Hello, Dolly! Goodbye Scenery!

Dolly Levi is a woman on a mission.  That mission, if she chooses to accept it, is to marry Horace Vandergelder.  This review will self destruct in fifteen seconds…

Well, as we all know, Dolly's mission is accomplished and she does get her man.  Hello, Dolly! has become one of the most beloved musicals of all time, as well as one of the most debated film versions of a musical (was Babs too young?) Hello, Dolly! also boasts one of the most memorable scores ever written for the stage including Before The Parade Passes By, Put on Your Sunday Clothes, and of course the title number.

The list of leading ladies who have played Dolly is also like a who's who of musical theatre.  Jerry Herman initially wrote the show for Ethel Merman, however it was Carol Channing who opened the show and who became the person most identified with Ms. Levi.  Other Dolly's included Ginger Rogers, Martha Raye, Betty Grable, Pearl Bailey (in an all-black version with Cab Calloway), Dorothy Lamour, Phyllis Diller, and finally Ethel Merman.

In the latest mounting produced by Theatre at the Center, Chicago's beloved Paula Scrofano once again sinks her teeth into the role. Scrofano earned rave reviews six years ago when she performed the role at the Skylight Opera Theatre in Milwaukee.  Playing opposite her as he did in Milwaukee, is Paula's real life husband, John Reeger.  Scrofano knows how to put some emotional bite into the role of Dolly Levi, which many actresses are unable to accomplish.  Reeger plays Horace much in the vein of Walter Mathau in the film version, rough and gruff with little emotion.  In the end it is hard to imagine what Dolly really sees in him.  Joining Scrafano and Reeger are Cory Goodrich who is downright lovely as Irene Malloy, Ed Kross and Zach Zube as Cornelius and Barnaby have great chemistry together and Dara Cameron as is hilarious as Mini Fay.

The problem with this Dolly isn't the acting.  Instead, it is the lack of physical production.  What makes Hello, Dolly! fun is the opulence and that is what is lacking here.  There is nothing to give it that grand old Victorian feeling.  The sets for the most part are implied and the staircase for Dolly's grand entrance at Harmonia Gardens is nothing more than three or four steps of badly stained brown wood.

The other problem is the young age of the male chorus which makes Dolly's return to Harmonia Gardens all the more unbelievable in that she would have known the staff for years.  Yes the boys can all sing and dance, but it doesn't look like they are old enough to serve Dolly any alcohol. 

William Pullinski's direction is tight and specific and William A. Underwood's musical direction is spot on.  Kudos as well to Kevin Barthel who has done a masterful job with the wig design.   

Hello, Dolly! plays through October 21, 2007.  For more information visit www.theatreatthecenter.org

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