[NEohioPAL] Berko review: THE KING AND I (Carousel)

[Roy Berko]

Lush ‘KING AND I’ pleases at Carousel

Roy Berko

Member, American Theatre Critics Association)

--THE TIMES NEWSPAPERS--

Lorain County Times--Westlaker Times--Lakewood News
Times--Olmsted-Fairview Times	

--coolcleveland.com—

There is a saying among theatre-goers that it’s never
a good sign when one exits the theatre talking about
the production’s sets and costumes.  Well, in the case
of Carousel Dinner Theatre’s ‘THE KING AND I,’ the
likely departure conversation will be about the
glorious sets and the magnificent costumes.  That’s
not to say the acting, dancing and singing are bad,
they are all quite good, it’s just that the technical
aspects of this particular production are so
outstanding.  

Artistic Director Sean Cercone has let loose big time
on the production budget. Scenic Designer Robert
Kovach and Costume Designer Dale DiBernardo have very
successfully taken up the challenge and created
striking visually images. 

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were the
kings of musical theatre in the 1950s and 60s.  They
wrote more classics for that genre than any other
creative team.   The list goes on and on,  ‘OKLOHAMA,’
‘SOUND OF MUSIC,’ ‘FLOWER DRUM SONG,’ and ‘CAROUSEL’
are only a few.  Many consider ‘THE KING AND I’ to be
one of their best shows.

‘THE KING AND I’ is based on the book ‘ANNA AND THE
KING OF SIAM’ by Margaret Landon.  The plot was
actually taken from a story by Anna Leonowens who was
a school teacher to the children of King Mongukut, the
King of Siam, in the early 1860s.  Though the story is
supposedly autobiographical, there are numerous
questions about the accuracy of the story.  

The Broadway production which starred Yul Brenner and
Gertrude Lawrence, opened in 1951, ran over
twelve-hundred performances and won the Tony Award for
Best Musical.  The script was made into a film in 1956
 starring Brenner and Deborah Kerr.  Since Kerr was
not a singer, Marne Nixon, the diva of voice
stand-ins, did the singing. 

The story starts with the arrival of Anna Leonowens, a
widow from Wales and her son Louis, into Bangkok.  She
has been hired to teach the children of the King of
Siam in the “scientific ways” of the Western world. 
In the process of her stay there are conflicts over
her housing, the King’s “barbaric” control over his
people, a visit from the British who may be
considering taking over the country as a colony, and
eventually the death of the king.  All this encased
within a glorious musical score that includes, “I
Whistle a Happy Tune,” “Getting to Know You,” “We Kiss
in a Shadow,’ and “Shall We Dance?”
	
R&H’s shows contain messages of societal ills.  The
theme was highlighted by a major song.   In the case
of “THE KING AND I,’ it is ‘A Puzzlement,” during
which the King questions his role in bringing Siam
into the “new” world, his ability to adapt to the
changes and whether what is going on in the outside
world is good for his people.

Carousel’s production is well served by its cast,
which is the largest company ever to appear on the
theatre’s stage.  

Though he takes a little getting used to, due to a
lack of strong physical presence, Francis Jue gives
his own spin to the role.  That interpretation
generally works. 

Jennifer Hughes is a fine Anna, though her speaking
voice was occasionally a little high pitched, and she
lacks some of the needed warmth that would have made
the character more appealing.  She sings well.

Jonelle Margallo (Tuptim) and JP Moraga (Lun Tha),
both have nice voices and develop authentic characters
as the young lovers.

Catherine Cheng Jones (Madam Thiang) does an excellent
vocal rendition of “Something Wonderful.”

Both of the young boys, Jacob Rummell (Prince
Chululongkorn) and Matthew Hemminger (Louis) have
difficulty developing realistic characterizations.

Director Stephen Bourneuf and choreographer Vince
Pesce do a nice job of creating the proper atmosphere
and add some creative touches to the happenings. 

The major flaw with the production is the overzealous
orchestra who often drowned out the vocalists and the
sound technician who often cranked the musical volume
to an ear-splitting level. 

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT:   ‘THE KING AND I’ is a musical
theatre classic which gets a very good production at
Carousel Dinner Theatre.

‘THE KING AND I’ runs through April 26.  For tickets 
call 800-362 4100.  Show times are Tuesday through
Thursday evenings at 8:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday
evenings at 8:30 p.m. and Sunday evenings at 5 and
Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 2 P.M.

Carousel’s next production is ‘DAMN YANKEES, which
will have a Cleveland Indian’s connect.  It runs from
April 30 through June 28.  The remaining shows of the
season are “VIAGGIO,’ ‘THE WIZARD OF OZ’ and ‘ALL
SHOOK UP.’


Roy Berko's blog, which contains theatre and dance reviews from 2001 through 2007, as well as his consulting and publications information, can be found at http://royberko.info
      
Roy's theatre and dance reviews appear regularly on NeOHIOpal, an on-line source.   To subscribe to this free service via the World Wide Web, visit http://mailman.listserve.com/listmanager/listinfo/neohiopal.  His reviews also appear on www.coolcleveland.com


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