'Thoroughly Modern Millie' Kicks Off 50th Season in Beverly, MA

"Thoroughly Modern Millie"

Book by Richard Morris and Dick Scanlan; music by Jeanine Tesori; new lyrics by Dick Scanlan; directed and choreographed by Barry Ivan; musical direction by Dale Rieling; scenic design by Russell Parkman; costume design by Vincent Scassellati; lighting design by Jack Mehler; sound design by John A. Stone

Featured cast in order of appearance:

Millie Dillmount, Milena Govich

Jimmy Smith, Ryan Silverman

Mrs. Meers, Beth McVey

Miss Dorothy Brown, Amanda Serkasevich

Ching Ho, David Rhee

Bun Foo, Telly Leung

Miss Flannery, Becky Barta

Mr. Trevor Graydon, Richard Roland

Muzzy Van Hossmere, Terry Burrell

Performances: Now through May 15

Box Office: 978-232-7200 or www.nsmt.org

There is plenty of talent on stage at the North Shore Music Theatre in its current production of "Thoroughly Modern Millie." But the venerable Beverly, Mass., musical theater and concert venue might have been wiser to choose a show more suited to its theater-in-the-round setting to kick off its 50^th anniversary season.

"Thoroughly Modern Millie" can be a cloyingly sweet piece of puff pastry whose comedy needs to move at a breakneck pace in order to stay light and fluffy. Its corny East meets West slapstick, Jazz Age song and dance numbers, and dual boy-meets-girl storylines require boundless self-mocking energy in order to sustain the devil-may-care spirit of the Roaring '20s. Plus, its title character, Millie Dillmount – the vivacious small town girl looking to spread her wings in the big city – needs to command attention and enchant the audience just as she does her suitor, the charming rogue Jimmy Smith.

The cast tries gamely to make this "Millie" effervesce, and everyone succeeds brilliantly in the madcap second act. However, the choppy first act, with its multiple expository scenes that introduce a dozen characters and several sub-plots, suffers significantly from the restrictions of a spherical stage.

Frequently circled by a chorus of aspiring actresses sharing living quarters at the Hotel Priscilla or by a pool of office workers tap-dancing to the beat of their typewriters, Milena Govich as Millie often gets lost in the crowd. She does her best to be pert and perky, but she is never in the proverbial spotlight during her big production numbers. The ensemble dwarfs rather than supports her in her signature songs, "Thoroughly Modern Millie" and "Forget about the Boy." Govich does try to compensate by injecting girlish energy into these scenes, but her rapid-fire verbal patter is sometimes hard to understand. In addition, her overemphasized country bumpkin physical awkwardness is more distracting than endearing.

Govich shines, however, during her climactic solo, "Gimme Gimme," and in all of her scenes with the charismatic Ryan Silverman as Jimmy. Their romantic duet on the window ledge, "I Turned the Corner," is a delightfully executed song and dance that sparkles with fun and affection. This is followed by the hilarious quartet, "I'm Falling in Love with Someone," in which Millie's boss Mr. Graydon and best friend Miss Dorothy join them for a campy send-up of the over-sentimentalized love ballads of the era.

"Thoroughly Modern Millie" boasts an able supporting cast that handles the show's comedy in grand exaggerated style. Standouts are Amanda Serkasevich who gives her prim and proper (and slightly light-headed) Miss Dorothy a mix of Southern Belle gentility and good-natured but wacky innocence. Beth McVey as the mysterious hotel proprietress Mrs. Meers is deliciously evil as the blowsy and bitter has-been actress who surreptitiously conducts her white slavery operation by posing as a kindly Chinese matron. In what could be thankless roles of the Chinese launderers Ching Ho and Bung Foo, David Rhee and Telly Leung combine terrific deadpan sarcasm with a buoyant sincerity to turn "Muqin" – a cleverly subtitled Chinese version of "Mammy" – into a hilarious showstopper.

The physical limitations of the North Shore Music Theatre's circular stage have inhibited the design and choreography of "Thoroughly Modern Millie." We never get a true sense of the bustling New York City streetscape, the elegant penthouse of wealthy cabaret singer Muzzy Van Hossmere, or the underground speakeasy where Millie and her friends, as the club name blatantly invites, tie one on. Likewise, director/choreographer Barry Ivan's dance routines never really soar and roar.

However, an energetic cast delivers the show's comedy with panache, and uniformly strong voices give full life to a terrific score. This "Millie" may not enthrall, but she does entertain.

 

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