Review: BRIGADOON at Pasadena Playhouse

One of the best feelings when seeing a show is when the intent of the production radiates as clearly from the stage as it reads in any program note. If Pasadena Playhouse is aiming to reinvent landmark American musicals for contemporary audiences, their production of Brigadoon is an absolute triumph. Brava to writer Alexandra Silber for capturing all the heart and humor of Lerner’s original book with her thoughtful new adaptation and brava to director/ choreographer Katie Spelman for dreaming up a Brigadoon that is as ebullient and spirited as it is deeply human.

Upon entering the theatre, audiences are confronted by Jason Sherwood’s meticulously-textured proscenium, which somehow evokes a fairytale Scottish village without feeling chintzy in front of the Playhouse’s historic architecture. Sherwood’s designs throughout are playful but refined, a perfect visual interpretation of this sweeping romance. Brigadoon dates back to a time when American musical theatre had yet to approach teenage gang violence on New York’s West Side or a barber who murders his clients— the fare was lighter across the board. However, largely thanks to Agnes DeMille’s choreographic work and Frederick Loewe’s rapturous score, it would be wrong to dismiss Brigadoon as a bit of fluff. Spelman has navigated this production perfectly, mining for the emotional depths experienced by these characters without bogging down an old-fashioned gem with the self-righteousness some revivals seem to insist audiences are after. There are subtle, sly reinventions of the narrative, but one leaves the theatre misty-eyed and joyful (which is the original intent of the piece) not feeling as if one has just attended a lecture.

The earnestness required to wrap an audience up in this love story feels natural dripping off the voices of Betsy Morgan and Max von Essen. Neither approaches their character as lovestruck or dopey, instead adopting a sharpness and drive that thrums with clandestine hope under the village’s celebration of Jeanie’s wedding. For comedic relief, Donna Vivino’s Meg Brockie has show-stopping boisterousness to spare. Spelman’s captivating choreography shines especially bright as Kylie Victoria Edwards and Daniel Yearwood share an extended pas de deux. While the ensemble as a whole is excellent, it is Jessica Lee Keller who remained on everyone’s minds and discussions on the way out of the theatre. In the non-verbal role of Maggie Anderson, Keller’s electric funeral dance is the emotional core of the show’s second act and perhaps the element of this performance which will cement it as memorable for all lucky enough to attend. Spelman has created a dance which embodies grief and honors a secondary character’s heart-wrenching ache, which makes the main characters’ love story sparkle all the more. As Keller dances with abandon, one can almost feel DeMille smiling down. Isn’t this the capability of the American musical she boldly pioneered?

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