Sandi Masori

For me the actor that stood out the most, was older Noah (Gravitt ). He really knew how to transmit that intense feeling of ultimate true love — loving someone so deeply that even when your soulmate does not know who you are due to an illness, you still show up every day. You are still very present and somehow find the tremendous amount of patience that it takes in order to not lose faith. He shows the frustration that the character Noah experiences when wondering if all his efforts are for nothing but still continues no matter what because of the love that he feels for Allie — that to me was incredible talent.

My favorite scene (though there were many) is the funny Keystone Cops style change and tap dance. The whole show though, really, is a joyful treat. Speaking of the tap dancing, once again, I’m reduced to saying “WOW!” These guys can dance! The ensemble is incredibly talented and huge kudos go to native San Diegan choreographer Casey Nicholaw. Shoutouts are also due to Devon Goffman as the mobster Spats, Ellis-Gaston as the gorgeous Sugar, Kordell for both Jerry and Daphne, but especially Daphne, Loehr as Joe/ Josephina, and Edward Juvier as hotel owner Osgood.

Unlike many musicals that have a song or two that everyone in the audience knows and go crazy for, when the entire soundtrack is made up of pop hits, it’s a different game all together. Every song seemed to have a little extra accompaniment from the audience as they couldn’t stop themselves from humming, singing a few bars or otherwise joining in on the songs- especially the more fast-paced ones. And for the biggest hits, like “Mamma Mia,” “Dancing Queen,” and “Money Money Money,” you could see the audience trying to restrain itself from an all-out sing along. But don’t worry, the wise producers and directors of the show knew this would be an issue and ended with a 20 min sing-and- dance-along curtain call that to the delight of the audience just kept going and going.