It’s
The Musical of Musicals the Musical—one
of the happiest evenings you’ll ever spend in the theater.
This
knockout production, a composite of all the musicals you’ve ever
loved, opened at the Colony Theatre in Burbank this week. And once
again, the Colony has lived up to its well-deserved reputation as one of
the best theatre companies around. If it’s smart and classy,
sophisticated and sassy, you’ll find it at the Colony.
The
Musical of Musicals the Musical opened in New York in 2004 to wide
critical acclaim. It had its West Coast premiere at the Laguna
Playhouse last year. And now this Los Angeles premiere reunites
the Laguna players in a perfectly flawless performance. They’ve
done it before, and they got it right!
Okay,
so enough raving… What’s it about? Ostensibly about a young
woman who can’t pay her rent, about the people who come to her aid,
and how she resolves her problem. That’s the “plot”, and
it’s repeated five times. Four impeccable players present this
silly send-up as it might have been written by Rodgers and Hammerstein,
Stephen Sondheim, Jerry Herman, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Kander and Ebb.
(Almost
all of them Jewish! Do you see a pattern here?)
With
new, hilarious lyrics by Joanne Bogart and wonderful rip-off music by
Eric Rockwell, the show parodies the works of these top composers and
mimics each of their unique styles. This sort of thing has been
done before, but never as well as this!
Like
the composers, each of the performers is individually unique.
Brent Schindele, a tall blond drink of water, moves every bone in his
body when he dances. He is the love interest of Alli Mauzey, the
adorably perky young woman who can’t pay her rent. Jeffrey
Rockwell, who plays the villainous landlord, also plays the piano
throughout. And Mary Gordon Murray plays Dear Abby as the
sophisticated older woman (think Auntie Mame) who gives out ridiculous
advice.
It
would be hard to say which one of them is best. Each of them has a
wonderful voice. Each of them moves with hysterical precision.
Each of them performs riveting solo numbers. (You’ve GOT to see
Mary Gordon Murray’s send-up of that sexy baritone, Marlene Dietrich!)
But when all four of them perform together, Schindele is the one you
can’t take your eyes off of.
Pamela
Hunt, who directed and choreographed the show, is the unseen member of
this team. Her staging is impeccable; the dancing is precise.
In fact, Schindele’s leaps are so spectacular that if he ever wanted
to give up dancing he could always turn to professional basketball.
He’s definitely a slam-dunker in waiting.
Did
I mention James Morgan’s scenic design? It’s an empty stage
furnished with an upright piano. A screen in the background
introduces each new episode with an identifying “In the style of
…” And every so often the four principals drag on
matching wooden chairs that become a part of the choreography. And
that’s it. But for this show it’s definitely intelligent
design. God, yes!
If
you’ve loved the classic musicals, “Oklahoma!”, “The King and
I”, “Sweeney Todd”, “Into the Woods”, “Hello Dolly”, “Mame”,
“Evita”, “Phantom of the Opera”, “Cabaret”, “Chicago”,
they’re all here—and
many more. In fact, after you’ve seen The Musical of Musicals
The Musical you may never have to see another musical again!
But you’ll certainly want to.
“The
Musical of Musicals The Musical” runs through November 19th at the
Colony Theatre, 555 North Third Street (at Cypress) in Burbank.
Call (818) 558-7000 for tickets.
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