I have been looking forward to finally seeing this musical created by the famed musical duo, Kander & Ebb for a very long time; with book by Rupert Holmes ("The Mystery of Edwin Drood"). I was not disappointed. What a fun musical tribute to the backstage musicals of the 30's & 40's. Kander & Ebb ("Cabaret," "Chicago"), always deliver and this show is no exception. By the time the solution was revealed in this murder mystery musical, I was in stitches. Awesome ending to an awesome piece of musical theater.
Kathryn Laycock Little, as always, has guided this production done by SCERA's high school acting team, Acting Up, like a master. She is a wonderful director & musical director, and, she has really inspired these kids to excellence in this production. A few of the kids cast in older adult roles brought a pleasantly surprising maturity to their performances and it was inspiring to watch.
Brodee Ripple's choreography was top notch and was a really nice throw back to the golden age of musicals. Shawn Mortensen's set design was so simple it really helped to transport the audience back in time. Kudos to the entire design team for a job well done.
The entire cast was incredible. This is an incredibly complex piece, Kander & Ebb usually are, & they all handled it like pro's. Three of the major adult characters, Georgia (Samantha Thomson), Aaron Fox (Samuel Benson) and Carmen Bernstein (Tali Farmer) were all fantastic, bringing a maturity to those roles rarely seen in high school age actor's. Kudos to all three of them.
Bobby Pepper (Austin Bigelow) was equally fun to watch in every scene. He brought great energy and depth to his character. Elizabeth Sherman (Niki Harmin) also brought a lot of fun to her character and I was rooting for her the entire show. The director, Christopher Bellony (Zac Thom) was so much fun to watch; a great example of a small role standing out because of a gifted actor's dedication and professionalism. Kudos to Zac. Speaking of small standout roles, many kudos go out to the very talented Harper McGee as the conductor Sasha. Harper delivered a wonderfully fun performance that stood out tremendously. Another great example of a small role being delivered by a true pro and committed artist. Kudos to Harper for a job well done.
Finally, the awesome Dresden Holden Means as the detective, Lt. Frank Cioffi. He entranced me and from the very first moment he appeared on stage, his characters' love for all things theatre was sincere and never wandered into melodrama. Kudos to the wonderful talent of Dresden. He was so much fun to watch and he made his character incredibly likeable.
Job well done to SCERA's Acting Up for a fun and enjoyable evening of theatre!
