cyndicaldwell
Joined: 9/22/2009
Location:
San Francisco,
CA
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RE:BBBay's "The Full Monty" is more than unbridled angst - 8:03PM on 9/22/2009
BBBay’s “The Full Monty” is more
than unbridled angst
-Theatre Review
-Cyndi Caldwell
Bring your dollar bills, ladies, because you are in for a treat, and not just the naughty kind. Although, yes, expect that naughty thing. Those who have never seen the film version of “The Full Monty” released in 1997, with a cast of British actors including Robert Carlyle, Mark Addy and Tom Wilkinson, are in for a torching surprise. This musical version, with Music & Lyrics by David Yazbek and Book by Terrence McNally on Broadway in 2000 delivers more than unbridled angst. Leave the youngsters at home, because this “revealing” ensemble yields quite the eyeful. The show opens with a deliciously brazen strip tease by Buddy Keno Walsh, played by the bedazzling Stephen Baumann; who dances with a smooth gimme, leaving very little to the imagination. Quite an eye-opener, really, and this sets the tone for the ultimate performance.
Replacing Sheffield, England as the setting, this version takes place in New York. The local steelworks has closed down, causing widespread unemployment, and these Union workers can’t seem to get a break, many of whom have been out of work for nearly eighteen months. One day two such unemployed buddies, Jerry Lubowski, Noel Anthony and Dave Bukatinsky, Robert Sholty, happen upon a very Chippendale-esque show that all the local ladies seem to flock to. Naturally, these two blue-collar fellas realize how much money they could make in just one night, and decide that if those young male strippers can do it, so can they.
There is one little problem or three though. These guys are not young. They are not exactly the epitome of “prime male flesh.” Dave has quite the pot-belly, and nobody can dance. Hmm. What to do? Find four more guys just as pathetic and desperate and give it a go. Since they don’t seem to have as much to offer, they brag that they will go “the full Monty” for their performance, meaning totally nude. We’re talking full frontal, people.
One day while passing the old plant, they find the only guy still employed; Malcolm the Security Guard, played by Seth Michael Anderson. But Malcolm has a few issues. For one thing, Jerry and Dave have to stop him from committing suicide. This may be the strangest intervention you’ve ever seen, and one of the most audaciously brutal musical numbers in the entire show. Malcolm may still have a job for now, but he’s depressed, asocial, and he still lives at home with his mother. The number “Big A** Rock” brags of the many varieties in which one can commit suicide, and somewhere in the insanity, Jerry and Dave both save a life and make a friend. Anderson is beyond hysterical as Malcolm, and makes you forget about the film version completely, portraying his character as the insecure and impotent geek who finds a little courage with seamless abandon.
Anthony and Sholty are far more than the artless loser and whipped husky troglodyte that are outwardly their characters. As Jerry, Anthony gives a performance that is an inspired mix of enterprising abandon and poignant disquiet, as he attempts to keep joint custody of his son, Nathan, played rather eloquently by Tony Sinclair. Sholty as Dave couldn’t have been more perfectly cast. Though his vocals are powerful yet plain, his voice fits this guy like a glove, adding to the desired effect, offering a comical yet moving distribution that is nothing short of brave. His duet “Man” with Jerry bypasses the varnish and heads straight for the trough. In a word; remarkable.
Raising the number of would-be Chippendales to six are Michael Cassidy as Harold, former supervisor, who is blackmailed into becoming the choreographer, and brings a no-nonsense performance with smooth vocals, most evident in his duet “You Rule My World” with Sholty. Andrew Willis-Woodward as Ethan, who has no talent except, well, what hides behind his zipper, is a hodge-podge of slapstick-meets-cute mongrel in his failed attempts at one particular feat, making for frequent injuries and plenty of laughs. And then we have Horse Berwyck Haynes. Horse is getting up in years, he has a bad hip and gravity is evident, but you wouldn’t know it with his vigorous display of retro moves and catchy rendition of “Big Black Man” that decidedly brought down the house. Youth has nothing on this guy. Thumbs up for Haynes. It’s a bit scary, but still, thumbs up.
While the men are fabulous, let’s not forget the ladies. Amanda Folena is brazenly outrageous as Georgie Butakinsky, Dave’s wife, boasting a lungful of vocal skill and just the right punch to get it done. Katie Potts is spot-on as Pam Lukowski, and Sarah Aili is simply a force to be reckoned with as the sweet but high-maintenance Vicki Nichols, Harold’s wife. Her on-fire whirlwind number “Life with Harold” is a study in why stimulants should be banned from the planet, leaving the audience dizzy from the assault. In a good way. The vote for brassiest dame in the show, however, goes to Pam Fornesi as advisor and accompanist extraordinaire, Jeannette Burmeister, with her sonorous release of “Jeannette’s Showbiz Number” in the second act. Fornesi may sing like she swallowed a bag of razors, but it certainly fit the abrasive personae for yet another raise-the-roof number of spectacular proportions.
The production ended with a screaming literally standing ovation after the final exposure pun intended of the ultimate results in the number “Let it Go” and boy, did they. Choreography by Robyn Tribuzi is an assortment of impetuous enticement and climactic explosion, with equally outstanding Musical Direction by Rick Reynolds. Director George Maguire has definitely pulled out the stops, making BBBay’s “The Full Monty” a must-see.
The show will be playing through October 4 at the San Mateo Performing Arts Center, 600 Delaware Street in San Mateo. For tickets call 650 579-5565 or go online to www.broadwaybythebay.org
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