Review: THE TAFFETAS Bring the Fifties to YLT

Currently at York Little Theatre is THE TAFFETAS: A MUSICAL JOURNEY THROUGH THE FABULOUS FIFTIES. At least, that's the heavy title plus subtitle the Off-Broadway show was saddled with by author and arranger Rick Lewis. The more accurate title would be "Forever Plaid: The Women's Edition." The Taffetas, a girl group (that unlike the Four Plaids, is still alive) loosely modeled on The Chordettes, with a name adapted from The Chiffons, is a most definitely pre-Wall Of Sound group, and all Good Girls at that, unlike the edgy Sixties tough-girl Shangri-Las or the sexy Sixties Ronettes, answer fan questions by telling them that their idols are Mamie Eisenhower and their mother (they're a sister act), and that Eddie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds will never break up.

Director Christopher Quigley and set designer Rene Staub have conjured up the New York studios of the DuMont Television Network - another blast from the Fifties, the original Fourth Network long before Fox (though given its backers it was really the first United Paramount Network). They're appearing on the fictional DuMont show "Spotlight On Music," a musical version of the network's hit "Cavalcade of Stars." Quigley and Staub have given the set a Fifties musical variety show look that's carried through in some very nice lighting design by Judi Miller. It's the perfect backdrop for the four sisters from Muncie, Indiana to sing and dance their way to their ultimate goal, musical immortality by way of appearing on the ED SULLIVAN SHOW, clearly having no fear of being upstaged by Sullivan's puppet-mouse buddy, Topo Grigio.

Kaye, Peggy, Donna, and Cheryl, played respectively by Karen Steelman (ALWAYS, PATSY CLINE), Susie Goebeler (THE ADDAMS FAMILY), Christine Emig, and Nina Cline (WHITE CHRISTMAS), gamely sing and dance (there's some nice early girl group choreography by Ciara Driscoll) their way through the primary Fifties "oldies station" repertoire, including the Chordettes' "Mr. Sandman" and "Lollipop." If there is any serious flaw here, it's Rick Lewis' selections and arranging; the first act, rather than setting the girls up for musical immortality with Ed Sullivan, is more likely to send them into musical limbo with Lawrence Welk, and someone needs to tell Lewis that "Fly Me to the Moon," one of the great American standards, is a foxtrot, not a rhumba.

The sisters from Muncie are given clearly different personalities, nicely drawn by the cast. Especially fun is Donna, played by Emig, who makes her the family clown with some amusing physical comedy. Kaye, played by Steelman, is the front woman, with a dominant personality, frequently checked by Cheryl (Cline), who believes that her "natural blonde" prettiness should make her the star - she's the one who loudly disavows any connection to Eddie Fisher. Peggy (Goebeler) is a definite middle sister type, not making waves, upholding learning to cook like mama as a life goal. These four performers deserve serious praise for not only keeping up a solid show of sustained song and dance, but for delivering Lewis' laid-on-with-a-trowel Fifties female stereotyping dialogue with straight faces.

The second act, their second set on their live episode of "Spotlight on Music," is the one that's going to sell The Taffetas to Ed Sullivan; the music has higher energy and an actual beat, and is spoiled only by the sudden drag of a Pat Boone number in the midst of an otherwise perky medley. The girls' solo turns here are delightful; Kaye sings "Where The Boys Are" sounding a bit more like Kay Starr than Connie Francis, and that works perfectly, while Cheryl's "Johnny Angel" showcases Cline's sweet vocals. Emig's humor is evident in Donna's "Mr. Lee," and Peggy pushes the up-tempo movement of the second act with her "Dedicated to the One I Love," which, along with the ensemble performance of "Little Darling," was a real audience pleaser on opening night. Their performance of "Dedicated to..." is completely spot-on, and worth the price of admission in itself. (So is Emig's portrayal of Donna, which is quite simply thoroughly entertaining.) It's no surprise that somewhere near the end of their second set (Act Two), the girls are flagged with a message from Ed Sullivan that he wants them on his show.

Are The Taffetas ready for Ed Sullivan? Only you can decide, so it's a good thing that they and "Spotlight on Music" will be live at DuMont's studios in York Little Theatre through the 13th. If your knowledge of period girl groups and singers is only from the Sixties and the Brill Building, these performers' appearance as The Taffetas will be an education; Quigley and Driscoll have given them the look and the moves of The Chordettes, The Chiffons, and the other girl groups of a generation that hadn't yet learned to shake its hips.

This is a great show for families, and little girls may be amazed to see what will look and sound to them like singing, dancing princesses - the Fifties groups may not have "gotten down" like the Shangri-Las and their contemporaries of a decade later, but they certainly knew how to be glamorous on stage. As a retrospective of Fifties women, it's a bit heavy-handed, but just stay with these four women and the music, especially in the second act. You'll be glad you did. Contact ylt.org for tickets and information.