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Les Sindle
of
Backstage West
Gilbert and Sullivan purists will need to get over it:
The world of 19th century British operetta has gone topsy-turvy. Two gay-themed takes on vintage G & S opuses (2001's PINAFORE! and the recent DUEL) have premiered locally, and two tongue-in-cheek swing versions of THE MIKADO (SWING MIKADO and HOT MIKADO) date back to 1939. Musical Theatre West is presenting the Southern California premiere of a 1986 revision of HOT MIKADO (music and lyrics by David Bell, adapted and arranged by Rob Bowman) that premiered in Washington, D.C. Director/actor LaParee W. Young, who performed in that production and who helms this one, brings an invigorating artistic sensibility to the local civic light opera scene--a welcome breath of fresh air in a field overrun with retreads. The result is the most joyously entertaining Musical Theatre West production in years--possibly the group's finest offering to date.
Judging
from some Internet photographs of the Washington production, Young sticks
closely to the original vision of Bell, who directed that 1986 premiere.
The dazzling Japanese-styled set (uncredited) is a class act, and under
Steven Young's sumptuous lighting effects it's a Technicolor dream. Todd
K. Proto's stylish array of 1940s costumes offers a breathtaking rainbow
of fluorescent hues. Yes, we're speaking of 1940, not 1884. The main running
gag in this anachronistic and color-blind staging is that the story takes
place in Japan, as originally, yet is filled to the brim with World War
IIÐera trappings--most importantly a toe-tapping, rafter-shaking score encompassing
blues, swing, gospel, and jazz. Upon receiving an official document, one
character remarks, "I can't read this. It's written in Japanese. Oh, that's
right, we are Japanese." And so goes the inspired goofiness that never slips
over the line into vapidity. The G & S original was infused with themes
of Victorian-era class struggles, offering a zany sendup of bureaucratic
lunacy. So shifting the time period yet again doesn't violate the spirit
of the original; indeed it is ingenious reinvention--Guys and Dolls meets
Sayonara meets classic G & S.
The
polish of the opening night performance surpassed all previous MTW efforts
I've seen. The ribald humor was infallibly on target, the characterizations
were rock solid, and the singing and dancing were exquisitely rendered,
thanks to the sterling efforts of musical director Lloyd Cooper and choreographer
Sean McKnight. As the beleaguered protagonist, Nanki-Poo, who desperately
wants to marry Yum-Yum (delightfully played by Jennifer Shelton), David
Burnham is riotously funny, endearing, and a master at physical comedy.
In two choice comic roles, Jamie Torcellini is uproarious as Ko-Ko, the
executioner, delivering a deadpan comic portrayal reminiscent of Phil Silvers
in his prime, and Carol Dennis sings as splendidly as she acts as a ball-busting
red-hot mama who would be best avoided in a dark alley. The divine doo-wop
trio of Shelton, Candice Oden, and Staci M. Wilson channels the Andrews
Sisters, and LaParee W. Young is in top form as Pooh-Bah, jack-of-allÐgovernment
jobs and master of none. "Hot" is the operative word in this smashing endeavor,
an early contender for musical of the year.
2/25/04
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