Review: Urine Good Company with URINETOWN at Brookfield Theater For The Arts

There is always that one show that you know inside and out; maybe you’ve seen a dozen different productions of it, perhaps you’ve been in a few, or maybe you listen to the soundtrack on an endless repeat until every note is etched in your head like your name or your birthday. For this reviewer, that show is Urinetown… The musical, of course. As a reviewer, we like to go into productions with a clean slate so that we can take in a show with no preconceived notions or biases. When you go to see your favorite show, however, that blessing can become a curse. Luckily, Brookfield Theater of the Arts’ production of Urinetown was fresh and unique and brought joy to every single member of the audience, whether it was their first time or twenty first time.

As with many productions of Urinetown, the theater included a “Fee to pee” on their restrooms: An option to donate before relieving yourself to introduce the audience early to the world that they were stepping into. As they say: On the journey down to Urinetown, expect only the expected. It was from there that the production proceeded to delight and surprise, from the opening curtain to the closing bows.

As the entr’acte ends and the curtain opens, the audience is faced with Public Amenity #9 and are left in awe: Being designed and built by director David Anctil, Public Amenity #9 is flanked by long stairs to create a second story that towers over the audience and gives the stage a sensation of grandeur. The set continues to surprise, as the dirty wall of the Amenity swings open to reveal the clean interior of the UGC office of Mr. Cladwell. Its use of space makes every nook and cranny a place to hide, stand, sing, or dance as the crowd is taken on this journey through Revolution and word play.

One of the brilliances of Urinetown- again, the musical, not the place- is its casting. Of course, the musical revolves around the actions of Bobby Strong and Caldwell B. Cladwell, played by Javen Levesque and Patrick Spaulding, respectively, but its use of ensemble gives the joy of this “happy” musical so many opportunities for the whole cast. From the featured ensemble members like Hot Blades Harry, sharply played by Sam Bass, and the unassuming Little Sally, smoothly played by Kate Patton; to the background rebels such as Jordan Toribio’s Tiny Tom and Jami Valzania’s Soupy Sue, the cast of Urinetown brought boundless passion and energy to everything they did. An energy that was guided through the story by the loveably cruel hand of Officer Lockstock, whose metatheatrical banter with Little Sally kept the audience in the loop as he narrates his way to survival. Lockstock- played by Bennett Cognato, who rightfully basked in the audience’s love for as long as it lasted- pulled the show together with his combination of charismatic narration, cruel professionalism, and his pure enjoyment of sending folks to Urinetown. When you throw in the music and dance- directed and choreographed by Sarah Fox and Josephine Harding, respectively- there was always something to see, a joke to laugh at, a harmony to listen to, or someone melting over Bobby Strong’s chest hair. Together, the entire cast had the audience in stitches from beginning to end and rightfully deserved the standing ovation they got from their sold-out Opening Night.

Urinetown runs from June 9th to 24th at the Brookfield Theater of the Arts with shows on Fri & Sat at 8pm and Sunday matinees at 2pm. You can grab tickets at https://brookfieldtheatre.ticketleap.com/urinetown, and trust me: Tickets are going fast.

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