Review: TOOTSIE at Arizona Broadway Theatre

Arizona Broadway Theatre closes its 20th season with TOOTSIE, the Tony Award-winning musical adaptation of the 1982 film. On paper, the show promises a fizzy cocktail of quick-witted dialogue, farcical comedy, and a cheeky wink at show biz. In practice, ABT’s staging is a mixed bag – lifted at times by sharp comic performances and spirited choreography, yet hampered by a lackluster book, uneven score, and a central transformation that never fully convinces.

Fact is that, as a musical, TOOTSIE faces an uphill climb from the get-go. Sydney Pollack’s 1982 film, driven by Dustin Hoffman’s tour de force performance, balanced sharp social satire with an undercurrent of tenderness. ABT’s stage version, under the direction of Ken Urso, delivers some bright comic turns and a few standout numbers, but never quite finds the same spark, leaving it, overall, an average affair with flashes of charm.

The story is well known: Michael Dorsey, a brilliant but insufferably uncompromising actor, disguises himself as “Dorothy Michaels” to land a role in a new Broadway musical, Juliet’s Nurse…and falls head over heels with a fellow actress. Along the way, he learns hard lessons about humility, empathy, love, and identity. Under Urso’s direction, the production embraces the chaos and comedy of Michael’s deception but fails to make Dorothy appear like a believable star.

Matt Michael shoulders the demanding dual role of Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels with stamina, vocal strength, and a knack for comic timing. As Dorsey, he’s maddeningly arrogant one moment and utterly vulnerable the next. But his portrayal as Dorothy is unfulfilled, missing that balance which would make the show click.

Instead, Dorothy is played as caricature rather than a fully-formed character, which grounds the comedy in something less emotionally real. The ridiculous dowdy costuming and wig render Dorothy more frumpy than star-like, lacking the distinctiveness or magnetism needed to sell the deception or make the romantic arc with co-star Julie Nichols (Reba Hartman) feel genuine. Their chemistry feels perfunctory, more functional to the plot than inevitable or moving. Dorothy ends up more of a gag and less as a lens through which Michael learns to listen and grow.

What keeps the show afloat is the interplay and friction between Michael and the people who orbit him. Adam Vargas’s Jeff, the sardonic wannabe playwright/roommate, is a show-stealer: his witty “Jeff Sums It Up” lands hilariously, and his dry perfectly timed asides function almost as the audience’s conscience. Sarah Joy Kane is a delirious delight as Sandy Lester; her explosive rendition of “What’s Gonna Happen,” delivered at lightning speed with manic precision and ditzy charm, is a showstopper worth the price of admission alone. Reba Hartman’s Julie brings warmth, polish, and a captivating voice to a role that otherwise feels underwritten, while Tyler Callaher’s Ron Carlisle is cartoonishly over-the-top as the frustrated and blustering director of Juliet’s Nurse, flattening what might have been a sharper satire of power and abuse in the business. Tony Blosser makes the most of his brief but funny moments as Michael’s exasperated agent. The ensemble, energized by Lynzee Foreman’s choreography, is consistently lively, with Roberto Silva-Neto, Catrina, Teresa Contini, and Trevor Lavine standing out in dance numbers.

These highlights, though, can’t fully disguise the fact that TOOTSIE as a musical doesn’t have the same wit or bite as the film. Despite Urso’s capable direction, it ultimately feels like a serviceable but uninspired adaptation – a comedy with scattered pleasures but little staying power.

As for the material itself, David Yazbek’s score and Robert Horn’s book never rise above passable. Only a handful of songs – “What’s Gonna Happen,” “I Won’t Let You Down,” and “Jeff Sums It Up” – truly land, only to be quickly forgotten. The humor lands in spots, with some funny exchanges that tickle the audience, but much of it feels strained or dated.

TOOTSIE has always walked a precarious line with its central conceit of the “man in a dress” trope. What differentiates the musical from Sydney Pollack’s film is its attempt, however uneven, to filter the story through a modern lens. It isn’t just about one actor’s desperation to get a job; it’s about the lengths to which artists go for the role they feel destined to play. It speaks to the ways women have been silenced or sidelined in show business. Sandy and Julie exemplify other women in the theatre world who have been conditioned to stifle ambition and navigate inequity. While ABT nudges the story closer to contemporary gender politics, these key themes aren’t fully realized in this staging, leaving the piece caught between satire and sincerity.

In the end, ABT’s TOOTSIE is less a triumph than a showcase for select talents. Kane’s comic spark, Vargas’s wry wit, and the polish of Hartman and the ensemble supply enough entertainment to carry the audience through 140 minutes (including intermission). It embraces the piece for what it is: a comedy with a heart, updated with enough modern sensibility to make it feel less dusty and more celebratory. But the production never fully capitalizes on its potential, reminding us that not every Broadway import translates seamlessly to the stage.

That’s the critic’s perspective. The Sunday afternoon audience, meanwhile, left laughing, entertained, and rising dutifully for the obligatory standing ovation.

TOOTSIE runs through September 15th at Arizona Broadway Theatre --https://azbroadway.org/ -- 7701 W. Paradise Lane, Peoria, AZ -- 623-776-8400

Photo credit to Alexxis Grant, Timeless Present Photos – L to R: Reba Hartman as Julie Nichols, Matt Michael as Michael Dorsey