The Secret of My Success- a new musical

[rating=5] If you were a fan of Michael J. Fox, you will recall his film “The Secret of My Success” with a story by AJ Carothers about a young man from Minnesota who goes to “The Big Apple” to work for the parent company that he has been with. He arrives only to be fired immediately. He then gets a job there as a “temp” but due to some little things that can happen in a big firm, he takes on another identity and becomes the person who in the long run will “save the day”! I always thought the movie was cute and fairly star-studded, but could not imagine it as a musical meeting the needs of today’s audiences. Well folks, get ready to hear this loud and clear. I was wrong!

Paramount Theatre, the wonderful venue that has created a whole new feel to downtown Aurora, now has on its stage “The Secret of My Success a New Musical” and it is AMAZING! Under the leadership of The Paramount ( Tim Rater and Jim Corti) and their New Works Initiative, they have developed a new look ( updating the story) and a powerful score. The new book is by Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen and the music & lyrics are by Michael Mahler and Alan Schmuckler. I do not want to forget to mention Universal Theatrical Group as they are responsible for bringing this powerful story filled with great musical numbers to the stage.

Directed by Greenberg with solid choreography by Amber Mak on a set that is about as Broadway as a set can get (Jeffrey D. Kmiec) and costumes by Mara Blumenfeld ( there had to be 40 changes in Act One alone) this is a very visual show. The sound (Adam Rosenthal) and lighting (Gregg Hoffmann) and the projections ( Mike Tutaj) along with the amazing wigs (Katie Cordits) and the great props (Jesse Gaffney) helped to complete the picture on the tech side. The intimacy and fight choreography was designed by Rachel Flesher and the entire production was managed ( by what is called the “stage manager”) by Amber Johnson. The Stage Manager in this production has to make sure that each costume and wig change is where it must be as every ensemble member goes off as one character and comes right back on as a new one. Tight control and in this production, flawless!.

The story and the people who bring it to life are all high energy. Someone in the lobby mentioned that this might be called “How To Succeed In Business” meets “Tootsie”. It kind of does. You also will find that the genius of the lyrics will make you feel that you are watching a Sondheim production. He is the ultimate “wordsmith” making unheard of combinations sound great ( think “Into The Woods” ). It appears that he is not the only magician out there. I always new that Mahler and Schmuckler were creative, but the words and music in this musical are wonderful. In fact in a number or two you might feel that they are into “rap” as well as typical “musical theater” tunes. ( think “Hamilton” and you will hear the sounds).

Our hero Brantley is played to perfection by Billy Harrigan Tighe, an amazing talent who will make you forget about Michael J. Fox within minutes of the very first musical number. His mother is played by Chicago favorite Barbara E. Robertson. When Brantley gets to New York he meets his hero/boss, Mr. Johnson (Jeremy Peter Johnson, who we learn is not the power of the company. It turns out it is his wife, Vera Prescott ( solidly played by Heidi Kettenring), who later meets Brantley and due to his honesty discovers more than meets the eye.

Brantley takes on the identity of a young man taking maternity leave and this is where the mistaken identity part falls into place. Brantley finds himself falling for Christy Lockhart ( an amazing performance by Sydney Morton) who he is assigned to work with. It turns out that the boss also has eyes for her. She is, as it turns out, looking to make enough money to raise her son, Ernie ( adorably handled by Kai Edgar tonight but also by Ezekial Ruiz) and take care of her aging mother, Rose ( Melody A Betts, who also joins the ensemble on several numbers making some of those wild changes). One of the minor characters, who adds a great deal of comic touch is Lester Mann incredibly played by Gabriel Ruiz ( who shows a whole new side of his talent range in this production). While  the show might be compared to the “How To” and “Tootsie” musicals,  “Secrets” holds its own as the story unfolds and the characters get their just desserts.

Those of you who  read me regularly know that there is nothing that compares to a strong ensemble of players. This one is amazing! Dara Cameron, Brandon Dahlquist, Vasily Deris, Veronica Garza, Carisa Gonzales, Madison Kauffman, George Keating, Jake Morrissy, Camille Robinson, Alexis J. Roston, Haley Jane Schafer, Jonathan Stewart, Sara Sevigny, Ian Michael Stuart ( a standout as the manager of the “temps”), Charles Emery Ward and Travis Austin Wright. Bravo to these energetic cast members who become all the characters needed to tell this story.

The orchestra conducted by Tom Vendafreddo is handled by  a dozen or so great musicians. They are :Sean McNeely, Steve Leinheiser, Adam Roebuck, Marty Tilton, Mike Joyce, Venafreddo himself (at the piano), Villacres, Dave Saenger, Tom Vitacco, Chuck Webb, Tom Hipskind and Brandon Podjasek. They truly fill the beautiful Paramount Theatre with music.

“The Secret of My Success” is a zany adventure dealing with ambition, love, success and a lesson of right and wrong. Put this one on your list of shows to see now ( don’t wait until the Broadway tour comes thru Chicago at much higher prices). See it in the original form where it all began but only until March 29th with performances as follows:

Show Type: Musical

Tickets range from $36- $74 and are available at the box office

Box Office: 630-896-6666

www.paramountaurora.com/

The Paramount is located at 23 East Galena Blvd in downtown Aurora.

There is valet parking, but street parking and city garages are everywhere.

    ASL Interpretation on 3/27  $30 tickets can be ordered using the code ASLPARAMOUNT

Running time 2 hours and 25 minutes with one intermission.

Due to the content, it is suggested that children under 10 may have a difficult time with content.

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “The Secret of My Success”.