The 2010 Music Circus Season was perhaps the strongest one in recent years. The lineup of shows, going in, wasn’t the most exciting I’ve ever seen (Joseph and the…Dreamcoat, again? Really??) but the performances were strong throughout. Most years one or two of the casting choices given the spotlight under the tent leave one wondering what they were thinking, but I really can’t name a single lead that wasn’t outstanding this year.
That being said, it’s a shame that the region’s economic doldrums (and perhaps lingering fallout from last year’s Proposition 8 backlash) have continued to limit audiences. We attended on Friday nights this year, and none of the shows appeared to even scare a sell-out. Sad, really, but perhaps things will perk up by next year.
Herewith, mini reviews of the seven shows (in reverse order):
42nd Street
The verdict: Ahhhhh, tap dancing!
Um, yeah, if you like dancing - especially if you like tap-dancing! - then have we got a show for you! While sporting one of those forgettable and improbable depression-era plots, 42nd Street is never going to be mistaken for great art. But the dancing was lively and creative, and the game cast was wildly enthusiastic. Every time the silly plot threatened to undermine the spirit of the thing, and other tap dance extravaganza would break out to living things up.
Overall, a fitting end to what was a very strong Music Circus season.
The Marvelous Wonderettes
The verdict: The token 'small' musical is a downright delightful and harmonious success
Each year Music Circus mixes in one small-scale musical, often something largely unknown to the audience, to counterbalance (I suppose) the more familiar and overly familiar traditional favorites. If you want Evita, you have to tolerate Swing; to get Les Miserables, you're gonna have to sit through Smokey Joe's Cafe. But, more often than not, these smaller musicals fit Music Circus' intimate space better than do the larger extravaganzas. This year's entry in the small-show-you've-probably-never-seen-before category is the Marvelous Wonderettes, a tuneful little bit of fluff that is engaging, familiar and friendly.
The show features a cast of four very talented ladies, the Wonderettes of the title, who, in the first act are performing at their 1958 high school reunion and, in the second, at the 1968 ten year reunion. The plot, what there is of one, revolves around the relationships between the four girls and their various boyfriends and, memorably, audience members, who serve as stand-ins for various people in their lives.
All four of the performers are fun to watch and great singers. Bets Malone as Suzy and Lindsay Mendez as Betty Jean stood out, but Misty Cotton as Missy and Lowe Taylor as Cindy Lou were also great. And special recognition is due to the anonymous audience member who was singled out as "Mr. Lee" in several numbers. What a good sport!
Funny Girl
The verdict: A bravura performance by Vicki Lewis makes this musical well worth seeing!
Two years ago, when Music Circus announced it's summer lineup, I was less than thrilled to learn that the iconic role of Mama Rose in Gypsy would be played by...wait for it...noted TV comedienne Vicki Lewis. It had been years since I'd seen Music Circus engage in that kind of stunt casting (Wilbur from Mr. Ed in Showboat, anyone!?) and I couldn't imagine how a woman who I knew best for mugging on a mediocre sitcom could possibly, remotely, conceivably pull off the role made famous by Ethyl Merman.
Well, guess what? She was absolutely incredible. Instead of wondering what a B list TV star was doing headlining an iconic musical, I came away wondering how such a powerfully talented musical dynamo had been slumming in TV for years. Vicki Lewis was incredible. Amazing. An absolute star!
She followed up that performance with a solid turn as the Baker's Wife in Into the Woods last summer, and I must say I was honestly eager to see how she would handle the role of Fanny Brice in Funny Girl this year. Well, while she didn't reach the heights of her performance of Mama Rose, she turned in another bravura performance as Fanny Brice. And, supported by a particularly strong supporting cast, Funny Girl was a highlight of this year's season.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
The Verdict: Another outstanding entry in this year’s strong Music Circus Season!
The point when "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” begins to take flight comes early in the first Act. We have already met Laurence Jameson, the suave grifter who bilks rich women of their money and jewelry by pretending to be the Royal scion of some obscure but embattled European monarchy. The "Prince" woos these women and then persuades them to part with their riches to support the war effort, before slipping off to rejoin his forces for the coming battle. By "giving them what they want" (a thrill, a sense of danger and adventure and the romantic attentions of the dashing and handsome Prince) the bilked women go away happy, not missing the money because they have plenty more where that comes from.
The set up for this premise is somewhat belabored, as we meet Lawrence, his accomplice Andre (who rather conveniently holds the title of Chief of Police in the small French town where the scams take place), and some of the women who are the Prince's targets. Anyway, the moment I'm referring to takes place when one of Jameson’s targets, a gregarious American named Muriel of Omaha, begins singing the song "what was a woman to do," in which she recaps in comical detail (“He wore an aura of nobility…I wore these Ferragamo shoes”) exactly how she was won over by the Prince and convinced that she, and she alone, was privy to his secrets. But soon several other women join Muriel in glorious harmony, each in a different aisle of the theatre, capped off when an usher joins the song as well. It’s a pretty amazing moment, and the show pretty much takes off from there.
Like "Spamalot" which opened this years Music Circus lineup, "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” is one of the recent wave of Broadway musicals based on movies. In this case (and unlike both “Spamalot” and “The Producers”) the transfer to the stage keeps the story largely intact. In other words, if you've seen the 1988 Steve Martin/Michael Caine movie of the same name you've pretty much seen this production, minus the songs of course. Obviously, the addition of songs and dancing make it a different viewing experience, but the show lends itself to this musicalization (no, I don't now if that's really a word - perhaps I just coined it). The score is by David Yazbek, who also wrote the music for "The Full Monty," an equally entertaining movie-turned musical comedy.
This production is carried by it's stars – Burke Moses as the sophisticated Lawrence Jameson and Timothy Gulan as Freddy Benson, the crude and decidedly unsophisticated American con artist that Jamison is persuaded (well, blackmailed) into taking under his wing. Both are excellent, each bringing a surprising amount of physicality to their roles, and each sporting superb singing voices. Jessica Rush plays Christine Colgate, the American “Soap Star” that the two men end up battling over, both romantically and as a potential target for their chosen profession. Despite a somewhat shaky start on the delivery of her big entrance number “Here I Am,” Ms. Rush was excellent in the role.
John Scherer, who plays the French police inspector Andre, and Cynthia Ferrier, who plays the aforementioned Muriel of Omaha also deserve mention for their strong performances.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
The verdict: how much more can they pad this show?
I wasn't excited about seeing yet another presentation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical scavenger hunt that is "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." The show is so familiar and ubiquitous that the biggest question mark going in is: which Elvis will the Pharaoh impersonate -- young sexy Elvis or old fat Elvis (young Elvis was the answer this time).
In my opinion, there's nothing wrong with "Joseph" that wouldn't be solved by making it a compact, entertaining one-act musical. Let's face it, that's exactly what Lloyd Webber and Rice wrote oh those many decades ago. But for some reason, producers have taken just the opposite tack with the show -- padding it with repeats and reprises so that, by the end, you feel like you've been bludgeoned with the same songs over and over again. There are some nice tunes in "Joseph," but they would benefit from fewer repetitions. The energetic Mega-Mix at the end of the show, in which the cast joyfully dances and sings while reprising the entire score, is particularly painful to sit through (although I'll admit that the audience seemed to love it).
After all that, you might be surprised to learn that I quite enjoyed this production, due mainly to the performance of Max von Essen as Joseph and the strong ensemble cast that surrounded him. Von Essen was particularly impressive on the ballad "Close Every Door" near the end of the first act. His delivery of what is clearly the best number in the show was worth the price of admission. The three eclectic songs delivered by Joseph's 11 brothers -- the country-western "One More Angel in Heaven," the French ballad "Those Canaan Days," and the Calypso-inspired "Benjamin Calypso" are also high points, as was David Engel's rocking performance as Pharaoh.
Oklahoma
Verdict: if you judge "Oklahoma" by the movie, you really haven't seen it. And you should see it.
Up until a few years ago I was one of those who considered "Oklahoma" to be an outdated and, let's face it, rather boring artifact of Broadway's Golden Age. Chock full of great tunes, to be sure, but not having much emotional depth.
I was wrong. The current season's Music Circus production shows just how emotionally relevant the show can be, and the performance of Jeremiah James as Curly and Brandi Burkhardt as Laurie owe much more to the Hugh Jackman revival of the 1990s than to the dated Hollywood version starring Shirley Jones and Gordon MacRae. As Curly, Mr. James brings equal doses of frontier confidence, overgrown boyishness and determination to the role. Ms. Burkhardt presents Laurie as a much more conflicted and confused presence than expected, and her inability to express her true feelings or make the decisions she should lead to the sense of danger that exists in the love triangle between Curly, Laurie and the dangerous ranch hand Judd Fry that eventually develops. As Judd, Kevin Earley has an excellent singing voice although his physical resemblance to the comedian Will Ferrell detracts a little bit from the sense of menace he is meant to portray.
The rest of the ensemble is very strong as well, which is certainly a consistent hallmark of this year's Music Circus run. And one of the real stars of this show is the scenic design by Michael Schweikardt. Rarely has the Music Circus stage been more effectively transformed than it is during the confrontation between Curly and Judd that takes place in the smokehouse. The combination of space, lighting, smoke, and minimalist set pieces somehow evokes the claustrophobic confines of Judd's living space better than any traditional set could. Kudos!
Monty Python's Spamalot
The verdict: It's a very silly show - and that's a very good thing!
There are few things quite as enjoyable as a little dose of Monty Python, and I will take it whenever I can get it! "Spamalot" is the decidedly irreverent re-imagining of the classic movie comedy "Monty Python and the Holy Grail," and it is a goofy and delightful experience. I can't help but see it through the prism of familiarity that comes with being a huge Python fan, but it seemed to me that even the old folks sitting around me (many of whom stomped out of last year's "Alter Boyz" with righteous indignation stamped on their scowling faces) seemed to be laughing their heads off at this one. Gary Beach (of "The Producers" fame) was great as King Arthur, emoting and scowling and mugging with abandon. He was aided and abetted by a stellar cast, who effectively re-created many of the most cherished comedy bits from the original movie, and also delivered on the new pieces that were not part of the movie. Mika Duncan, who plays Sir Lancelot and, in true Python style, many other parts, shined in particular as the French Tauntor, hurling over-the-top insults at King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table ("Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!").
This version, though necessarily scaled down from the over-the-top Broadway original, was well done, although a few of the bits needed a tad more polish (we saw it on opening night). Along with Mr. Beach and Mr. Duncan, Lesli Margherita was a standout as the Lady of the Lake. She was very entertaining, particularly during her second act rendition of "Whatever Happened to my Part."
