Phoenix Theatre's How to Succeed in Business (Without Really Trying)
(out of 
)Mark S.P. Turvin
(home office) (602) 912-0117
I can be reached for comment via e-mail at: mspt@goldfishpublishers.com
Reviewed 9/24/99
(out of )In case you haven't heard, there were some changes at Phoenix Theatre at the end of last season and during the summer. Many have wondered how the conversion in Michael's, from Mitchell to Barnard, would affect the venerable theatre heading into it's unprecedented 79th season. This reviewer is here to say, with a big smile, that the high expectations put upon the homecoming of Michael Barnard have been answered - and how!
Leave it to the Valley showbiz vet to make his return in grand style, opening Phoenix Theatre's season with the famed 1961 musical spoof of American postwar business ethics, How to Succeed in Business (Without Really Trying). The original production, based on the satiric Shepard Mead book making light of "how-to" primers, and skewering the back-stabbing, nepotism and soulless ladder-climbing in corporate America, won the triple crown of Tony, Drama Critics Circle, and Pulitzer Prize. It also made stars of leads Robert Morse and Charles Nelson Reilly, and bolstered the career of choreographer Bob Fosse. Though mired in the early sixties, and generally considered dated with its references to metracal and secretarial dreams of an executive wife's mansion in New Rochelle, the musical contains many gems, such as "I Believe In You," "Brotherhood of Man," and the title song.
Mr. Barnard has completed a coup with crisp direction, precise choreography, and nearly flawless casting. From his choice of the sprightly Ben Brittain as the Machiavellian J. Pierpont Finch and the lovely-voiced Jeanine Pacheco as his largely-ignored love-interest, Rosemary, to his welcomed race-bending tap of the talented David Hemphill as Personnel Director Bratt, down to the multi-talented ensemble with many young, future stars, his attention to detail is impressive. Only Mr. Barnard would have the showmanship to spring two separate and wonderful surprises for casting as the unseen narrator and Chairman of the Board Wompers.
Nearly every member of the cast deserves mention for their impressive contributions. Mr. Brittain's boundless energy and unshakeable grin make him a great inheritor of Robert Morse's mantle. Ms. Pacheco is sweet, but also proves to be just as scheming as her intended future husband. Jim Linde has a great basso-profundo as he plays the pompous president, J.B. Biggley. Triple threat Robert L. Harper is hilariously smarmy as Biggley's scheming nephew, Bud Frump. Sarah K. Wolter is the perfect vamp as Biggley's knockout tootsie in the steno-pool, Hedy LaRue. Unfortunately underused, but still impressive in her solo turn during "Brotherhood of Man," Renée Morgan Brooks is wonderful. The inimitable gum-cracking, smart-as-a-tack best friend to Rosemary, Smitty, was an inevitable role for hilarious belter Michelle Gardner. Finally, in his dual roles of company man Twimble and stuffy advertising head Ovington, Beau Heckman continues his string of great performances.
Mr. Barnard's choreography, as assisted by the talented up-and-comer Darcy Rould, is impressively varied, and well-presented by leads and ensemble, with highlights being the frenetic "Coffee Break" and the mechanically-irreverent and flirtatious "A Secretary is not a Toy." Despite some occasional sour notes and hesitant cues on opening night, outstanding Musical Director Jerry Wayne Harkey still manages to bring together a lush sound from his orchestra.
Would that everything about this production were wonderful, but some slight hesitations exist in the visual and design areas. While Connie Furr's costumes are impeccably period, not quite as impressive is Gro Johre's set design, which, while workable, features a style perfectly pegged by Bud Frump as "later alphabet." Some minor problems come with Paul Black's lighting design, which leaves occasional dark spots onstage and features deficiencies with follow spots, including a big mistake that causes shadows on the face of an awkwardly balancing Mr. Brittain during the all-important "Gotta Get That Man/I Believe In You" sequence. Problems also exist with David Temby's intricate sound design, though the sheer preponderance of on-performer microphones is most likely the culprit.
Sometimes, the way that a cast and director work together floats over the footlights and becomes recognizable to the audience. It is obvious that this is a cast that has meshed as few casts do, and their obvious commitment to Mr. Barnard comes across clearly. Discussions with cast members after the opening night performance confirm this, putting Mr. Barnard up as one of the most supportive and performer-attentive directors around. If this is a sign of things to come from Phoenix Theatre, this reviewer is going to have to break out his thesaurus to reread all of his positive descriptors, an activity to which he definitely looks forward.
Production Details:
How to Succeed in Business (Without Really Trying) Music and Lyrics by Frank
Loesser, Book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock and Willie
Gilbert
Phoenix Theatre, Phoenix
(602) 254-2151
September 24th - October 10th, 1999