Porthouse’s ‘Ring of Fire’ is greater than the sum of its parts Bob Abelman Cleveland Jewish News, The News Herald, The Morning Journal Member, International Association of Theatre Critics “Ring of Fire,” now on stage at Porthouse Theatre, is a most amorphic musical. Created by Richard Malby Jr. and Jason Edwards, the original 2006 Broadway production took 38 of the country, gospel and rockabilly songs made famous by the legendary Johnny Cash and used them to narrate isolated events in the lives of archetypal Americans, who were played by six performers. The show was similar to the 1978 production of “Working” by Stephen Schwartz and Nina Faso, which chronicled through music and connective narration the work ordinary people do. And like “Working,” the show received abysmal reviews, generated little interest, and left Time Square with little fanfare. In 2013, “Ring of Fire” was pared down and reconceived as a biographical jukebox musical by Malby and William Meade, which opened at the Milwaukee Repertory Theater. The show was still steeped in Johnny Cash’s songs but they were now wrapped around a smattering of Cash’s own back-story and performed by a handful of actor-musicians. But it is a thin, unsatisfying biographical jukebox musical. Others, like “Jersey Boys” and “Beautiful” – which tell the respective stories of the Four Seasons and Carol King – do so through a detailed running narrative, a chronological sequencing of songs that capture their evolution as singer/songwriters, and actors portraying the real-life artists. “Ring of Fire” redux had none of this. As such, regional and community theaters willing to take on this work often attempt to make it more biographical. They swap songs to better follow Cash’s own story, feature a performer who closely resembles Cash, and display on stage photographs, artifacts and costuming that reflect Cash’s life. These productions of “Ring of Fire” become more tribute concert than jukebox musical. Under Steven C. Anderson’s direction, Porthouse Theater’s “Ring of Fire” goes in a different direction. It takes on the stylings of a musical revue and does so marvelously, facilitated by a six-week opening run in Columbus as a co-production with CATCO Theatre. For more of this review, go to www.clevelandjewishnews.com/columnists/.