Taking a beloved 90s movie and turning it into a Broadway musical is a tall order. You're competing with nostalgia, a legendary film performance, and the simple fact that what works on a movie screen doesn't always translate to the stage. Tuesday night, the North American tour of Mrs. Doubtfire opened at the BJCC Concert Hall to tackle that challenge, closing out the Broadway in Birmingham season.
The show follows the plot you probably know by heart: an out-of-work actor loses custody of his kids in a divorce and disguises himself as a Scottish nanny to see them.
The entire production rests on the shoulders of Craig Allen Smith, who plays Daniel Hillard. An exhausting role that requires constant, frantic costume changes and non-stop vocal shifts. Smith deserves credit for the sheer logistics of the performance; watching him navigate the chaos of the famous double-booked dinner scene is genuinely impressive from a technical standpoint.
The supporting cast keeps the story grounded. Melissa Campbell gives a steady performance as Miranda, a role that could easily feel thankless next to a giant comedic persona. Alanis Sophia also stands out, bringing real vocal strength to the role of the eldest daughter, Lydia.
The music by Wayne and Karey Kirkpatrick keeps the evening moving quickly. While the stage adaptation updates some of the story's humor for a modern audience—with mixed results—the touring company brings enough collective energy to keep the momentum from stalling.
Ultimately, Mrs. Doubtfire is exactly what it sets out to be: a high-energy, sentimental night of theater. The opening night crowd at the BJCC was on board, laughing through the physical comedy and leaning into the nostalgia. It might not reinvent the wheel, but it delivers exactly the kind of easy, crowd-pleasing entertainment the audience was looking for.
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