BWW Reviews: CHICAGO Fizzles at Winspear Opera House

Scattered across our media-soaked world, celebrity criminals have been a mainstay of modern journalism for decades. Casey Anthony meet Roxie Hart.

In the current tour of CHICAGO, the buzz and spectacle of the merry murderesses fizzles out and the only slice of pure entertainment comes in the form of John O’Hurley’s portrayal of top defense lawyer Billy Flynn.

The season opener of the Lexus Broadway Series, CHICAGO vivifies a tour relying on star power, rather than skilled dancers or performers. Bob Fosse’s original choreography lives on in the interpretation by Ann Reinking (a Fosse devotee), but the performances lack the stylistic pizzazz appearing to hit the proper mark, but miss the natural shake in the jazz hands – looking more bow-legged with the turned-in knees than choreographed.

A line-up of lackluster performances take center stage, evidenced most brutally in Terra C. MacLeod’s performance of Velma Kelly – the murderess whose case is outshined by the media-mongerer Roxie Hart. Despite MacLeod’s credentials (she’s played Velma on Broadway, the West End and in Paris), she opens the show with a tepid “All That Jazz” and fluctuates the rest of the show, mostly looking bored and therefore boring to watch.

Tracy Shane as Roxie Hart improves upon MacLeod’s energy, simply by not being yawn-inducing. Arguably too old for the role, Shane particularly shines in highly-choreographed moments, making a perfect centerpiece for the rousing number “We Both Reached for the Gun.”

Broadway gods have indoctrinated musical lovers with the importance of CHICAGO for decades. Perhaps it’s an important musical because of Fosse’s legendary choreography, or the way it approaches the material, relying on the performers to weave a story together with musical numbers. It’s easy to imagine – or remember– a CHICAGO with dynamic performers delivering electrifying song after song.

But this tour’s star power, flaunting O’Hurley’s name on every poster, is ironically the show’s saving grace (Ironically because the show seems to mock celebrity culture). Swooped from Broadway, where he played the slimy lawyer Billy Flynn to sold-out audiences, O’Hurley keeps this production on its feet– it seems Dancing with the Stars may have paid off.

The Lexus Broadway Series may bring big names to Dallas (Constantine Maroulis will arrive with JEKYLL AND HYDE later this season), but the depth of the Winspear Opera House almost sucks the energy out of performances. And when the Dallas Theater Center can make the stinker of a musical JOSEPH AND THE TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT into something good with local talent – why would you pay even more money to see a lousy production of CHICAGO?

The only answer I can offer is the chance to see J. Peterman sing and dance with a chorus of lovely women supporting him.

 

 

 

 

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