[NEohioPAL] Review of "Chaplin" at Mercury Theatre Company

[Bob Abelman]

Mercury salvages a saccharine ‘Chaplin’



Bob Abelman

Cleveland Jewish News, The News Herald, The Morning Journal



Three things become abundantly clear while watching Mercury Theater Company’s production of “Chaplin,” the bio-musical about the creator of the Tramp and his epic rise and dramatic fall in silent film-era Hollywood.  



The first is that the show is a devised star vehicle for the rare performer who can not only act and sing but convincingly emulate Charlie Chaplin’s endearing on-screen persona.  Mastering the Tramp’s naiveté, pathos, subtlety and underlying athleticism is a difficult task made even more so by the show’s frequent display of archival film footage of the real Chaplin in action, which provides an immediate and potentially humbling point of comparison.  



The second and third is that Brian Marshall was born for the role and there is nothing humbling about his portrayal.



For more of this review, go to:  www.clevelandjewishnews.com/columnists/bob_abelman/
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