Redrum Shining parody at 54 Below last night with Ripley & Kudisch

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Posted: 11/1/16 at 12:15pm

I was able to get into the a reading of Redrum about a year ago and fell in love with this show. Last night they did a concert performance it at 54 Below on Halloween and all I can say is how is this not in a theater off broadway right now?

I'm obsessed with this show. It just makes me think of how I felt the first time I saw Book Of Mormon or Avenue Q. It's a musical parody of The Shining, but it's so much more than that. Last time I saw it Douglas Sills played Jack, but last night Marc Kudisch played the role and was outstanding. I've seen him in other things like Hand To God and Beauty and the Beast in the past, but he came alive last night in a way I had never anticipated. I'm kind of obsessed with him now.

The amount of work and improvement that has gone on in this show since the last reading I attended is astounding. It's wall to wall laughs. The audience ate it up. The songs are great with creative witty lyrics. And that ensemble? They are without a doubt incredible. Kudisch and my hero Alice Ripley as Jack and Wendy were amazing. Mark Price who played Tony? I wanted to leap out of my seat to give him a standing ovation twice during the night but would have knocked over the table doing so. The second Andre Ward sets foot on stage as Dick he owns the show. Remy Zaken as Danny was incredible. Her voice is gorgeous and she wore the sweater Danny wears in the movie. Last time Tom Deckman played Tony, but this time he played Lloyd the Bartender, one of the hotel managers and the bear. He was amazing. Max Roll as Delbert and the main hotel manager is amazing. What a voice. He and Kudisch kissed! And the Grady Sisters last night were insane. They came out in costume covered in blood and were hilarious. They're used like the backup singers in Little Shop. They were so much fun. Their stage presence was off the charts. 

I had the best time last night. I laughed so much and the show flew by. I missed a lot of the stuff that I knew from the reading but this was a condensed concert version and the way they structured it for the night was perfect. 

I got to meet Joe the writer/director on this and he told me they are out looking for producers and a theater. Um, producers? I'd find a way to get in touch with him. The comedy, the music, the cast, the overall vibe? There is nothing like this out there right now. I wish I had the money to produce it.