Review: BEETLEJUICE at Washington Pavilion

BEETLEJUICE

Washington Pavilion, Mary Sommervold Hall

Shows like BEETLEJUICE, touring the country and showing at the Washington Pavilion’s Mary Sommervold Hall this week are a visual spectacle of lighting and scene design genius. As the show opens the effects that draw us into this wacky tale on the subject of “death” are mesmerizing and sometimes hypnotic in the way that our eye is drawn into the scene.  The colors and shadows of the lighting designs create  textures of visually intricate stage pictures that are at times electrically vibrant  with color, that can only be created with LED lamps,  at other times macabre and morose, but always fascinating to the eye and stimulating to the imagination.

Performances by Justin Colette as the title character, Beetlejuice, and Isabella Esler as Lydia,  a moody “goth”  teenager are strong anchors in this production. The vocal range and textures of Mr. Colette’s character are especially impressive.  His comic timing and physical affectations are a driving force of the action and energy of Act One.  His characterization of Beetlejuice is a masterwork of sarcasm and creepy “hopped up on coke” energy; a somewhat modern twist on the classic “anti-hero” that audiences will find outrageously humorous.

Megan McGinnis as Barbara, and Will Burton as Adam are delightful as the newly deceased couple trying to navigate the complexities of learning how to haunt their old house and its new inhabitants.  Jesse Sharp as Charles (Lydia’s father) and Kate Marilley as Delia had an sizzling chemistry together on stage and their characters in this production delivered a sexy and physically dynamic vibe to the show.  Mr. Sharp has a sensuous velvety tonal quality in his voice and a physically debonair presence on stage.  Kate Marilley intrigues the audience with an affectation of vocal quality that is hilarious and audibly very interesting, with undertones of a spazzy, breathy, maybe? foreign dialect interjected. Her command of the visual power of costuming and how to use it to her character’s advantage is noteworthy.  If you are a "leg" person, Kate Marilley delivers the goods! Wow!

Sioux Falls area audiences of live theater will appreciate all the production values of this show, from live orchestra to some truly inventive scenic design.  This production, with its sometimes crazy props and impressive visual effects is a feast for the eyes and ears.  The sarcasm in the script will have you laughing out loud, and the original songs of the book, while not necessarily being the kind you leave the theater humming, are energetic and move the pace of the show  along.  I almost guarantee that the lyrics and melody of Harry Belefonte’s “Shake Senora” will be a semi-permanent  “earworm”  for you when you leave the theater.  BEETLEJUICE, at the Washington Pavilion, was a definite crowd-pleaser with the Tuesday night audience erupting into a standing ovation for this wildly talented and energetic cast. This show runs nightly through October 1st at the Washington Pavilion with both matinee and evening performances on Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are available online at www.washingtonpavilion.org or by phone at the Box Office of the Washington Pavilion today through Saturday from  9:30 to 5:00 and on Sunday 11:30 to 5:00.

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