"Floyd Collins" is a Cautionary Tale of Disappointing Storytelling
A rocky first act devolves into total collapse by the time the curtain falls on this lackluster revival.
“Floyd Collins” has a fantastic premise. A young man becomes trapped while exploring a cave in 1920s Kentucky, sparking the country’s first true media sensation as the community seeks to cash in on the unfolding tragedy, losing sight of the very-real man dying just a few dozen feet underneath their food carts and carnival booths.
In a society where national tragedies are either horrific tragedies or unfortunate realities depending on our politics, and we attend live-concerts only to watch the performances through the camera in our Instagram app, “Floyd Collins” seemed wonderfully poised to tackle our media (and social media) culture.
However, the show I attended, which opened tonight at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theatre, was a profound let-down, a production that managed to say shockingly little and get a little caught up in its own bit of celebrity madness.
Let’s start with the cast. In a clear effort to drive ticket sales, the titular character in “Floyd Collins” is played by Jeremy Jordan, the first person a producer on Broadway calls when they need a young heartthrob to play the “everyman” protagonist. I’ve long had mixed opinions of Jordan’s performances, but he manages to be fine here.
The other “name” in this show is Lizzy McAlpine. The popular singer is a newcomer to Broadway. Although her voice beautifully handles her multiple numbers (McAlpine plays Nellie, Floyd’s mentally troubled sister), it does not take long to see that she is not an experienced actor, and it’s difficult to separate her singer-songwriter persona from her onstage presence.
The cast is rounded out by Taylor Trensch, the highlight of the cast, as a young reporter who plays a pivotal role in the attempt to rescue Floyd Collins, and Sean Alan Krill, a great actor who manages a decent performance amidst the disaster that is this show’s book and score.
Written and directed by Tina Landau with a score from Adam Guttel, “Floyd Collins” struggles to fill its first act, adding in numerous numbers with a flimsy connection to its driving storyline. This is not an unforgivable sin if the loose threads can be pulled back together into a tight second act; however, the show further deteriorated after intermission.
The tension became less obvious, and the staging increasingly confusing in the second act. By the show’s end, several interpersonal conflicts between Floyd’s father, stepmother, brother, and sister were left entirely unresolved, and any serious attempt to tackle those promising issues of celebrity and sensationalism was supplanted by some campy dance numbers and forgettable ballads.
Ultimately, “Floyd Collins,” a revival of an off-Broadway musical from the late 90s, seems to be a hastily chosen vehicle to fill the Beaumont Theatre for the spring while showcasing Jordan and McAlpine’s legitimate vocal abilities. It’s about the event, not the story. Which was kind of the whole moral of the real-life tragedy of Floyd Collins.
“Floyd Collins” is now running at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre at Lincoln Center through June 22, 2025.