A Sidmummer Night's Dream: The Musical: The Review

OK, so N.O. and I viewed Forky's show on Tuesday night, and what a fine night for it! Nice cool breeze and a big, happy crowd. Here's my capsule review. I know you've all been waiting with bated breath.

The best way I can think of to describe this show is that it's like a bag of Skittles. Colorful, fun, fruity candy. Shakespeare purists need not attend--there are a lot of liberties taken with this work. In a way, I think that's what makes it fun. It's more inspired by AMND than it is a production of it. The costumes are lots of fun, the pace is fast (but not too fast), and the overall spirit is very lighthearted. Rene Moreno's direction is, unsurprisingly, quite good.

Forky's performance is, of course, fantastic--and this is a very Puck-centric production. Forky's Puck is a cross between David Bowie and the Emcee from Cabaret. He really did a great job of keeping the show moving along, and constantly kept the energy level very high. He sang his solos very well and with apparent confidence, and did a great job "selling" what were not great songs. I know he has been slightly worried about all those solos, but I don't see why--they sounded terrific. I know what you're thinking, "You're biased, as you are Forky's friend and the president of his unofficial fanclub (JFUFC members, unite!)." And, you have a point. Still, I think even totally unbiased observers will agree with me on these points.

And now, of course, something must be said of the abs. They were truly a sight to behold. Indeed, at times it seemed that they were the real star of the show. (Forky's costume is little more than a pair of tiny white pants and a smile.) For long-time friends, this effect is slightly disconcerting, like when Ned Flanders takes off his shirt. But, to be sure, all the hard work and compulsive behavior has paid off; the abs are truly inspiring. That said, Forky, when the show is over, I would like to feed you a big plate of cookies--you look hungry!

The rest of the performances ranged from workable to terrific. There weren't any big disappointments in the cast, though there were some odd choices. The oddest was the direction they took Bottom (in this production, "Nick Bottom, the lawn guy"). He had a truly outrageous Mexican accent. I have no problem with this as a whole, but it was so over-the-top, it made his lines pretty hard to understand. When he turned into an ass and developed donkey teeth and an accompanying lisp, I couldn't understand anything he said, and had to resort to playing the scene from memory in my head. Oh, and in said "ass" scenes, he wore a truly disturbing costume, which some have rightly compared to Nacho Libre. It was pretty funny, but I'm glad I wasn't sitting in the front during the high kicks!

Fellow Alma Mater U. grad Steve Walters was a standout as a geeky Lysander in "Where's Waldo" stripes and glasses. His understanding of the material was evident, his choices strong, and his voice particularly suited to this type of music. Another standout was the girl who played Helena (sorry, too lazy to look up her name!)--she did a great job capturing the self-effacing humor of the character and had the only truly catchy number in the show, a very cute song in the first act.

Of course, I need not tell you that Denise Lee was terrific as Titania. Her singing rocked just as hard as her Diana Ross wig, and her stage presence is really impressive. Oberon did indeed pale in comparison, but hey--what are you gonna do?

The main problem I had with the show is that the direction and performances were largely better than the material. (I don't mean they're better than Shakespeare's play, I mean they were better than this particular musical.) In my opinion, the music is not anything to write home about. It has aged rather badly and there are few numbers that are catchy or memorable. Several of them are positively unmelodic. And, for the sake of brevity and music, quite a bit is either rushed or completely cut from the play. In some instances it might leave someone who is unfamiliar with the play scratching his head and going, "How did that guy grow donkey ears again?" One other issue is that the sound guy did nobody any favors. I don't know much about sound technology, and I'm sure it's really hard to get things right outdoors, but everybody in the cast suffered from--well, I can only say, the sound was thin and tinny where it should have been full. Strangely, I really noticed this with Denise--she has those gorgeous low notes and you could barely hear them at all.

On the whole, it was a fun, if slightly frivolous, evening of "Shakespeare Lite." Like I said, a sweet bag of Skittles to end a summer evening. I think children and families will particularly like the show, and it is a great introduction to Shakespeare for the uninitiated. Thumbs up!