Street Theatre Company's RIDE THE CYCLONE May Be the Best Thing We've Seen in 2023

Stay with me, gentle readers, for I have a particularly compelling, if somewhat meandering, “what if” scenario to share with you: What if (of all the things possible in the mythical, magical world of musical theater) the four earnest boy singers of Forever Plaid hooked up with the vengeful Heathers, while at the same time Hedwig (of the Angry Inch fame) was getting busy with Carrie White (of the bucket of pig’s blood fame) and then their resulting progeny got together (or maybe they were all together in some orgiastic event of monumental proportions that also includes various and sundry characters and/or germane plot points from Be More Chill and The Toxic Avenger) – are you still with me, friends? – what would be the result?

For anyone lucky enough to score tickets to Street Theatre Company’s production of Ride The Cyclone, the answer is obvious! The wonderfully off-kilter, absolutely fantastic and delightfully unhinged – yet somehow heartfelt and rather sweet –Ride The Cyclone is indeed the result of all that theatrical alchemy cum wildly inappropriate sexual innuendo and, thus, the answer to my far-fetched, if totally accurate and on-the-nose, conjecture.

To put it succinctly: Ride The Cyclone is the best thing I’ve seen in 2023. I’m just sorry there aren’t more tickets available so we could be on-hand for the remainder of its three-weekend run. Frankly, if the space was available and the budget allowed it, I’d bet that Ride The Cyclone would keep drawing crowds to the theater for a long time to come. It’s just that good!

Ride The Cyclone features music, lyrics and book by Jacob Richmond and Brooke Maxwell, the second part of Richmond’s planned musical trilogy (Uranium Teen Scream Trilogy), is set in a heightened and fictionalized version of Uranium City, Saskatchewan. It debuted in 2008 in Victoria, British Columbia, had its first U.S. production in Chicago in 2015, which was followed by a limited run off-Broadway in 2016 and in recent years has become a viral sensation due to its status as a TikTok favorite.

In this engaging musical, a group of teenagers, members of the St. Cassian Chamber Choir, die as the result of a freak roller coaster accident and find themselves in midway-centric limbo while an animatronic fortune teller offers one of the six the chance to return to life. Now my hypothesis is beginning to make sense, huh?

To put in another way (in my patented manner): I love every f-ing thing about this show!

Directed with theatrical style and flair (imbued with a hint of whimsy and a refreshing dollop of humanity) by Sawyer Wallace, Ride The Cyclone features a stellar cast of capable and talented young actors – Isaac Bouldin, Kendall Bryant, Simon Elliott, Will Henke, Maya Kaempf, Bella Mancuso and Tristan Valdez – about whom we will continue to sing their praises for as long as anyone will listen and from whom we expect really big things in the future.

Wallace’s pitch-perfect direction and vision for the piece works perfectly in the 40-seat Barbershop Theatre, which is designed by TSC’s Randy Craft (who also music directs the show in his typically impressive fashion) to replicate the backstage area of a carnival midway. And with Tosha Marie’s frenetic and energetic, if spellbinding, choreography (which may be the best thing she’s ever done, while I'm doling out superlatives for a high school yearbook), which puts the amazing cast nose-to-nose with their audience, it creates an immersive atmosphere that must be experienced to be fully appreciated.

As compelling storytelling, Richmond and Maxwell’s clever and imaginative book provides everything expected from musical theatre, while their score feels – and perhaps more appropriately, sounds – contemporary and fresh, while doing what it should be doing: advancing the plot and revealing detailed backstories about each of the unique characters.

Even while adhering to musical theater norms (mostly), insofar as characters are concerned, Ride The Cyclone shifts paradigms as it presents fictional people who seem authentic and genuine even as they’re over-the-top and larger-than-life. I don’t know about you, but that is exactly what I want from musicals to which I am being introduced for the first time: intriguing stories and plotlines, peopled by characters with whom I feel a visceral connection, set to music that is entertaining, memorable and persuasive.

“The Uranium Suite” is a strong opening number, while “It’s Not A Game/It’s Just A Ride” closes out the musical with more emotion than is anticipated. Meanwhile, “The New Birthday Song” is likely to elicit a few tears if you let it. Craft and his bandmates (Makai Keur, Cameron Cleland, Jes Cleland and Brad Williamson) bring the score to vibrant life during the 80-minute run time of the musical.

Wallace and his creative team – and the audience, for sure – are fortunate to have actors who are talented, versatile, committed and focused on bringing their vividly crafted characters to life. To be honest, it’s hard to imagine a more perfect cast for Ride The Cyclone than the ensemble onstage for Street Theatre Company, yet one cannot deny the creative team’s sheer luck in assembling such an impressive coterie of performers. It’s like capturing lightning in a bottle.

Bouldin, Bryant, Elliott, Kaempf and Mancuso are familiar faces (thanks to their frequent and delightful performances for Belmont University Musical Theatre) as is Vanderbilt alumnus Henke, who this season has become one of Nashville’s most sought-after actors with roles at Nashville Children’s Theatre and Nashville Shakespeare Festival to his credit. Valdez, a senior at Independence High School, claims his place in the spotlight with an equally credible portrayal that reflects the ensemble’s palpable chemistry.

Ride The Cyclone gives each the chance to put their full range of talents on full display. Bouldin gives a controlled performance as the Amazing Karnak, the animatronic fortune teller programmed for a family-friendly audience who seizes upon the knowledge of his own imminent demise to go beyond what is expected of him. Bouldin’s mannerisms are nuanced and studied, but there’s a definite glint of something slightly sinister behind his performance.

Bryant’s performance as Ocean O’Connell Rosenburg (the type-A academic all-star and wannabe mean girl at St. Cassian’s) allows her to show off her considerable stage presence while delivering her musical numbers with enviable style and substance. Bryant builds upon the promise of her every earlier performance with this one, which easily could catapult her to stardom under different circumstances.

As Noel Gruber, the only gay boy in Northwest Saskatchewan (so far as we know), Elliott offers a startlingl portrayal of a high schooler who longs to become a poet and is a devotee of French New Wave cinema who imagines an alter ego inspired by Marlene Dietrich. That Elliott is able to bring all those attributes together in a believable way is nothing short of amazing.

Kaempf’s stunning voice is put on full display, along with her stellar acting abilities, in the role of “Jane Doe,” the decapitated victim of the roller coaster tragedy who has yet to be identified because her head hasn’t been found. Her stylized manner of moving and speaking helps create the illusion of her being headless (well, she seems more like a zombie – but what can you do?), while the complete impact of her performance is deeply felt.

Mancuso almost steals the complete show as Constance Blackwood, “the nicest girl in town,” clearly the most complicated character in the show. Conflicted, even a bit confused at times, Constance chafes at the box in which she has been placed throughout life, put off by her family’s longstanding place in the town hierarchy, which leads her to a shocking confession during her presentation. Mancuso perfectly captures the angst/hope of Constance and virtually knocks the socks off of everyone in the theatre with her performance of “Sugar Cloud” with her castmates.

Henke delivers another multi-faceted performance as Mischa Bachinski, a Ukrainian adoptee who fosters a “gangsta” persona to mask his more sensitive yet passionate nature (apparently his adoptive parents were expecting a potty trained two-year-old only to meet a new son "with five o'clock shadow" and a drinking problem upon his arrival) proving the actor’s alarming versatility and ability to become any character he is asked to play. “This Song Is Awesome,” Mischa’s big musical number, is both revelatory and enormously funny at the same time.

Valdez shines as the imaginative Ricky Potts, a young man unable to speak or walk due to some unnamed degenerative disease, who is freed from the confines of his real life after the tragic crash, allowing him to show off what he’s all about, while living his catchphrase “Level up!” (Oh, all the characters have catchphrases that are expressed at the right time.) Valdez’s stage presence and physical agility underscores how unfair life has been to Ricky, who gets the show-stopping "Space Age Bachelor Man” to make up for his physical challenges.

Craft’s eye-popping set (hell, I think they could do Gypsy on it) is beautifully lighted by Kristen DuBois in her latest STC lighting design assignment, while Nivedhan Singh provides sound design that works ideally within the environs of the small venue and Melissa Durmon’s costume design clothe her St. Cassian students in appropriate private school fashion.

Ride The Cyclone. Music, lyrics and book by Jacob Richmond and Brooke Maxwell. Directed by Sawyer Wallace. Music direction by Randy Craft. Choreography by Tosha Marie. Stage managed by Tina Ray. Presented by Street Theatre Company at The Barbershop Theatre, Nashville. Through October 28. Running time: 80 minutes, with no intermission. For more information, go to www.streettheatrecompany.org.

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