Review Roundup: IT SHOULDA BEEN YOU at Actors' Playhouse

By: May. 31, 2017
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Actors' Playhouse will present the South Florida premiere of It Shoulda Been You from May 17 - June 11, 2017 at the Miracle Theatre. With an original book and lyrics by Brian Hargrove and music by Barbara Anselmi, It Shoulda Been You puts a refreshingly modern spin on the traditional wedding comedy, proving that when it comes to wedding day insanity, it's all relative.

In the hilarious and heartwarming musical It Shoulda Been You, it's a Culture Clash for the ages when two families from wildly different backgrounds come together to celebrate a wedding. The bride is Jewish. The groom is Catholic. Her mother is a force of nature; his mother is a tempest in a cocktail shaker. And, as if the union wasn't complicated enough, the bride's ex-boyfriend arrives, bringing the wedding to a screeching halt and throwing both families into hysterical chaos. Plots are hatched, promises broken, secrets exposed - and the bride's resourceful sister is left to turn an unmitigated disaster into happily ever after.

Let's see what the critics have to say!

Sun Sentinel Jewish Journal (Marvin Glassman): Some of the funny lines include: "your mother and I had many words of conflict, but I didn't get to use any of mine" (Murray) and Brian mangling many Yiddish words in a misguided attempt to impress his would be Jewish in-laws. Moreland has played many Jewish women on stage in her 25-plus years as an actress. She has previously portrayed Golda in "Fiddler on the Roof" and Jewish women in "Bombshells," "Meet Me at the Pitkin" and "Undo," among other roles.

Miami Herald (Christine Dolen): Running under two hours without an intermission, Actors' "It Shoulda Been You" boasts a cast with powerful voices and deft comic timing. For instance, when Moreland's Judy observes of her eldest, "Why is she talking like a big black woman?," Pearce's Jenny then breaks into "Jenny's Blues," the sort of song Bessie Smith might have sung. Pearce also makes gorgeous work of "Beautiful," while Moreland sinks her teeth into the ironically titled "Nice" and later delivers a moving version of the motherly advice number "What They Never Tell You."



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