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La Cage aux Folles
Music and Lyrics by Jerry Herman
Book by Harvey Fierstein
Directed by William Pullinsi
Choreographed by Rudy Hogenmiller
Musical Direction by William A. Underwood
At Theatre at the Center
1040 Ridge Road
Munster, IN
Call 219-836-3255, tickets $36 - $40
Wednesdays & Thursdays at 2pm
Fridays at 8 pm
Saturdays at 2:30 & 8 pm
Sundays at 2:30 pm
Running time is 2 hours, 20 minutes with intermission
Through March 9, 2008
Big, colorful, hilarious and melodic musical comedy unfolds in La Cage aux Folles
Jerry Herman is one of two composer/lyricists in history to have three musicals run more than 1500 performances on Broadway: Hello Dolly (2,844), Mame (1,508), and La Cage aux Folles (1,761). I believe that his 1983 Tony Award winning La Cage aux Folles is his most memorable score. La Cage is a funny farce of French drag clubs and a cute family relations comedy. This show hasn’t been mounted in Chicago in more than a decade due mainly to its lavish costumes and the need to have a lovable funny yet swishy man play Albin, the star drag queen. Fortunately, director Bill Pullinsi, a master at recreating Broadway musicals in their original form, decided to have Jim Harms recreate his Albin that was good enough to win the Jeff Award for Best Actor in a Lead Role in a Musical three times in the last twenty years!
Jim Harms’ Albin anchors La Cage as the ‘mother’ figure and star drag queen in a family that has Larry Adams’ Georges, La Cage’s MC, the ‘father’ figure with their straight son Jean-Michel (Phil Higgins). This close knit loving family has a crisis when Jean-Michel announces he is marrying Anne (Katie Siri), the daughter of a right-wing homophobic French politician.
After we witness one of the most impressive opening numbers in Broadway history “We Are What We Are” that features the Les Cagelles dressed to the hilt in sequined dress, high heels, large feathered hats. This chorus is made up of guys and girls who attempt to dazzle and entice us into La Cage’s mystique. Larry Adams, as the MC, establishes the allure with deft aplomb. Audiences are both shocked and amused with this terrific number.
Jim Harms firmly establishes his transition from Albin to Zaza with the profound “A Little More Mascara” anthem. Phil Higgins (winnigly as the boy-next-door persona), as Jean-Michel, wins us with his charming love song to Anne “With Anne on My Arm.” He convinces his father Georges to have the swishy Albin out of the house during Anne’s family’s visit. Georges tries to tell his love Albin in their reprise of “With You on My Arm.” Their visit to the beach café results in the haunting love song “Song on the Sand” when we see how deep their love is.
Ultimately Albin loves George and Jean-Michel so much that he’ll do what it takes to make them happy. His feminine gay side comes out during the drag act when he stops the show with his personal solo “I Am What I Am.” This anthem resonates deeply.
Act two finds Georges and the guys trying to ‘butch-up’ Albion so he can be introduced to Anne’s parents as uncle Albion. The cute “Masculinity” song is a hoot! Jean-Michel is worried about Albin spoiling his marriage plans that he turns on Albion. Georges reminds him of Albin’s love and nurturing in the fine “Look Over There.”
Things seem to work out when Albin, dresses as conservative women and becomes Jean-Michel’s mother. Mr. Dindon (Dennis Kelly) is impressed and all celebrate the engagement with the roaring “The Best of Times” tribute to hope and happiness. True to his drag queen habit, Albin takes off his wig as the song ends. Mayhem ensues but everything works out as it should. Love and family values win the day.
Jerry Herman’s score is one of the finest every penned for the stage. Harvey Fierstein has created a loveable character in Albin that Jim Harms delivers him with heart, gusto and warmth making La Cage aux Folles a tremendous night of musical theatre. The wonderful dance show-stoppers choreographed by Rudy Hogenmiller are dazzling and Larry Adams never sounded better. The humor is infectious. Every young person should see this show to experience one of the last of the old-time Broadway styles musical comedies. Jerry Herman’s acceptance speech at the Tony Awards mentioned that La Cage is a tribute to musicals with hum-able melodies that foster “take-home songs” (those you sing to yourself on the way home). Come see this show for indeed it demonstrates that “The Best of Time is now, is now.”
Highly Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago podcast
Date Reviewed: February 7, 2008
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