The Drowsy Chaperone: A Nod to Bad Musicals

Music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison; book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar; directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw; scenic design by David Gallo; costume design by Gregg Barnes; lighting design by Ken Billington and Brian Monahan; sound design by Acme Sound Partners; musical director/conductor, Robert Billig

Cast in order of appearance:

Man in Chair, Jonathan Crombie; Mrs. Tottendale, Georgia Engel; Underling, Robert Dorfman; Robert Martin, Mark Ledbetter; George, Richard Vida; Feldzieg, Cliff Bemis; Kitty, Marla Mindelle; Gangster #1, Paul Riopelle; Gangster #2, Peter Riopelle; Aldolpho, James Moye; Janet Van De Graaff, Andrea Chamberlain; The Drowsy Chaperone, Nancy Opel; Trix, Fran Jaye; Super, Chuck Rea

Performances: Now through May 4, The Opera House, 539 Washington Street, Boston
Box Office: Ticketmaster at 617-931-2787 or www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com

At the beginning of The Drowsy Chaperone, appearing now through May 4 at The Opera House in Boston, the central character, called simply Man in Chair, has just finished listening to The Music Man, one of his all-time favorite musical theater cast recordings. Giddily singing its praises, he then proceeds to cue up his scratchy old vinyl album of The Drowsy Chaperone, a stinker of a 1928 musical that he compares to The Music Man for its ability to entertain and transport us away from the pressures of the real world for a couple of hours.

Well, I've seen The Music Man, Man in Chair, and The Drowsy Chaperone is no Music Man.

Chock full of stock melodramatic caricatures, an insipid story line, and mindless musical numbers designed to parody the vaudeville revues of the day, The Drowsy Chaperone is a frustrating example of a great idea gone terribly wrong. As Man in Chair revels in the splashy, over-the-top, and dreadfully acted escapist musical that has come to life in his drab apartment, we want very much to be carried away with him. Instead we are left wondering, "Why is he celebrating this show? It's an utter bore."

Which is really too bad, because the cast is top notch and, when not mired in the sappiness of the show within the show, the book offers some very clever moments. Chief among them are Man in Chair's unexpected revelations about himself as a not so stereotypical theater queen and a truly funny surprise opening to what would normally be Act II. There are also precisely timed repetitive loops in which the cast members reenact moments when the record needle is stuck. The ensemble executes these welcome twists with great panache, but when they each come forward for the de rigueur olio number, the pointless material forces them to work very hard without much success.

Jonathan Crombie as Man in Chair is a lovable loner whose favorite companions are encased in 12-inch cardboard sleeves. He is delightful when mirroring the actions of his heroes and heroines as they perform "live" in his living room. He is also endearing when giving us a glimpse into the rather unhappy inner world he longs to escape. But too much of his narrative involves describing what is about to take place in his favorite musical, or telling us about the real lives of the show's hammy actors whose two-dimensional personas are all we get to see. Just when we are drawn into his story and want to know more, we are yanked back into The Drowsy Chaperone and put back to sleep.

As Janet Van De Graaff, the ingénue within the musical who is willing (or is she?) to leave the spotlight to wed the dashing Robert Martin, Andrea Chamberlain exudes shining star quality. She brings a powerful belt and limber dance moves to "Show Off," the one production number that is genuinely witty. Mark Ledbetter as her love interest is vapidly handsome and scores as a tap dancer, along with Richard Vida as his manservant George, in "Cold Feets," but his eager Ipana smile can't overcome the thinness of his part.

Nancy Opel as the title character gets a few laughs as the stereotypical bored, cynical, drunken socialite who comes to life when seduced by the annoyingly posturing Latin lover Aldolpho (James Moye). She fails to stop the show with her big number, "As We Stumble Along," however, overdoing the drunken mannerisms and robbing the scene of its spontaneity. Marla Mindelle is appropriately sexy but unoriginally ditzy as the talent-challenged chorus girl Kitty, and Cliff Bemis stiffly blusters his way through the role of Feldzieg, the scheming producer who would rather see Janet unlucky in love than let her out of her contract.

Twin brothers Paul and Peter Riopelle are wasted as Gangsters #1 and #2, on the lam as clownish pastry chefs. So is Fran Jaye as Trix the aviatrix. They are throw-away characters who sing throw-away songs, despite the big productions that are made of them. The boys' "Toledo Surprise" is nonsensical and full of empty calories, and Trix's grand finale "I Do, I Do in the Sky" comes out of nowhere, as does she. Her only other appearance is in the labored opening number that introduces each character with abominably trite exposition.

As if to compensate for the gratuitous nature of the show within the show, most of the cast works very hard to infuse The Drowsy Chaperone with life. Ironically, their noticeable efforts work against them, weighing down a soufflé of a concept that needs to whisk by the audience so quickly that they hardly notice how light it truly is. Only old pros Georgia Engel as the air brained Mrs. Tottendale and Robert Dorfman as her trusty servant Underling breeze along as if in a different show. Performing in the light-hearted style of George Burns and Gracie Allen, they bring a gentle winking sensibility to their characters that make their vaudeville-style patter routines seem clever and new.

For a musical that purportedly celebrates what's great about old-time musical theater, you'd think The Drowsy Chaperone would be a lot more entertaining. When Man in Chair asks, several times as he's listening to the show within the show, "Isn't that wonderful?" the answer should be, "Yes." Too often I found myself thinking a most definite, "No."

PHOTOS: Jonathan Crombie as Man in Chair; Andrea Chamberlain as Janet Van De Graaff; James Moye as Aldolpho and Nancy Opel as The Drowsy Chaperone; Georgia Engel as Mrs. Tottendale and Robert Dorfman as Underling