'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang' Bust

Maybe it's because I never saw the 1968 film but the only thing I knew about this musical was the Academy Award-nominated song.

So, it was quite a shock to me that this so-called Broadway musical received five Tony Award nominations.

Why a shock? You start with the story that makes NO sense. Yes, there is a flying automobile and yes there's a heck of a lot of talent on stage, but can anyone explain to me why the leaders of the country of Vulgaria want a race car that happens to be in England, why there's a song about bamboo, why there is a "Bombie Samba", why is there a cute blonde named Truly Scrumptious? (I couldn't make this up!) If you are reminded of a character name Pussy Galore, there is a connection; the author Ian Fleming (of James Bond fame) wrote the original children's book that is the basis of this mess.

The composers are Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman who not only wrote the wonderful Mary Poppins but the theme for the Disney ride "It's a Small World" (Are you humming it?)  You certainly won't be humming anything from this show except maybe the theme song. During the curtain call, you even get a chance to hum along.

You may have realized or heard about this flying car. But this is NO reason to pay good money to see a show. It's a great special effect, true. But the story? The songs? None of this makes sense.

The Hippodrome in its prior life was a vaudeville house. This show is basically an homage to that time. There's so much shtick and then there's more shtick. Act II begins with two actors entering from the orchestra pit and there's some joke about the Ravens.

Will kids be entertained? The answer is yes. There are two wonderful child actors played by Zachary Carter Sayle and Aly Brier on opening night. There are a whole bunch of cute dogs. There's even some great dancing. There's some great voices. But is it worth it? In this person's opinion...NO.

I feel sorry for the wonderful Steve Wilson and Kelly McCormick and the rest of the cast who give it there all.

There's even a graduate of the Baltimore School of the Arts in the ensemble (Bianca Burgess).

One unusual aspect of the show is the twelve piece orchestra. Normally, Baltimore provides musicians to supplement the percussion and a few musicians. But in CCBB, the entire orchestra travels with the show and they are good.

To see a short video of the show, visit www.chittyontour.com.

CCBB plays until Jan. 18. For tickets, call 410-547-7328 or visit www.france-merrickpac.com.

For comments, write to cgshubow@broadwayworld.com.

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