Another Op’nin, Another Show

Kiss Me, Kate – Marriot Theatre

Suppose you were playing Theatre Trivia somewhere and you were asked, “What was the very first show to win the Tony Award for Best Musical? You could respond that, not only do you know the answer but, in fact, you’d just recently enjoyed a dazzling new production of it. “Kiss Me Kate,” with music and lyrics by the late, great Cole Porter, and a book by Sam and Bella Spewack, was awarded the very first Tony in 1949. The musical was Porter’s response to the popular Rodgers & Hammerstein hit, “Oklahoma,” in which the music and lyrics were integrated into the story. Up until that time, musicals were merely a collection of comedy scenes interspersed with songs and dances that had no relationship to each other. With Cole Porter’s continuation of the “Modern Musical,” an entirely new era of theatrical entertainment was born. 

“Another op’nin, Another Show,” the rousing tune that raises the curtain on this musical, is an apt proclamation. Following the Great Theatre Shutdown, brought on by the pandemic, stages around the country are finally opening up with a bang. One of Chicagoland’s treasures, Lincolnshire’s marvelous Marriott Theatre has revived this classic of The Golden Age and is presenting it on its arena stage. It looks like, under the experienced and exacting hands of Director Johanna McKenzie Miller, this theatre has another much-welcome hit on its hands.

The story is set in the late 1940’s, and centers around a new musicalized production of Shakespeare’s “Taming of the Shrew.” Fred Graham and Lilli Vanessi, a famous fictional Broadway acting couple (modeled after famed real-life theatrical couple, Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne), are reunited after a bitter divorce, hoping to bring this new show to Broadway. “Kiss Me Kate” depicts the on-and-off-stage strife between these two headstrong divas during their out-of-town tryouts in Baltimore. They are portraying Kate and Petruchio in Shakespeare’s classic battle of the sexes comedy, but the battles don’t just rage in the play, they erupt everywhere: in the dressing rooms, behind the scenery, in the corridors, and even during the production.

Complicating matters, another backstage romance seems in jeopardy as flirtatious actress Lois Lane and her gambling-addicted boyfriend, Bill Calhoun, try to keep their own love afloat. The two Thespians are cast as Bianca and Lucentio in the play-within-a-play. And just when things couldn’t get any worse, Bill’s gambling debt catches up with him. Two hired thugs, a Gun Man and a Gun Woman, appear at the theatre to mistakenly shake down Fred Graham, after Calhoun secretly signed his co-actor’s name to a promissory note. Hilariously, the two bullies wind up on stage in Elizabethan costumes after they become enamored by the glitz of show business.

The musical’s real strength is Cole Porter’s delectable score. Some of the songs from this show even became standards, such as Wunderbar,” “From This Moment On” and the comical “Brush Up Your Shakespeare”(performed with hilarity by the comic thugs, played here by the incomparable Lillian Castillo and Shea Coffman). The first act also features Porter’s lush ballad, “So In Love,” sung with perfection by one of Chicago’s favorite and finest leading ladies, Susan Moniz, playing Lilli Vanessi/Katharine. Ms Moniz brings venom and humor to her “I Hate Men.” Arguably Chicago’s most accomplished baritone, Larry Adams breathes new life into the role of Fred Graham/Petruchio. He fills the theatre with his “Where Is the Life That Late I Led” and a gorgeous reprise of “So In Love.” Lois and Bill, played by Alexandra Palkovic and Daniel May, bring joy with their duet, “Why Can’t You Behave.” Later in the act, as Bianca, Ms. Palkovic brings laughter with the comic “Tom, Dick or Harry,” sung and danced with May, Alex Joseph Stewart and Alejandro Fonseca. However, Act II opens with the best number of the show. Jonathan Butler-Duplessis charms the audience with his show-stopping company number, “Too Darn Hot.” It’s so hot, the number almost produced a standing ovation. 

There’s always been a great deal of controversy in producing both this musical or the original Shakespearean comedy, upon which it was based. The subservient treatment of women in both plays is difficult to witness in light of today’s achievements and setbacks. Of course, we’ve still got a long way to go concerning gender equality and women’s rights, but the archaic, insensitive handling of certain situations, the treatment of women and the way jokes are made at their expense, are just inappropriate in 2021. However, as the Director says in her program notes, these plays represent the times in which they were written. Of course,  some of these problems, unfortunately, still plague us today. For this reason, it’s still important to experience this story. We can compare and contrast our contemporary views with what we see and hear and decide how to make things better for everyone.   

This isn’t a perfect production, but then this musical isn’t a perfect vehicle. It’s dated, but we can look beyond that. The happy ending seems to just happen without very much preparation or fanfare. Depending upon where you’re sitting, Scott Davis’ strange onstage/backstage scenic design makes it difficult to see what’s going on. But the musical numbers, and the actors who perform them, are the reason to see this show. Ryan T. Nelson’s spot-on Musical Direction, paired with Patti Garwood’s full-sounding pit orchestra and Alex Sanchez’s extraordinary choreography combine to make this show “Too Darn Hot!”    

Recommended

Reviewed by Colin Douglas

Presented November 17-January 16 by the Marriott Theatre, 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire, IL.

Tickets are available in person at the theatre box office, by calling (847) 634-0200 or by going to www.ticketmaster.com or www.MarriottTheatre.com.

Additional information about this and other area productions can be found by visiting www.theatreinchicago.com.