June 2010 Theatre Review by Joe Stead
Chicago
Murder, greed, corruption, violence, exploitation, adultery and treachery...all those things we hold near and dear to our heart. Welcome to the world of "Chicago," the 1975 musical by John Kander, Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse that seems to be the "It" show of the moment with at least three community theatre productions currently in production in Illinois. Although it is based on two real life 1924 murder trials and the media circus surrounding them, "Chicago" just continues to gain resonance. Take a look at today's headlines if you want to see the story's relevance. America loves nothing more than a juicy scandal, and all those high profile courtroom dramas, pay for play and Chicago mafia style politics keep us mightily entertained.
The musical "Chicago" may have been a bit ahead of its time when it debuted in 1975. Director/Choreographer and co-author Bob Fosse hit on the ingenious idea of presenting each of those little vices as vaudeville pastiche numbers. The story itself came straight from the pages of the Chicago Tribune and reporter-turned-playwright Maurine Watkins, who mined theatrical and cinematic gold from her biting expose on real-life murderesses Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner, first in the play "Chicago" and its film version known as "Roxie Hart". Fosse had to wait until after Watkins' death to gain the rights to musicalize the story, and the original Broadway production of "Chicago" had a respectable but hardly record-setting run.
Flash forward 21 years to a well-timed concert style revival that managed to catch the attention of a scandal-crazed country, while the Rob Marshall film version of 2002 added even more fire to the pot. Whether the defendant is O.J. Simpson or Lorena Bobbit or Rod Blagojevich, it's still the old song and dance, which proves the point that you can buy anything or anyone in America if you have the right price. As the celebrity lawyer Billy Flynn advises his client in the show, he isn't interested in their guilt or innocence, merely if they have the $5,000 retainer to pay him. Flynn never loses a case either, because as Matron Mama Morton tells us, "In this town murder is a form of entertainment".
Perhaps that is the reason this 35 year-old show is still in such hot demand. With that 1996 revival still running on Broadway, the licensing company has generously opened up the rights to a limited market, which currently counts three companies in this web site's readership geography. And you can count on plenty more to come. The production that opened the Starlight Theatre's 44th summer season on a cold and stormy evening at the Rock Valley College in Rockford seems to have all the ingredients for a sizzling show. But somehow it just misses the mark. This version appears to have been more informed by the star-studded movie version than either Fosse's Broadway original or the stripped-down concert style revival.
There is nothing minimalist about Producer and Director Michael P. Webb production. Webb has doubled the number of "Merry Murderesses" who occupy two levels of six cleverly designed cell cages. There is a big cast to fill the expansive outdoor stage, which packs quite a visual punch in several of Webb's stage pictures, and in the first class scenic design by Andrea Bechert and costume designs by W. Alan Williams.
Garrett Cliff's sultry lighting gives the show the perfect showbiz flavor of a razzle dazzle entertainment. It has less choreographic assurance though, even with Broadway's Michael Balderrama guiding the steps. And while I am generally in favor of originality, the magic touch of Bob Fosse is distinctly missing here, and that is a serious liability. Fosse was one of Broadway's most idiosyncratic director/choreographers, and his style was as significant to his shows as the music and lyrics. Balderrama gets the job done here, but with occasionally tepid results.
Where this version of "Chicago" really shines is in the vocal department. Jill A. Morgan and Amanda Jensen in particular are powerhouse singers who are pouring their hearts and souls out up there as those scintillating sinners Velma and Roxie, respectively. The statuesque Morgan has a hard look that makes us feel her Velma has really been around the block a time or two. And Jensen has an appealing mix of innocence and sexuality that are perfectly in character for the spotlight-loving Roxie. Michael Palmenderi, Stella L. Adams and Scott Dibler are also vocal standouts here, but it's Morgan and Jensen's work that really lights up the Starlight "Chicago".
Ultimately this production is a mixed bag that is more noteworthy for its parts than the sum of the whole. Reading Webb's extensive program notes on his ten year struggle to obtain the rights to "Chicago" really makes us hope he can pull it off. And sometimes he does, although the limited rehearsal time and the limitations of the available talent speak for themselves. There are no musicians credited under Musical Director Lisa Miller, and the sound is a little thin and synthetic.
There is also a choppy disconnect feeling between the songs and the characters and some of the ribald innuendo of the lyrics was lost in the big space. Even under less than optimal circumstances though, this "Chicago" demonstrates the ambitions of this 44-year-old company. And you have to love a community college that loudly declares its support of the arts in this age of arts cutbacks and downsizing.
I can assure you one thing that is there is no scrimping going on in Rockford. "Chicago" is the first of four musicals that will play dual weekends throughout the summer on the outdoor stage. And while the Starlight does have a terrific domed roof to keep the audience dry on inclement evenings such as the one I experienced, you would be advised to bring reinforcements to protect against the cold, wind and bugs.
"Chicago" opens the 2010 season at Rock Valley College's Bengt Sjostrom Starlight Theatre in Rockford. Performances are June 2-5, 2010 at 8:00 p.m. There will also be a 2:00 p.m. matinee on Saturday, June 5. The show will return for a second run later this summer, July 7-11. For more information or for tickets, please call (815) 921-2160 or visit www.rvcstarlight.com.
About Joe Stead
Joe
Stead has enjoyed a lifelong passion for the theatre, which has
involved acting, directing, producing, designing and reviewing for
the past twenty-five years. He served as founder, producer and
Artistic Director of Curtain Up Productions in Baltimore, Maryland
and Four Star Players in Tampa, Florida. Favorite productions
have included "Life With Father," "Deathtrap,"
"The Odd Couple," "The Miracle Worker,"
"Brighton Beach Memoirs," "You're A Good Man, Charlie
Brown" and "Godspell". He has also performed
leading roles in "Fiddler on the Roof," "Pippin,"
"The Phantom of the Opera," "The Front Page," and
most recently as Hucklebee in "The Fantasticks" for
Waukegan Community Players. Joe holds a degree in Commercial
Art from Tampa Technical Institute. As a critic, he has
reviewed everything from Broadway to community theatre and major
regional theatres throughout the United States including the Kennedy
Center in Washington, D.C., Paper Mill Playhouse in New Jersey,
Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut, and the Asolo Theatre in
Sarasota, Florida.
Since 1998, he has been a proud resident of Chicago, the greatest theatre city in America. He served for two years as Theatre Editor for College News and Central Newspapers. He created the website Steadstyle Chicago in 2000 to showcase the city's outstanding and diverse theatre scene. Joe was proud to serve alongside a distinguished panel of theatre professionals as a judge for two seasons of Speaking Ring Theatre's "Vitality" Festival of original short plays. His most fulfilling role, in addition to reviewer and all-around theatre fanatic, was as director of the 2007 production of Peter Shaffer's "Equus" at Actors Workshop (now Redtwist) Theatre, which was nominated for five Joseph Jefferson Award Citations and won for Best Actor (Peter Oyloe).