SCHMIGADOON!

Review Celia Ipiotis

For sheer amusement, look no further than Cinco Paul’s Schmigadoon! A theater tonic, this lovingly crafted send-up of beloved American musicals is defined by some of the most hummable music from productions like Brigadoon, Carousel, Oklahoma (all choreographed by the great Agnes deMille) as well as The Sound of Music and The King and I.

Two physicians, Melissa Gimble (Sara Chase) and Josh Skinner (Alex Brightman) are joined in a stalled relationship. While on a retreat in the woods, they cross through a portal into a magical land of song and dance. Carol adores singing and dancing; Josh decidedly does not. Surprised to meet folks in a quaint town filled with gingham, dirndl dresses, and straw boater hats (costumes by Linda Cho), they drop into a web of local dramas snagged from the old musicals .

But despite the cozy, pastel-colored houses, town gazebo, shops and parks designed by Scott Pask, Carol and Josh soon learn that beneath the town’s rosy nostalgic veneer lies a sharper reality of limited options for anyone who is a women, queer or not of European descent. 

Bottom line, Christopher Gattelli’s spirited direction and choreography bring Schmigadoon! to life with infectious delight, creating whirlpools of marvelous motion.”

Adept at all forms of dance, Gattelli threads tap and jazz dance through ballet’s demanding technique. Whirlwind turns explode into gulping leaps and exciting lifts.

Rather than rely on repetitive unison dancing, Gattelli splits  the corps into pools of counterpoint. While dancers snake across the front, others circulate in the corners and then seamlessly merge into an ensemble that. references the original musical’s choreography.

Moving at a galloping pace, Schmigadoon! is bolstered by a splendid cast that includes the fastidiously funny Ana Gasteyer as the moral police, the swaggering carnival barker and stellar dancer Max Clayton, handsome Doc, Ivan Hernandez, and the zanily naive Lyrica Woodruff. They combine with the rest of the cast to bombard the audience with a spring shower of appreciation for the unendingly creative legacy of American musical theater.

EYE ON THE ARTS, NY — Celia Ipiotis

Photo Credit: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman