Review: TWINSPIRATION WITH JULIE AND JANNA CARDIA at CVRep

As the Coachella Valley Repertory Summer Cabaret Series comes to its conclusion the remaining acts are following in the wake of some pretty remarkable shows. Executive Artistic Director Adam Karsten with keen perception gave his theatre audiences a wide variety of Cabaret choices this year. For their joint CVRep debut the identical twin Cardia sisters, Julie and Jenna, combine contemporary singing, humor, and heartfelt stories. As identical twins, it is possible to see the slight physical differences between them. Separately and together they have created some fast-paced entertaining fun.

Right from the beginning it was to be noted that this was not a traditional cabaret act, this production was choreographed to the nth degree. Every moment was filled and staged. Less of an intimate Cabaret act, and more like a wonderful intimate two-person musical.  Their opening number was the “Architect” written by Kacey Musgraves, Chane McAnally, and Josh Osborne, and their voices were sweet and in purist harmony.  The writing for this production was superb. Fast, funny, educational, and endearing. There wasn’t a writing credit, so it must have been scripted by the sisters themselves. Excellent. Accompanist Stephen Hulsey added so much to the quality of the arrangements and the pace of this production. Later the sisters mentioned that he was only a recent addition to their act. Hard to believe, because his work was seamless. 

Of course, like any good “sister act” the requests to hear them sing famous duets had to make an appearance here. A nod to the Callaway Sisters, Sibling Revelry. Just as harmonious here with the Cardia twins singing: “Sisters” as they sang in the style of Rosemary and Betty Clooney and shouting out White Christmas! “Bosom Buddies” then shouting out Mame! This continued as they encouraged the audience to shout out the remaining musical titles and this was thoroughly entertaining.

The story of their birth was pretty funny. The expecting parents were told that the very large mother-to-be was going to be having a bouncing baby boy.  This was back in the 70s – while the ultrasound was widely used in Europe it wasn’t as readily available here in the States until the early 80s.  The rest of the story is worth hearing from the sister’s themselves, so this will end the spoiler.

There were several stand-out moments in this production. The sisters address the questions you should never ask Identical Twins.  Everyone has asked at least one of those questions that they didn’t know was absolutely stupid, as a twin, it’s a daily occurrence. Hilariously funny.  Next was hearing the sisters sing the entire rarely performed lyrics for the song “Thank You For Being A Friend” the 1978 tune written by Andrew Gold and best known as The Golden Girls theme song.  Other songs with vivid and clever lyrics to listen for are: “Does Anybody Have A Map”, “Casting Call For A Best Friend”, “The Lady Is Improving” and “Stay Gold”.  There is a lot of appeal and good quality, old-fashioned Broadway-style musicality here. With a little bit of trivia the Cardia twins remind the audience of other famous twins – Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen from Full House, Erin & Diane Murphy (Tabitha) from Bewitched, Tia & Tamera Mowry from Sister, Sister, The Double Mint Twins from the old chewing gum commercial, and Patty & Cathy (twin cousins) from The Patty Duke Show.  This production was full of “smile moments”.

Even though the show was well-written, and professionally performed by the Cardia sisters their performance was a bit high-strung.  This presentation seem to be enthusiastically pushed which made their patter forced and over-rehearsed.  They were just saying the lines and not really listening. Also, while acting to the third balcony of the theatre the 50-year-olds seem to be playing affected “gosh-golly” 18 to 20-year-olds instead. For those who think Liza Minnelli is too subtle then this is the show for you.  Other than their singing, which was honest and exquisite, the one moment where you got to see the sisters calm down and display natural communication skills was when sister Janna went up on her lines. They spoke, listened, and turned to their musical director who offered them no help at all. It was a charming encounter that they should keep in the show.  If the twins can dial back their performance level they would have an outstanding show with legs.

The twins end the production with a beautifully executed “I Will Never Leave You” from the musical Side Show.  There is far more to be taken away that is positive with this production than the nit-picky criticism. This is a good show, but with a little less caffeine and candy before the show the twins could have an exceptionally great show.

Grand performances, great music, and personality plus make the COACHELLA VALLEY REPERTORY 2024 SUMMER CABARET SERIES among the very best ways to enjoy Downtown Cathedral City. This year’s Summer Cabaret Series continues to run through July 25.

Showtime is at 7PM. Tickets are $50 and on sale now. They may be ordered online at www.cvrep.org, by calling (760) 296-2966, ext. 201, or at the CVRep box office located at 68510 East Palm Canyon Dr., Cathedral City. Special custom ticket packages are available. The box office is open Tuesdays-Saturdays from 10 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. and one hour prior to performances. In order to better serve audiences, patrons requesting accessibility assistance are encouraged to contact the box office at least 24 hours prior to their ticketed performance. Artists, show titles and dates are subject to change.

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