The Capeman by Paul Simon tells the story of the young sixteen year old boy named Salvador Agron who was sentenced to death row for the murder of two Irish teenagers. Sal grew up in Puerto Rico without a father figure yelled at by nuns and running the streets. His mother moved from man to man trying to make a life for her children, eventually leading them to New York. There, Sal gets in with a gang in Brookly called the Vampires which eventually leads to his sentence. The real life story of Sal Agron blew up the news in 1958 as he became the youngest person to be sentenced to the death penalty. 

 

The musical by Paul Simon opens the doors to a new sound shaking up the typical Broadway musical. He not only wrote a story about Puerto Ricans, he also wrote it in the style of Puerto Rican music. Paul famously criticized the Broadway lyricists and composers of the time calling their music “boring and bland”, and he created this musical thinking he was much more advanced and smarter than them. Now though, his score “intricately weav[ed] Latin American rhythms and inflections with the doo-wop harmonies in vogue in the 1950's, [and they] have a contemplative, sensuous elegance all their own and remain a pleasure to listen to” (Brantley, NYT), his lack of typical Broadway musical structure is what I believe led to the demise of this show. 

 

“Born In Puerto Rico” though different in sound, has the feeling of a good opening number. It sets the scene and even has each character stand center stage and introduce themselves. Another American musical staple is the “I Want” song. This musical does not have one and I believe this is the major flaw in this musical. We spend the majority of our time wondering what it is that Sal is searching for. Why did he join the Vampires? Why did he kill those two teenagers? Why did he decide to write? Why? Why? Why? “If [the main character is] not powered energetically right from the start, the distractions take over completely, and the story gets lost, along with the audience” (Viertel, Secret Life of the American Musical). The audience gets lost in the story trying to figure out what is going on in Sal’s mind and we never really find out what it was that he wanted that led to where he ended up. It leaves us on the outside looking in, making us less interested in his story. Closing of the act we have the pivotal sentencing and incarceration of Sal. Landing us right at the climax of the show with a solemn doo-wop with Sal saying adiós to his life. Opening of the act we have probably the most upbeat song of the show with the congregation praising God for saving Sal from death row. It resolves the big issue in act one and sends us on another journey in act two. The show closes with two ballads, one for Sal and one for Esmeralda. Personally it feels very anti-climatic, whether that be the tempo of the orchestration or the lack of investment in the story is unclear. 

Overall, the structure of the musical is very loose. Though the orchestrations and writing of the musical are quite beautiful, “the show registers as one solemn, helplessly confused drone... Everything in the music melts together… The subtle variety of Mr. Simon's music somehow blends into a monotone by the end. The score is built from an infectious rhythmic base that hooks you at the beginning but never seems to take you anywhere” (Brantley, NYT). As someone who grew up listening to this type of music, I was immediately hooked with “Born in Puerto Rico” but after that I found it hard to follow along as it all began to feel the same up until “The Vampires”.