He’s so slick that folks don’t even know they’ve been had,
‘til he’s on the train fifty miles away, about to swindle the townspeople at
the next stop. He’s Harold Hill, THE MUSIC MAN, temporarily in residence
(through August 12th) at the Reagle Music Theatre—celebrating their fiftieth
anniversary this summer.
Meredith Wilson’s hit musical has won a slew of prizes,
including five Tony awards… and Reagle’s many productions over the years have
been recognized by the local critics. So how do you make this MUSIC MAN stand
out above the others we reviewers have seen at Reagle? You get Susan
Chebookjian to restage the original Broadway and film choreography and make it
look like a million bucks. Nothing can compete with a top flight chorus of
fifty professional hoofers.
Director/choreographer Chebookjian kicks up the comedy as
well as those heels—but without
stinting on the charm and romance: After all, the quintessential traveling
salesman meets his match in River
City Iowa
Jennifer Ellis’ Marion the Librarian doesn’t just “fall” in
love; she plays a willing participant, all the while keeping her petticoats
starched and proper, not an easy trick to pull off. No saccharine bookworm,
she. Ellis’ wry smile tells us that she might just enjoy the mayhem erupting on
top of the reading tables!
Reagle has music director Dan Rodriguez at the helm so you
know the singing is first rate, even from the childen (Jonathan Tillan and Cate
Galanti). Many of the performers in the secondary roles often have principal
roles in other shows, so even the smallest of gestures adds to the whole.
Reagle favorite Harold “Jerry” Walker returns in top form as the wonderfully
clueless River City Mayor. Lori L’Italien, too, scores laughs as the Mayor’s
over-enthusiastic wife. I could go on: The always willing, easily distracted
barbershop quartet… the gossiping ladies, singing counterpoint… the
spectacular, syncopated opening number: I had forgotten what a lovely,
genuinely funny show THE MUSIC MAN is. Don’t miss the train.
