Reviewed by Joe Blenkle /
Sacramento
Stage & Theatre
Maria
Eberline as Lucy Harris and Mike McGowan as Edward Hyde in the 2007
Music Circus premiere production of JEKYLL & HYDE at the Wells
Fargo Pavilion. Photo by Charr
Crail.
For
those of you who don't know, JEKYLL & HYDE is the tale of a
scientist named Henry Jekyll who is seeking a cure for his father who
is locked away in an insane asylum. Experimenting on himself, he
unleashes his evil side in the persona of Edward Hyde, resulting in a
tragic love story for Henry and his beloved Emma Carew.
JEKYLL
& HYDE last appeared in Sacramento at the Community Center Theatre
when the pre-Broadway tour rolled into town for the 1995-96 Broadway
Series.
This
musical made such an impact on me that I still remember every scene,
every word, and every note to every song.
Of course, endlessly playing the soundtrack, day-in
and day-out, didn't hurt, but that production of JEKYLL & HYDE - to
me - marked what musical theater was all about.
The latest incarnation of JEKYLL & HYDE is
playing at the Sacramento Music Circus through Aug. 26. I went into
Tuesday's opening night knowing the production wouldn't be the same as
what I remembered over a decade ago, but I had high hopes that it would
be equally as enjoyable and promised myself to keep an open mind as the
show moved from the big stage to Music Circus' smaller
stage-in-the-round.
This version of JEKYLL & HYDE stars Mike McGowan
as Dr. Henry Jekyll/Edward Hyde, Maria Eberline as Lucy Harris, and Liz
Pearce as Emma Carew. That's one difference I still have trouble
getting used to. Pre-Broadway, it was Lisa Carew. But it was decided to
change it to Emma so as to not confuse the two female leads - Lisa and
Lucy.
While the supporting cast was great, it was the
three main characters the audience fell in love with and the trio
received a well-deserved ovation at the end of the production.
If your musical memories don't date back to the
pre-Broadway stop in Sacramento, this production of JEKYLL & HYDE
was outstanding. But as I am cursed with my memories of the other show,
it fell a little flat for me. Still enjoyable - but it had huge shoes
to fill. The song arrangements seemed a little slow and not as dynamic
as the pre-Broadway tour. I often found myself having to listen to a
song for 15-20 seconds before finally recognizing what it was and then
I felt little passion in the singing, music or words. I don't
think this was the fault of the actors, but rather how this version of
the musical was arranged. Go to Amazon.Com
and listen to some of the clips from the"Jekyll & Hyde - The
Gothic Musical Thriller (1994 Concept Cast CD)" and you'll see what I
mean. In my opinion, this two-CD set is by far the best JEKYLL
& HYDE recording out there.
That aside, JEKYLL & HYDE has some of the best
songs found in a musical. "This is the Moment," "Facade,"
"Alive!," "Murder, Murder," "Once Upon A Dream," "It's A Dangerous
Game," and "A New Life" are only a few of the wonderful songs found in
this musical and the are an integral part of the storytelling of JEKYLL
& HYDE.
McGowan excelled in "Confrontation," where the
character of Jekyll has an inner battle with the evil Hyde, as both try
to gain dominance. Eberline has some of the best songs as Lucy,
especially "Someone Like You," "A New Life," and a duet with Pearce
(Emma) in "In His Eyes." Pearce's talents really came out in "Once Upon
A Dream," arguably one of the best songs in the show.
The soundtrack recording for JEKYLL & HYDE is a
must as you'll want to re-live the music over and over.
One disappointment in the show, however, was the
toned-down violence in the production. Face it, Hyde is a madman and a
violent person. His persona is meant to shock you and that's what it
did in the pre-Broadway tour. In one scene (pre-Broadway), he
takes out a knife
and slashes Lucy's throat - complete with blood. Everyone in the
audience gasped and literally cringed in their seats - myself included.
As that scene approached Tuesday night, I found myself feeling uneasy,
but the murder was handled in a toned down fashion - as were all the
Hyde-induced deaths in the show. Hyde went through the motions and then
extracted a red scarf from Lucy (or his other victims). This was meant
to signify their blood and their death.
The only true moment of violence that shocked the
crowd was a convincing slap of Lucy by the character Simon Stride
(Peter Reardon), drawing some gasps from those in attendance.
Was this JEKYLL & HYDE as good as the
pre-Broadway tour? No (to me, at least). Is it still worth seeing?
Definitely yes. It's a different production and a different cast.
My expectations of the show were tainted by a decade old memory, but I
can still recognize that this JEKYLL & HYDE tells the same story
only in a slightly different fashion. The obsession, tragic love
story, and wonderful music are all still there. But it's just hard to
top that one outstanding night so long ago. This one won't disappoint you, however.
JEKYLL & HYDE continues at Music Circus through
Aug.
16. Tickets for JEKYLL & HYDE and all other
Music Circus
shows are currently on sale
at the Wells
Fargo Pavilion Box Office at 1419 H Street, Sacramento, by phone at
(916) 557-1999.Tickets are also available on line
at www.SacramentoMusicCircus.com.
The 2007 Music Circus season will conclude
with 1776 (August 29 – September 2).
