Stage Review: I Love You Because

I have purchased many random cast recordings of new musicals, not knowing if I'll ever get a chance to see a production of those musicals. With some of them, I only like a few numbers and don't really care to see the actual musical, but there are many of which I really want to see a full production.

I Love You Because fell into the latter category. I bought many of the songs (I love iTunes where I can be picky) when the cast recording was released in 2006, and I've wanted to see a production of it since then. When I saw Side Show, produced by Utah Repertory Theater Company a couple of months ago, I saw that I Love You Because was part of their 2013 season. I was very excited to see that not only is the new theater company doing little-known musicals, but they're doing little-known musicals that I've wanted to see for a while.

I Love You Because is loosely based on Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, very loosely. The genders have been switched; however, those who are familiar with Austen's popular novel will recognize much of Elizabeth and Darcy in Austin Bennet and Marcy Fitzwilliams. The creators of the musical said, "what remains of Pride and Prejudice is what attracted us to the story in the first place; the notion that in order to find love you must move past your preconceived notions of what love is going to be for you and embrace all of its surprises, both good and bad. Because it's easy to say, 'I love you anyway" but hard and all the more rewarding to say, 'I love you because.'"

I enjoyed the production very much. Billy Hagee and Madeline Weinberger, were perfectly cast as Austin and Marcy. Billy was great as the uptight, constant tie-wearing Austin, and Madeline had perfect comic timing as Marcy. Their immediate dislike for each other was believable, as was their gradual change of heart.

Brandon Roach played Austin's older brother, Jeff. There is not much of "Jane Bennet" in Jeff Bennet. He just seems like a little boy who wants to "play." You wouldn't even believe he was Austin's "older" brother if he didn't actually make that point in the show. The two brothers are very different, but Brandon's Jeff was extremely likable, and he had some great moments. Jordan Hall played Marcy's best friend, Diana Bingley. She also did a good job. Her first number, "The Actuary Song," which explains mathematically how long you should wait to get back into the dating pool after a serious breakup, was extremely funny.

The vocal abilities of entire cast were excellent. The only criticism I have with the music was that the live band (which was also very good) overpowered the singers quite a lot.

The supporting cast was good. However, I felt like some of the comical characterizations were a bit over-the-top and weren't in harmony with the comedy style of the rest of the show. I would like to have seen new and unique characterizations instead of the stereo-types they presented.

I was very happy to see a good production of a musical that I've wanted to see for a while, and I look forward to seeing what else Utah Repertory Theater Company will be producing in the future. The next production in their season I'm excited to see is Frank Wildhorn's Bonnie & Clyde. I know it wasn't well received on Broadway, but it's a very interesting story to make into a musical, and I'm curious to see it. I hope I enjoy it as much as I Love You Because.

Since my first introduction to I Love You Because was the music, I will end this post with one of my favorite songs, "But I Do," from the original Off-Broadway production. Enjoy!

Stage Review: Side Show

The musical, Side Show, opened on Broadway in 1997. It starred Emily Skinner and Alice Ripley as Daisy and Violet Hilton, conjoined twins who were stage performers in the 1930s. Although it only ran for 91 performances, it earned Emily and Alice a joint Tony Award nomination, the first time two performers had been nominated together for a Tony Award. It was fitting due to the nature of their performances.

I bought the cast recording to the musical soon after it opened, and I love the score. Emily and Alice's performances of the songs are wonderful. I have always wanted to see the musical, but since it didn't run very long, I thought the chances of anyone producing it in Utah were quite slim. I'm so glad that I was wrong. I was excited to see the production, especially after I learned that two actors from the production of The Drowsy Chaperone I was in two years ago, Angela Jeffries and Taylor Eliason had leading roles in the musical. It's a small musical theatre world.

Side Show is the premiere production for the new Utah Repertory Theater Company. This musical will either soar or flop depending on the actors portraying Daisy and Violet. Fortunately for us, Adrien Swenson and Angela Jeffries, who play the leading roles, are excellent. It's easy to overlook some of the weaker elements in the production when you're listening to these two women sing. They both have powerhouse voices, and together they sound even stronger. Not only did they sing the roles well, but their acting matched their vocals. Angela played Violet with an innocent sweetness, and Adrien played Daisy with a quiet inner strength.

Other stand-out performances included Taylor Eliason as Buddy and Cooper Howell as Jake. Some of the stand-out numbers were "The Devil You Know" (although I think the tempo could have been slowed down a bit - I felt it was too rushed), "When I'm By Your Side," "Who Will Love Me As I Am," " One Plus One Equals Three," and "I Will Never Leave You."

One of the biggest disappointments I had with the production was the very end of the show. The musical starts in a Freak show on a midway where Daisy and Violet have been one of the side show's biggest audience draws. The other freaks sing to the audience "Come look at the freaks." At the end the song is reprised, and as they sing the words, "come look at the freaks," the ensemble comes onstage as modern-day people whom some might consider as "freaks" today. These include an old woman, a homeless man, a "cutter," a blind girl, a deaf girl, two gay couples (male and female), a goth, a girl with lots of piercings on her face, etc. I was terribly disappointed that the director decided to call call them "freaks." I'm sure he was trying to make the point that many people do look on these groups as "freaks," but I thought it was in bad taste. I would have rather he had them all come out looking like themselves, in everyday clothes, and bring out the point that all of us are "freaks" in our own way, or that there really aren't any "freaks," just people.