University of Virginia Library

Lacks Distinction

Although much of Mr. Rodgers'
music for "Two By Two" is
pleasant, it lacks the distinction of
his earlier work, the work which
the theater will remember him by,
Just because it is a Richard Rodgers
show, you wait for a
musical moment with the magic of,
say, "Climb Every Mountain" from
"The Sound of Music" or "Getting
to Know You" from "The King and
I" and when that moment doesn't
come, you feel a certain frustration.

Still, the score, in its modest
way, is melodiously appealing,
particularly when compared to
some of the music which has graced
Broadway in recent years. And Mr.
Charnin's lyrics, on the whole,
aren't bad ("Later on we'll watch
the sun parade the sky," "To
himself he's a wit/To the world he's
a pest/...An old man.") once you
weed out the few instances of tripe
("Pachyderms can come/Teeny
worms can come/Even germs can
come," "Poppa knows God/And
God knows Poppa knows best.").