#1
Posted: 8/27/13 at 1:17pm
I had the good fortune to recently see two productions of Hello, Dolly! The first was at the Cape Cod Playhouse in Dennis, Massachusetts, starring Beth Leavel (Tony winner for The Drowsy Chaperone) which has now closed.
The second was in East Haddam, Connecticut at the Goodspeed Opera House, starring Klea Blackhurst. It's running through Sept. 14, and I highly recommend it.
In the Cape production, Beth Leavel played a smart Dolly who quietly manipulated the people around her to achieve results. Her singing was solid and she was charming and warm. The cast also featured Jennifer Cody (Hunter Foster's wife) as Minnie Fay. Her comedic timing and dancing were fantastic. Six male dancers performed an energetic Waiters’ Gallop which is one of my favorite numbers.
On the down side, Barnaby and Cornelius were dull and leaden and Irene Malloy had to work hard to hit her notes on Ribbons Down My Back. The show was too fast-paced and some of the good jokes were lost.
The worst offense was the shrill one-note performance by James Brennan as Horace Vandergelder. All he did was bark. I wanted to jump on stage and beg Dolly not to settle for this dog. Overall, I give Beth Leavel an A and B-/C+ for this production.
Goodspeed was something else! Klea Blackhurst, best known for her Ethel Merman tribute, brought some Merman boldness to her Dolly. She was sassier than Beth Leavel and milked every joke. Without uttering a word, she was hysterical in the pre-courtroom scene where the characters were anxiously waiting for her to finish her meal and come in and defend them. This scene was completely cut from the Cape Cod production.
Ashley Brown, who originated the role of Mary Poppins on Broadway was a first rate Irene Malloy. She was gorgeous and added some extra trills and flourishes to Ribbons Down My Back, which made the number sparkle. Unfortunately, she was not helped by the actor playing Cornelius. As in the Cape production, he seemed to just be going through the motions. There was no chemistry. The Minnie Fay was cute but not in the same league as Jennifer Cody. The dancers in the Waiters Gallop, however, were AMAZING! The choreography was very complex and included juggling, balancing skewers, back flips, and clanging silver plates and lids.
The biggest surprise though was Tony Sheldon as Horace Vandergelder. Finally, an actor who GETS it! Hello, Dolly! is supposed to be a comedy and if Horace only yells and screams he ain’t funny. Sheldon, Tony nominee for Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, was a breath of fresh air. He played Horace as a cheap miser who was as foolish as the next guy. His facial expressions were priceless, conveying much with just a roll of the eyes. You wanted Dolly to marrying him.
My score on this is an A for Klea Blackhurst and an A- for the production. It lost points for a weak Cornelius and for cutting the scene where Dolly hires “Ernestina.” That can be done so quickly, I don’t know why it was cut. If I were a first-time viewer I would have been puzzled by Ernestina’s appearance, not knowing Dolly hired her.
So rumor has it (Is it confirmed yet?) that Kristin Chenoweth is going to play Dolly in a Broadway revival. While I hope that's not true, I do hope the producers consider Tony Sheldon for Horace. He nailed it.
The second was in East Haddam, Connecticut at the Goodspeed Opera House, starring Klea Blackhurst. It's running through Sept. 14, and I highly recommend it.
In the Cape production, Beth Leavel played a smart Dolly who quietly manipulated the people around her to achieve results. Her singing was solid and she was charming and warm. The cast also featured Jennifer Cody (Hunter Foster's wife) as Minnie Fay. Her comedic timing and dancing were fantastic. Six male dancers performed an energetic Waiters’ Gallop which is one of my favorite numbers.
On the down side, Barnaby and Cornelius were dull and leaden and Irene Malloy had to work hard to hit her notes on Ribbons Down My Back. The show was too fast-paced and some of the good jokes were lost.
The worst offense was the shrill one-note performance by James Brennan as Horace Vandergelder. All he did was bark. I wanted to jump on stage and beg Dolly not to settle for this dog. Overall, I give Beth Leavel an A and B-/C+ for this production.
Goodspeed was something else! Klea Blackhurst, best known for her Ethel Merman tribute, brought some Merman boldness to her Dolly. She was sassier than Beth Leavel and milked every joke. Without uttering a word, she was hysterical in the pre-courtroom scene where the characters were anxiously waiting for her to finish her meal and come in and defend them. This scene was completely cut from the Cape Cod production.
Ashley Brown, who originated the role of Mary Poppins on Broadway was a first rate Irene Malloy. She was gorgeous and added some extra trills and flourishes to Ribbons Down My Back, which made the number sparkle. Unfortunately, she was not helped by the actor playing Cornelius. As in the Cape production, he seemed to just be going through the motions. There was no chemistry. The Minnie Fay was cute but not in the same league as Jennifer Cody. The dancers in the Waiters Gallop, however, were AMAZING! The choreography was very complex and included juggling, balancing skewers, back flips, and clanging silver plates and lids.
The biggest surprise though was Tony Sheldon as Horace Vandergelder. Finally, an actor who GETS it! Hello, Dolly! is supposed to be a comedy and if Horace only yells and screams he ain’t funny. Sheldon, Tony nominee for Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, was a breath of fresh air. He played Horace as a cheap miser who was as foolish as the next guy. His facial expressions were priceless, conveying much with just a roll of the eyes. You wanted Dolly to marrying him.
My score on this is an A for Klea Blackhurst and an A- for the production. It lost points for a weak Cornelius and for cutting the scene where Dolly hires “Ernestina.” That can be done so quickly, I don’t know why it was cut. If I were a first-time viewer I would have been puzzled by Ernestina’s appearance, not knowing Dolly hired her.
So rumor has it (Is it confirmed yet?) that Kristin Chenoweth is going to play Dolly in a Broadway revival. While I hope that's not true, I do hope the producers consider Tony Sheldon for Horace. He nailed it.
Updated On: 8/27/13 at 01:17 PM
