There is always something comforting about returning to a familiar place, and I was very happy to get the chance to return to one of my favorite little spaces, the Winthrop Playhouse, to see their production of The Wedding Singer, this weekend.  The Playmakers have produced some of my favorite versions of popular musicals to date, their Seussical was by far the best I have seen (and boy can THAT show go wrong!) and their Company was every bit as good as the version I saw on PBS a few years ago.  I was excited to see The Wedding Singer, having recently seen the production for the first time by The F.U.D.G.E. Theatre Company this past August (reviewed here).

The staff of the Playhouse was beyond exceptional, I was treated like royalty, and I appreciated the extra care that I could see was taken in the relationship between audience and staff.  I sat back in my newly renovated seat (so much more comfortable than its predecessor) and was treated to a solid, clean, and entertaining production.

The first thing I’d like to note is that the stage of the Winthrop Playhouse is small, and the cast of The Wedding Singer was large, but somehow they managed to deliver original choreography with an extremely high degree of expertise and efficiency.  I never imagined that so many people could pull off such intricate footwork in such a little space- but they did it.  The choreography was the first thing that stood out in the show, it was impressive to say the least even without choreographer, Chad Flahive at the front of the group (he only joined them for some of the numbers, and he was great fun to watch!)  The costumes had a touch of 80’s flare, but their were some places especially in the Act II opener, “All About The Green”, where the period costumes were seriously lacking (where were all the shoulder pads and big bows???)  I also saw a distinct lack of slouch socks, leg warmers, and oversized t-shirts.  What the production lacked in costumes, it more than made up for in a very cleverly crafted set designed that used cutaways and cut-outs to infinitely change the stage by simply opening and closing hinges.  It worked remarkably well in the limited space.

Bravo to the cast of this show- each and every one of you truly looked like you were having the time of your life.  I was infinitely relieved to see such a wonder lead pair in Chas Kircher’s Robby Hart and Heather Darrow’s Julia Sullivan.  They had fantastic chemistry, they looked at each other the way the characters are meant to with longing and stars in their eyes- when Robby serenaded Julia at her Las Vegas wedding, I too, almost forgot to breathe, it was such a magical feeling.  They captured that feeling better than I thought would be possible for a pair of community theatre actors.  Kat Aberle (whom I previously ADORED as Gertrude in Seussical) was outstanding as Holly, and though it seemed she was quite a bit older than our Julia, she still gave a vivacious and spirited performance.  Her highlight of the night was when singing with the Nicholas Raponi’s Sammy.  They were fantastic together, more unexpected chemistry.  Raponi absolutely defied my expectations as Sammy, playing with great comic panache opposite George (Mark McClelland).  McClelland was absolutely hysterical and quite striking as the cross-dressing band member.  The ensemble was also very good- I loved the various celebrity impersonators and the fun wedding guest depictions.  The only thing I was really missing was the play out after the curtain call when everyone sings a reprise of the finale.  I was so sad to see that cut, its one of my favorite parts of the show!

My final thought, is actually kudos to the director of the performance, Kevin Michael Morin.  The Wedding Singer is a very large show with a lot going on, and with the dance numbers, flashy costumes, and huge assortment of plotlines interwoven throughout, it is easy for the production to run away on itself.  Morin must have had a lot of heart and spirit for this piece.  It showed in the nuance of every scene, from transitions to lighting moments.  There is just no doubt that his hands were on the show at all times, and the results were very impressive.  When I read that this was his directorial debut, I absolutely could not believe it.  Mr. Morin, you have a bright future ahead of you.

Robby and his “fake” friends plot to stop Julia’s Vegas Wedding.