Thank you, Crystal!

©The San Luis Obispo Tribune
May 2, 2003


Gershwins gone 'Crazy'
Packed with impressive dancing,
PCPA's old-style musical is a comedic winner
By Joan Crowder
Special To The Tribune

Broadway comes to Santa Maria in PCPA Theaterfest's rollicking
"Crazy For You". The familiar tunes are by George and Ira
Gershwin, the comdy is silly and often hilarious, and the
dancing is dynamite. Director/choreographer Eric Hoit deserves
top billing for this high-energy musical comedy, along with
co-choreographer Valerie Rachelle, because the dancing is what
drives the show.

No matter how good the choreographers are, they have to have the
dancers who can make their vision a reality. Guest artist Michael
Gruber fits the bill. This veteran of Broadway ("A Chorus Line",
"Cats", and "Miss Saigon", among many others) is a hoofer in the
style of Gene Kelly. He's adept at both fast, precision tap and
graceful, soaring solos. His voice is strong as he sings favorite
Gershwin songs, such as "They Can't Take That Away From Me".

Gruber plays Bobby Child, a reluctant banker and a wannabe New
York dancer who goes to Deadrock, NV, to foreclose on a theater,
falls in love with country girl Polly Baker and, in disguise,
produces a show to save the theater. That's the plot in a nutshell,
and it's pretty nutty. This is an old-fashioned musical comedy,
with the thread of a story merely a device to string together
romantic songs and blockbuster production numbers.

Melinda Ann Parrett, another guest actor and a PCPA graduate,
plays Polly. She is also a fine dancer, and she has a beautiful
singing voice.

Familiar PCPA actors once again demonstrate their versatility
in secondary roles. David Studwell is a crack-up as Broadway
producer Bela Zengler, and Kathleen Mary Mulligan takes a comic
turn as a surprising vamp. The comedy is corny most of the time
with jokey repartee, but there are many moments and comic
numbers that elicit howls of laughter from the audience.

The company of dancers is amazing. It's a rare treat to see
this kind of old-fashioned Broadway-style dancing.

So where did this "new" old musical, with Gershwin music,
come from?

It's very loosely based on "Girl Crazy", a 1930 show filled with
jokes that would not only be silly but offensive today. With
permission from the Gershwin estate to use songs from other
Gershwin musicals, playwright Ken Ludwig and director Mike
Ockrent created "Crazy For You", which opened on Broadway
in 1992.

Among the songs from "Girl Crazy" they used are such classics
as "Embraceable You", "But Not For Me" and "I Got Rhythm".
To these, they added 13 other Gershwin songs to create a
song-and-dance extravaganza.

The PCPA production is backed by a full orchestra, conducted by
Kevin Robison. The creative lighting and the company's coloreful
and clever costumes enhance the dance numbers.Judith A.
Ryerson is costume designer, Angeline Summers-Marvel is
lighting designer, and Dave Nofsinger is scenic designer.

Joan Crowder is a freelance writer and critic.


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