BWW Reviews: BLOODY, BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON Rocks Chattanooga

If you happen to be in the Chattanooga area, and are looking for something different to do, head over to the Chattanooga Theatre Center to catch their latest production, Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson. Not your typical trip to the theatre by any means, Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson is an emo-rock musical that is not for the easily offended. Basically, this ain't your grandma's musical.

Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson has a book by Alex Timbers and music and lyrics by Michael Friedman. With direction by Scott Dunlap, the show covers the life and presidency of one of our nation's most famous presidents, but does so in a very unique way. Dunlap is also credited with scenic design, costumes and lighting.

The first thing you notice when you enter the Circle Theatre at Chattanooga Theatre Center, is the set. There are so many things going on that your eye can't help but flit from item to item. Most notable to me was the three chandeliers hanging from the ceiling...one of which has several BRAS hanging from it. Before the show begins, you can even buy drinks at the bar that is part of the set.

More than half of the costumes and props are modern day. Think this might be distracting? The audience is so into the show that they don't even question when President James Monroe is wearing a My Chemical Romance shirt. Or when Andrew Jackson is talking on a cell phone. Everything just fits.

Even if you know the music (I knew the cast recording my heart), I can promise you'll still get something you weren't expecting. I was expecting dark, rock musical. What I got was dark, rock musical comedy. It was much like watching a really long Saturday Night Live sketch. Totally hilarious, slightly dark, and every bit based in truth.

What tops this show off, making it a nearly perfect piece is the talented cast. Led by Scott Shaw as Andrew Jackson, each of the ensemble members has their own special moment to shine. Most of them play multiple roles in the show, and the entire group has some amazing comedic timing. Shaw's Andrew Jackson ranges from disgruntled to angry to emotionally torn. There are so many layers to the character and Scott Shaw does a good job of exploring these layers. Sure, you spend much time laughing at him, but you also see the pain and frustration of Andrew Jackson as well.

While all of Shaw's songs in the show are good, his shining moment of the night for me was at the close of Act 1, with the number "Rock Star." The song itself is completely fantastic, and Shaw's performance shows Andrew Jackson at the height of his fame. Jackson....er, I mean Shaw, enraptures the audience before intermission, and you have no doubts as to why Andrew Jackson was headed for Presidency.

One of the shining stars of the ensemble was Lizzie Chazen who played Jackson's wife Rachel, among other characters. Chazen has a stand out voice and was able to bring out many of the frustrations and anger that Rachel Jackson must have felt, while keeping you laughing in between. A complicated balance, yet Chazen performed it with ease.

Clever lyrics by Friedman drop in so many history terms and dates, that you don't realize you're getting a history lesson, though it is a slightly warped history lesson. In particular, "The Corrupt Bargain" talks about Andrew Jackson's first run for presidency and his subsequent loss.

Touchy subjects surrounding Andrew Jackson's rise to "fame" and his Presidency, like his massacre of several different tribes of Native Americans and the Trail of Tears are handled with a comedic twist. While the events themselves aren't funny at all, the show makes them light enough to process without feeling uncomfortable and still letting the audience realize the amount of death and destruction that occurred at the time. The song "Ten Little Indians" is humorous and odd at the same time, framing the scenes that show Jackson's destruction of the tribes of people.

Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson is certainly for an adult audience, and isn't exactly "family friendly," but you will have no problems enjoying a night out with your friends or a fun date night. This is the kind of show that you take your friends that hate musical theatre. They'll come out singing a different tune. Probably the tune "Populism, Yea, Yea!"

Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson runs at the Chattanooga Theatre Center through July 14th. You can visit their website for more information http://www.theatrecentre.com/ or call the box office 423-267-8534.

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