Post by scarlet on May 22, 2011 22:41:17 GMT -5
I vaguely remember the movie version of this show, starring Whoopi Goldberg. And as far as I remember, the story line of the musical follows that of the movie in broad categories. Delores Van Cartier (new-comer Patina Miller) witnesses a crime and is spirited off to a convent to hide. There, she comes into conflict with the Mother Superior (the wonderful as always Victoria Clark) and energizes the church choir so that they become such a great draw that the end up playing for the Pope. However, unlike the movie, which I'm pretty sure ends in Las Vegas, the entire musical takes place in Philadelphia.
The show starts with Delores singing "Take me to Heaven" for her boyfriend Curtis (the appropriately slimy Kingsley Leggs) and his "gang" (John Treacy Egan, Demond Green and Caesar Samayoa). After deciding to leave Curtis, Delores sees him shoot one one of his henchmen. That scene was disturbing, and I really feel the shooting should not have been done on stage. I think it would have been just as strong if done off-stage. Especially since the rest of the show tries for a tone of comedy, and this scene is anything but.
Patina Miller was enjoyable in the role of Delores, and happily, I did not find myself comparing her to Whoopi, she makes the role her own. Chester Gregory is hysterical as Cop Eddie Souther, and he has one of the best costume changes in his solo number "I Could be That Guy". Egan, Green and Samayoa score in the vocal department also with "Lady in the Long Black Dress" and Victoria Clark's second act "Haven't Got a Prayer" reinforced my belief that she is always wonderful. Marla Mindelle is forefront of the excellent ensemble of nuns, bringing to mind Kerry Butler. In fact, when I first heard Mindelle, I had to remind myself that Butler was not in this show, but around the corner in Catch Me If You Can. Fred Applegate is his usual funny self as Monsignor O'Hara, and he gets the first laugh, stating for the pre-show announcement that "recording the show is a sin."
I have some issues with how Dolores fits in (or fails to fit in) at the convent. She has claimed that she spent 12 years in Catholic school, but seems ignorant of certain basics of what goes on in a Catholic Church.
The costumes and set are, for the most part, appropriate for the show, with the nuns starting out in basic black and ending in glitz. However, there is a fine line between glitzy and tacky, and to my eyes, the finale crosses the line to tacky, especially the enormous silver spangled rotating statue of the Virgin Mary.
