The second show of Reagle Player's 38th season is "Thoroughly Modern
Millie". The show takes place in 1922 and is the story of a small-town girl
from Kansas who follows her dreams to New York City, where she finds
romance, adventure and above all fun. This musical which won six Tony Awards
in 2002, displays the excitement and exuberance of the Jazz Age with its
fantastic 1920's music and breathtaking dances of that era. Directors Frank
Roberts and Troy Magino who also is the choreographer, chose the best
performers to fill each of these larger than life characters, bringing them
to excel in their acting and dancing while Rick Scalese, the musical
director brings out the best in all their musical numbers. Producer Robert
Eagle also spares no expense in all the costumes and scenery, providing the
audience with a musical masterpiece in this fabulous presentation.
Frank and Troy bring out the acting prowess of the cast in this show to
make it a perfect balance with singing and dancing. Troy's dance numbers and
their execution by this cast is topnotch. The different styles of dances
include the Charleston, tap dance, jazz and a typewriter dance and the
precision in each of them is wonderful to behold. Jeffrey Leonard conducts
the orchestra who compliments the vocalists with their musical excellence
all night long. The multitude of gorgeous 1920's costumes are by Martin
Pakledinaz and the New York backdrops and other set pieces are by James
Fouchard. Technical director Lori Baruch keeps the scenes flowing constantly
all night long while stage manager Karen Parlato keeps the performers on
their toes during all their scenes.
Eden Riegel, an Emmy Award winning actress for ALL MY CHILDREN, plays the
title role of Millie Dillmount who is like Sweet Charity trying to find love
in the wrong places. According to Cosmo magazine, a modern 1922 girl needs
to set her sights on a rich boss and marry him. Eden, a beautiful 25 year
old brunette is a triple threat performer who acts, sings and dances up a
storm for an appreciative audience. She captures the essence of a small-town
girl who is overwhelmed by New York but who eventually conquers it. Eden's
voice is magnificent as she grows from shy Kansas girl into the confident
heroine at the close of the show. Her songs include "Not For the Life of
Me" about not returning to Kansas, "Thoroughly Modern Millie" where she
leads the chorus as she transforms herself into a flapper, complete with
short skirt and bobbed hair, and the gorgeous ballad "Jimmy" where she
realizes the man she has been pursuing is the wrong man for her and Jimmy is
the man for her. Eden's best number is "Gimme Gimmie", a Judy Garland type
number which builds into fabulous intensity which will definitely knock your
socks off and shows off her strong belting voice. She also shows her tender
side in the duet "I Turned the Corner" and Rodgers and Hart's "I'm Falling
in Love with Someone" quartet number with all four voices singing
perfectly. Eden's dancing prowess is shown in the title number, in "The
Nuttycracker Suite" while they are in a speakeasy and in one of the best
dance numbers "Forget About the Boy" which is a comic tap dance number with
the girls. Brava on capturing the vulnerability of this character and
charming the Reagle audience with a regal performance by Eden Riegel.
Andy McLeavey plays Jimmy Smith who Millie forces to help her on her
first day in NYC after she gets mugged. Jimmy hides a secret which the
audience learns about later in the show after he realizes he must give up is
playboy ways after falling in love with Millie. Andy's fantastic tenor voice
soars in the beautiful ballad "I Turned the Corner", the quartet "Falling in
Love with Someone" and in "What Do I Need with Love" which is done from a
jail cell but he is able to open the cell door and perform a dance segment
during it. Andy shows off his dancing skills in not only that song but in
"Nuttycracker Suite" and in the finale of the show. This role shows off his
vocal range having seem him perform as Gaston, a bass/baritone range and his
upper register is as powerful as his lower one. Janelle Robinson plays the
extremely wealthy, Muzzy Van Hossmere, the toast of New York. She gets to
show off her powerful singing voice in her first song, a bluesy number
called "Only in New York" and in her second number "Long As I'm Here with
You", she dances up a storm with her chorus boys. Muzzy imparts words of
wisdom to Millie, giving the show a poignant moment but Janelle is a hoot
when Muzzy disguises herself with blond curls to play an orphan to break up
a white slaver gang. Edward Watts plays Millie's very handsome and rich
boss, Trevor Graydon. He tests her typing skills in "The Speed Test" which
is an updated version of "Modern Major General" by Arthur Sullivan. ( The
chorus tap dances during it doing a time step while dressed in black outfits
with orange stripes.) Edward's strong baritone voice is also heard in "Ah,
Sweet Mystery of Life" and in "I'm Falling In Love with Someone". He is very
funny as the stuffed shirt, pompous man who loosens up in a funny dance when
he meets his true love, Miss Dorothy played by Siobhaun Maus. She is
hilarious as the rich, naive girl who wants to be poor. She wears a Shirley
Temple type of strawberry blonde wig and her gorgeous soprano voice soars
in her duets with Edward, in the quartet number and in "How the Other Half
Lives" with Eden.
The biggest scene stealer in this show is Maryann Zschau as Mrs. Meers, a
disguised Chinese landlady of Hotel Priscilla who is really an ex-con and
white slave trader. Her Chinese accent is a hoot and her crazy and wild
antics fit this over the top character perfectly. Her first song, "They
Don't Know" reveals her true character to the audience where she tells them
she is the best actress in the world. Her second number is Maqin done with
her two Chinese sidekicks. There is a video screen which translates the
"Mammy" lyrics as well as all the Chinese dialogue, too. Maryann is splendid
as the villain of the show. Arthur Kwan as Ching Ho who has a secret crush
on Miss Dorothy and Sage Park as his brother, Bun Foo have some funny
moments while speaking Chinese and running errands for the dragon lady who
has promised to bring their mother to them from China. Another wonderful
character in the show is Miss Flannery, Trevor's office manager played by
Ellen Peterson. She wears a bright red wig, spouts funny one liners and gets
to tap dance with the girls in "Forget About the Boy". Kudos to a fantastic
singing and dancing chorus to this show, too. So for a trip back to the
carefree and fun filled 1920's, be sure to catch "Thoroughly Modern Millie"
at the Reagle Players. Tell them Tony sent you to see a Broadway style show
right here in MA.
THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE ( 19 -23 July, 2006)
Reagle Players, Waltham High School, 617 Lexington Street, Waltham, MA
1 (781) 891-5600 or
www.reagleplayers.com
