BWW Reviews: MOTHERHOOD THE MUSICAL at TPAC

Here's a confession: I've never understood the delight some people get from touching a pregnant woman's belly to feel the fetus contained therein kicking the crap out of the mother from the inside out, as it were. Truth be told, it just kinda weirds me out that women are walking around with another person hidden away inside them (talk about "concealed carry"). Sure, I get the whole "meaning of life" thing and all that...it just unnerves me, in a shudder up the spine way. And since I'm a man - and a gay one, at that - the concept of motherhood is not something I've given a lot of thought to over the years. "Motherhood, schmotherhood," I was more likely to say than not.

However, today, I am happy to report that I am a changed man, one who had the greatest, most loving mother of all time and who thinks of her every day - and now, thanks to Sue Fabisch's wonderfully charming and frightfully funny musical revue entitled Motherhood the Musical, I am ready to hop on the motherhood train, to embrace the boobs and acknowledge the leakage. This rave review, therefore, is my tip of the hat to every mother there ever was on this planet!

Just in time for Mother's Day, Fabisch and her Faby Baby Productions LLC bring their rollicking - and oh-so-entertaining - revue, Motherhood the Musical, to TPAC's Andrew Johnson Theatre. Featuring dynamic direction by Kim Nygren and starring a quartet of winning singer/actresses, it's a superbly performed and staged show that pulls back the curtain on what moms talk about when the husbands, kids and in-laws (and gay BFFs) are away. It's heartwarming, laugh-out-loud funny and oftentimes remarkably sentimental without being mawkish or maudlin.

Subtitled "The Good, The Bad...and The Laundry" (the only thing I didn't like was the subtitle, by the way), the 90-minute revue takes place at a baby shower for first-time mother Amy (played by Jaclyn Lisenby Brown), thrown by her coterie of mom friends, including divorcee Tasha (Jennifer Whitcomb-Oliva), Brooke (Corrie Miller) and Barb (creator Fabisch herself). The three friends welcome Amy to the Sisterhood of theTraveling Pantyliner and take her on a tuneful journey to show her what her life will be like once she welcomes her wee one home.

The potential here is for a treacly sweet paean to motherhood - let's face it, in a society where sailors and longshoremen have long had the word "Mom" tattooed upon their sweaty biceps, mamas rank at the top of the list of things that are sure to render even the toughest, most cynical person to wax rhapsodic on the subject - but, thanks to Fabsich's razor-sharp wit, Motherhood the Musical is just freakin' funny, but it has so much heart that it still packs an emotional wallop. In deference to the idea of motherhood (and the very real memories of my own mother that were conjured up in the course of the show), my eyes were fairly leaking during certain moments of the show. Laughter through tears...and all which that implies...is my favorite theatrical emotion.

The show's score - original songs written by Fabish, including songwriting collaborations with Johnny Rodgers and Ilene Angel - runs the showtune gamut, artfully rhymed and engagingly composed, and helps propel the show along at a lovely pace. Congratulations to Nygren, for keeping the action moving (the show's 90 minutes seem to whiz by, pun intended) and allowing each actress an opportunity to shine, thanks to Fabisch's cleverly written book. Rodgers' arrangements, orchestration and music direction ensure that the show's score is shown off to full effect and provide the four-member ensemble with excellent musical support throughout the show.

Nygren makes full use of her ensemble's estimable talents to craft a revue that is stimulating, which completely involves the audience in what transpires onstage.

Whitcomb-Oliva, whose powerhouse vocals serve the material with such masterful theatricality and nuance, shows off her comedic sensibilities as Tasha, adroitly shifting from one moment to the next with focused expertise. Her "In My Minivan" and "Baby Weight Blues" allow her to show the stuff she's made of, musically speaking.

As Brooke, Miller portrays a busy mom whose love of Costco is unparalleled (her performance of "Costco Queen" is one of the show's musical highlights, to be certain); she calls upon her own experiences as the mother of three adorable, scene-stealing children to give her character a genuinely maternal mien that imbues her songs with warmth and unexpected depth.

Fabisch, looking for all the world like Bette Midler's younger doppelganger, delivers her lines with an acerbic flair that cuts through any pretense of sentimentality. She has perfect timing and her physical performance (during which her pantyliner shifts, slides and travels around in her mom jeans) is ideal, infusing the show with hilarious vigor. Yet, somehow, she manages to evoke heartfelt emotion in her sweet performance of "Danny's Mom."

Toward the show's end, the three - Whitcomb-Oliva, Miller and Fabisch - perform a heartrending "When The Children Are Grown" that leaves virtually every person in the audience a puddle of emotion, if not a tsunami of tears at song's completion. It's a nicely written number that underscores the show's humor with honest, heart-tugging realism.

Lisenby Brown, one of Nashville's finest theatrical singers and music directors, shows off her own comedic chops as Amy and as Amy's mom (her "Grannyland" will leave you in stitches), and like Miller, calls upon her own experiences as mom to Jasper and Jemma, to give a performance that is genuinely funny and affecting. Who knew she was such an adept comedian?

The opening night audience (at least 90% female, I would estimate) responded to every song and every situation with gleeful respect and showered upon the cast and crew the ultimate accolade of applause and laughter. An aside: Where did that huge opening night crowd come from? My only guess is: Costco. Let's just hope they have an unlimited supply throughout the show's run.

Playing through May 17, Motherhood the Musical has perfect timing. It's a great way to honor every mother with humor and grace, and to pay tribute your own mom with all that you have in your heart - which, to this mama's boy, seems like the perfect way to remember her on her special day.

• Motherhood the Musical. Written by Sue Fabisch. Directed by Kim Nygren. Arrangements, orchestrations and music direction by Johnny Rodgers. Presented by Faby-Baby Productions LLC at TPAC's Andrew Johnson Theatre. Through May 17. For more information, go to www.MotherhoodtheMusical.com. Running time: 90 minutes (with no intermission).

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