Review: LITTLE WOMEN: THE BROADWAY MUSICAL & OUR DEAR DEAD DRUG LORD At MOXIE Theatre

Moxie Theatre presents two radically different repertory shows with compelling performances reflecting girlhood's myriad experiences in “Little Women: The Broadway Musical” and the dark thriller “Our Dear Dead Drug Lord.” Both are running with the same core cast through December 8th.

At the opening, Moxie’s Executive Artistic Director and director of “Our Dear Dead Drug Lord,” Desireé Clarke Miller, remarked that these shows were like an album, and seeing only one would feel incomplete to the overall vision.  After seeing both shows back to back, it is interesting to see how these shows have some similar ideas about the drive and intensity of young women, though one has considerably less bloodshed.

The four leading performers for both shows are Mikaela Macias, Lena Ceja, Becca Myers, and Nio Russell, along with a cast of other supporting characters for each story.

“Little Women” is a musical snapshot of the highlights of Louisa May Alcott’s famous book. Sisters Meg (Becca Myers), Jo (Mikaela Macias), Beth (Nio Russell), and Amy (Lena Ceja) all live with their mother, Marmee (Constance Jewell Lopez), while their father is away as a chaplain for the Union Army. From the famous Christmas opener to a society ball invitation that has the older sister Meg excited, younger sister Amy despondent, and independent Jo chafing at the societal constraints, to setting befriended Laurie next door and stern Aunt March, no familiarity with the book is needed to enjoy it.

The show focuses on Jo (Macias), the Alcott surrogate in this tale. She is fiercely independent and striving, willing to work and do what it takes to achieve her dream of becoming a writer—well, almost anything. She can’t seem to find the time or patience for societal rules and structure, even when it might lead to a trip to Europe, as tantalizingly offered by Aunt March (Michelle Caravia), but which Amy ultimately achieves.

Leigh Scarritt, who both directed and provided musical direction for the show, builds a real sense of warmth and camaraderie among the entire cast, which works for this show.  She also creates charming moments in the play for each character to shine, like Meg (Myers) with her beau John (Ryan Hadley), or when sweet Beth (Russell) charms the curmudgeonly neighbor Mr. Laurence (Will Doyle) in ‘Off to Massachusetts.” Choreography by Xavier J. Bush uses the space well and further allows the creativity and charm of the Alcott clan to shine through.

Other standouts include Tanner Vydos as Laurie and DeAndre Simmons as Professor Bhaer, both of whom offer excellent vocals (which contrast wonderfully with their recent roles in SDMT’s “Sweeney Todd”).

In “Our Dear Dead Drug Lord,” the main four performers are high school students in a tree house for a club meeting. Only responding to their club names, Pipe (Ceja), Zoom (Myers), and Squeeze (Russell) are waiting for new member Kit (Macias) to arrive so they can begin.

The Dead Leaders Club started years ago to study the policies and influence of departed leaders like JFK. Under Pipe's leadership, it has included less savory leaders, including Pablo Escobar, its most recent focus.

To contact the departed, they have been dabbling in the occult and instruct Kit to sacrifice something, with an anticipatory glee to see if she will step up to the challenge.  When she does, they are both shocked and pleased.  After the initial darkness at the beginning, the play lulls into a false sense of normalcy as the girls discuss school, boys, flirting, and politics. Lurking under that, each character is fighting their own battle with guilt, grief, sexuality, and for some control in their lives, and the show's intensity gradually builds before it explodes into magical realism with a bloody and surprising ending.

Directed by Miller, this play is fast-paced and compelling. It keeps the momentum going as the characters, in their mix of chaotic hubris and naivety, barrel toward the supernatural to solve their very worldly problems. Set in 2008, it's easy to imagine how they grew up watching “The Craft” and calling for “Bloody Mary” at slumber parties, eventually evolving into this behavior. There is nothing witchier than a group of preteen or teenage girls.

The plot sometimes makes sense, and numerous questions are left unanswered at the end, but mostly, the ending will either make sense or seem incomprehensible to you.  What does ring true is how feral, innocent, passionate, confused, and dangerous girls at this age can be. 

Really, what’s important are the performances—Myers is very funny and eager to impress as Zoom, bragging about exploits that never happened before and dealing with the consequences of one that did occur.  At the same time, Russell’s Squeeze has her reasons for hoping to connect with the spiritual world.

In both shows, Macias and Ceja are the main focus. They have great chemistry and constantly spark off one another. 

In “Little Women,” Macias, as Jo, has an untamed fire burning within her to achieve her goals, but that fire is a bit out of control and counterintuitive to her plans before tempering it with focus and finding success.  Usually, Amy is seen as the bratty villain of the piece, but Ceja makes Amy (who, yes, is a spoiled younger sibling) someone willing to play the game to get what she wants and achieve it in the form of a trip to Europe, pretty things, and a well to do marriage. Both are fueled by the love they have been raised in, and they have for each other and their family.

As Pipe and Kit in “Drug Lord,” they switch. Ceja struggles to contain the guilt and emotionally corrosive bonfire that consumes her, while Macias is amiable, laser-focused, and willing to do the unthinkable to achieve the next task. There is no challenge that Pipe throws down that Kit does not reach with a chilling focus and intensity. These girls are not fueled by love; they burn with rage, desperation, and guilt.

There is the saying that girls are made of “sugar and spade and everything nice,” and while that may be true, there is a dark side of feminine rage that this age group is just starting to learn how to harness and express.   As wildly different as the shows are, they both are about the magic of sisterhood, literally and figuratively. Whether it’s the 1800s or the 2000s, you cannot discount the power and drive of young women to achieve. 
 

How To Get Tickets 

 “Little Women: The Broadway Musical” and “Our Dear Dead Drug Lord” are both playing in repertory at Moxie Theatre through December 8th. For ticket and showtime information, go to www.moxietheater.com 

Moxie parental trigger warning: Little Women is a family-friendly show; bring your little ones! However, Our Dear Dead Drug Lord is completely inappropriate for young audiences due to its language, violence, and triggering content. As sensitivities vary from person to person, if you have specific questions regarding content, please call at (858) 598-7620.

Photo Credit: Moxie Theatre and Desireé Clarke Miller

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