Review: FOREVER PLAID at Florida Rep

If you’ve ever been a performer, you know how exciting opening night is. Now imagine some horrible accident prevents you from appearing on stage.

That’s the premise of Forever Plaid which kicks off Florida Rep’s 27th season. A struggling quartet, The Plaids, is on their way to their big break when their car is hit by a bus and all four are killed instantly. By some cosmic mystery, however, they’re allowed to come back to earth to do that show just one time.

If you think that doesn’t sound like the makings of a rollicking evening of theater, you’d be sadly mistaken. The Four Singers, Stephen Christopher Anthony, Christopher Bailey, Caleb Funk, and Steven Martella, deliver the songs (29 in all) and the laughs for a solid 90 minutes.

I don’t know which I enjoyed more, the singing or the dancing. Director and Choreographer Michael Marotta includes every choreographic cliché known to man, and his cast executes the moves with precision timing.

Kudos to Music Director Steven Zumbrun who even gets into the act. And to the audience volunteer who plays one finger piano when he is “on break.”

The entire audience gets to sing along on one number, but most could probably join in on many of the other circa ‘50s and ‘60s tunes. Would it date me to say they don’t write them like that any more?

What are you waiting for? Don’t miss YOUR big chance to revisit the golden age of crooning.  Forever Plaid runs through October 27. For tickets, call 239.332.4488.

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