The Booth Tarkington CivicTheatre audience that saw a preview of “The Drowsy Chaperone” as part of a gala celebration on Thursday evening not only witnessed history but also experienced community theater at its ultimate best.
The fact is, however, that the quality of the production was such that if you didn’t know otherwise, you would think you were watching a completely professional performance.
The audience members who filled the 500-seat theater paid $150 a ticket for cocktails and hors d'oeuvres, followed by the show and a dessert/champagne reception. “The Drowsy Chaperone” opens tonight for the general public and continues through Sept. 24.
This inaugural production occurred at the Civic Theatre’s new home in the Tarkington Theater at Carmel’s Center for the Performing Arts. The Tony-winning musical comedy is the first show of Civic’s 2011-12 season.
Opening on Broadway in 2006, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” billed as a “musical within a comedy,” is essentially a valentine to musicals of the Jazz Age. The story revolves around the show’s narrator (Man in the Chair - Paul Hansen), an obsessed musical theater fan who isolates himself in his lonely apartment. Bringing him comfort is a fictional 1928 musical that he proceeds to play on a turntable for the audience at the beginning of the show.
What follows is the glitzy musical itself, which springs to life in the man’s living room – instantly transporting the audience into the Morosco Theatre where the show played.
It’s a story about Janet Van De Graaf (Julia Bonnett), a showgirl who decides to give up her stage career to marry Robert Martin (Nathaniel Welch), an oil tycoon. Thwarted by her producer Mr. Feldzeig (Tom Beeler) and struggling with doubts about her fiancé, she eventually finds her way to the altar but not before undergoing the shenanigans of a cast of wacky characters who both help and hinder her. Though thoroughly caught up in the show, the narrator can’t help but constantly opine and comment about it throughout.
Considering that Ron Morgan, director and choreographer of the production, himself once performed on the Great White Way, it is no wonder that this show had the polish and precision of Broadway production. It was a masterful directorial triumph.
Adding to the show’s luster was the large, multi-talented cast of performers. Consisting of many of Indianapolis’ finest and best-known community theater actors, members of this ensemble proved that just because a performer is considered “avocational” doesn’t mean that performer cannot entertain like a pro.
Hansen made the most out of a script chock full of deliciously clever, witty dialogue. He was simply marvelous as the mellow yet sharp-tongued narrator, whose knowledge of musical theater is encyclopedic. Playing a man who dulls his inner pain by escaping into fantasy – Hansen turned in a performance that was well modulated and full of nuance.
Bonnett, winner of the Michael Feinstein Foundation’s 2009 Great American Songbook High School Academy and Competition, gave a Broadway-caliber performance as Janet. Deftly capturing the broad theatrical style of the period, which now translates into pure camp comedy, the lean and leggy Bonnett was pure perfection. Nowhere does she show off her vocal, dramatic and comedic skills better than in “Show Off,” which showcases her character’s self-absorbed vanity.
Welch, as Janet’s wholesome, sincere, yet somewhat clueless fiancé Robert, was delightful in the tap-dance number “Cold Feets,” with his character’s driven best man, George, ably played by Anthony Snitker.
Without a doubt, each and every supporting player in this highly energetic cast playing stock characters gave knockout performances. Their participation made for a show – an hour and 40 minutes, with no intermission - filled with highlights.
Chief among them was “As We Stumble Along,” featuring the sensational Natalie Cruz as a grand dame of the stage, playing Janet’s alcoholic (thus the “Drowsy” in the show’s title) chaperone.
Another was “I Am Adolpho,” during which Adolpho, a stereotypical Latin lover played hilariously by Ian Cruz (real-life husband to Natalie), seduces the chaperone, thinking it’s Janet, whose wedding he is hired to sabotage.
Popular local actor Tom Beeler as Janet’s unscrupulous producer, Feldzeig, along with two gangsters disguised as pastry chefs, played by Vincent Accetturo and Craig Underwood were outstanding. They were joined by the entire company singing and dancing to the infectious “Toledo Surprise.”
Other distinctive performances included those of Karen Frye as Kitty, a dimwitted blonde chorine, Vickie Cornelius Phipps as Mrs.Tottendale the forgetful matriarch, Mark Fishback as Underling, a stoic butler, and Susan Smith as the Aviatrix, who serves as the musical’s deus ex machina.
Showcasing the venue’s state-of-the-art capabilities were the show’s technical elements, which contributed to the first-rate look and sound of a show that is slick and polished.
Those responsible for its execution include Ryan Koharchik, lighting design; David Gallo, scene design; Jean Engstrom, costume design; Michael J. Lasley, sound design; and Debbie L. Williams, hair and wig design.
Leading the show’s superb 16-piece orchestra and cast from his brand-new pit in the Tarkington was conductor and music director Brent J. Marty, making a strong contribution to this show’s big-time feel and sound.
For tickets and information about “The Drowsy Chaperone,” now playing at Tarkington Theater at The Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel, call the Booth Tarkington Civic Theatre at (317) 924-6770 or visit www.civictheatre.org.
