BWW Reviews: THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES Only Want to Sing For You at Allenberry

Roger Bean is one of the jukebox musical kings of Off-Broadway, usually starting out with Milwaukee Rep and moving on up quickly. He's responsible for last year's holdover show at Allenberry, THE ANDREWS BROTHERS, as well as for the current show at Allenberry, THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES. The huge difference between ANDREWS BROTHERS and this one, however, aside from their musical periods, is that MARVELOUS WONDERETTES is character-driven, with characters an audience can actually care about, rather than the adorable but cardboard comic figures of ANDREWS BROTHERS. The plot and songs here actually advance the characters rather than being a "let's put on a revue" story that serves as an excuse to sing Andrews Sisters music. It's no wonder that in regional theatre in Los Angeles, MARVELOUS WONDERETTES ran for 18 months. It's not just the music - a collection of 1950s and 1960s tunes - but the women on stage.

The Wonderettes - newly dubbed the Marvelous Wonderettes at their 1958 senior prom - are four girls from the school's vocal club who have formed their own group, and have been called in suddenly to perform at the prom when the original performers can't make it. They're all also up for Prom Queen. And on the night of the prom, more than one of them is having relationship problems.

The net result is that the prom performance is a mix of current hits and taking hits from the stage at their guys, at other girls, and each other. In the second act, they've reunited for the class reunion in 1968, with current Sixties music, Sixties fashions, and some on-stage therapy as they attempt to repair their lives and their friendship in front of the rest of their class. But it manages to do that without becoming a dangerous amalgamation of DIXIE SWIM CLUB and ALWAYS, PATSY CLINE; it stays upbeat and amusing rather than veering into false sentimentality.

Director Dann Dunn has done right by this show. He's kept it brightly colored, brightly lit on stage, upbeat, and well-timed. And he's assembled the right mix of performers for a four-woman show. Missy, the organizer of the four, the one who runs interface with teachers, musicians, prom committee, and everyone else, is played by Greta Kleckner, who's had a delightful run this season from masseuse in LADIES NIGHT AT A TURKISH BATH through Agnes Gooch in MAME, and she continues her vocal knockout from MAME in this production. Betty Jean, who kazoos her way into audience hearts during "Allegheny Moon" in the first act, is played by Rachel Felstein, who is no stranger to Allenberry. Cindy Lou, the "bad girl" of the group, leads a stunning "Leader of the Pack" in the second act; she's played by Beth Miller with just the right attitude - like Jessica Rabbit, she's not bad, she's just drawn that way. Suzy, the official ditzy blonde of the bunch, is cheerily drawn on stage by Katie Sexton, including in the second act, when she's late on stage because she's performing in mid-to-late pregnancy and is having a wardrobe malfunction.

Although the 1950s set is charming, including the expected "Mr. Sandman" and Suzy's delightful "Stupid Cupid," it's the second act that truly captivates. The first act is slower, setting up the situations that will come back to bite in the second act, as well as having rather slower 1950s music. Missy delivers a powerhouse "Wedding Bell Blues," while Betty Jean's "It's My Party" is a terrific performance that also advances the plot notably. Betty also knocks out an "I Only Want to be With You" that's even more upbeat than Dusty Springfield's, while she wears the hippest Sixties wig of the team.

The show's female-bonding themes running from the first act to the second include marital discord, the deaths of romantic partners, marrying former teachers, dealing with pregnancy, and the like. Were this set twenty years later, they'd be dealing with domestic violence, going in and out of drug and alcohol rehab and coming out of the closet, so for the sake of maintaining lighter themes, it's a good thing that playwright Bean stuck to the Sixties at the end. These Sixties chicks are really straight arrows in all ways, even the presumed "bad girl," so at no point is there anything deep to force audience members to contemplate life and the universe instead of being entertained.

THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES is a fluffy piece of female bonding as a subplot to a huge and equally fluffy delivery of girl group pop music. It's nothing but fun, with four adorable characters who really do manage to develop considerably over a decade while singing their hearts out - and sometimes living them out - on stage. It's relatable for all age groups, and while it's lacking in hip-hop, it's worth a look by younger audiences who need some exposure to the music that is the fabric of an only slightly older generation that surrounds them.

At Allenberry Playhouse through November 1. Call 717-258-3211 or visit www.allenberry.com for tickets and information.

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