Review: JEKYLL AND HYDE THE MUSICAL at Lake Country Players
Audience wins in battle of good and evil in Victorian England
With Jekyll and Hyde The Musical, the Lake Country Players (LCP) offer a spirited, multi-faceted look at the different faces we present. Of course, the classic source material, the Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, on which the musical is based, takes that concept to grim extremes.
Under SANDRA RENICK and Breanne Brennan’s direction, LCP's “Jekyll and Hyde” stresses the title character(s) humanity as much as his inhumanity, making the transformation even more powerful.
And much of the power of that transformation belongs to Adrian Ford, who plays the good (and bad) doctor. Along with clever, judicious use of fluorescent body paint, Ford’s depiction of Jekyll's descent into madness is fueled by the strength of his performance and voice rather than makeup or other externals.
Ford’s powerful voice is truly a showstopper (whether in aid of Jekyll or Hyde). And he is more than ably matched by Jaime Nyland and Alyssa Booten as the two women in his life.
While the characters could easily be reduced to bad girl/good girl stereotypes (sort of the Hyde and Jekyll of virtuous Victorian womanhood), Nyland and Booten’s rich performances ensure the characters have more depth.
The large and talented supporting cast, led by Bradley Wooten, fill the intimate and efficiently used theater space with both spirited music and dread that pull the audience into the story.
Photo caption:
Mr. Hyde (Adrian Ford) eliminates one of the obstacles ( Jacki Renner) to Dr. Jekyll’s work.
Photo credit: James Baker Jr.
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