BWW Reviews: Imagination Stage Presents DOUBLE TROUBLE

Booksmart, awkward Lottie (LAUREN WILLIAMS) is nervous. She is spending her first summer away at camp at her mother's insistence, so that she can make friends, and refuses to believe her camp counselor when she tells her she's going to have fun. Little does Lottie know that she will be serendipitously placed in the same cabin as her long lost twin sister Lisa (SARAH LASKO), changing everything for Lottie, Lisa and their families as they know them.

DOUBLE TROUBLE, currently playing at Imagination Stage in Bethesda, incorporates this classic story from Erich Kästner's Lottie and Lisa, which modern audiences mainly know from The Parent Trap films, starring Hayley Mills and Lindsay Lohan. This production marks the first time the story has had a musical adaptation. However, it also demonstrates that just because you can turn a story into a musical, it doesn't mean it's absolutely going to work.

Imagination Stage never fails to produce wonderful sets that fit perfectly with their shows. Scenic Designer Misha Kachman has created a stage resembling a collage picture frame, covered in toys, camping equipment, rackets and a split photo of twins front and center. The camp reminds me of one I frequented in grade school, and all of the scenic design follows a similar, cohesive color palette of greens and yellows.

The production also incorporates great talent, especially in Williams and Lasko as Lottie and Lisa. Williams is neurotic yet empathetic, reminding everyone of the awkward preteen they either knew or were. Lasko is very funny as the chatty Lisa, who clearly wants acceptance just as much as her sister.

JUSTINE MORAL and EMILY KESTER double up on roles, each playing a fellow camper, followed by someone in each sister's life. Kester shines as aloof Trudy and overbearing housekeeper Roksana. Moral is playful and goofy as both Steffie and Lottie's bullying neighbor Annie.

As a musical, this production struggles, due to both sound issues and choices on lyrics and plot. While some of the songs are sweet and catchy, especially the opening number, others like "Mother's Gonna Hate Me" felt superfluous. In addition, higher harmonies made lyrics difficult to understand, and a lot of the numbers had multiple people singing different things, to the point of excess. The background accompaniment was so loud, it was very hard to hear what anyone was singing at all.

Also, while I appreciate DAVID S. CRAIG's desire to have a more modern, different ending, the plot events leading up to that point came out of nowhere, to the point where children in the audience got upset. The show took an unnecessarily dramatic turn in order to reveal the girls' switch, and resolved it abruptly. The entire second act just felt unfinished, with musical numbers that didn't need to be there at all.

DOUBLE TROUBLE, despite its scenic quality and talented actors, ultimately suffers from a faulty adaptation that just feels too rushed. Perhaps if more time had been spent on the story and less on the music, everything would come out far better.

DOUBLE TROUBLE plays at Imagination Stage through August 14th. For more information, visit the production page.

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