(out of 
)I have been an outspoken critic of the Musical Revue for as long as I've been seeing theatre. In my memory, I can only recall the barest few that have even sustained my interest, let alone truly entertained me. I freely admit that when I was approached by Connie Alderman, one of the performers in M&M Productions' musical revue, The Senior Class, I was trying to come up with excuses to avoid what I saw as another night reminiscing about songs I didn't know and dealing with the dreadfully chatty introductions to those songs. I mean, the premise of the show was a collection of senior singers and performers crooning popular songs from musicals and pop culture. How interesting could that be? Well, I have only two words to say; mea culpa!
The other times I have liked a musical revue, it was because I
knew the songs and/or I loved the performers. Producer and director
Peggy Lord Chilton, a gifted performer in her own right,
has done an excellent job collecting seven other talented singers
and putting together 42(!) generally recognizable tunes for anyone
from ten to a hundred to enjoy, all without that annoying chit-chatty
introductory material. Here, the songs and their singers succeed
or fail on their own. This production in the surprisingly roomy
Scottsdale Civic Center Library's Auditorium is not flashy or
effects-filled. They don't list any designers in the program.
It is successful in the exact ways a musical revue should be:
wonderful singers give solid performances of wonderful songs.
End of story.
There are a few problems with the production, but none that can
stop the quick-tempo or interesting renditions of songs. The biggest
problem, which isn't that big when considering the balance of
the show, is that Ms. Chilton has a collection of eight gifted
soloist singers, so that when working together, they still act
like soloists, almost eagerly attempting to grab the spotlight
during group numbers like the song "Lifelines" from
the musical A-My Name is Still Alice and "Hand Jive"
from The Will Rogers Follies. When working in smaller groups,
though, the performers and their performances generally shine.
Also, the sound system isn't the best, but most of these singers
can blast you through the back wall when they wish, so they were
often able to overcome this. Other silly, niggling problems exist,
but when you can't help smiling and tapping your foot to the wonderful
music, who's to quibble?
There were no sub-par performances given by the group. While some
performers may have had weaknesses, they were more than compensated
for by each person's individual strength, which at least one of
their solos highlighted. The best performance of the evening came
from Ms. Chilton herself, who added two wonderful songs to the
production, including a malapropped performance of the song "Cinderella,"
and an absolutely sultry and scintillating rendition of the blues-based
"The Mortgage Man." Not far behind, though, were Bass-voiced
Buddy Stein's rendition of "Just a Gigolo," Al
Coletta's lounge-lizardy but enjoyable "The Hungry Years"
as well as the smaller group numbers "Flings" with Ms.
Alderman, Ms. Chilton, and golden-throated singer Teina Heavy
Runner, and the hilarious Chicago ballad "Class,"
featuring Mary Ann Mitcham, Peggy Stanley, Sheldon
Simon and Mr. Stein.
Guiding the evening along at a brilliant pace and with wonderful
scoring was the nearly perfect pianist Jan Kittleson, whose
piano playing was all that was necessary to complement the lovely
voices.
It's nice for a critic who is cruising along, generalizing and
compartmentalizing every production while seeing three or four
shows a week, to be rudely shocked awake. The reminder that live
entertainment is never easy to pigeon-hole is one that should
be tattooed onto their writing hand. I went into The Senior
Class with absolute dread, and left floating on wings
of song, the greatest compliment to be given to a musical revue.
This production lasts only two more weeks, barring discovery of
another venue. Grab your chance, and hope that they can find that
venue and continue performing their magic.
Production Details:
The Senior Class
M&M Productions
The Scottsdale Civic Center Library Auditorium, Scottsdale
(602) 970-4282
February 5th - March 13th, 1999