[NEohioPAL] THEATRE REVIEW - "The Drowsy Chaperone" Deserves A Bigger Audience!!

[Elizabeth Merriman]

Thank you for posting this commentary about Garfield Players' current production 
of The Drowsy Chaperone.   I saw the show last Sunday and it was one of the most 
enjoyable musicals I have ever seen in community theatre. I saw the original 
production on Broadway and enjoyed this show as much.  My only criticism was the 
sparse audience. What a waste of exceptional talent when the cast outnumbers the 
audience! See this show!

Sincerely,
Libby Merriman



________________________________
From: Margie Krestle <mkrestle at gmail.com>
To: neohiopal at lists.neohiopal.org
Sent: Thu, November 4, 2010 11:21:32 AM
Subject: [NEohioPAL] THEATRE REVIEW - "The Drowsy Chaperone" Deserves A Bigger 
Audience!!

 
I haven't seen anything written up about this show (which is a shame), so I 
thought I'd toss out my "two cents" and hopefully encourage some of you to go 
see this show.

Lately, it’s been a crap-shoot for me to find affordable entertainment that I 
enjoy without feeling like I need to take out a mortgage on my house. Imagine my 
surprise and delight when, as I was sifting through the various online 
entertainment directories last week and I discovered that Garfield Players was 
about to open my FAVORITE Broadway musical (EVER) - The Drowsy Chaperone.

 
Not expecting too much, because I know what community theatre is like, I set out 
to see this production just to enjoy the songs and story that I love so much. 
From the very first moments of Garfield Player’s production of The Drowsy 
Chaperone, however, I knew I was in for a treat. This may be a community theatre 
production, but aside from the flimsy set construction, you couldn’t prove it by 
what I witnessed.  The talent in this show could give a national tour a run for 
its money.
 
Let me begin by saying that the Garfield Center for the Performing Arts is a 
lovely facility located at Garfield Heights High School. It’s a huge space, with 
a seating capacity of well over 800.  I bring all of this up because I literally 
had my pick of seats, since only about 25-30 other people attended the 
performance that I saw.  In an auditorium that size, an audience that small 
should be criminal – and I admit to being a little embarrassed for the 
production.  What is impressive about it is that the cast and crew of The Drowsy 
Chaperone performed undaunted and unaffected by the sparce audience.
 
Director James E. Jarrell has assembled an extremely talented group to perform 
this show, and all of the casting was just about “spot-on” perfect.  He clearly 
managed this talent well, creating some lovely stage pictures that really 
capture the show’s “moment.”  Mr. Jarrell clearly understands the style and 
finesse of this kind of campy musical theatre faire. As an aficionado of the 
Broadway production, I could definitely see some parallels in the stage 
direction, and although it didn’t bother me, I would have liked to have seen 
some more creativity and originality.  

 
Not that there isn’t an abundance of creativity in this show.  The choreography 
by Jennifer Leinweber-Ritz gave just enough of a nod to the original Broadway 
production without being a copy. The most obvious homage was the “Show Off” 
number, which just didn’t quite make the mark.  Also a very ambitious tap dance 
routine in “Cold Feets” seems too difficult for the obvious beginner tappers and 
kind of falls flat.  

 
The cast more than makes up for those moments with rousing renditions of “Toledo 
Surprise” and “Bride’s Lament (the Monkey Song).”  Very clever staging and 
entertaining choreography in both numbers is executed to perfection by this 
talented cast, which makes these two numbers the strongest ensemble pieces in 
the show. Of particular note in “Bride’s Lament” is Allison Lehr’s (as the 
bride, Janet Vandegraf) incredible vocals, which was a pleasant surprise 
considering her lackluster performance Act One’s “Show Off.”  

 
Other highlights in the show’s cast include Jeremy Janik as Aldolpho – “the King 
of Romance.” Although it is sometimes hard to make out what he says, his 
brutally offensive and over-the-top caricature had me in stitches, particularly 
during his self-titled song and dance routine.  Amiee Collier was splendid as 
the title character – the Drowsy Chaperone – and has one of those voices that 
gives you goose bumps when she sings, though at times she was more boisterous 
(and obnoxious) than “drowsy” (aka drunk).  Don Pedley’s deadpan Underling and 
Diane Pedee’s dim-witted Mrs. Tottendale are both performed with understated 
brilliance.  The remainder of the cast and ensemble complement each other 
remarkably well for community theatre and do not disappoint at all.
 
The real star of this production, however, lies in the brilliant comic timing of 
the show’s narrator (the “Man In Chair”) as portrayed by Jason Falkofsky.  
Falkofsky carries off the combination of obsession and neuroses to perfection, 
without making the role cartoonish (which was a big problem I had with the 
touring production).  He sets the pace early on and endears the audience with 
his gentle voice and obvious adoration for what he’s witnessing on stage. I was 
in love with his performance from top to bottom – and he clearly makes this 
production better.
 
The costuming was neither a highlight nor a liability for this production and 
had brief flashes of brilliance mixed with some blandness.  Other technical 
elements have leaps and bounds to make to meet the level of talent in the cast, 
but none of it was so bad that it ruined my enjoyment of the show.  The 
orchestra (essentially a wind ensemble with a set of drums and an electronic 
keyboard) is typical community theatre quality, and they are quite loud – which 
might be a major problem for you if you don’t know the show since they 
frequently drown out the singers on stage.
 
Overall, I was truly impressed by this production and I really hope they get 
more substantial audiences over the next two weekends.  I honestly wouldn’t have 
known anything about it if I didn’t happen upon it in the events calendar on the 
PD website.  Obviously more needs to be done to get the word out about this 
show.At any rate, if you have time to go see it, you should. You won't be 
disappointed.



      
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