The Sweetest Charity:Drury Lane Oakbrook

When someone pulls the rug out from under your feet, there's a brief moment as you're airborne when you ponder, "what's happening here?" and then you fall back on your seat with the wind knocked out of you. Welcome to Drury Lane's production of Sweet Charity, the latest rug-pulled out from under your feet moment.

With Kyle DeSantis-Producer, Gary Griffin-Associate Producer, and William Osetek-Artistic Director, you already have the ingredients for something special in the making. Add to that a Book by Neil Simon, music by Cy Coleman and Lyrics by Dororthy Fields and you pretty much have entered a well appointed banquet room with a ravenous appetite.

Here's what's on the menu: a little Fosse, a little Mary Tyler Moore,  a little Hair, a little Ann Margaret, some vintage psychedelics à la Mike Myers, and a lot of energy exploding throughout the theater. 

Mitzi Hamilton has done a wonderful job creating some of the most exciting dance sequences to be seen a long time. The ensemble is truly blessed to have had the opportunity to let their incredible gifts shine through Ms. Hamilton's genius. On the musical front, even the most uninitiated theater-goer is bound to recognize some of the famous melodies from Sweet Charity. What they may not recognize is how poorly some of those famous melodies get rendered until they hear this cast perform "Big Spender" in absolute unison in a powerfully understated, non-brassy performance.

The night, however, belongs to one Ms. Summer Smart: Charity herself. To see this young woman dancing full out, popping up from a squat down position from the floor, landing with perfect timing into a split stance to deliver in full voice her next lyric is to witness that which makes a Broadway show great. Her singing, dancing and acting was marvelous: never too much, never to little-never overly theatrical. Just amazing to witness and an incredible accomplishment to be seen on any stage.

All the rest of the cast have their moments to bask in the sun as well. Ericka Mac as Helene, Vanessa Panerosa as Nickie, Jennifer Knox as Carmen, Amanda Tanquay as Rosie, Darren Matthais as Herman/Daddy Brubeck, Molly Curry as Ursula and Nicholas Foster as each of the men in Charity's life, Vittorio Vidal, Oscar Lindquist and Charlie all receive hats off for vocal performance and comedic timing throughout the production.

Ensemble members entering and exiting that terrific set and clever stage design include: Gary Carlson, Stephane Duret, Michael Ehlers, Nicole Hren, Sean Michael Hunt, Ryan Reilly, Summer Rich, Mickey Smith, Joey Stone, Richard Strimer, Laura E. Taylor, Erin Thompson and Melissa Zaremba. Michael Morrissey was all but flawless on the sound board this evening.

All around, an incredible night of theatre at the Drury Lane Oakbrook. It's nights like these that make everybody remember that a production out in the suburbs can be just as strong, if not stronger than shows that are being performed at the big theaters in the city.

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