Theater Work's Lucky Stiff
(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 5/15/98
(out of )TheaterWorks is continuing a trend first started earlier in the year by Theatre League. In the spirit of Personals, coming from the "before they were stars" file, is the first musical collaboration of the future authors of Anastasia and the current Broadway hit Ragtime, Lucky Stiff. As also seems to be the trend, the first work by this team is over-the-top, clever by half, and not quite as seasoned as their future works, but that doesn't stop it from being highly enjoyable.
This quirky comedy, one that never threatens to cross the line of realism, depends on wild leaps of faith and broad-stroked characters to create its charm and humor. Our romantic lead, Harry Witherspoon, begins as a forlorn shoe salesman in London. He has dreams of sandy beaches and adventures, and soon, those dreams are answered when his American casino manager Uncle Tony passes away. The previously unknown Uncle Tony of Atlantic City has left his nephew six million dollars, but there's a catch: Harry must take Uncle Tony's stuffed carcass on the trip he'd dreamed of in Monte Carlo. If he does not fulfill every requirement with the corpse, such as skydiving, scuba diving, and gambling, then the money will be left to the Universal Dog Home of Brooklyn. To be sure that every step is fulfilled, the Home has sent along the prim, uptight Annabel Glick to see that Harry does as he's told. What Harry doesn't realize is that his Uncle Tony was kinda-sorta accidentally shot by his jealous girlfriend who had helped him embezzle that money, and who is chasing Harry and Uncle Tony around Monte Carlo with her optometrist brother. And that's just the highlights of the first few scenes, it gets even crazier from there.
This show is meant to be campy, and directors Gregory Jaye and Wanda McHatton do a great job of keeping the audiences heads spinning between the breakneck action and quick-tempoed musical numbers. The evening started a bit tentatively, but as the tempo increased, so did the tightness of the production. The production is also visually interesting, a plus for this type of musical.
With the wheelchair-bound corpse of Uncle Tony, played in an impressive deadpan by Clayton Peterson, there is little to stop the Weekend at Bernies analogies, and Mr. Jaye and Ms. McHatton seem to recognize this by casting Mr. Peterson, whose resemblance to the movie's cadaver is more than a little noticeable. Rather than being an annoyance, though, this actually enhances the show a bit.
At the center of this wild, unbelievable ballyhoo is Dominik Tyszard Rebilas as the overwhelmed Harry, and Shana Bousard as the mousy Annabel. Mr. Rebilas does a wonderful job both acting and singing his role. Ms. Bousard is also wonderful singing and acting her role, and she has a solid chemistry with Mr. Rebilas. Their duet together, "Nice," is one of the many highlights of this cute and clever production.
Solid in their roles are Dina Kay as the accidental murderess, Rita La Porta, and John Hauber as her beleaguered optometrist brother, Vincent. Ms. Kay does have a tendency to ham it up just a bit, but this role is not one that requires much shading. My one major criticism of Ms. Kay was her constantly looking at the floor for her lighting marks, which was obvious throughout the show. The ensemble is also solid, and must be congratulated on their seamless myriad of costume changes. There are moments when the group is overwhelmed by the orchestra, and seem to be holding back vocally, but most of these problems happened in the first act. By the second, they were able to offer their many characters in very funny ways.
Christie McKibben's musical direction was solid, save for the occasional overpowering of the ensemble, and the 4-piece orchestra was able to make impressive music together. Robbie Harper's simple choreography was effective, and worked well with the overall pace of this frenetic show. Mr. Jaye's set design was nearly as clever as the script, using three variety show-style curtains to present the many different locations, and Clayton Peterson's lighting fitted this motif well. As always, Margret Emerson's costuming was dead on, from French Maid to Atlantic City gun moll to English punk rocker.
There's something to be said about clever. While youthful collaborations
tend to miss the big picture for the quick twist, that doesn't
stop the effectiveness of that cleverness. There are many hilarious
moments and over-the-top situations that will keep audience members
on their toes. Calling this Weekend at Bernie's, The Musical
doesn't do justice to this show, since it's much better than
the implied source material. Lucky Stiff is finally an
acceptable balance for this theatre in the shadow of a retirement
community, as it will undoubtedly be enjoyed by both Sun City
subscribers and youthful theatre goers as well.
Production Details:
Lucky Stiff Book and Lyrics by Lynne Ahrens, Music
by Stephen Flaherty
TheaterWorks, Peoria
815-7930
May 8th - May 31st, 1998