Review: BRONCO BILLY – THE MUSICAL Spectacular World Premiere Two-Steps its Way to Fame at the Skylight Theatre

Several productions at the award-winning Skylight Theatre have made it onto my Top Show lists for several years. And now I can guarantee the just-opened World Premiere of BRONCO BILLY - THE MUSICAL is bound to be on this year's Best Of List given its spectacular book by Dennis Hackin, music and lyrics by Chip Rosenbloom and John Torres with additional lyrics by Michele Brourman, with the entire show being one of the most entertaining I have ever seen. Thanks to casting genius Michael Donovan, Director Hunter Bird, Musical Director Anthony Lucca, and Choreographer Janet Roston have woven together 14 top-notch, triple-threat performers into non-stop musical magic for the entire family on the Skylight Theatre stage.

Taking place in 1979, BRONCO BILLY - THE MUSICAL takes us back to somewhere in America's heartland, introducing us to the dedicated members of Bronco Billy's Wild West Show in a delightfully entertaining opening number. But when an important piece of equipment fails, it just might be the end of the line since the coffers are almost bare. Jumping in to save the day is Bronco Billy (Eric B. Anthony whose non-stop energy and enthusiastic demeanor could charm anyone into following him), convinces the troupe to travel to Hollywood for an audition to star in A New Television series. And with just enough cash for gas and grub, the rag tag players agree to hit the road and work their way West from town to town.

At a chance meeting at a gas pump, Bronco Billy meets Antoinette, a Manhattan heiress on-the-run from her money-hungry husband, stepmother and her lawyer/lover, and the ride gets even wilder as she turns Billy's world upside down. Of course, like the other Wild West performers, she re-invents herself as "Miss Lily" without revealing her true identity. The two lost souls searching for a way to achieve their dreams and live their passion bring a new and perfectly marvelous upbeat musical which is bound to be a standing-room only hit!

Director Hunter Bird, in discussing what drew him to the show, said "Bronco Billy is so much about identity. Rather than accepting the roles we're given, we always have the ability to create our own realities, our own families, and our own identities. I think our audiences will appreciate this upbeat musical about reinvention, identity, and living your passion. We're so lucky to have this powerfully talented cast of fourteen to bring it to life for the first time."

I cannot offer enough superlative-laden adjectives to describe the brilliance of the cast, beginning with Eric B. Anthony as Bronco Billy, who channels one of the most famous African American cowboys, Nathan "Deadwood Dick" Lane, with his effervescent personality making me believe he could easily be one of the great, rodeo-winning cowboy's descendants! His partnership onstage with Amanda Leigh Jerry as Antoinette/Miss Lilly, is beautifully realistic and dreamlike at the same time as they tear up the stage singing catchy tunes while executing athletic choreography to perfection.

Thanks to the impeccable direction of Bird, Lucca and Roston, the Wild West Show troupe thoroughly entertains the audience with their clear character portrayals and brilliant execution of the most magnificently entertaining production numbers to ever grace a stage, out of which the show's theatrical magic is born. Among the Wild West Show performers are powerful Benai Boyd as Doc the Ringmaster, a real force-of-nature who left nursing to follow Billy after his Post-Vietnam hospital stay, making her the perfect person to care for the entire troupe when things go haywire.

Rounding out the team who takes to the road with Billy to follow their dreams are Michael Uribes as Big Eagle, Fatima El-Bashir his Native-American wife Lorraine, whose tap dancing often escorts her stilts-wearing husband from the stage to roars of laughter; Randy Charleville as Two Gun Lefty Lebow, the clown; and Kyle Frattini as Lasso Leonard James whose rainbow outfits as just as eye-catching as his lasso skills!

With more heart and chutzpah than sense, Bronco Billy has decided to hit the road to Hollywood in an attempt to keep his traveling Wild West show alive. But when Billy and his ragtag troupe of misfits meet Antoinette, a Manhattan heiress on-the-run, their ride gets even wilder as she turns Billy's world upside down. For even though the two soon fall for each other, she is keeping a big secret from him: she is being tailed by the incompetent trio of Michelle Azar her evil stepmother as Constance; Marc Cardiff as Lawyer Lipton; and Chris M. Kauffmann as her greedy husband John, in their attempt to seize control of her late-father's fortune.

The situation gets even more hysterical when they hire Pat Towne as Sinclair St. Clair, a two-bit investigator with a multitude of comical disguises who leads them to "Miss Lilly" in Bronco Billy's Wild West Show. Hilarity ensues!

Rounding out the ensemble and assisting with everything from the Wild West production numbers to moving scenery to accommodate many quick location changes are Bella Hicks as Mitzi/Ensemble, Anthony Marciona as Sam Lilly/Character Male Ensemble, and Jamie Mills as Dee Dee/Ensemble.

"The show is about living your passion. About being part of a family even if you have to create your own. With some unexpected turns through love, villainy, show business, and lots of humor, Chip, John, and Michele have beautifully honored the book and enlightened the characters with their magical musical influences," says Hackin. "All this, during a time when everyone could use a new upbeat musical." I particularly thank Hackin for promoting the emotional power of women to overcome all obstacles in his script.

Kudos to the dedicated technically creative team including John Iacovelli for his wonderfully Western-themed entertaining Scenic Design which allows the rocking onstage band (Austin Chanu, Jeff Frantom, Cyrus Elia and Ryan McDiarmid, conducted by Musical Director Anthony Lucca on keyboard) to be revealed to play parts in the show, Anne Closs-Farley's beautifully creative and comical Costume Design ranging from all variations of over-the-top Western Wear to sparkly evening gowns, not to mention many intentionally laughable disguises, Brian Gale for his mood-enhancing Lighting Design, Cricket S. Meyers and Daniel Tator for their Sound Design which, thankfully, always allows the actors to heard over the incredibly talented band which needed to play as loud as they did to rock the house, David Murakami's Projection Design which displayed many location backgrounds on the side of set piece crates to bring the city and other environments into the Wild West Show set effectively, and Kevin Williams' Properties Design.

Producers Gary Grossman and Tony Abatemarco are to be congratulated for assembling this incredible dream team to bring the most incredibly entertaining BRONCO BILLY - THE MUSICAL World Premiere to life on the Skylight Theatre stage! No doubt the performances are going to sell out, so be sure to order your tickets soon and be prepared to join in the outrageous fun at 8:30pm Fridays and Saturdays, 2:00pm Saturdays and Sundays through June 30, 2019 at the Skylight Theatre, located at 1816 1/2 N. Vermont Ave, LA, 90027. Tickets are $29 - $55. Students $20 cash (at the door) - valid picture ID required. Please note children under 6 years of age are not admitted. Information and reservations: (213) 761-7061 or (866) 811-4111. Online ticketing at http://SkylightTix.org. Run-time is 2 hours (includes one intermission). Parking information: http://skylighttheatre.org/plan-your-visit/

Photo credit: Ed Krieger

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