Review: GYPSY at Maltz Jupiter Theatre Nestles Delightfully Inside the Box

When faced with any classic musical, a production must look in the dressing room mirror and ask itself one question: are we brave? Are we daring enough to try something new and brash; as gutsy and unapologetically different as the woman whose story is being told? (If yes, then a hefty gamble is made- it's all too easy to do it so wrong and have a nostalgic audience leave uninspired.) Or are we smart enough to trust the material for what it is? Put on a reliable production, and have the audience pleased, but not challenged? The Maltz Jupiter Theatre and director/choreographer Marcia Milgrom Dodge chose the latter, a choice that birthed a fabulous production haunted by unrealized potential.

Don't misunderstand: the show adds up to a lovely night of theatre. It remains clear that the production team and the company worship Gypsy, and they handle the words as delicately as possible, as if they might break any moment. For the Gypsy-obsessed, like yours truly, it's a respectable move, even an admirable one. For those who have never been exposed to the toe-tapping stylings of Laurents, Styne, and Sondheim, it leaves plenty to be discovered and does more than adequate justice to a show oft-worshipped as a god in itself.

The true fireball was found in Vicki Lewis, though, as a wolflike Mama Rose- whose scalding outsides owed their heat to Rose's tragedy just underneath them, threatening to boil over at any time. And when they do- oh, when they do. "Rose's Turn" sent chills up my spine that can only be elicited by performances as impossible as this.

A smartly crafted opposite, Emma Stratton's Louise was airy and pure to a tee. (until, of course, her sharp left turn away from her mother, which only leads her to become as driven as the woman she's trying to escape.) The chemistry between the two actresses was electric- throw an unrelenting Kirsten Wyatt into the mix as Tessie Tura, and it's almost ravishing. (Wyatt, by the way, is a star. Not like the stars that ever so gracefully embellish her costume.)

Leon Wiebers' costumes, generally, are not a new animal, but serve their purpose and serve it well. The same goes for the lights by Paul Miller and a chewable set by Michael Schweikardt. All are concise and blend together perfectly- what more can be asked? Are they brave? A turntable at centerstage, while not used often enough, was a highlight that leads me to say yes, along with an unraveling flapper gown in Act Two that hypnotized not only Gypsy's fictional crowd, but the real one that surrounded me.

Dodge has utilized first class performers and technicians to put on a show that's impossible to dislike. And maybe your feet stay on the ground, maybe the envelope remains unpushed. Who's to say it doesn't belong where it is now?

Gypsy runs at the Maltz Jupiter Theatre through April 9th. You can buy tickets here.

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