Studio Theatre's
current show is "A Chorus Line", the 1976 winner of Tony
Award for Best Musical, Best Book and the Pulitzer Prize for
Drama. It is a musical based on the lives and experiences of
Broadway dancers. Original director/choreographer Michael
Bennett wanted to do a show with the spotlight on the class
of performers known as the gypsies. The action takes place
in an empty theatre, on a bare stage, where the casting for
a new Broadway musical is almost complete. For 17 dancers it
is a chance of a lifetime. It's the one opportunity to do
what they have always dreamed of, not to be the star but to
get a job, to have the chance to dance. Through a series of
interviews, from funny to heartbreaking, it ushers the
audience into the lives of these dancers until the final 8
are chosen. The original show opened on April 15, 1975 and
ran 6,137 performances, closing on April 28,
1990. Director Roger Machado Fournier creates a topnotch
version of this show with his talented cast, the fabulous
musical direction of Eli Bigelow and the energetic and
fantastic choreography of Jen Bellanti. They create a
terrific musical treat for Massachusetts audiences to savor.
This version of the
show is performed without an intermission and it flows along
beautifully. From the opening montage to the final kick
line, the wonderful choreography comes forth one number
after the other. Jen does a super job with this hard working
cast. Roger blocks the show wonderfully especially Paul's
monologue where he has him moving around the stage instead
of standing still. He makes the most of the comic
moments with some of the one liners supplied by an
uncredited Neil Simon as well as the comic songs "Dance 10"
and "Sing". However it is his skill with the dramatic
moments that stand out especially the confrontation between
Zach and Cassie which is riddled with tension, leaving you
breathless at its impact. Also the gut wrenching,
heartbreaking and stunning monologue by Paul finally being
accepted by his father, and the emotionally draining "What I
Did For Love" sequence that tugs at your heartstrings,
giving the show its poignant backbone to fully satisfy the
audience. Eli not only leads his 6 piece orchestra but plays
the lead keyboards for it, too. The whole orchestra is one
of the best I have ever heard do this show especially
impressive is the percussionist and trumpet. (I think Eli's
whole family made up four of the instruments in it.) The
harmonies of the chorus, the solos, duets and trios are
lovely to listen to. Hard working stage manager John
Nunes keeps things running smoothly all night long.
This talented cast is
lead by Jeff Belanger as Zach, the director/choreographer of
the show within a show. His physical presence onstage with
the dancers and his strict omnipresent control of them, is
topnotch as are his confrontation scene with Cassie and his
consolation scene with Paul. Jeff handles the dramatic and
comic scenes beautifully. Jen not only choreographs the show
but plays Cassie wonderfully. Cassie is Zach's former
girlfriend and he can't understand why she wants to return
to the chorus line after 10 years. Zach confronts her about
it and Cassie explains her motives in "The Music and The
Mirror". The number shows off Jen's excellent dancing
skills. Her standout acting moment comes when she stands up
to Zach during the first version of "One". Ali Angelone, a
fantastic dancer plays Zach's assistant choreographer in
this show beautifully. (I first reviewed Ali 10 years ago
when she played the little red haired girl in Charlie Brown
at RIC.) Jennifer Morin is wonderful as Diana. Her acting is
marvelous and her terrific voice sells "Nothing" the comic
song about Mr. Carp her awful improvisation teacher and the
emotional anthem of his show, "What I Did for Love". which
leaves the audience in tears. The harmonic blend of the
chorus soars with her in this number. Alexander Cruz is
dynamic as Paul. He is a student at RIC and will be
appearing Pippin there.) He is not only an excellent dancer
but his voice is tops in "Who am I Anyway?". He also
delivers the heartbreaking monologue about being molested at
the movies, eventually becoming a drag queen in the Jewel
Box Theatre where Paul is seen by his parents on closing
night and is finally accepted by his father when he tells
them to take care of his son. When he starts to cry, the
audience cries right along with him, winning him applause at
the close of the scene.
Bill Lavasseur does a
fantastic job as Mike with the opening solo number called "I
Can Do That" where he performs a soft shoe dance. Mike
explains how he took his sister's shows to dance class one
day and became the dancer in the family after that. One of
the most comical performers in this show is Pamela Morgan as
Sheila, the bitchy 30 year old diva. I reviewed Pam last
August as Mishkin in "Fools") She has some of Neil Simon's
best biting and cutting one liners, making them all hit pay
dirt. Pam also uses this sultry voice in her singing, too.
She, Erin Cote as Maggie and Stacy Tinkham as Bebe sing the
touching number "At The Ballet" which tells about their
tough family life while growing up and how they escaped from
it at ballet class. Both also show off their soprano voices
in this song. Another hilarious role is Val played by 16
year old Taylor DeMoranville who sings and dances up a storm
in her tits and ass number called "Dance 10, Looks 3". Her
strong belting voice soars out to the audience and her
character's colorful language garners much laughter, too.
The married couple Al and Kristine are well played by Marc
Paul Jaillet and Maeve Donnelly. Their song "Sing" is where
the audience learns that Kristine can't sing so Al sings all
her answers. Other comic roles include Bobby played by Eric
Pereira who tells anecdotes about spray painting a friend
silver and breaking into people's houses to rearrange their
furniture, Greg played by Seth Paul Goulart who changed his
name because he is Jewish and went through puberty with a
hard on, Judy played by Dustyn Houde who is a bubbly red
head who loses her number at the start of the show , Mark
who is played by Corey Santos, tells a funny story about
thinking he had gonorrhea when he had a wet dream when he
was 13.One of the strongest tenor voices in the show
belongs to Robin Weldon as Richie, the basketball playing
teacher-to-be. His voice soars off the charts in his section
of "Hello, 12" (I last reviewed Robin as Gaston in "Beauty
and the Beast last May) and the shortest member of the
line Connie played by Carissa Frazier. Alex
Leite is the married dancer who tells a funny story about a
strip club with Lola, a stripper with big boobs. The cut
dancers do a great job in the show, too. Kudos to everyone
for making this a show to be very proud of.
A
CHORUS LINE ( 5 to 7 March, 2010)
THE STUDIO THEATRE COMPANY, Durfee High School Auditorium,
Elsbree St. Fall River,MA
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