The National Touring Company of "Moulin Rouge!" Is a Wonderfully Wild, Flashy, Seductive Musical Spectacle

 

By James V. Ruocco

(Now on tour through September 1, 2024)

There's much to admire about the National Touring Company of "Moulin Rouge!" the Tony Award-winning musical based on Baz Luhrmann's hypnotic, wildly energetic 2002 motion picture that starred Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor draped in technicolor madness, offset by catchy jukebox music choices, splashy colors, styles and genres and sumptuous Parisian backdrops that cried "Paris est pour les amoureux, à la fois romantiques et condamnés." 

So, let us begin.
On stage, the dazzling, artistic nightclub district of 19th century Montmartre sparkles with rich Bohemian allure, entrapment and intoxication.
The thick, vintage layers of fabric draped around the sets and backdrops glitter with dusty artist twinkle, flavor and French atmospheric influence.
The musical's big "Moulin Rouge!" sign - bathed in shiny, red, seductive lights that heat up every now and then - is a jaw-dropping sight to behold that casts its spell upon welcoming theatergoers as they take their seats, row by row, in the vast audience space before them.
Derek McLane's atmospheric set design is spectacle worthy with dreamlike dashes of fantasy, blaze, sexiness and shimmer.
Catherine Zuber's enticing costume design enhances the story's romantic tale of love and doom with couture specificity and refinement.
As Christian, Christian Douglas is appropriately dreamy as the romantic leading man of the "Moulin Rouge!" musical narrative.
In the role of Satine, the doomed, consumption-ridden heroine of the "Moulin Rouge!" fairy tale, Gabrielle McClinton, is so fiery, sensual and enticing, the seductive beauty and presence of her confident characterization radiates throughout the entire theatrical venue.

But first, let's backtrack.
As musical theatre, "Moulin Rouge!" flashes and shines with crazed, brilliantly timed execution, nostalgia and flamboyance. There's plenty of money, talent, energy, pyrotechnics and color to burn, making it "a hot ticket" for pretty much every single theatergoer in the audience - gay, straight, non-binary, transgender, confused or not-too-sure - willing to succumb to a glorious, hypnotic sound-and-sight show that never once fails to titillate, entertain or work one up into an emotional lather that lingers long after the musical has ended and the cast unite as one for their final curtain calls.
It's obvious to everyone that no expense has been spared - the show has cost millions to replicate on tour - to create this lavish, lush, immersive extravagance.
Unfortunately, the reworked book by John Logan, a playwright who tweaks parts of the original story for Broadway-inspired onslaught, debauchery and madness, often flatlines, if only fleetingly, as does certain dialogue and uninspired story arcs that interrupt the musical's push-and pull fantasia and giddyap.
Regardless, the musical's recognizable pop tunes and delightfully pumped-up staging and choreography thrust "Moulin Rouge!" back into the spotlight with enough oomph and splash to camouflage its paper-thin, age-old plot contrivances. 

As scripted by Logan, "Moulin Rouge!" replays the story of Christian, a handsome, destitute bohemian songwriter from Ohio who finds himself in the throes of the resplendent, late 19th century Moulin Rouge district of Paris where he falls immediately in love with Satine, a beautiful courtesan and nightclub star coveted by the very wealthy Duke of Monroth who has earmarked the sultry enchantress as the pièce de résistance in his gallery of paramours unaware of her love for Christan, her intended deception, her fatal illness or secret pact with the club owners to use the Duke's social position and wealth to save the Montmartre-based cabaret from financial ruin.

The heart and soul of "Moulin Rouge!" however, comes from its glittering array of jukebox songs, which, upon glancing back, were one of the key components of the 2002 motion picture. Mixing important elements from Hollywood movie musicals and popular Broadway musicals alongside opera (mainly Puccini's "La Boheme"), vaudeville and supper club entertainment, Luhrmann's pastiche of songs, lyrics, melodies and formats lent themselves nicely to the story and the film's vintage 19th century Parisian backdrop.

Shifting the action from screen to stage, Logan and the show's collaborators have quadrupled the musical's playlist of popular songs and showstoppers - much to the delight of everyone on stage and in the audience - with full blown numbers, mash ups, lyrical teases, love songs, duets, character spins, ensemble turns, cabaret leaps, inserts, snippets, vocal dramaturgy, remixes and outrageous, giant leaps of faith that reflect the beaming, dazzling backdrop of Montmartre and its pivotal, revolutionary players to full-on excitement, enticement and exhibition.
This flash-bang-whiplash-wallop of musicality and bohemian ideals comes gift wrapped with energy-induced offerings famously originated by the likes of Lady Gaga, Police, Madonna, OutKast, Pink, Beyonce, Marilyn Monroe, Adele, Gnarls Barkley, Britney Spears, Soft Cell, The Eurythmics, Rihanna, White Stripes, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Sia, Walk the Moon, Katy Perry, Rick Astley, Shirley Bassey, Lorde, T- Rex, The Beatles, No Doubt, Tina Turner and Dolly Parton, among others.
It's a concept of bold moves and musical cards that pumps the already adrenaline-fueled "Moulin Rouge!" into applause worthy proportions of interpretive specificity, gorgeous encores, lustful preening and parading and head-on, note-perfect directness and embracement.
Getting top placement are "Diamonds Are Forever," "Bad Romance," "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend," "Children of the Revolution," "Sympathy for the Devil," "The Sound of Music," "So Fresh, So Clean," "Lady Marmalade," "Royals," "We Are Young," "Material Girl," "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," "Firework," "Toxic," "Come What May," "Seven Nation Army," "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)," "Shut Up and Dance,"  "Tainted Love," "Roxanne," "Chandelier," Rolling in the Deep," "Crazy," "Never Gonna Give You Up," "Every Breath You Take," "All You Need is Love," "Don't Speak," "What's Love Got to Do With It?" and "I Will Always Love You."
The pleasure that comes from hearing one song hit after another is credited to musical director Andrew Graham, a talented musician whose expressive depth, showmanship and intuitive rattle and roar fills "Moulin Rouge!" with a proud musical glow that is both joyous and luminous, mixed lovingly with achievement, shimmer, delivery and agenda. It's a truthful, silvery collaboration of orchestral showpieces, melodies and morsels that prompt immediate attention to the storytelling, its snap and sparkle, its romantic anticipation and its tinges of fantasia, chaos and rapture. Sonya Taveh's snappy, effective, significant choreography heightens the excitement with extravagant dance entertainment reflective of movie musicals, concerts, MTV videos and big, glossy Broadway productions.

Staging "Moulin Rouge!" director Alex Timbers ("Beetlejuice," "Here Lies Love," "Guttenberg! The Musical!") crafts an event-worthy pop musical that immerses its audience in the bacchanalian splendor and fantasy of the narrative, its storied Paris setting, its bohemian clientele, its navigated schtick and its playful mix of humor, reflection, sentiment, deceit and seduction. The script's subsequent lack of character and emotion occasionally knocks Timbers off his creative box from time to time, but he quickly moves past these odd, one-note interruptions with colorful choices, expressions and intentions that thrust "Moulin Rouge!" back into orbit with balance, feeling and anchored composition. He also has the pleasure of working with a cast of watchable, talented performers - principals, supporting players, ensemble - who bring plenty of heart, soul and spectacle to the piece and its curated, proven list of one hit pop song after the other.

In the lead role of Satine, the beautiful cabaret star and courtesan of the Moulin Rouge nightclub who is forced to seduce the wealthy Duke of Monroth to keep the Parisian venue from going bankrupt, Gabrielle McClinton dominates the musical with a tour-de-force performance of independence, glitter, sensuality and star power that reaches out far beyond the theater's proscenium wall to taunt, entice and arouse every heterosexual male in the audience willing to succumb to her to hypnotic allure, charm and beauty as both theatergoer and voyeur. 
Throughout the production, she never once loses touch with the emotion, thrill and heartbreak of the piece or the fact that her character, who will eventually die of consumption before the musical's big mega mix finish, is part of a tragic fairy tale of which there is no escape or happy ending. Her romantic entanglement with the handsome Christian explodes with real warmth and trigger as does her many musical numbers that dominate the stage with an MTV bravura that is seamlessly integrated with a nightclub feel and aura reminiscent of Paris in the 1890's and the concert-going thrill of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s all rolled into one. Vocally, she brings a standout voice and snap to the stage, mixed with sass, buzz, vintage burlesque and three-ring circus bounce and flair.

As Christian, the struggling young artist and composer who comes to Paris to escape his stifling life in America, the boyish and dreamy Christian Douglas is the perfect fit for the part of the justifiably innocent songwriter and composer from America who wanders into the bohemian, red-light district world of the Moulin Rouge and falls instantly in love with Satine, the club's diamant scintillant à l’état brut.
Like his glamourous leading lady, Douglas plays his role with both enthusiasm, sway and pop tune magic, resulting in a polished, magnetic performance of energy and sexiness that leaves you saying, "Aaron, who?" 
He's focused. He's confident. He's charming. He's committed. He's sweet. He's lost in the moment. He's genuine. He's the real deal.
Vocally, his flair for musical theatre is a happy explosion of balance, appreciation and confetti, laced with shine, purpose, inspiration and concept. He quickly transports his audience into another world and dimension - part fantasy, part glamour, part time travel - naturally fulfilling the musical's sensory exhilaration, flamboyance and groove. It's in his eyes. It's in his smile. It's in his movements. It's in his voice. It's in his expressions.

Robert Petkoff, in the pivotal, scene-stealing role of Harold Zidler, the welcoming ringleader, owner and emcee of the decadent and inviting Moulin Rouge nightclub, delivers a dazzling, delicious, ridiculously entertaining performance that commands your attention whenever he's onstage. He has great fun with the role, investing it with the thrill and spill the part call calls, but making it very much his own.

"Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" - An Homage to the Legendary Singer Like No Other

By James V. Ruocco
(Now on tour through August 4, 2024) 

It's an experience you're not likely to forget anytime soon.

"As long as I have people's attention, I can't stop. You can't put the public on hold, because they might not be there when you get back."

(Tina Turner)

Never have more truer words been spoken.

Watching the thrilling, megawatt-ignited National Touring edition of "Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" connect with pretty much every single person in the audience is just one of the many joys of this hypnotic British musical which, originally, got its start in London's West End back in 2018 and debuted on Broadway one year later only to be suspended in March 2020 by the COVID 19 pandemic and resume New York performances in October 2021.

Five years later - now on tour and still playing in London at the Aldwych Theatre - the spotlight continues to shine on Tina Turner with no chance of slowing down anytime soon.

"Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" thrives on that very notion.
As musical theatre, it's in a class by itself.

The production itself draws you in with seductive, brilliantly formulated theatricality. 
It's moving. It's emotional. It's uplifting. It's heartfelt.
The music solidifies the range, dynamic and emotion of the story.
The staging surges with electricity and impassioned explosion.
The concert vibe created night-after-night before an excited, appreciative crowd erupts with confidence, rush and impressive conclusion.
Everyone - principals, supporting cast members, ensemble - is exactly right for the roles they are asked to portray.
The entire production is a masterclass in musical theatre.
It is also executive produced by Tina Turner herself and her current husband Erwin Bach.
She wouldn't have it any other way.

Music, heartache, violence, domestic abuse, parental abandonment, prejudice, bad career choices, first love, waiting for the big break, touring, pop chart dominance, following your heart, crossing over - all that and more is part of the music legend's story.

Trying to make sense of it all, writers Katori Hall, Kees Prins and Frank Ketelaar fill the two-act musical with useful, challenging and interesting fragments from the singer's life that adapt nicely to the show's page-turning musical format.

It's all here: her early childhood years as Anna-Mae Bullock; her marriage to the hot-headed, abusive, womanizing Ike Turner; the birth of two sons, one of whom was the result of a romantic fling with a musician other than Ike; traveling the R&B and soul circuit in the mid-1960s; achieving moderate success in Europe during the 1970s but not in America; ending her marriage to Ike Turner; building a career with Australian record producer Roger Davies by her side; her pursuit of rock music; meeting music executive Erwin Bach who after 27 years of courtship became her husband; the European release of "Let's Stay Together" and "Private Dancer;" the recording of her first #1 single "What's Love Got to Do with It?" a song she absolutely hated to perform; her major comeback at the 1985 Grammy Awards.
Highs and lows aside, "Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" also comes replete with grim, not-so-pretty reminders about what it meant to be a black recording artist in the 1960's, from prejudiced commentary from white business executives to being denied hotel accommodations because of skin color or being subjected to the frequent use of the N-word. It's all inked and dotted accordingly with details, truths, observations and upsetting, hurtful moments interspersed between the production's vast, important musical numbers.

Billed as a "jukebox biographical musical," "Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" features song hits from the singer's own repertoire mixed with popular songs from the decades to portray her early childhood years in Tennessee and beyond to her eventual rise to stardom as music legend and award-winning rock star.
The songs - eclectic, driven, dynamic, exhilarating - give the story its pulse, set up and shout out, making everything that happens feel relevant and important to the accessible, traveling narrative.
They are (in order of performance): "Etherland -Sound of Mystic Law," "Nutbush City Limits," "Don't Turn Around," "Shake a Tail Feather," "The Hunter," "Rocket 88/ Matchbox," "She Made My Blood Run Cold," "It's Gonna Work Out Fine," "A Fool in Love," "Let's Stay Together," "Better Be Good to Me," "I Want to Take You Higher," "River Deep Mountain High," "Be Tender with Me Baby," "Proud Mary," "I Don't Wanna Fight," "Private Dancer," "Disco Inferno," "Open Arms," "I Can't Stand the Rain," "Tonight," "What's Love Got to Do with It?" "Don't Turn Around (reprise)," "We Don't Need Another Hero," "(Simply) The Best," "Finale: Nutbush City Limits (reprise), "Proud Mary (reprise)."

Flowing together with cemented revolution, liberation and major-key uplift, the songs themselves are assured and fitful, paraded in grand fashion and retreat, thus, fueling and complementing the legend herself and her complicated, sharpened, full-force musical biography. Music director/conductor Anne Shuttleworth ("Les Misérables," "Miss Saigon," "Jesus Christ Superstar") brings rhythmic extremity, flux and punch to the musical score, adapting a free-flowing, exhilarating orchestral style that befits the production's concert-like aura, its nostalgia undercurrents, its jukebox sound and its flavorful beats and percussions.
The conducting itself - bright, attractive, upbeat - keeps the musical afloat for its almost three-hour running time, all of which is fleshed and flung out with tremendous commitment, line and achievement. Vocally, the cast is in fine voice under Shuttleworth's tutelage giving rise to an epic musical journey of great style, tone and tremendous vocal energy.

The National Touring edition of "Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" is helmed by British-born Phyllida Lloyd who directed both the original London and Broadway incarnations of the popular musical. No stranger to theatre, her directorial achievements include "Mamma Mia!" "La Boheme," "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie," "The Duchess of Malfi" and "Mary Stuart." Here, she crafts a pungent, consistent musical concert and biography that duly captures the persona of Tina Turner herself, her music, her private life, her success and her refusal to give up even when the cards were completely stacked against her.
The action, the story, the music, the mood swings and the shifting of scenery (the atmospheric set design by Mark Thompson is magnificent) is seamlessly kicked into gear by Lloyd whose staging style and technique complement the proceedings, its thematic flow, its passages of time and place, its live performance vibe, its biographical concept and the high-voltage mini concert at the end of Act II that gets everyone lathered up for the big finish and the standing ovation that quickly follows. It's everything you'd expect from a musical of this caliber and so much more.

Zurin Villanueva, the dynamic actress-singer who shares the lead role of Tina Turner with Ari Groover, channels the music legend's energy, song style, leggy persona and rangy wickedness with such superstar confidence and bravura, the real Turner would surely applaud her performance and participation in this production. As both actress and singer, she is persuasive and emotional, intuitively rising to the demands of the role musically and physically. She not only carries the show, but with a voice and range much like Tina Turner herself, she is truly magnificent.
Handsome, charismatic and completely in touch with his suave, leading man looks, Garrett Turner eases into the part of Turner's manipulative, abusive singer/husband with seriousness, rage, centeredness and chauvinistic standpoint. It's an important role and one he plays to the hilt, showing both the good and bad side of his character, his attraction to women and his need to be the center of attention regardless of the consequences.
Other standout performances are delivered by Ayvah Johnson as Young Anna-Mae, Roz White as Zelma, Lael Van Keuren as Rhonda, Parris Lewis as Alline, Carla R. Stewart as Gran Georgeanna and Max Falls as Erwin Bach.

As musicals go, "Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" is a showstopper of incident, emotion, excitement and roar. 
It's a great theatrical experience. The story is grounded in reality. It matches the energy of the iconic diva it celebrates. The music sizzles and zigzags through the decades. The performances are hot and steamy. And for those who buy a ticket, the payoff is boundless with jackpot proportions.

"Six The Musical" (Aragon Tour) - Is A Cynical, Pop-Fueled, Royal Celebration Times Six

 

By James V. Ruocco

(Now on Tour through July 26, 2024)

"What hurts more than a broken heart?" asks Jane Seymour, the third wife of Henry VIII.

"A severed head," chimes Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII who was beheaded on May 19, 1536, at London's Tower Green for adultery, incest and high treason.

No history lesson, here, as Henry VIII had six wives.
Who were the other four?
Catherine of Aragon. Anna of Cleves. Katherine Howard. Catherine Parr.
How did they die?
Who did what to whom?
Was it love that captivated Henry?
Or was he just looking for someone to bed, wed and give him the next heir (or heirs) to the throne? 

In "Six the Musical," all confusion as to who came first, who died, who survived and who lost their head is cleared up immediately with references to the popular British "Henry VIII Wives' Rhyme."

"Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived."

It's a fun fact - and one of the many - that keeps the slick and sassy "Six the Musical" spinning and turning front, center and sideways in all its spangly Renaissance glory for a full 80 minutes of crafty, ballsy and snarky entertainment that gets the pulses racing, the adrenaline flowing, the hands clapping and pretty much anything else you can toss into the mix.

This is theatre.
Smart.
Sparkly.
Speedy.
Sexy.
Strong.

Fueled by contemporary-styled pop music designed for the music industry's diva-of-the-moment experience, this musical showcase for Henry's perturbed, pissed off, often forgotten royal rejects, "Six The Musical" not only tends to set the record straight with fictionalized star turns - think rock concert - but gives voice to six very different women who time remembers mostly as the wives of Henry VIII and very little else.

As written by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, the musical wisely opts for a modern telling of the lives of Henry VIII's wives set against the backdrop of a pop concert that becomes a competition of sorts.

Who suffered the most?
Who has the best story?
Who should become queen?
Who is the true winner?

With the groundwork laid, Marlow and Moss bring plenty of girl-squad power and imagination to their story, interspersed with juicy and playful tidbits about divorce, beheadings, miscarriages, church reformation, childbirth, sexual intercourse and the size of husband Henry's penis. What follows is a detailed, class-ridden investigation that morphs into absolute, sheer fun with biting commentary and deliciously wicked notoriety that never once disappoints or stops the action dead in its tracks.
Here, you get finite jest, cynical voice, targeted observation, marvelous stand-alone quotes and well-orchestrated moments that cut straight to the heart of the juicy drama between the six main female characters.

Musically, "Six The Musical" is told through 13 songs, which navigate the dynamic and rhythmic thrust of the score with distinct, impressive individuality, vamp and acoustic clarity. They are: "Ex-Wives," "Ex-Wives (reprise)," "No Way," "The One You've Been Waiting For," "Don't Lose Your Head," "Heart of Stone," "Haus of Holbein," "Get Down," All You Wanna Do," "I Don't Need Your Love," "I Don't Need Your Love (Remix)," "Six" and "The Megasix (Encore)."
Guided with a sure hand by Marlow and Moss, who wrote both the music and the lyrics, each of the musical numbers is well balanced and immaculately shaped, imbuing song styles and lyrics perfectly in sync with the story, its sarcasm, its irony, its fight for the spotlight, its strongness and its pop diva luster. The onstage band, aptly titled "The Ladies in Waiting" (Jo Ann Daughtery (conductor/keyboard), Janetta Goines (bass), Rose Laguana (guitars) and Paige Durr (drums), heighten that sensation with eschewed distinction, boom, flush and flow that smartly reflects the concert vibe and punch intended by the show's creators. It's affecting. It's splendid. It's telling. It's diverse.

Staging "Six the Musical," co-directors Lucy Moss and Jamie Armitage create a perfectly proportioned, emotionally connected production of contrast and tempo that intrigues, delights and overwhelms with its whip smart blend of pop-fueled concert staging and atmospheric crescendo. It's rave and illusion, all rolled into one, offset by individual, animated moments of high-rendered, intricate blocking and staging techniques that change course from moment to moment and song to song. This directorial conceit is sustained throughout the production, and is nicely paired with the dance moves, patterns and synchronized beats and rhythms created by choreographer Carrie-Anne Ingrouille. Since no two numbers are alike, the end result is both splendid and beautifully expressed with masterful subtlety, form, position and invention.

 "Six The Musical" stars Khaila Wilcoxon as Catherine of Aragon, Storm Lever as Anne Boleyn, Jasmine Forsberg as Jane Seymour, Olivia Donalson as Anna of Cleves, Didi Romero as Katherine Howard and Gabriela Carrillo as Catherine Parr.
As the ex-wives of Henry VIII, each actress takes center stage with big, joyful, colorful interpretations that unfold with jolts of energy, charm, sexiness and whipped out diva power. Make no mistake, these women are ready to rock the Queendom, engage in Tudor wordplay, spill the dirt, shake you up and tell their story in liberated, intoxicating Broadway style.
They snark. They amuse. They sneer. They sing. They dance. They excite. They hypnotize.
They work as a team. They support one another. They reenact the spirit of sisterhood. They unite as one.
Musically, every one of their vocals and ensemble numbers are performed with absolute pulse and feeling, ignited by soul, heart, emotion and sincerity. It's the real deal - flawless, magical, feisty and bloody well brilliant.

A musical celebration of the highest order, "Six The Musical" is a colorful, explosive, confident work about six very cool, very outspoken queens who join together as one to sing, dance, chat and converse over royal history in glorious Tudor finery that complement and define their shout-out, volatile, pop-drenched musical stories.
It's front-row-center fun mixed happily with roar, glee and amped up messages of in-your-face feminism that glide across the stage in steamy, high-voltage Technicolor.
It tilts. It snaps. It seduces. It charms. It excites. It beckons.
It's kiss-ass entertainment - 21st century girl power recalling 500 years of British historical heartache and trauma - where the energy never falters, the spell is never broken and the concert vibe it creates lingers long after the six queens disappear into the darkness as the music swells.

"Tootsie" is Sheer, Guilt-Free Fun Rife with Laughter, Star Turns, Romantic Giddiness and Sheer, Non-Stop Energy

 By James V. Ruocco

A man in drag?

The horror?

Not really.

A struggling male actor pretending to be a woman in order to get a part in a brand-new Broadway musical?

O.K.

Bring it on!

(Now on Tour through June 25, 2023)

"Tootsie," the giddy, candy-coated musical adaptation of the popular 1982 movie that starred Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange and Terri Garr comes to the stage with such a nostalgic, unstoppable mindset, the very idea of a straight male putting on a dress and masquerading as a woman with a full-on Equity card membership is jiggered happily to perfection with the gait, twirl, spin and luster of bygone Broadway- and then some.
As musical theatre, its gender-bending plotline is easy to digest or swallow, if you prefer, because it's really all in good fun - i.e., designed solely for entertainment purposes and nothing more.

And just in case you missed it on Broadway back in 2019 at the Marquis Theatre, the National Tour and its fleet of big, important city-to-city venues - grand and glorious with mammoth proscenium stages and sound systems like no other - is the perfect place to enjoy it just the way it was meant to seen when it first played New York four years ago and received 11 Tony Award nominations including Best Musical and won two - Best Performance by a Leading Actor and Best Book of a Musical.

The National Tour on the road through late June 2023 - and perhaps even longer - abounds with giggles galore - in both style and content - mixed and stirred with considered update, emotion, thought and man-in-a-dress hysteria.
The sets, designed by David Rockwell and flanked by breathtaking views of New York City's skylines, are slick, colorful and ingeniously atmospheric.
William Ivy Long's costume design - modern day, Renaissance and 1950's-like Balenciaga - is smart, savvy and specified couture.
The lighting palate, the brainchild of Don Holder, recalls the old-fashioned Broadway musical when Gwen Verdon, Jerry Orbach, Carol Channing and Angela Lansbury were center stage. It is beautiful to the eye and framed with direct, definite narrative inspiration.

Transferring "Tootsie" from screen to stage, playwright Robert Horn gives "the man dressing up as a woman to land an important role" concept a wise, well-fueled update by moving the story from the set of a television soap opera to the rehearsal hall of a brand, new Broadway musical in progress. This, in turn, allows for lots of candor, sarcasm, wit and plenty of inside jokes aimed at actors, producers, auditions, rehearsals, leading ladies, casting directors, writers, backers, reality stars, etc. 
It's a topic Horn knows inside out (he also won the Tony for Best Book of a Musical) and one that produces laughs in all the right places.
Almost everything is pretty much fact based - no surprise there - as Horn turns up the heat on the Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels story while layering the many "Tootsie" subplots with acidic and outrageous banter guaranteed to piss off members of the Broadway theatre world and its snarky, double-talking elite.

Musically, "Tootsie" is set afire with music and lyrics by acclaimed composer David Yasbeck whose Broadway credits include "The Full Monty," "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown" and "The Band's Visit." Here, he creates a variety of accessible, pleasant-sounding musical numbers that propel the action forward with rapt equality, signature and melody. They are: "Opening Number," "Whaddya Do," "What's Gonna Happen," "Whaddya Do (reprise)," "I Won't Let You Down," "I'm Alive," "There Was John," "I Like What She's Doing," "Who Are You?" "What's Gonna Happen (reprise)," "Unstoppable," "Jeff Sums It Up," "Gone, Gone, Gone," "Who Are You? (reprise)," "This Thing," "Whaddya Do (reprise)," "The Most Important Night of My Life," "Talk to Me Dorothy," "Arrivederci!" "What's Gonna Happen (reprise)" and "Thank You/Talk to Me Dorothy (reprise)."
The score itself - sweet, hummable and pleasant-sounding show music - is lighthearted and family-friendly - filled to the brim with snappy vocals and ensemble numbers that happily portray the musical's innate sense of comedy, its character-driven renaissance, its channeled charm and its faultless giddyap. At the same time, it's not in the same league as "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" or "The Band's Visit." It's also not something you'd be rushing off to buy from amazon.com anytime soon. It is what it is and that's entirely o.k. Music supervisor Dean Sharenow captures the romantic symphonism of it all with drive, energy, sound and lyrical directness.

Staging "Tootsie," director David Solomon, working from a blueprint of the original Broadway direction by Scott Ellis, is wholeheartedly committed to the musical's standard recipe for success - pure laughter; fun storyline; entertaining accompaniment. For the National Tour edition of the two-act musical, he brings flair, opportunity and eyebrow raise to the piece, punctuated by peppy pacing, swoony melodrama, laugh-a-minute giggling and crafty intoxication. He makes great use of the ensemble - one of the best groups of performers out there - who play a variety of different roles while doubling most effectively as the scene change crew. Also effective is Denis Jones' Broadway style choreography, which, in this go-round, peaks and sizzles with uniformed, undeniable chemistry by every single performer on stage.

"Tootsie" stars Drew Becker as Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels, Ashley Alexandra as Julie Nichols, Payton Reilly as Sandy Lester, Matthew Rella as Max Van Horn, Jared David Michael Grant as Jeff Slater and Adam Du Plessis as Ron Carlisle.

In the dual role of Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels, Drew Becker brings the right comedic style to the musical, which, in turn, prompts hilarious laughter in all the right places. He has such great fun in the role, it's easy to get swept up in the Michael/Dorothy story and everything it has to offer. Ashley Alexandra, who plays Julie, the romantic leady lady of the new Broadway musical "Juliet's Curse" and the love interest of Michael/Dorothy, is a standout both vocally and acting wise.  As Sandy, Michael's angst-ridden, girlish friend who can't seem to get an acting gig, Payton Reilly's neurotic persona and line delivery is right on point as is her splendid delivery of "What's Gonna Happen," a hilariously written and replayed patter song that paints her obvious neuroses in full-fledged, giggly, manic mania.
Max Van Horn, a young, handsome, dumber-than-dumb reality star with a hot body he continually shows off by dropping his shirt multiple times, Matthew Rella not only stops the show with "This Thing," a full-on, big comic number, but comes to "Tootsie" with a natural, raw energy that makes his studly character stand out every time he's on stage. As Michael's roommate Jeff Slater, Jared David Michael Grant hams it up with perfectly synched deadpan delivery and shading that's well worth watching and cheering.