Jennifer Nettles, the Grammy-winning frontwoman of Sugarland, moonlights as a musical theater dynamo. After stints in Waitress, Chicago and Mamma Mia!, she turns her talents to composition, writing and starring in Giulia: The Poison Queen of Palermo. Receiving its world premiere at the Perelman Performing Arts Center in downtown Manhattan, the ambitious but uneven new musical reveals a large talent that would still benefit from some guidance – much like the title character (played by Nettles herself) guides the women of her community toward independence.

Sleekly directed by Mary Zimmerman, Giulia: The Poison Queen of Palermo draws from the true story of Giulia Tofana, who used her skill as an apothecary to protect women abused by their husbands in seventeenth-century Italy. It takes little effort to identify Hamilton as a reference point for Nettles’ songwriting and structure: she gleefully mixes musical styles, introduces anachronism, and while the score isn’t through-composed, the character building comes across strongest through music rather than dialogue.

What Giulia lacks, though, is a unifying spark that draws everything together. Much of the music is effective – especially “Next Time,” in which Giulia envisions a better world for women, and a lively tarantella that opens the second act (and is winningly choreographed by Austin McCormick). But much of the music leans too heavily toward the anthemic, including a post-curtain number, “Higher,” that puts too fine a point on the show’s themes.

Nettles is a magnanimous writer: although Giulia is the center of the story, she spreads the action around, ensuring everyone in the cast gets their moment to shine. This leads to juicy moments like “Always Get What I Want,” in which a vain Duchess (Didi Romero), attempts to expose Giulia’s secrets out of spite. Yet also too often draws focus away from Giulia’s motivations, and she can sometimes feel like a secondary character in a musical that bears her name.

As a first-time composer, Nettles might have been better working with an experienced librettist, who could have captured a more consistent tone in the storytelling. At times, Giulia feels like a black comedy, an ironic farce, and a deeply earnest portrait of collective liberation. In trying to be all, it never fully achieves any. I’d personally vote for the darkly humorous aspect. It would help make sense of the male characters, like the Cardinale (Quentin Earl Darrington) and Governatore (Christopher M. Rodriguez), who are presented as broadly drawn stock villains. And it would alleviate some of the score’s overwhelming sincerity.

The physical production provides much to enjoy – especially the revealing lighting design by T.J. Gerckens, which illuminates character – and Zimmerman’s trademark visual style suits the story well. Her vision of Palermo deftly balances the realistic with the fantastic. Among the large ensemble, Naomi Serrano is particularly captivating as Giulia’s daughter Vitoria, to whom Nettles gives the last word.

I hope that Nettles will continue her productive forays into musical theater when she can step away from the concert stage and recording studio. Giulia has the potential to be a massive success, but at this stage, the apothecary hasn’t yet mixed the perfect brew.

Photos by Andy Henderson