I'm usually wary of showbiz biopics because of their tendency to put their subjects on a pedestal and to follow very familiar, compressed narrative arcs. The "Fosse/Verdon" miniseries, however, has a couple of factors on its side. First, and most importantly, it's eight episodes long and not afraid to really dig into the tumultuous personal lives of Bob Fosse (Sam Rockwell) and Gwen Verdon (Michelle Williams). Second, it's centered on their troubled relationship, a spectacular creative partnership that produced some of the greatest American musicals of all time, and continued past their rocky marriage.
"Fosse/Verdon" covers its subjects' entire lives, but is focused mostly on the period between 1968 and 1979, when Bob was at his creative height as a director and choreographer, and Gwen's career was in decline. We witness their marriage dissolve, their struggles with work and co-parenting, and their inability to stay out of each other's lives. Each episode is built around their personal crises, often connected to the projects they're working on, like "Chicago" or "Cabaret." We also see some of the point of view of their daughter Nicole (Blake Baumgartner and Juliet Brett) who doesn't emerge from her childhood unscathed.
The driving creative forces behind "Fosse/Verdon" are Broadway vets Steven Levenson and Thomas Kail, who are clearly at home in the theater world. They bring a wonderful sense of authenticity to Fosse's notoriously intense rehearsals, the backstage drama, and the whole process of putting these big, complicated projects together. There's a welcome sense of community too - Bob and Gwen have a circle of showbiz friends that include Neil Simon (Nate Corddry) and Paddy Chayefsky (Norbert Leo Butz), who appear in multiple episodes, and we're constantly seeing agents, producers, and various romantic partners played by familiar actors. Executive producer Lin Manuel Miranda pops up in the last episode briefly to play Roy Scheider.
Rockwell and Williams, however, are the main event. Both sing and dance well enough to look like they know what they're doing in the recreations of famous musical numbers, but their primary talents are clearly as actors, to the show's benefit. These are physically demanding performances, covering decades of Bob and Gwen's lives, from their initial meeting on "Damn Yankees," to Bob's death in the 1980s.
Bob was an addict and workaholic whose health was increasingly in peril, and Gwen famously lost her voice during the initial run of "Chicago." I love the way that they're both able to get across the underlying insecurities and traumas that drive them, and the way they react to disappointments and setbacks. They're both very flawed characters, but made so sympathetic.
The unsung heroes of the series are the editors, Tim Streeto and Kate Sanford, who take their cues from Bob's autobiopic "All That Jazz" in putting together these episodes that intertwine current events with moments from Bob and Gwen's pasts, and occasionally their futures. Sometimes it's quick cuts to clips that last only a second or two, creating associations between different situations - Bob's womanizing and his childhood trauma, Gwen's early successes with her later struggles. I like the use of the fourth wall breaking chapter titles that help to frame certain events and keep the audience aware of passing time. Mostly, they count down to events like Bob's death or heart attack. In one episode they keep a running tally of the awards Bob has racked during an eventful year.
A notable departure from "All That Jazz," however, is that there are very few fantasy sequences. "Fosse/Verdon" largely stays grounded in the real world, aside from one or two notable occasions. And though there's plenty of familiar music, I wouldn't call this a musical either. Instead, it's a mature drama that examines its subjects with all due care and seriousness. There are some laughs here and there - I will never think of Paddy Chayefsky the same way again - but I think the series will best be enjoyed by viewers who like a good melodrama.
I have some nagging quibbles - Gwen Verdon never feels like she really gets her due, even though pains were clearly taken to show she was an equal partner in her creative relationship with Bob Fosse. The show isn't able to really capture her at her height. Also, those who aren't familiar with Fosse's work might have trouble following along. Clearly, however, everyone involved in "Fosse/Verdon" was a fan of these two, and wanted to do right by them and their work. There's so much love on the screen, it's hard not to be won over.
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