Cain Park’s ‘The Toxic Avenger’ goes from intoxicating to punch-drunk Bob Abelman Cleveland Jewish News, The News Herald, The Morning Journal Member, International Association of Theatre Critics “The Toxic Avenger,” currently on stage at Cain Park, is the love-child of “Little Shop of Horrors” and “Rocky Horror Picture Show.” No, that’s not really how this off-beat, off-Broadway rock musical came into being. But it’s so much easier to envision this kind of conception then the fact that such a conspicuously silly sci-fi farce was written by the same fellows – Joe DiPietro (“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change”) and David Bryan (keyboardist for the rock band Bon Jovi) – who won a Tony Award for writing the comparatively straight-laced musical “Memphis.” Based on the 1984 low-budgeted B-movie by Lloyd Kaufman, “The Toxic Avenger” features nerdy Melvin Ferd III (Ellis C. Dawson III), who is in love with the blind town librarian Sarah (Natalie Green) and is on a mission to clean up the nuclear waste in his hometown in New Jersey. The corrupt Mayor of the town (Kate Leigh Michalski), whose shady business deals are responsible for the toxic dump, attempts to foil Melvin’s plans by having her thugs (Codie Higer and Mariah Burks) dump him into a vat of toxic goo. He emerges as a deformed, radioactive mutant with superhuman strength, hell-bent on righting wrongs and breaking into song with little provocation. DiPietro’s script is hilarious and uses every sci-fi genre trope, musical theater convention and New Jersey failing as its plaything. But what is delightfully outrageous and deliciously idiotic out of the gate becomes tedious as audiences grow accustomed and then numb to things sick, shocking and sarcastic. The same goes for David Bryan’s score, which wedges witty wordplay into generic musical theater genres that become indistinguishable over time despite a superb band under Jordan Cooper’s direction. Despite its creative challenges, this production of “The Toxic Avenger” is a success. The reason is the seven exceptionally talented, fully committed, and unflinching performers who operate under Nathan Motta’s immensely playful direction and choreography. For more of this review, go to www.clevelandjewishnews.com/columnists/.