Move over Rydell High, there is a new group of singing teenage starlets on stage hailing from Springfield High, and they are making audiences flip at the El Portal Theatre as they relive their 1958 Senior Prom to some doo-wop classics.
The Marvelous Wonderettes, which has been playing in the Forum Theatre since October, just extended its run through February 11, 2007 due to the overwhelming adoration local fans have been paying, and the encore could not be more deserved.
Cindy Lou (Kirsten Chandler), Missy (Kim Huber), Betty Jean (
Julie Dixon Jackson) and Suzy (
Bets Malone) dredge up repressed memories of prom nightmares and mishaps in an addictively saccharine fashion each night, finding a way to pack in an innumerable list of nostalgic melodies of the Brylcreem and bubblegum era.
For the first half of the evening, the
Wonderettes take the stage at their Senior Prom as the musical entertainment, having had to fill in last minute for The Crooning Crabcakes, who suddenly fall ill and are unable to perform. Chalk it up to short notice and a lack of rehearsal time, or perhaps just having blind ambition, but the four lovely ladies might just go down in the pantheon of infamously bad prom acts.
Catty tiffs and spot-light stealing behavior lead to a breakdown between the girls as the evening drags on, before finally storming off stage as the first act draws to a close. But never fear, Springfield High's 10 year reunion brings the girls back together again, in their now vogue facades as they discover the meaning of true friendship, but not before reverting to their immature ways once or twice for good measure.
Never has "jukebox" musical been more apropos, as the songs pouring out of
The Marvelous Wonderettes were spinning in neon music machines at diners across America through the fabulous '50s, including such kitschy classics as "Lollipop," "Dream Lover," "Stupid Cupid," "Lipstick on Your Collar," "It's my Party" and "It's In His Kiss (The Shoop Shoop Song)" to name only a handful sung during the show. It does not take long for the infectious tunes to get toes tapping and bubblegum popping in the 92-seat house in North Hollywood. The intimate nature of the horseshoe designed theatre spiffs up the ambiance, as much of the charm the Wonderettes exude come from their interaction with the audience, including a rather comical moment with an unsuspecting volunteer from the crowd being the object of Missy's lustful affection.
All of the Wonderettes live up to their marvelous moniker, each tackling a far too familiar archetypal character of high school past, with Huber's "Missy" taking the cake as the most adorable and sexually-repressed caricature in the bunch. Huber, who starred as "Belle" on Broadway in Disney's
Beauty and the Beast (and originated the National Tour), sings beautifully and appears to have the most fun as she assumes the role of the bossy perfectionist in the quartet.
Malone is no stranger to the role of "Suzy," as she originated the role during a workshop at the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre and reprised it in the sequel
The Winter Wonderettes, continuing to garner laughs portraying the gum-twirling goofball with a knack for getting extra spotlight time from her boyfriend behind the controls. Chandler, as "Cindy Lou," who re-created the role of Magenta in the award-winning revival of
The Rocky Horror Show (starring David Arquette), creates a frigid diva in the best possible way. Rounding out the troupe is Jackson, co-recipient of the Ovation and Garland Award for her performance in the L.A. premiere of
Side Show, as "Betty Jean," the plain-Jane friend everyone keeps around to make themselves look better.
Writer/Director Roger Bean (
Route 66, Winter Wonderettes, The Andrews Brothers) pays polite service to the nostalgic past in
Wonderettes, although as with most jukebox musicals, the book is somewhat lacking in substance, merely skipping from one song to the next. In the case of
Wonderettes, however, the fun is in the music, and Bean knows how to accentuate the positive.
Color and pizzazz fluff up the evening with the darling costume and wig design by Sharell Martin and Jeff Weeks, respectively.
Wonderettes has choreography by Janet Miller (
Side By Side by Sondheim, South Pacitic, Kiss Me Kate), musical direction by Allen Everman II (
Sweeney Todd, Sunday in the Park with George), scenic design by Kurt Boetcher, lighting design by Ovation Award-winner Jeremy Pivnick (
Much Addobie Brothers About Nothing) and sound design by Cricket S. Myers.
The Marvelous Wonderettes tickets can be purchased by calling 888-505-7469 or at
www.marvelouswonderetttes.com. Tickets are $35-$40. The El Portal Forum Theatre is located at 5269 Lankershim Blvd. in North Hollywood.
Photos by Michael Lamont (Top: L-R Kim Huber, Kirsten Chandler, Bets Malone and Julie Dixon Jackson; Bottom: L-R Kirsten Chandler, Julie Dixon Jackson, Kim Huber and Bets Malone)
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