Mary Poppins

 

Live theater is back in Davis, and the Davis Musical Theater Company has started its 37th season with a lively, colorful production of “Mary Poppins,” directed and choreographed by Kyle Jackson, with a beautiful set designed by Steve Isaacson. Tylen Einweck is the musical director, conducting the smaller-than-usual DMTC orchestra.

Audiences must show proof of COVID vaccination and must wear masks, and all the actors on stage wear masks, so those thinking of attending this show can feel as safe as anyone can these days.

Jori Gonzales makes a wonderful Mary Poppins, in costumes designed by Denise Miles. She flies gracefully, sings beautifully and has a great relationship with the Banks family, especially the children.

All of the Banks family give strong performances, particularly Joe Alkire as George Banks, who takes control of the stage whenever he is on it. I was even more impressed with his performance when I learned he only came into the show two weeks before opening, when the original George had to drop out for medical reasons.

 

Andrea Bourquin is the perfect wife. When you look at her character, smaller than George and Mary, she just looks like she couldn’t be anything but a wife. She has less to do than the others in the family, but everything she does is perfect.

Ruby Schwerin and Django Nachmanoff are the two naughty children, Jane and Michael. Schwerin in particular is great and her bouncy pony tail curls add to her character.

Amy Woodman is the family’s overworked, stressed maid, Mrs. Brill, and Timothy Blankenship is the house boy, Robinson Ay, both of whom complain about living in a madhouse.

Bert is the chimney sweep who is Mary’s good friend. Judah Dwight is a lot of fun to watch, and is the storyteller of the show. When the children met Bert and are unimpressed with him because of his appearance, Mary teaches them they need to look past appearances and brings a statue to life (“Jolly Holiday”). Jean Henderson is the costume coordinator for this production and the shadows she put on the costumes of the statue (Eduard Arakely as Neleus) make the him look like he really is made of marble. It’s a wonderful effect.

Jennifer Rineman makes an impression in her brief appearance as the bird woman, singing the beautiful “Feed the Birds.”

Beth Ellen Ethridge shows up in Act 2 as Miss Andrew, George’s former nanny, of whom he is still frightened. Though masked, like everyone else, Ethridge creates a unique character with the expression in her eyes. She and Gonzales have a show stopping duet, “Brimstone and Treacle,” which would do justice to any professional production.

The show has some wonderfully colorful ensemble numbers, like “Step in Time” and “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,” led by Mrs. Corry, “the oldest woman in the world,” played by Jenifer Goldman.

Tessa Fray is Valentine, Jane’s doll brought to life by Mary to teach the children about playing nicely with others and appreciating the value of their toys.

This is a delightful production, which moves at a steady pace. The only sad thing about it is that for the Saturday-night performance we attended, there were more people on stage than in the audience. I hope the word gets out about the safety of the theater and the quality of the production.

Shrek, Video

 

“I never want to touch a computer again for the rest of my life.,” says Steve Isaacson, musical director and videographer of the Davis Musical Theater Company’s latest video production, “Shrek,” directed and choreographed by wife Jan Isaacson.

Isaacson spent six weeks putting together some 300 videos, videos made by the 20 people in the cast of the show, some of them playing more than one role.  “I put on 20 pounds just sitting at my computer all day,” Isaacson jokes.  He finished the editing at 6 p.m. before the 8 p.m. opening night.

The end result of  Isaacson’s work is remarkable.  I was impressed with his last video presentation of “Cinderella,” which had some wonderful moments and a few not so wonderful moments. Unlike “Cinderella,” the technology of “Shrek” is much more professional, though using house lights instead of theater lights gives the show more of a “cartoony” feel, which works fine for this cartoony story.

As with “Cinderella,” the “sets” for this show are projected on green screens, so are amazingly professional.  Isaacson explains that they have some 40-45 green screens, used on the stage and in people’s homes.  The end result is excellent, with incredible forest scenes and an impressive lava scene with the sound of bacon sizzling.

Not only is there a full video production,, but conversations among groups of characters are done live, using Zoom, so the actors are there live for each performance.  Not having to be in Davis to perform, actors were able to participate from Italy, Costa Rica, Hawaii, San Diego and other places.  

Jan Isaacson has always done well with choreography for non-dancers, but with “Shrek,” her choreography is even better than usual and Steve’s ability to make 20 or more dancers dance together across the screen has to be seen to be appreciated.

The actors for this production are excellent.  This is the story of an ogre, Shrek, who at seven years of age, was thrown out of his house by his parents and into the world to make his living. They warn him that because of his looks, he will be shunned by the world, and an angry mob will be the last thing he will see before he dies.

DMTC regular Adam Sartain (Beauty and the Beast, Man of La Mancha, Titanic) plays the grumpy Shrek very well.  The head piece of his costume makes it a bit difficult for him to be believable as an ogre, but his voice is excellent and one gradually warms to him throughout the evening.

When all the fairy tale creatures are banished from the Kingdom of Duloc by the diminutive Lord Farquaad (Andy Hyun), they move onto Shrek’s land and he travels to see Farquaad to see how to get them off, since he prefers to live alone.

An outstanding performance is given by campus minister Judah Dwight, as Donkey, whom Shrek rescues from Lord Farquaad’s guards and who insists on tagging along with Shrek.  Whenever Dwight is on stage, it’s difficult to look at anybody but him, he has created such a memorable character.

Farquaad gives Shrek the task of rescuing Princess Fiona from the lava surrounded castle so that he may marry her himself.  Morgan Bartoe is a beautiful Fiona, until her secret is revealed.   Chloe Aldete plays the young Fiona and Jadine Young is the teen Fiona.  “I Know It’s Today” is the song the girls sing as Fiona reaches adulthood.

Other performances worth mentioning are Lauren DePass as Pinocchio, Arianna Manabat as the dragon, Hugo Figueroa as the King and Hanna Salas as the Queen.  Mary Young, who has performed with DMTC since it's very beginning, is the Mama Bear and Dannette Vassar, who has been with the company since 1997, is Mama Ogre

DMTC will be performing “Mary Poppins” in the theater , on the stage, in September, so unless we are hit with another wave of coronavirus this will be the last virtual performance.  It’s well worth seeing for many reasons, but the technical expertise of Steve Isaacson makes it an outstanding production.

Cinderella

 

Theater people aren’t daunted by a little thing like an international pandemic.  Theaters all over the world have shut down in the wake of COVID-19, even the big shows on Broadway.

The last show I reviewed for The Enterprise was Davis Musical Theater Company’s (DMTC) production of “Camelot” in March of 2020.  Now DMTC is presenting its virtual production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella” through March 21.  While it is not the same as seeing it live in a theater, it’s surprisingly good.

If there is any “star” of this production, it’s director Steve Isaacson, who describes the process by which this show was created:

“The scenes are live from the actors' homes, recorded in front of a green screen, and the musical numbers are recorded, each person in front of the green screen at the theater. Then I painstakingly, and I mean painstakingly, take each of the over 200 video files and key out the green screen (which can take from a few minutes to a few hours each!) and place them on my virtual stage.”

Anyone who has ever tried to get a chorus to sing “Happy Birthday” to a friend on a Zoom call should realize the problems of getting all the voices together and matching them not only note for note, but also the acoustical differences in the places where they are recorded.  It’s a technological challenge.

Starting with the sets, since everything is done in front of a green screen so that the sets are actually projected, this is definitely the best looking show DMTC has ever done.  The interior of the castle alone looks like the Hall of Mirrors in Versailles and the town where everyone lives could be off of a postcard.

The cast is excellent, particularly Hannah Salas in the title role, Beth Ellen Ethridge as the Fairy Godmother, and Chris Cay Stewart as the Queen.

Musical direction is by Kyle Jackson and choreography is by Arianna Manabat.

The opening number is so well sung and danced that it’s difficult to believe that all those people aren’t on the stage together.

Dannette Vassar is the stepmother, while Andrea Borquin is daughter Portia and Morgan Bartoe is daughter Joy.  Discussions among the family are done with Zoom and costumer Jean Henderson has made those beautiful actresses downright ugly in their animosity toward each other and particularly toward Cinderella.  Heidi Johnson is given credit for creating the headdresses for the three women.

Duets are filmed on the stage, each actor doing his or her part alone, for Isaacson to put together later.  Some duets work better than others.  One particularly good one is between the Queen and King (Richard Spierto), who sing to each other while facing each other, holding hands.  The position of the hands of each of them is perfect and it’s difficult to realize they really aren’t holding hands.

The magic of the fairy godmother, turning a pumpkin into a carriage, mice into horses, and Cinderella into a beautifully dressed woman is impressive, though Cinderella doesn’t seem to be surprised at her new appearance.

The only disappointing scene is the ballroom scene in the palace.  There are too many people doing too many things, most of which don’t come together the way they are intended, with some people the wrong size and people walking into each other or popping from one side of the stage to the other.  This may be partly because of three different PCs crashing on Friday.  Sadly, the crashes prevented Cinderella from descending the stairs on her departure from the castle, a beautiful scene in the promo for the show..

Still the prince (Hugo Figueroa) finds his Cinderella and the glass slipper fits and everyone lives happily ever after.

This is not a perfect production, but it’s an amazing undertaking and well worth seeing, especially if you’ve been missing theater for the past year – and you don’t need to wear a mask.

Camelot

he absolutely evil Mordred (Tomas Eredia) stirs up trouble
in the kingdom in DMTC’s production of Lerner & Loewe’s classic
“Camelot,” running through March 29.

From the court of King Arthur to the administration of John F. Kennedy, “Camelot” evokes something beautiful, opulent and democratic.

Steve Isaacson’s set design for the musical, currently at Davis Musical Theatre Company, may be a bit less than opulent, but it at least gives the impression of a castle. Yet thanks to the outstanding costumes of Jean Henderson, the stage is indeed beautiful and opulent.

Jori Gonzales alone, as Guinevere, had nine costumes throughout the three-plus-hour show. All are wonderful, but her first costume, simple with no jewel adornment, is tailored so perfectly and the material so beautiful that it was my favorite of the night.

Gonzales, happy to be performing her third Julie Andrews role, is exceptional. A beautiful, clear voice that can sing opera as well as musical theater, she embodies the character so well that the chemistry between her and King Arthur (Joe Alkire) seems so real that one wonders what she sees in Lancelot (A.J. Rooney).

Alkire is a wonderful, down-to-earth king, still not quite sure how he became king and uncomfortable about his upcoming marriage (“I wonder what the king is doing tonight”). He and Guinevere warm to each other and over the next few years he not only grows into his marriage but into his role as king as well.

Lancelot arrives at Camelot so arrogant that Guinevere hates him and arranges for him to battle three of her best knights, but when he beats all three, killing one and then bringing him back to life again, her heart is changed and they begin a secret affair.

It’s an odd affair since both Lancelot and Guinevere love Arthur and Arthur loves both of them, accepts their affair and pretends not to notice so that when Guinevere is tricked into revealing their relationship and is sentenced to death, Arthur helps the lovers escape, even though it brings down the beautiful democracy that he worked so hard to create.

Joel Porter plays Merlin, Arthur’s mentor. It’s amazing that he can speak through that huge mustache that totally covers his mouth (does he eat?). After he is lured away from Camelot by the enchantress Nimue (Andrea Borquin), the actor returns as Pellinore, a bumbling and endearing old man who becomes a permanent guest of Arthur and Guinevere. His buddy Horrid the dog (played by a confused looking Mrs. Bigglesworth) is very cute.

Arthur’s illegitimate son Mordred is played by Tomas Eredia (who, somehow, is not listed in the program for that character). Eredia bursts on stage with a high level of energy and dominates his scenes, earning the boos his villain character receives.

Young Matthew Vallero is Tom of Warwick, the child who comes to join the Round Table, reminding Arthur of the ideals he was able to create, if only temporarily. Vallero, 10, has been in all the youth productions for the past two years but is making his main stage debut and is excellent.

This is a very long show that drags in spots, but overall is a beautiful production with some outstanding performances.

The Drowsy Chaperone

Aldolpho (Brian McCann), seduces The Drowsy Chaperone (Chris Cay Stewart) as,
in Davis Musical Theatre Company's musical comedy production,
“The Drowsy Chaperone,” on stage through Jan. 26 at the Jean Henderson Performing Arts Center.

The most celebrated musical of the 2006 Broadway season, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” a completely original musical comedy, opened this week at the Davis Musical Theatre Company, celebrating its 35th year of musicals. The show is directed and choreographed by Kyle Jackson, also listed as co-musical director.

The show had its beginnings in 1997 when several friends created a spoof of old musicals for a stag party. It was so successful that it was reshaped for a theatrical performance and presented at the Toronto Fringe Festival. Over several versions, it finally opened on Broadway in May of 2006, where it won five Tony awards.

The character of “Man in Chair” opens the show, sitting in the dark, musing about his feelings for theater. He thinks of his favorite show, the 1928 fictional “The Drowsy Chaperone” and pulls out the original cast recording to play it for the audience. He reads, “Mix-ups, mayhem and a gay wedding,” then laughs “of course the phrase ‘gay wedding’ has a different meaning now. But back then it just meant ‘fun’ and that’s all this is — fun,”

As the music plays, the characters appear on stage, lights come up on the set, and the show begins, with Man in Chair providing a running commentary on the plot, the characters, and the actors who played them.

This show is a salute to those old 1920s musicals that were light on plot and heavy on comedy.
DMTC has the perfect cast to bring this show to life. Scott Minor as “Man in Chair” is wonderful. Just the kind of lonely theater queen you’d imagine. He is particularly good when the attention is on other parts of the stage and he is supposedly just listening to his record. His facial expressions are spot on.

Fans of DMTC’s Mary Young must see her turn as Mrs. Tottendale, the eccentric widow who is hosting the wedding of starlet Janet van de Graaff (Aimee Rose Santone) and Robert Martin (A.J. Rooney). Neither of them is completely certain they are ready for marriage.

Rooney has a great show-stopping tap number, “Cold Feets,” danced with his best man George (Hugo Figueroa)

Santone has her own turn to shine in “Show Off,” where Janet explains to the press, and others assembled, why she is giving up the stage for good. “I don’t want to show off no more,” all the while showing off for the cameras.

Steve Isaacson is Feldzieg, the harried producer of Janet’s show, who hired Adolpho (Brian McCann), a Latin lover, to discourage Janet from giving up the stage. McCann’s performance is over-the-top and hilarious, especially when he mistakes the Chaperone (Chris Cay Stewart) for the bride. Stewart is an Ethel Merman-like belter whose Chaperone is fond of her little flask and who gives Janet no real advice about whether or not to marry Robert, but merely explains how she has gotten through life by “stumbling along.”

Joe Alkire is great fun as Underling, the butler, who serves everyone in this Prohibition-era comedy “ice water,” which results in a very funny scene between himself and Mrs. Tottendale.

Andrea Bourquin is delightful as Kitty, the chorine with her eye on the prize, to be a leading lady if she gets her shot when Janet leaves the show. She has some of the most dazzling costumes (thanks to costumer Jean Henderson).

Tomas Eredia and Anna Cutshall are gangsters disguised as bakers sent to threaten Feldzieg if he is unsuccessful in thwarting Janet’s wedding plans, but it seems the worst they can do is exchange a lot of puns about baking.

Act 2 begins with a decidedly unpolitically correct number “Message from a Nightingale,” for which Man in Chair apologizes because it’s actually from a different musical. Be prepared for lyrics like “What is it about Asians that fascinates Caucasians … is it the won ton? The egg rolls? The rice?” It is a funny, if mildly offensive, take on “The King and I.”

Marika Rogers has a small, but pivotal role as Trix, the aviatrix, at the end of the show, with an impressive special effect.

“The Drowsy Chaperone” is a funny bit of escapist theater, which will be as enjoyable to the audience as it seems to be to the cast.

Gypsy

Editor’s note: After this review was written, DMTC announced it was allowed to return to its building and, starting Friday, Nov. 15, all remaining performances of ‘Gypsy,’ will be at its home theater, the Jean Henderson Performing Arts Center, 607 Peña Drive, Suite 10, in Davis, and will still be free of charge.

“The show must go on” — and go on it did for Davis Musical Theatre Company, shut out of its theater by a structural problem during rehearsal for the upcoming production of “Gypsy,” directed and choreographed by Jan Isaacson.

Rehearsing first at Christ Church of Davis, and then performing at the University Covenant Church, the group had only an hour to grab costumes — so some of the costumes for the show came from the actors’ own wardrobes (though thankfully the most important costumes were collected). Likewise, there were no sets built at the time, but set pieces like tables and chairs created the proper look. John Stover is credited with the design of a car.

The show is being performed for free because it’s not the way it should be and this has got to be the best bargain in town. There’s nothing that feels “stripped down” in this production and it proves that when you have excellent actors, the audience can easily adapt to no sets and imperfect costumes.

This is the story of Gypsy Rose Lee, written by Arthur Laurents with music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. But the principal character is Mama Rose, a militant stage mother who runs the lives of her children.

The show, which opened on Broadway in 1959, featured Ethel Merman in the role of Rose. It’s a huge role, with nine songs, most of which are real “belters.” There are echoes of Merman in the performance of Rachel Hoover, a terrific belter herself. She owns the role; each of her numbers is a standout.

Gillian Cubbage and Sage Greenwood are the young “Baby June,” and “Baby Louise,” two girls who don’t really want to be in show business, but who can’t say no to their overbearing mother.

Arianna Manabat is the adult Louise, ignored by her mother in favor of her more talented sister June (Maeve Kelly) until June secretly marries Tulsa (Eli Martinez), one of the chorus boys, and runs off with him.

Rose, whose dream is to make her daughter a star, concentrates on the untalented Louise, who finds her talent when forced to do a strip number in burlesque because they need the money. It’s a beautiful moment when Louise first sees herself in the mirror and realizes that she’s pretty. The rest is history. Gypsy Rose Lee became the most popular stripper in burlesque.

Nathan Lacy gives a good performance as the eternally faithful Herbie, who gives up a career in sales to help manage June. He is deeply in love with Rose and puts up with a lot for many years, but finally gives up when Rose postpones their wedding to encourage the reluctant Louise to strip.

A highlight of the show is “Ya Gotta Get a Gimmick” where three strippers, Tessie Tura (Barbara Silver), Electra (Heidi Masem) and Rene (Dannette Vassar) give Louise tips on what it takes to be successful. (Monina Reeves is credited with the costumes for this number.) Fans of Vassar have never seen her like this and even if the rest of the show weren’t so good, this alone is worth seeing.

Though it probably should not be, this is an excellent production and proves what dedication to putting on a show can create. (When you enter that huge room, remember that every single one of those chairs have to be put up and taken down by members of the company — so their work does not end with the curtain call!)

If you’ve never been to DMTC, this is your chance to see what it’s like — for free. It’s the best deal you’ll get all year.

The Show Must Go On

Arianna Manabat (Louise), Rachel Hoover (Rose) and Nate Lacy (Herbie) rehearse “Together, Wherever We Go” for the Davis Musical Theatre Company's production of “Gypsy,” which now will be held at University Covenant Church. Courtesy photo

In the truest example of the show biz motto of “the show must go on,” the Davis Musical Theatre Company is dealing with a nearly impossible situation that threatened to shut down the impending production of “Gypsy,” which had been scheduled to start at the Jean Henderson Theater on November 1.

“It’s been so stressful,” producers Jan and Steve Isaacson sighed.

The Jean Henderson theater is the front half of a building that contains three other offices, one of which is used by the UCD Anthropology Department. On Oct. 10 at 4:42 p.m., Steve Isaacson was told that they must vacate the building immediately. Apparently a truss in the very back of the UCD Anthropology office slipped, causing the drop ceiling to collapse. It was a safety and liability issue and the landlords could not risk damage to any of the other tenants, Isaacson explained.

“Nobody can be faulted,” Isaacson said, adding that he was very happy with how the landlords have handled the situation. “They did a great job and I’m very happy with them.” Still, DMTC will not be able to return to the building until at least late November — and there was a show to put on. What to do?

Several options were investigated and for one reason or another they proved to be unworkable. They even worked with UCD’s Mindy Cooper to see about using the Wyatt Pavilion.

First, they needed rehearsal space. Rebecca Detrick (whose daughter played Annie in a recent production) suggested they check with her church, Christ Church of Davis on Oak Ave. Isaacson met with pastor Eric Dirksen and they started rehearsing there. But the church has its own remodel coming up in a week, so performing there was out of the question.

They finally found a home at the University Covenant Church on Mace Boulevard and Second Street. (by the Arco station).

“Those people are so nice,” Isaacson said, adding that he has met with more pastors in the past week than in a very long time!

So the show will go on.

“Gypsy” will open, as scheduled, at 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 1, but there will be no charge throughout the run (though donations will be happily accepted). It will be performed with an orchestra but without costumes, and with the only two set pieces that were finished at the time they had to evacuate the building. The company is trying to contact every ticket holder — more than 1,000 people — by telephone to let them know of the change in location.

The show will run at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 24. For more information, visit dmtc.org.

Mamma Mia

 

“Mamma Mia,” now in its 21st year, was groundbreaking. The popularity of this “jukebox musical” based on the music of ABBA sparked a raft of similar musicals featuring the music of other musicians — like “Jerseys Boys” (music of The Four Seasons), “Beautiful” (Carol King), “Ain’t Too Proud” (The Temptations) and dozens of others. The stories are sometimes contrived in order to fit in as many songs by the featured musicians as possible.

“Mamma Mia” appears to be having renewed popularity. There have been several productions of it in the Bay Area and at least three in the Sacramento area in the last couple of months. And now a joyous production has opened on the Davis Musical Theatre Company stage.

Directed by Steve Isaacson, with choreography by Kyle Jackson and a cast of 40, this production is spectacular. (Never let it be said one cannot dance in swim fins!)

In 1999, Catherine Johnson decided to take 22 of the best-known ABBA songs (written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus) and weave a story around the lyrics. Even if you think you don’t really know ABBA music, you’ll be surprised at how many tunes you’ll recognize — and if you are an ABBA fan this is a must-see show.

The story centers around single mother Donna Sheridan (Andrea Eve Thorpe) raising her daughter Sophie (Abby Lambert) on the Greek island where Sophie was conceived, the product of a liaison with one of three men. Donna has built herself a successful taverna and has no need of a man in her life.

But Sophie is about to be married to Sky (Kyle Jackson) and she wants her real father to give her away. Having snooped through Donna’s diary, she invites three men — Harry Bright (AJ Rooney), Bill Austin (David Muerle) and Sam Carmichael (Tate Pollock), all of whom had relations with Donna around the time of Sophie’s conception — to her wedding, unbeknownst to Donna. The men all arrive, thinking Donna has invited them. Sophie wants her real father to walk her down the aisle.
Also attending the wedding are Donna’s two friends, her back-up singers when the three were Donna and the Dynamos. Tanya (Laura M. Smith) and Rosie (Kasper Cummins) are delightful comediennes, and those costumes were great fun.

(The program gives an ABBA fun fact about those marvelous costumes. They were an easy way to save on the group’s tax bill. ABBA exploited a Swedish law which meant clothes were tax deductible if their owners could prove they were not used for daily wear.)

Andrea Thorpe gives a powerful performance as Donna and gets cheers for her very emotional “The Winner Takes it All.”

As Sophie, Abby Lambert is winsome and engaging, as is her fiancé Sky (Kyle Jackson), whose short shorts make him look leggy and somehow younger than he really is.

The three possible fathers are fun. Harry’s (Rooney) secret is suggested in his various costume changes. Bill (Muerle) is the adventurer, the first to accept Sophie as his daughter, while his duet with Rosie (Cummins) is great. Sam (Pollock) is the love of Donna’s life and, despite a marriage and children of his own, is obviously still in love with her.

Everyone in the show learns something about themselves and the wedding itself, though not quite as planned, is worth the two-act wait.

The three “bows” numbers — tacked on at the end because there was no place in the plot to put them — are great fun and have the audience standing and waving their arms along with the cast.

Do I recommend this production? Of course I do, I do, I do, I do, I do.

Rent

The cast rocks out singing “Season of Love” in Davis Musical Theatre Company's production of “Rent.”
The show runs at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays at the
Jean Henderson Performing Arts Center, 607 Peña Drive in Davis.
The show has strong language, adult themes and drug references,
and is recommended for theater goers 13 and older. Courtesy photo

“Rent” was to the 1990s what “Hamilton” became to the early 21st century — a little-ish show that started Off-Broadway, took the theater world by storm and moved to Broadway, where it made show business history.

The show was written by Jonathan Larson, based partly on his own story (and Puccini’s “La Bohème,” with musical references throughout). Larson tragically, died of an aortic dissection, believed to have been caused by undiagnosed Marfan syndrome, the night before the Off-Broadway premiere. He never got to know what a sensation his show became, how it had a 12-year run on Broadway and how it won several Tonys and the Pulitzer Prize for drama.

Now it has come to Davis. Steve Isaacson, the producer of Davis Music Theatre Company, proudly shared his two degrees of separation with Larson, who was apparently a friend of Isaacson’s drama teacher.

This production is directed by John Ewing, with musical direction by Kyle Jackson and choreography by Cynthia Krivicich and displays a DMTC phenomenon that I have observed over the years.

In its 34 year history, DMTC has made great strides in productions. The quality of shows has become quite good, some better than others. What I have seen, however, is that when the company produces a “new” show, especially a popular one such as “Rent,” which is rarely performed locally, all the best talent from all over the area show up to audition. Based on how many actors in this show are making their DMTC debut, this is obviously the case for “Rent,” which explains why this is such a uniformly excellent production.

It is the emotional story of young artists and wannabes in Manhattan’s East Village, looking for love, inspiration and a place to live. Critics praised it not only for its acting and musical components but for its representation of HIV-positive individuals.

Mark (Philip Graves) is a documentary filmmaker living with rock musician and recovering drug addict Roger (Jonathan Wertz), who is attracted to S&M club dancer and drug addict Mimi (Aimee Rose Santone). Their first meeting (“Light My Candle”) is right out of “La Bohème.”

Zany drag queen Angel (Ethan Mack), who has AIDS, saves Mark and Roger’s former roommate Tom Collins (Kevin Borcz) from a beating and the two fall in love, a relationship which is the most powerful of the show, showing the couple as being happy, with positive outlooks on life, rather than being resigned to their inevitable deaths. Following Angel’s death, Collins’ moving “I’ll Cover You” is the production’s most powerful moment.

That most of the characters have AIDS is subtly revealed at a dinner scene, where someone’s alarm goes off and most of the characters take out pill bottles. Today, when AIDS is no longer an automatic death sentence, the underlying story of “Rent” is a bit dated, but no less emotional.

Maureen (Cassie Mosher) is Mark’s former girlfriend and current girlfriend of lawyer Joanne (Chantel Aldana).

Benjamin “Benny” Coffin (Kyle Hadley) is an ex-roommate to Mark and Roger and now the landlord of the building in which they live. He has overlooked their rent for a year and is now demanding it or threatening to lock them out of the building.

The story follows the group from one Christmas Eve to another (the beautiful “Seasons of Love” opens the second act and is a highlight of the evening, a poignant acknowledgment of the passage of time and evolution of emotion).

The message of “Rent” is to live for the moment, soak up as much of “life” as you can because you never know how much longer you have to live. Instead of being an overriding sad situation, it is a salute to the love of the characters for life and for each other.

Pajama Game

Seven and a half cents doesn’t buy a heck of a lot, but it’s enough to write an entire musical about. ‘The Pajama Game,” on stage at the Davis Musical Theatre Company, is to classic musicals what “Mad Men” was to TV. It’s a dated world, where sweatshops exist, the boss is king and raises have to be fought for. Nobody has thought of MeToo yet, but harassment is rampant.

With book by George Abbott and Richard Bissell, music and lyrics by Jerry Ross and Richard Adler, this Tony-Award-winning musical premiered on Broadway in 1954, the year that director Steve Isaacson was born. It was made into a movie in 1957, starring Doris Day and John Raitt.

You probably know most of the songs, like “Hey There,” “Hernando’s Hideaway,” and “Steam Heat,” the latter the first Broadway choreography by Bob Fosse, showing the classic style which would be so recognizable in future musicals.

The action takes place at the Sleep-Tite Pajama Factory, which has just hired a new superintendent, Sid Sorokin (Tate Pollock) who almost immediately butts heads with the grievance committee headed by Babe Williams (Morgan Bartoe). It’s not clear exactly how these two fall immediately in love/lust with each other, but it happens — though Babe vehemently denies her feelings (“I’m Not At All In Love”).

The grievance committee is concerned because they want a 7 1/2 cent per hour raise in pay. (The date of the show is shown when calculations showed that in a year’s time that would come to $852.74, which would buy a year’s supply of gasoline! It gave the audience a good, if rueful, laugh.)

Pollock says this is his “anniversary show” with DMTC, having started with last year’s “Guys and Dolls.” He has a nice charisma about him. Bartoe has a more meaty role than the feather duster she played in “Beauty and the Beast,” and she rises to the occasion. She has a beautiful voice and her duet with Sid (“There Once Was A Man,” written by Frank Loesser) was great fun.

Exter Hardy is very good as the big boss, Mr. Hasler, who wears a suit beautifully, but has the very best costume for the company picnic late in the first act. Costume designer Jean Henderson has a great sense of humor.

Hugo Figueroa is Heinzie, the timekeeper, responsible for making quotas and keeping the women working. He has the hots for Gladys, one of the secretaries, though is jealous of her relationships with other men. His duet with secretary Mabel (Dannette Vassar), (“I’ll never be jealous again”) is very funny.

Aimee Rose Santone is outstanding as Gladys, wiggling her backside provocatively at many of the males in the company. She, together with Maeve Kelly and Holly McGuinness do a great job with “Steam Heat.” Choreographer Kyle Jackson keeps the trio faithful to the familiar Fosse moves. (In a bit of fun facts, the program points out that the original Gladys, Carol Haney, broke her leg and chorus girl Shirley MacLaine covered for her. She was soon signed to Paramount Pictures, and the rest in is history!)

Matthew Evans is “Prez,” the head of the Union, and another candidate for MeToo attention. Doug Baker is Max, one of the factory’s salesmen. Amy Woodman is cute in the small role of Poopsie, but I was always afraid that her blonde wig was about to fall off.

This is a fun production and someone mentioned to me at intermission that she liked it better than the film, which has to be high praise indeed.

Oliver!

Continuing the celebration of its 34th season of musicals in Davis, the Davis Musical Theatre Company opened an excellent production of “Oliver!”, the musical version of Dickens’ “Oliver Twist,” directed and choreographed by Jan Isaacson with musical direction by David Williams.

The production is blessed with several superb performances.  Recent health problems have prevented Steve Isaacson from taking meaty lead roles lately and I’d forgotten what a truly good actor he is.  He dissolves into the character of the criminal Fagin so fully that you imagine that this is what the role was always meant to be.

His gang of youthful pickpockets – Katherine Berdovskly, Katarina Deltrick, Ailani Gentles, Sage Greenwood, Lexy Hutcheon, Audrey Rycerz and Ruby Schwerin (also orphans in the opening scene) are well rehearsed and wonderfully choreographed.  Audrey Rycerz is the youngest in the cast (her mother Rachel is the housekeeper Mrs Bedwin).  For one so tiny, she was amazingly consistent, knew every word and didn’t miss a beat in any of the dance numbers.

Brian McCann is always a winner and his Mr. Bumble, the beadle of the workhouse where Oliver Twist is raised, is outstanding.  His pairing with Dannette Vassar as the widow Corney, matron of the workhouse, is inspired.  The imposing stature of McCann and the diminutive stature of Vassar make for bits of humor not possible in other productions.  Their “I Shall Scream” is particularly funny.

Also outstanding is Elliot DeJong as the Artful Dodger. A member of the Young People’s program, DeJong is moving into main stage productions and it’s easy to see why.  He dominates in most of his scenes and takes the stage confidently.

Gabriel Mark plays Oliver and while he has a beautiful clear voice (that can hit all those high notes in “Where is Love”) and is a winsome actor, he is having too much fun on stage and needs to learn that starving orphans don’t have smiles on their faces when being chased by the beadle, or when being threatened by the evil Bill Sikes (Jesus J. Madrigal).  If he learns how to compose his facial expressions, he will be an outstanding Oliver.

Hanna Van Noland, is Nancy, the girlfriend of the villainous Bill Sikes (not Sykes, a common spelling error) who ultimately becomes Oliver’s protector, at her own peril.   She has a strong voice and is appropriately emotionally torn in the lovely “As long as he needs me,” where she describes why she remains with an abusive partner.

Deborah Bromley is Mrs. Sowerberry, who with her husband (David Muerle) owns the funeral establishment where young Oliver is sold.  Bromley has an ear piercing shriek.

(Bromley is also a member of the ensemble while Muerle later pays Mr. Brownlow, the man who rescues Oliver after he is arrested for stealing.)

Steve Isaacson and Kimmie McCann are the set designers for this production.  There are many sets, the set for Brownlow’s home the most beautiful of them all.  The cast is mesmerizing as they move the huge pieces around in the dark, as coordinated as a choreographed dance number.  The size of the pieces does somewhat slow the pace of the total production, but it’s worth it.

At the conclusion of opening night Steve and Jan Isaacson were presented with 35 red roses, in honor of the 35th anniversary of the decision to start a theater company.  Both Isaacsons pointed out the importance of the “family” this all-volunteer company has become.  The capacity audience gave them thunderous applause.

Annie

“Annie” is one of those classic musicals that seems to come around so often that I groan at the thought of seeing it again. But then I go to the theater and remember why I really like this retelling of the Little Orphan Annie story, and why it is so popular, especially when done with the enthusiasm and talent of Davis Musical Theatre Company.

This latest production, directed by Steve Isaacson, with choreography by Ron Cisneros, has a wonderful, talented cast.

This show really rises or falls on the talents of Annie and in Katarina Detrick (in her first lead role) DMTC has a winner. She sometimes tends to be shrill, but she is a belter of the first order, and they probably can hear her out in the parking lot when she sings “Tomorrow.” She also is a good actress and professionally handles the dog Sandy (Cleopatra Graves) who is more interested in running into the audience, with tail wagging, than behaving herself on stage, despite the treats Annie kept in her pocket. Detrick never missed a beat and eventually got the dog under control.

Perhaps the moment that most impressed me was when billionaire Oliver Warbucks (Gannon Styles) is letting Annie know how she has wormed her way into his heart. The intense look of real love on her face as she watches him was just beautiful to behold.

Styles, with a solid theater background, is new to DMTC and what an addition he is. He gives great warmth to the character of Warbucks and has a great voice to boot.

Warbucks’ secretary, Grace Farrell, played by Chris Cay Stewart, is a warmhearted woman hiding feelings for Warbucks, and a great friend to Annie. Stewart also appears as part of the ensemble in some scenes, where her beautiful voice is easy to identify.

Rachel Hoover, a Davis native who performed more than 30 shows before she went to college (including some with the former Sunshine Children’s Theater), is a spectacular Miss Hannigan, the harridan who runs the orphanage where Annie was dropped off 11 years ago as an infant. She’s enough to scare anybody, and her musical numbers, particularly “Little Girls,” are outstanding.
Christopher Murphy, another DMTC newcomer, makes an impression as her brother, Rooster Hannigan, as does Bridget Styles as his girlfriend Lily St. Regis.

The orphans — Kiera Chang, Chantelle Holt, Vivian Li, Lexy Hutcheon, Sage Sigmon and Katherine Berdovskiy — are well- rehearsed, in good voice and perform their dances professionally. Each girl also has her moment to shine in the spotlight.

What I love about DMTC shows are the little unexpected “gems.” I found three under that category in this production. Amaralyn Ewey is great as the fresh-faced star-to-be, newly arrived in New York. There never was a better role for Marc Valdez than that of Franklin D. Roosevelt. But especially outstanding was Jan Isaacson’s performance as the silent sound man for a Gert Healy (Amy Woodman) radio broadcast. She is just perfect.

With familiar tunes like “Easy Street” and “Tomorrow,” in addition to a score of other fun songs and a cast of adorable little girls and funny bad guys, this is a show that will appeal to everyone, and DMTC makes it fun for all ages.

The Little Mermaid

There was no one who enjoyed the opening night performance of Davis Musical Theatre’s (DMTC) “The Little Mermaid” more than the 2 year old girl who sat in front of us.  She paid attention to the whole show, danced all the dances, waved her arms whenever the chorus did, tried to mouth the words to songs and applauded at the end of each, all without being disruptive.  Watching her joy was almost as much fun was watching the show itself.

There were a lot of children in the opening night performance and those I talked with after the show all said they loved it.

But don’t get the idea that this is a children’s show.  Though based on a Hans Christian Anderson fable and a Disney movie, this show has enough fantasy to keep the attention of a 2 year old and enough “meat” to entertain adults as well.

Arial is a mermaid princess who longs to go to the outside world, especially after she saves the life of a sailor who falls overboard and falls in love with him.  The sailor doesn’t remember what she looks like, but is haunted by her beautiful voice.

With the dubious help of her aunt the evil Ursula, the octopus, Arial agrees to exchange her voice for feet and goes to the surface, where she finds the object of her affections preparing to choose a wife, based on who has the best singing voice.

How this is all resolved, leaving only questions of  biological incompatibilities, is the plot of this show, and it is enchanting.

If you were asked to draw a picture of the Arial in your mind, chances are your picture would look at lot like Julia Hixon, who could not possibly be better.  She is charming and witty and never loses the subtle “treading water” hand motions throughout the show.  She also has the kind of beautiful voice that would enchant a man.

Prince Eric (Hugo Figueroa) exhibits a gentleness as he meets Arial but does not remember her, and realizes she has no voice, yet is strangely attracted to her.  He teaches her how to communicate through dance.

In the “Jiminy Cricket” role of Arial’s protector is Amaralyn Ewey, as Sebastian the crab.  Ewey’s performance is amazing, especially when I learned that this 9th grader only stepped into the role 2 weeks ago, when her father, originally cast, had an accident and was unable to continue. Her performance is so polished that you would never know she only had two weeks to rehearse...or that she was only a 9th grader.  Her “Under the Sea,” the show’s signature song, was delightful.

Arial’s buddy is Scuttle, a sea gull, the expert on all things “above” and teaches Arial, for example, that the strange thing she found (a fork) is used by humans to comb their hair.    

King Triton, father of Arial and her many sisters, is payed by Scott Minor, who is a towering, powerful and somewhat frightening figure.  Arial is obviously his favorite, and he makes allowances for her, though this latest obsession of hers may have gone too far.

Arial’s sisters, Morgan Bartoe, Rebekah Milhoan, Katie Krasnansky, Noah Patterson, Sierra Winter and Lorin Torbitt work as a single unit, though each girl has her own personality and all of them are competing with Arial for their father’s attention.

Gavin Mark is Ariel’s friend Flounder, who often adds comic touches to various scenes, and though his performance is quite good, he is so young, it’s difficult to believe his romantic feelings toward Arial.

As far as comedy is concerned, Cullen Smith is just great as Chef Louis, chasing Sebastian around trying to catch him to cook for dinner (“Les Poisson”).  Smith is a wonderful comedienne and her scene is a highlight of the show.

Cyndi Wall is the evil Ursula.  She is a commanding presence with evil oozing from her tentacles.  She is a perfect addition to the Disney catalog of villains.  She is aided in her evilness by Flotsam (Katherine Fio) and Jetsam (Brittany Owings).


Monica Reeve’s costumes run the gauntlet from the gentle, feminine dress for Arial to the realistic octopus costume for Ursula and everything from plain to very ornate costumes for the sea creatures.

Directed by Steve Isaacson and choreographed by Allison Weaver, this is a delightful production from DMTC, enjoyable for all ages.  Some performances are already sold out and tickets are going fast.


Take Grandma, take the kids.  This a family show that everyone will enjoy.

(And thank you, thank you, thank you, DMTC and program designer Danette Vasser for the bios and photos in the program!)

Guys and Dolls

One of the best things about Davis Musical Theatre Company’s new production of “Guys and Dolls” was seeing co-producer, musical director, set, light and sound designer Steve Isaacson in the major role of Nathan Detroit (played by Frank Sinatra in the movie).

Isaacson has been sidelined for a long time with physical problems and it’s great to see him on stage again, in such a big part. And who better to play a New York wise-cracking scoundrel than a former New Yorker. Detroit runs the “oldest established permanent floating crap game in New York.”

Jan Isaacson is co-producer, director and choreographer, making this show a real family affair. Isaacson has become a very good choreographer and knows how to work with dancers and non-dancers and make everyone look good.

“Guys and Dolls” is an adaptation of several Damon Runyon stories written in the 1920s and ’30s, of a fictional group of saints (missionaries) and sinners (gamblers) and is filled with familiar songs that seem to have been around forever, such as “A Bushel and a Peck,” “If I Were a Bell,” and “Luck Be a Lady.” The music is by Frank Loesser and the book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows.

While there are several good performances in this production, outstanding is a newcomer to DMTC, Bridget Styles as Miss Adelaide (“the famous fiancee”), who has been engaged to Nathan for 14 years and still hopes for a wedding some day.

Styles is perfect, without going overboard, as it is so easy to do when portraying the bleach-blonde prohibition-era showgirl at the Hot Box. She is particularly good when describing the psychological effects on the body of unrequited love (“Adelaide’s Lament”).

Jori Gonzales is the idealistic, but sheltered missionary Sarah Brown, head of Broadway’s Save-a-Soul mission, determined to bring new souls to God. She is confused by her attraction to Sky Masterson (Tate Pollack, also making his DMTC debut) and is surprised to learn she has an adventurous side when Masterson convinces her to accompany him on a wild night in Havana.

Sarah’s grandfather, Arvide Abernathy is a warm-hearted missionary, with only Sarah’s good as his primary concern. Don Draughon gives a lovely soliloquy in “More I Cannot Wish You.”

Among the group of Nathan’s cronies is Nicely-Nicely Johnson (Hugo Figueroa, who, according to his program bio, is only 24 years old, but who has appeared in 26 DMTC shows). Nicely-Nicely has the show stopping “Sit Down, You’re Rocking the Boat” and sets all toes to tapping.

Mary Young, who has been with DMTC for 33 years, gives a spirited performance as General Cartwright, in town to assess the mission to see if it should be shut down or not.

Isaacson got a little carried away with the lighting design for this show, mostly with overuse of the follow spotlight which was occasionally distracting.

Jean Henderson had fun with the costumes, particularly those for the show girls at the nightclub, and also for the ensemble in the opening number, where each costume nicely explains who each person is without the need for words.

Spamalot

“Monty Python and the Holy Grail” was a hit movie in 1975. In 2005, a musical was adapted for the stage by Eric Idle and was a Tony Award winner. Now it is entertaining Davis Musical Theatre Company audiences.

I will confess my deep, dark secret: I’m not a Monty Python fan, though I had seen the odd bits here and there and one or two of the movies. But I had not seen “Holy Grail” nor had I memorized lots of favorite skits from the 45 television episodes. So I missed a lot of the “in jokes” in this musical.
Still, even for someone like me, this production has enough cheap shots, fart jokes and low-brow humor in it to make it an enjoyable two hours of nonsense.

The Historian (Steven O’Shea) sets the scene, giving a brief overview of medieval England with the precision of a weatherman, recounting where in the country there was plague (“a 50 percent chance of pestilence and famine coming out of the northeast at 12 miles per hour.”)

Following his announcement that this is “England,” the stage is, of course, filled with brightly costumed dancers singing about Finland and hitting each other with fish in the delightful “Finland/Fisch Schlapping Dance,” until the Historian reminds them that it is England, whereupon they leave the stage, disappointed, followed by a somber line of monks chanting in Latin.

The real story begins with the entrance of Arthur (Scott Minor), who announces his search for knights for his Round Table, with the assistance of sidekick Patsy (Tomas Eredia) and sets off on his quest, encountering ridiculous setbacks along the way, riding nonexistent horses and using coconuts to make the noise of the clopping hoofbeats.

Minor and Eredia make a wonderful pair, with Minor ineptly regal while Eredia is irresistible with his facial asides to the audience.

The duo encounter Lancelot (Quintin Casl) and Sir Robin (Andy Hyun), who is collecting bodies of the dead. They encounter the sickly Fred (O’Shea) and attempt to add him to the heap of bodies. When he insists he’s “Not Dead Yet,” they help him die to get rid of him so the two men can join Arthur’s knights.

Marci Maxey is a lovely Lady of the Lake, who gave Arthur his sword Excalibur, and just gets more beautiful as the show moves forward.

Python fans will be happy to note that the show includes a lot of familiar Python gags, like the Knights of Ni (led by O’Shea — his third role in this show!), and the killer rabbit.

A show highlight is “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway,” sung by Arthur, Patsy and Robin, explaining that you need Jews for a successful Broadway musical, following which there is a wild production number filled with “Fiddler on the Roof” parodies, including a bottle dance with Grails instead of bottles.

All ends with a community sing of “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life,” and chuckles continue as the audience shuffles out into the parking lot.

Jesus Christ Superstar

“Jesus Christ Superstar,” the 1970 rock opera by Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber and Sir Tim Rice, holds a special place in director Steve Isaacson’s heart. Isaacson’s Davis Musical Theater Company is now performing its third production, eight years after it was last performed.

The story is loosely based on the last week of Jesus’ life from just before the triumphant entry into Jerusalem and ending at the crucifixion. The story centers on the conflict between Jesus and Judas Iscariot, a story that is not told in the Bible.

You could not ask for a more authentic-looking Jesus than Nick Thompson (who played Judas in the 2009 production). You almost expected people in the audience to ask for his blessing.

But this is a stern, serious Jesus with little of the charisma that would show us why crowds were drawn to him. While he does not seem to have much of a change in mood, he’s at his best expressing his anguish at his upcoming suffering in the song “Gethsemane.”

Eddie Voyce is a marvelous Judas, tormented by “tormenters” Michele Stark-Burnett and Monica Parisi wherever he goes. Judas is increasingly upset that Jesus is starting to believe his own press and is getting too big for his toga.

Judas sees money spent unnecessarily that could go to the poor. He’s so upset that he goes to the Roman elite to turn Jesus in, but wants to be sure they know it’s for the best of all possible reasons:

“It’s taken me some time to work out what to do.
I weighed the whole thing out before I came to you.”

His anguish at being forced to sell his former friend for 30 pieces of silver is palpable.

A break-out performance in this production is Pablo Frias as Caiaphas. Though this is Frias’ first musical theater production, his booming basso voice and commanding presence make him the focus of any scene in which he appears.

Likewise, the old pro Gil Sebastian fully inhabits the character of Pontius Pilate, who tries so hard to get Jesus to talk, and who wants desperately to find a way to keep him from being put to death.

Rachael Sherman-Shockley, who made such an impression as Dr. Jekyll’s virtuous fiancée in “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” goes in the other direction, playing the woman of easy virtue, Mary Magdalene, who doesn’t know what to make of her attraction to this Jesus.

“I don’t see why he moves me
He’s a man. He’s just a man
And I’ve had so many men before
In very many ways
He’s just one more”

Her “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” may be the best-known of the songs from this opera and she gives it all the intensity that it needs.

Comic relief from the more serous action is offered by Quintin Casi as King Herod, dressed as a modern-day lounge singer, with scantily clad Charleston-dancing girls as back-up. It was a favorite moment in the show.

In lesser roles, Kara Wall shines as Annas; Leah Frazier, with the Anne Burrell Hair, is a strong Simon Zealotes; while Timothy Dimal gives a credible performance as Peter and Richard Kleeberg does double duty as both a priest and a Roman soldier.

The ensemble — from their opening “What’s the Buzz,” through the Palm Sunday “Hosanna,” to the “Crucifixion” finale — are all wonderful, whether apostles, followers or sick people looking for a miracle cure. Pamela Kay Lourentzos has done a marvelous job of choreography.

There are no sets to speak of, other than a few platforms on the otherwise bare stage. In fact, the only “set” piece is the crucifix at the end. The show does not demand a set but lighting designer Isaacson has created some inventive lighting designs.

DMTC once again has done Steve Isaacson proud with this latest production of “Jesus Christ Superstar.”

Jekyll and Hyde

Why should you attend the Davis Musical Theater productions?

Well, it’s not for the sets, which are often utilitarian, sometimes nonexistent. Funding is always a problem.  But when you have a cast of the caliber of the musical-horror, “Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” which opened this past weekend, who needs sets?

This may well be the very best cast I have seen in 33 years of DMTC productions.  Every single member is outstanding.“It’s Jan’s dream cast,” says Steve Isaacson, justifiably proud of his wife’s accomplishments as director for this show, described as a “gothic-pop musical.”

 J. Sing, as Jekyll could easily perform on any professional stage.  Apparently he performed with DMTC in two shows back in the 1990s and then left Davis.  That he has returned is Davis’ gain.  He plays the brilliant, but tortured Dr. Jekyll, determined to find a cure for his comatose father, lying in an insane asylum.  It is his belief that it was the evil in his father’s soul which caused his illness and if he can find a cure, a way to separate the good from the evil within a person, he can cure his father.

While every number is a stunner for Sing, “This is the Moment,” in which the scientist, his proposal to perform this experiment having been rejected by the Board of Governors, decides to do the experiment on himself is outstanding, as is his later “Confrontation,” a battle between his two personalities.

As good as Sing in, he is supported by a superb cast.

Rachael Sherman-Shockley is Jekyll’s virtuous and loyal fiancee, who doesn’t understand his obsession, but is willing to put up with anything because she loves and believes in him.  She has several wonderful duets, but none as beautiful as “In His Eyes,” sung with Lucy (Nicole King), a prostitute with a heart of gold and the only one who has seen both sides of Jekyll/Hyde.  King is amazing, a soaring voice giving full throat to “Someone Like You” and  “A New Life.” 

Richard Spierto is sir Danvers Carew, Emma’s father, who grows increasingly uncomfortable, to downright frightened at Emma’s resolve to marry Jekyll, despite evidence of his increasing mental derangement.

Scott Minor is Jeckyll’s attorney, John Utterson, who doesn’t understand what Jekyll is doing and resists some of his client’s requests because they make no sense to him.

Brian McCann also comports himself well as Rupert, Bishop of Basingstoke, another eventual victim of Hyde’s murderous rampage.

The show, by Leslie Bircusse with music by Frank Wildhorn had mixed reviews when it opened in 1997.  It was crticized for the discordant music, the loud rock sound, and “extreme vocal pyrotechnics,” but under the expert hands of director Jan Isaacson, it all comes together into an impressive, if frightening look at a man whose devotion to his father has driven himself to the point of madness.

Jean Henderson’s costume designs are appropriate, as always, but special kudos to whoever was in charge of wigs, which are amazing.

Isaacson also choreographed the show and has created some wonderful numbers.

This isn’t a light and frothy musical, but give this show a chance.  It’s one you aren’t likely to see on any other local stage, and it’s well worth it!

Legally Blonde, the Musical

Omigod, you guys! Elle Woods has finally come to the Davis Musical Theatre Company, under the direction of Jan Isaacson.

“Legally Blonde” (music and lyrics by Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin and book by Heather Hach) is as light and frothy as cotton candy — and just as pink. It has all the story of the movie with Reese Witherspoon, but without the depth. The scenes are so short (nine in the first act, eight in the second) that there is little time to get a feeling for the characters.

The songs aren’t memorable (except for the opening and recurring “Omigod, you guys”), but the cast is so enthusiastic and the dancing so infectious that you find yourself enjoying it in spite of yourself.
The story follows sorority diva Elle Woods, who came to the university to catch her man and discovers that she was only a chapter in his life. He’s going to become a famous attorney and politician and she … well … she just doesn’t fit into his view of a politician’s wife.

As he goes off to Harvard, flighty Elle does the only logical thing … she studies hard, for the first time in her life, and gets into Harvard Law too, thinking that, given time, she can win him back.
Her parents (Steve Isaacson and Dannette Vassar) are aghast. “You could have a film career out here,” her father protests. “There’s no movie studio there and the girls all have different noses.”

It’s a silly plot, but we get to watch Elle begin to think about things seriously and ultimately have more respect for herself than to want someone like the guy who ditched her.

Ernestine Balisi is the bleach-blonde, pink-clad Elle, with Mac playing her constant companion Bruiser, the Chihuahua. Last seen as Peggy Sawyer in “42nd Street,” Balisi brings the same energy and sparkle to the role of Elle. She and Bruiser work well together and neither had a misstep throughout.

Boyfriend Warner Huntington III (Jonathan Kalinen) is a real loser (to quote a current political figure) and Kalinen brings out all the worst in him until we don’t want Elle to get her man anyway!
Adriel Cruz is Professor Callahan, the womanizing hot-shot instructor who sets his sights on Elle. Cruz gave a subdued performance throughout Act 1 and it was difficult not only to understand him, but to find him all that menacing until he sings the very dark “Blood in the Water.” His performance improved in Act 2.

Mitchell Worrell-Olson is Emmett, Callahan’s teaching assistant, who takes Elle under his wing with a friendship that may grow into something deeper, as he helps her with her studies along with a study group that includes Erynn Kinch as the dark and brooding brainiac Enid.

Ashley Marie Holm makes a wonderful impression as Paulette, the cosmetician who becomes Elle’s friend, as the two of them support each other. Paulette dreams of marrying an Irishman and settling down in the suburbs (she sings the beautiful song “Ireland”). Then along comes the UPS man Kyle (Matthew Evans) to set her heart a-flutter.

Longtime Davisites may know the story of UPS delivery man Tim Spencer, for whom a downtown Davis alley is named. Evans is the epitome of Tim Spencer, in his macho-ness and his short shorts.
A real scene-stealer is Paulette’s dog, Rufus (played by Savannah), a bulldog missing teeth on one side of her mouth, leaving her tongue hanging out all the time. She was definitely a crowd-pleaser.

Rachael Sherman-Shockley plays the bitchy Vivienne with venom. Because the character changes as the show progresses, Sherman-Shockley gave a multi-layered performance and displayed a beautiful voice on “Legally Blonde Remix.”

Morgan Bartoe is Brooke Wyndham, on trial for killing her husband, defended by Callahan and his students. Brooke is an exercise guru and her exercise routine “Whipped into Shape” done with a chorus of women, each with jump ropes, is a highlight of the show. How they sing and jump and still have breath left at the end of the number is a marvel. (Choreography is by Terri Taylor.)

There is a Greek chorus of sorts, made up of Elle’s sorority sisters — Serena (Joelle La Guerra), Margot (McKinley Carlisle) and Pilar (Julia Hixon) — who become Elle’s cheering section.

The message of this musical is to be yourself and that you can be better than you think you are. And along the way, don’t forget to dress in pink!

Peter Pan

Armed with his trusty dagger, Peter Pan (Tyler Traum) leads
Wendy (Claire Quillen), Michael (Miller Traum)
and John (Isabella Giannetti) into Neverland

 The Jean Henderson Performing Arts Center was filled with children, parents and grandparents for Sunday’s matinee performance of the Davis Musical Theatre Company’s production of “Peter Pan.”
They were in for a real treat.

This “Peter Pan,” directed by Steve Isaacson, is a delight from start to finish.

Begin with the better-than-average DMTC sets, designed by Isaacson. From the lovely nursery to the two scenes in Neverland to the scary pirate ship in Act 3, the sets are not opulent, but oh so “just right” for this production.

Cynthia Krivicich has done an amazing job as choreographer. All of the child actors were spot on. In particular the “Ugh-a-Wug” dance of the Indians (which some may consider not politically correct in this day and age, but how can you do “Peter Pan” without those Indians?) was particularly impressive, with the girls as precise as the Rockettes.

New to this production are body mics, which worked flawlessly and unobtrusively. They gave just that extra oomph to young voices that sometimes can’t fill an entire theater, yet without any reverb or unnatural sound to them.

I suspect, however, that Tyler Traum (Peter Pan) didn’t really need a body mic. What a find she is. A product of Sacramento Theatre Company’s Young Professionals program, she definitely gives a professional performance as the young boy who doesn’t want to grow up.

She can convincingly be an obstreperous boy, a wistful orphan, a loving father to a group of lost boys and savior of Wendy (Claire Quillen) and Tiger Lily (McKinley Carlisle). And she flies, too.

The flying crew of Alex Hom, Mike Traum, Matthew Evans and Chris Colbourn do an excellent job of keeping their young charges in the air, using rigging designed by Isaacson.

Another outstanding job is done by Brian McCann, surely the perfect Captain Hook. From the scary pirate who is set on destroying Peter Pan to the terrified man stalked by a crocodile (Tomas Eredia in a marvelous new crocodile costume), McCann excels. He also plays the blustery Mr. Darling in the opening scenes, before his children fly off to Neverland.

Amanda Valli Spence is Mrs. Darling, a calm, serene mother whose job it is to make the house run peacefully and calmly so as not to upset her husband.

The three children — Quillen, along with Isabella Giannetti as John and Miller Traum as little Michael — do an excellent job. Quillen is particularly good.

Brittany Owings is a delightful Nana, the nursemaid dog, and Katie Smith-Induni is Liza is the Darlings’ maid, though I never did figure out how (or why) she got to and from Neverland with the children.

Kudos, too, to James Cubbage, who helped the fairy Tinker Bell flit about the stage so convincingly.
Julia Quillen and Jean Henderson comprise the costume crew and have done a great job, as always.

“Peter Pan” was the very first show that DMTC produced, 32 years ago. In fact, there is a replica of a ticket to that show printed in the program. Isaacson remembered that during Act 1 of that show, the set crew was backstage trying to finish the set for Act 3.

What a long way this treasured community theater company has come in 32 years.

How to Succeed in Business

One undeniable thing about the Davis Musical Theatre Company’s new production of the 1950s-era musical “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” is that, at nearly three hours, it is definitely long.

It is also important to remember, in the 21st century, this is a somewhat historical look at what life was like in the 1950s business world, where nobody thought anything about sexual harassment and women only worked so they could find a husband and settle down in the suburbs to raise a family and “keep dinner warm” for their hard-working husband, trying to rise to the top.

With that in mind, enjoy numbers like “Coffee Break” — what happens when everybody takes their break and there is no coffee. This is one of the better numbers in the show, and is a wonderful example of Ron Cisneros’ always-fun choreography.

There are outstanding performances in this production, directed by Steve Isaacson. Daniel Silva is wonderful as J. Pierrepont Finch, the window washer who decides to climb the corporate ladder with assistance from a 1952 self-help book by Shepard Mead. (David Holmes is the off-stage voice of Mead as he reads aloud what Finch is reading.)

Scott Minor is the perfect president of the World Wide Wickets Company, J.B. Biggley, whose overpowering presence takes charge so that you don’t even realize what a fabulous voice he has until he joins with femme fatale Hedy LaRue (Sarah Kraemer) in a beautiful duet, “Love From a Heart of Gold.”

Kraemer is a Kewpie Doll kind of escort and could easily play Adelaide in “Guys and Dolls.” Her job is to be the dumb mistress trying to find a place in Biggley’s corporation, and she does it well.
Chris Colbourn is the detestable Bud Frump, Biggley’s wife’s nephew, the worst case of nepotism. But Colbourn has made this role unique and you can’t take your eyes off of him when he tosses off one of his quips. It is a very memorable portrayal.

This is also an excellent vehicle for DMTC veteran Danette Vasser as Smitty, best friend of Rosemary (Jori Gonzales), Finch’s love interest. Vasser is also credited for lighting design and her pin spots for the angelic-faced Finch throughout the show are much fun.

As for Gonzales, she makes a lovely girlfriend for Finch, but her delivery often did not reach beyond the first two rows and it was difficult to hear a lot of dialog.

This is a surprisingly heavy dialog show, for a musical. Act 1 seems to drag a bit because of the length of time between the musical numbers, filled with dialog that may or may not be audible to the audience.
In the minor role of Miss Jones, secretary to Mr. Biggley, Chris Cay Stewart is the perfect stereotypical corporate secretary until she cuts loose during “Brotherhood of Man.”

“Brotherhood of Man” may be the best known of this musical’s numbers, written by Frank Loesser. It is the penultimate number in the show and will send the audience out with solid ear worms.

Veteran Mary Young, who sings in the chorus, is invaluable, lending her voice just a bit louder on those rare occasions when the women don’t quite hit the notes right. Like a herding dog, she gets them all back in order almost immediately, and then fades back into the chorus. It’s a marvelous bit of teamwork.

DMTC has a fun production here and it should bring lots of laughs for the audience.