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<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal" style="text-align:center" align="center"><b>Bootyful Dreamers</b></p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal" style="text-align:center" align="center">By Tom Wachunas</p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><b><i>ecdysiast</i> (n.) </b>- H.L. Mencken's invented proper word for
"strip-tease artist," 1940, from Greek<i> ekdysis</i> "a stripping or casting off"<span> </span></p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span>The nerve. The
verve. The ghastly giggles and writhing wiggles. The Players Guild Theatre <span> </span>production of <i>The Full Monty</i> is a sizzling, sassy foray into the ecdysiastic
fantastic.</p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span>Jonathan Tisevich
directs this American musical adaptation (which opened on Broadway in 2000) of
the eponymous British film from 1997. He’s more than casually familiar with the
material, as he was in the musical’s national touring company in 2003, and
later directed a notably successful production in 2010 on the Players Guild’s
airy mainstage.<span> </span>This time around, the
action unfolds in the much tighter surrounds of the Guild’s downstairs arena
theater, effectively injecting a very bold and daring story with even more
rip-roaring, in-your-face intensity. </p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span>Not only directing
a thoroughly electrifying group of 18 performers, Tisevich is a cast member
himself, playing a key role. Fittingly enough, it’s the character of Jerry
Lukowski, who in turn directs a raucous show within the show. He does so with
infectious energy, infused with a physical panache and fierce emotionality
mirrored by the entire cast.</p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span><span> </span>Here is the story of six steelworkers in
Buffalo, New York, whose already vexed personal lives are further, uhm… upended
when they become <span> </span>unemployed. Jerry is
desperate to find enough money for the child support payments to his ex-wife,
Pam (played by Olivia Wimberly), else he’ll lose shared custody of his beloved
son, Nathan (Joey Anderson). Intrigued by the popularity of a Chippendales act
at the local night club, he masterminds a plan to form an unlikely male
stripper troupe with his five equally desperate cohorts.</p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span><span> </span>Brian O’Jackson plays Dave, a large guy
feeling helpless to revive his <span> </span>troubled
marriage to Georgie (Ashley Berman). Harold, played by Jay Sigler, is a factory
manager afraid to tell his wife, Vicki (Meg Hopp) he can’t afford her lifestyle
because he’s been fired. Kyle Burnett is Malcolm, a friendless introvert living
with his mother. Ethan, played by Allen Cruz, is irrepressibly outgoing; and
‘Horse’, played by Darryl Robinson, longs for his younger days as a ladies’
man. The troupe’s plan is to do one show only and share a hefty paycheck. But
very late in their rehearsals, they realize that simply cavorting about in
their shiny red G-strings won’t fill the house. So they promise all those
would-be ticket buyers “the full Monty” (British slang for going all the way,
“the whole ball of wax”). </p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span>In coming to grips
with their dire circumstances, all of these male characters share honest anger
and exasperation. It can be downright painful to hear their insecurities about
body image, dignity, their emotional and psychological vulnerabilities, their
ill-founded pride or doubt about what makes a man…manly. Baring the body becomes
a prickly metaphor for baring the soul, a difficult
drop-your–pants-drop-your-defenses proposition.</p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span><span> </span>When they, as well as the women in the cast
sing, it’s a disarmingly expressive rawness that takes over, making all these
individuals so utterly credible. They’re completely genuine and endearing,
whether navigating through crisis or romping in unfettered silliness. Though
some might reckon these proceedings as some sort of sensationalistic assault on
proper morality, I think the overarching thrust of the narrative is about the
love and commitment that binds and heals amidst gritty turmoil. <span> </span></p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span>This salty tale is
generously peppered with songs (music and lyrics by David Yazbek), some tender
and poignant, as in the heartrending “Breeze Off the River,” when Jerry sings
to his sleeping son; and some rowdy to the point of whipping the audience into
a frenzy of piercing shrieks and whistles, as in “Big Black Man,” when Darryl
Robinson, reprising his role of Horse from the 2010 production, auditions for a
spot in the stripper line by delivering a whirlwind of comically<span> </span>smooth moves. Teresa Houston, also reprising
her 2010 role, brings gut-splitting gusto to her rendering of Jeanette, the
schmoozy, sardonic, seen-it-all show biz piano accompanist during the troupe’s
rehearsals.</p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span><span> </span>All of the music – a crackling mix of
contemporary pop, rock and R&B – is driven along by the excellent live
offstage orchestra led by Steve Parsons. <span> </span><span> </span>And the
madcap choreography by Michael Lawrence Akers is a narrative unto itself. It’s
a deft sort of protracted morphing that we see, from the hilariously wonky, bump-and-grind
stomping of less-than-ideal physiques into the confident, steelyard swagger of
blue collar chic. When the promised big finale does arrive, a blinding flash of
light signals that this troupe’s <span> </span>collective
cup, as it were, runneth over.<span> </span><span> </span></p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span><span> </span></p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal"><span> </span><i>The Full Monty / </i>THROUGH SEPTEMBER 2,
2018,<i> </i>at Players Guild Theatre, 1001
Market Avenue N., Canton, Ohio / Shows at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m.
Sunday (additional show on Sept. 2 at 8 p.m.)</p>
<p class="ydpbbe47377MsoNormal">TICKETS: $32 adults, $29 seniors, at <a href="http://www.PlayersGuildTheatre.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.PlayersGuildTheatre.com</a> <span> </span><span> </span>and
330-453-7617.</p>
<span style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA"><span> </span>For other commentaries by Tom Wachunas on
the performing and visual arts in the greater Canton area, please visit his
blog, ARTWACH, at <a href="http://www.artwach.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.artwach.blogspot.com</a></span></span> <br></div></div></body></html>