’s back, this time to play the lead role of a psychologist in an impossible situation in “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever.”

The story is taken from the original 1965 Broadway show, which was then turned into a movie in the 1970s. The version with Harry Connick though, is a complete revamp of both; and that’s good Connick, as he says he hated the movie. In the original the psychologist treats a woman to help her quit smoking. He discovers in the process that she was a jazz singer in a past life, and the doctor falls madly in love with this woman. The female jazz singer from the past has stayed the same but this time, Connick’s patient is a young gay man.

The role of the psychologist stays very much the same as the original, as do the hit songs from the musical such as “Come Back to Me,” and “What Did I Have That I Don’t Have?” That’s good for fans, as they can sit back to Connick’s classic style, pulling out those notes in his swingy southern drawl.

Harry Connick recently said about playing the role, “Man, this is so different. It’s by far the most intricate character I’ve had to play. Definitely the most emotionally demanding thing I’ve ever had to do on stage.”

“On a Clear Day” is now playing on Broadway at the St. James Theatre.

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 18th, 2011 at 6:07 pm and is filed under Theater. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.