Review: St. Petersburg City Theatre Brings Disney's Magical MARY POPPINS to Life in a Most Delightful Way

“As a matter of fact, since you hired Mary Poppins, the most extraordinary things seem to have come over the household.” --Mrs. Banks

Over the years I have always had a single rule regarding shows like Peter Pan and MARY POPPINS: If you can’t get Peter or Mary to actually fly in the air, then please please please don’t do either show.  I have sat through so many Peter Pan productions where they try everything else to give the sensation of flight and not a single one of them work.  The same with MARY POPPINS. There’s nothing more magical than seeing a performer, playing the most famous umbrella-wielding nanny in movie and theatre history, high in the air flying above us.  It’s what separates theatre from TV or film--they’re actually there, hovering over the audience, like a trapeze act at the circus but with added meaning.  It should be Magical with a capital M.  And there’s nothing more thrilling.

But after watching MARY POPPINS performed by the talented souls at the St. Petersburg City Theatre, I may have to amend my hard-lined rule. Because director Jeffrey M. Lukas’ projections are a marvel of creativity, heart and talent.  They burst with energy and work stupendously at helping tell this tale.  Mr. Lukas is a true artist in this capacity and should open his own business creating these types of projections for the stage and elsewhere; they’re that good.  While you may feel a smidgen of disappointment at the start when we don’t see Mary gliding down onto Number Seventeen Cherry Tree Lane…please don’t fear, that disenchantment lasts only for a second.  Soon those wondrous projections take over and all is well with the world of Mary, Bert and the Banks family.  No, not for a second can they replace the jolt and joy of seeing actual characters hoisted into the air, but they come mighty close.

It also helps that the cast members in this production, from ensemble to leads, are a dynamic delight from start to finish, from stage right to stage left, from top to bottom. Every review of MARY POPPINS seems required to use some form of Mary’s description of “practically perfect,” so here’s mine:  This production may not be perfect, practically or otherwise, but it ranks as one of the better community theatre shows that I have attended (and I have experienced and reviewed hundreds of them).    

We all know the story of MARY POPPINS, the charismatic nanny that through cleverness and magic actually saves a family, or more specifically, the patriarch of that family.  The stage musical differs from the famous Julie Andrews movie in a variety of ways, but its dance numbers, longer and more robust, are even more exciting. 

My main qualm with the show is that it is waaay too long for its own good, especially Act 1.  This has to do with the musical itself, not with this particular production.  The songs of Mr. and Mrs. Banks are sung quite well here, but they seem to stop the show dead in its tracks.  (I feel the same way about Max and the Baroness's songs in The Sound of Music that were smartly cut from the movie.) When the parents squabble in MARY POPPINS, it’s like Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf suddenly interrupting Matilda, and the show never seems to end.  And this gripe comes from a reviewer who actually cheered a five-hour production of The Iceman Cometh.  Here, all the great numbers certainly thrill the audience, but it just keeps on going and going.  We keep thinking Act 1 is done, but then more things happen, more squabbling, and it seemingly never stops at the proper moment.   

Mr. Lukas is a fine director, with a great eye for staging, and he keeps the pace going as best as he can.  He even has actors appear in front of the main curtain so the next scene can be set up, but even this becomes rather repetitive. The show could use some trimming, and I would start with the “Playing the Game” number which arrives late in Act 1 and comes across as odd rather than magical.  With grown-ups dressed as toys, including a clown that could give Pennywise his run for the money in the scare department and a large rabbit costume that seems to belong in a Diane Arbus photograph, this is one creepy number that I can’t get out of my head no matter how hard I try.

It’s also a shame that the parents’ songs are the ones that slow down the ride, and it’s no reflection on the amazingly talented performers in these roles: Dave Davies and Kendra Van Wynsberghe.   Mr. Davies has turned being a curmudgeon into an art form, huffing and puffing and seeming so distant from his children.  You feel his sorrow when he understands how wrong his life has been up to now, his eyes tearing up, and we applaud his transformation. As his wife, Ms. Van Wynsberghe is stellar, her chin always up, balancing her social status with her love for her children and her cold husband. Her “Being Mrs. Banks” is beautifully accomplished.

In the titular role, Tammy D. Lukas almost makes you forget some actress named “Julie Andrews.”  She has a sparkle in her eye, both of mischief and magic, and hits amazing notes in her songs, such as the iconic “A Spoonful of Sugar” (where she creates real onstage magic thanks to the ingenious set pieces by Kari Kennedy, John Manion and Alan Rosenthal) and of course “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocius” (which should have ended Act 1). 

As her chimney sweep buddy and narrator of the tale, Bert, the very likable and talented Bill Shideler is simply marvelous, leading his tap-dancing chimney sweep friends in a hearty and wow-worthy “Step in Time.”  Stacie Steinke, who I recall as a lovely Mrs. Potts in Tarpon Arts’ Beauty and the Beast a year ago,  makes for a sweet bird lady with one of my favorite songs from the show, “Feed the Birds.” 

Sara Heller has an astonishing voice as Mrs. Corry.  Bearded Alan S. Rosenthal sports the perfect look for both Admiral Boom and the Bank Chairman, and Rudy Gonzalez brings heart to the small role of the pitiable John Northbrook.  Sandra Huerte gets to scowl and growl with the best of them as the put-upon, overworked maid, Mrs. Brill, while Grace Hood squeezes the most out of her role of the humorless Mrs. Smythe. Xaviar Molina Delgado stands out with remarkable vocal chops as the houseboy, Robertson Ay, and Nona Edelson gets a moment or two as Miss Lark with her cuter-than-cute furry puppet dog, Andrew.

The ensemble gets a total workout as either dancing statues, chimney sweeps or “Jolly Holiday” park dwellers.  They include Willow Barner, Polly Croucher, Leyla-Jade Curbelo, Sarah Duncan, Aida Gonzalez, Richard Walters, an enthusiastic Taylor Landau, a seemingly-in-every-scene Vaughn Wassamer, Christian McCormick, Bri Middleton, Jeff Morris, and Sharon Davis (the latter as Queen Victoria). Special mention must go to Shaun Cleppe and Cadance Hughes who both prove to be incredible dancers.

Topping the list of standouts are the two young performers who portray the Banks children: Josie Yanda as the pouty Jane and Sebastian Kuoch as the eye-rolling Michael. These two really shine, always in character, always reacting to the craziness surrounding them, with strong vocals and fine acting.  Obviously a seasoned performer at such a young age, Ms. Yanda has a palpable energy that exudes from the stage; she’s an amazing vocalist and equally good at acting and, more importantly, reacting. 

As for yon Mr. Kuoch, this is his very first show, which means we are dealing with a prodigy here, and if he ever wants to make the stage his home for life, then he obviously has the talent and the stamina for such an undertaking (and this is not something I say lightly).  Watching these two inspiring performers, I thought that if SPCT ever does Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, then they already have the perfect Veruca Salt and Mike Teevee…just putting it out there.

My vote for Best in Cast goes to Jovana Zaremba as the evil rival nanny, Miss Andrew.  Donning black like a sadistic nun, she’s like a Nanny of Doom.  “She looks like something that can eat its young,” someone says of her.  Ms. Zaremba’s “Brimstone and Treacle” at the start of Act 2 is one of MARY POPPINS’ best numbers.  What a voice! I could watch a musical with her terrifying character as the lead for an entire evening.  As it stands, she steals the stage for ten minutes here and then exits, leaving all of us breathless and in awe.

Technically, the show is quite good.  The aforementioned projections save the day, and Rachel and Thea Fennell’s lighting design also works well (with a nod to light operator Allen Coyle and spotlight operator David Sweat).  The pre-recorded music sometimes blasts too loud where we can barely hear some of the singers, and there were a couple of mic glitches (including a young performer coughing into a microphone offstage during “Step in Time”).  Stacie and Stefanie Lehmann’s many, many costumes are appropriate for the most part (though I still can’t shake the grown-ups as bizarre toy costumes in “Playing the Game,” and Mrs. Corry’s creamsicle-colored dress left me scratching my head).  Music Director Dawne Eubanks gets great vocal work and terrific harmonies from the large cast, and Mr. Lukas’ choreography is outstanding.

Sadly, all things must come to an end, and this sold-out production of MARY POPPINS closes today (Sunday, October 8) after only two weeks.  It’s such a big hit that I wish they could expand it for three weeks, so every child has the opportunity to experience the magic of Mary and Bert and the chimney sweeps, but obviously that’s a magic act too impossible to perform.     

This was my first venture to the SPCT, which has been around since 1925.  It’s what I call a Goldilocks Theatre--not too big, not too small, just right.  Entering it, you get the feeling of being inside a giant shoebox.  The bright red curtain and blood-colored walls that surround the audience seem perfect for a production of Sweeney Todd instead of everyone’s favorite nanny.  I had heard quite a bit of buzz about this particular production of MARY POPPINS, and that can be either good or, well, not.  Sometimes I may hear a show is grand and then I see it and it’s like experiencing a flat tire while driving; that’s when a production didn’t live up to the hype.  That’s not the case here.  All the buzz was right.  This may have been my first foray at the St. Petersburg City Theatre, but hopefully it won’t be my last.

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