Type: Musical
Recommendation: It’s worth seeing. Old timey musicals are not really my preference but this one is a classic. I haven’t seen the movie but the stranger sitting next to me in the theater said she liked the live Village Theater version better than the movie.
Negatives: The story may not be as accessible to millennial like myself (but I’m an old soul) since this is based on the 1951 movie, which is based on the “roaring 1920s.”
Story, Script, and Lyrics: The story was about traditional silent movie Hollywood stars struggling with actually having to act/speak in “talkies” (talking motion pictures). A lot of the comedy was corny, old timey, slapstick, and/or campy but I guess it was a different time back then.
Cast and Theater Company: Village Theater consistently provides quality theatrical productions and this is no exception.
- John David Scott: Really, no noteworthy comments. I did detect a lisp on a couple of lines but all around, he did well as the male lead.
- Kathy Selden: Like John, I don’t have any noteworthy comments. All around, she played a great female lead.
- Gabriel Corey: Provided much of the comic relief. Initially, I found his humor annoying but as the show progressed I warmed up to him. He was not Equity so I was pretty impressed at the quality of his performance. He was probably my favorite performer in this production.
- Jessica Skerritt: She was very difficult to assess since her character was supposed to be annoying with a shrill voice. I’m so curious how she really sings/acts/speaks for more traditional roles.
Venue and Set: The audience ended up having to watch pre-recorded video instead of live-action drama during several scenes. It was a little annoying because I paid to watch live-action drama but this was probably a necessity because of the subject matter (silent films vs “talkies”). However, I was impressed with the real water raining on the stage while the main character danced soaking wet! Kudos for that Village Theater!
Music and Audio: Like every Village Theater production, the live music and audio engineering was high quality. I’m still trying to figure out how they were able to preserve the microphones during the rain scene! Despite all this, I was a bit disappointed the actors only pretended to play the piano and violin. This was after I saw “Pump Boys and Dinettes.” But hey, you can’t be everything!
Price: $$ – Moderately Priced at $50-78 from the Village Theater Website
Dates:
- November 10 — December 31, 2016 in Issaquah, WA
- January 6 — 29, 2017 in Everett, WA
Seating: Assigned Seating
Link: http://www.villagetheatre.org/issaquah/singin-in-the-rain.php