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Regional Reviews: St. Louis Young Frankenstein Also see Richard's review of Terms of Endearment
The unbreakable Lori Gibson provides endless attention to detail in directing a wonderful cast and crew. And there's a never-ending supply of professional-grade sets by the outstanding stage designer Todd Schaefer, with a set build crew headed by Monta Wiggin. The whole show looks great, as if this community theatre company had grown accustomed to redlining its way through one gargantuan show after another with the greatest of ease. After his scintillating hit The Producers in 2001, Mr. Brooks' songs here are mostly tolerable, at least in act one of his adaptation of the film Young Frankenstein, the 1974 classic he co-wrote with Gene Wilder. But then the half-hearted songs in act two grind us down to a state of hopelessness, save for a dazzling extrapolation of Irving Berlin's "Puttin' on the Ritz." Compared to that ten-minute, jaw-dropping extravaganza in top hats and tails, the songs (and the jokes) of the second act are just barely reanimated from the dead (and there's a prolonged sound effect in act one that readily comes to mind to describe this situation). Young Frankenstein originally ran for about fifteen months on Broadway at the Hilton Theatre (later the Lyric) beginning in 2007, with a book co-written by Thomas Meehan. The actors and singers and dancers on stage at the Florissant Performing Arts Center are a pure delight, with the inexhaustible Joell Ramsdell in a Gene Wilder-style wig and mustache as the title character. Adam Grun is perfect as his monster, and the relentless Dylan Finch makes damned sure you will laugh your goddam head off (to quote from Martha in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?) as Igor. "Live, live, live," they seem to beseech the play. And live it does, thanks to all involved. Sean Bippen is the excellent music director, with a beautifully rehearsed nine-piece band, and there is tireless, sweeping choreography by Courtney Gibson (daughter of the director), along with Livy Potthoff and McKenna Hendershott. The expensive-looking ten thousand-piece costume parade is also by the younger Ms. Gibson, backed-up by Ms. Hendershott. The wide variety of props on stage are credited to the director, along with assistant director Jackie Goodall, long-time stage veteran Michael Monsey, and Chris Hayes. And the very nice lighting projections are by Mr. Schaefer and Brian Claussen. Anna Blair is entrancing for her complexity as the mysterious Frau Blücher, getting her laughs and leading Dr. Frankenstein to a confrontation with his ancestor's dark past. Sarah Porter is scandalously great as the spoiled little rich girl, Elizabeth Benning, engaged to the young scientist (Ms. Porter is also responsible for the show's many great wigs and the monster's makeup too). And the aforementioned Courtney Gibson is every bit as splendid on stage as the yodeling Inga, the doctor's sexy lab assistant. James Waldron and Rich Dickerson are very fine as the blind hermit and Inspector Kemp. And the whole chorus coruscates with glowing precision, although I did have trouble understanding Mr. Ramsdell in his opening number at the matinee I attended (otherwise he upholds the legacy of Gene Wilder quite well). The only note I'd give to the actors is to think a little bit more about the polarities of both yearning to please and rampant egomania, in the Brooksian idiom. Overhead, the lighting by Eric Wennlund is par excellence, with a flawless sound design by Ryan Schaper. Of course, the higher up you go in the world of theatre, as The Producers will attest, the more precarious it can get. Here, the great pyramid of risk and reward seems to have been flipped on its head by the people down at the other end of the hierarchy: the people who grew up going to dance classes or music lessons or just by being the class clown. It's like they never saw any reason to give up their day jobs (theatre people never talk about their day jobs) to enjoy a rich full life upon the stage. And just like Judy Garland's Esther Smith, they must all have woken up one day and thought: I never have to leave St. Louis just to be happy. Young Frankenstein, produced by the Hawthorne Players, runs through August 2, 2026, at the Florissant Performing Arts Center, #1 James J. Eagan Drive, St. Louis MO. For tickets and information, please visit www.hawthorneplayers.com. Cast: Quartet: Ensemble: The Hawthorne Players Band: Production Staff: |
