1 Minute Critic:
Long, long ago, in a land not too far away, we’d sit in front of the TV for hours on end, watching a circus car full of personalities convince us that we needed a supersonic hairdryer, pressure cooker, or—in the case of inventor and entrepreneur Joy Mangano—a Miracle Mop.
Adapting Mangano’s life into a musical, in many ways, makes sense. AnnMarie Milazzo’s music and lyrics provide the emotional lift that parallels the Miracle Mop’s X factor. (Self-wringing! Absorbent cotton head! Versatile!). The score is most successful when it sits in an easy pop vein, but veers off-course in an over-choreographed doo-wop QVC production number, and later in a two-stepping country conflict where Joy faces off against a crooked business partner. Director Lorin Latarro, who energized pedestrian movement with her choreography for Waitress, turns the reins over to Joshua Bergasse, resulting in a movement style (though beautifully executed by the ensemble) that feels like it belongs in a different show.
As the can-do entrepreneur who won’t take no for an answer, Wolfe is a charmer, evolving from exasperated to empowered. Time spent in Huntington, Long Island, where Mangano grew up, might have helped shake some of the California out of Wolfe. Still, she carries the bulk of the show with the panache and power of her source material, one easy clean-up at a time.
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