“The Producers”

[rating=5] Jim Corti! You have done it again! Yes, once again, Jim Corti and his staff at The Paramount Theatre in Aurora have produced a Broadway Show on their stage in Downtown Aurora that is comparable to anything that New York might send through as a road company. This, is in fact, very close to what we witnessed back in the pre-Broadway try-outs of the original Mel Brooks “Musical” version of his movie, on its way to New York. That production had Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick in the roles of Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom. They were terrific. Yes, we have had other local area theater companies take on this show and with great success, BUT, this production comes very close to the original ( and in a few spots, might be even better), with the Incredible Blake Hammond as Max and Jake Morrissy ( who although he sounds a lot like Broderick, brings a different form and substance to his character) as Leo. They are the perfect pair- a match made in heaven and put in place by Aurora’s Jim Corti.

The story, for anyone who just arrived on this planet, is simple. A Broadway producer, who used to be somewhat special, has been losing money for his investors and may be in trouble with the law. His auditor, Leo Bloom, who since childhood has always wanted to “Be A Producer”, in looking at the books, tells Max that it seems a play that closes abruptly, could , in reality, make more money than one that is successful. How to do this!

Find the worst play – ( “Springtime for Hitler” written by Franz Liebkand ( well done by Ron E. Rains, who each year shows us a bit more of his diverse talent range)! the worst director -Roger DeBris (played to perfection by Sean Blake)! Who in their right mind would do a Broadway musical with a hero such as this? A guaranteed loser!

Well, of course, you all know that the play becomes a smash, Max and Leo get arrested and then come back to do all types of new Broadway shows, each with silly and inane storylines and titles. Each sounding like a loser, but with the audiences loving them.

What makes this production so special is that the two lead actors, as strong as they are, are surrounded by a slick, top-notch ensemble that truly is having as much fun as we are. The play is filled with amoral songs that make you laugh. Not just at the characters we see on stage, but in reality, to everyone. Roger’s “boy-toy” Carmen Ghia is played by Adam Fane, who plays “Gay” better than anyone in town! His struts and movements are show-stoppers and he gets applause just for leaving one scene.

The secretary/receptionist hired by Max and Leo, Ulla ( with way to many names to continue) is splayed by the gorgeous  Elyse Collier. She can sing, she can dance and when she moves on the stage, all eyes are drawn to her grace and style!

The cast is powerful in talent , if not in numbers, and each member of this cast gives 110% from start to finish ( and then some). The play is 2 1/2 hours with an intermission ( it went a bit longer on opening night with a 24 minute intermission), but no one cared. They were having far too much fun!

Here are the other players: Sawyer Smith, Sara Reinecke, Jason Richards, Bernell Lassai III, Brandon Pisano,Jenna Coker-Jones, Haley Jane Schafer, Matt Casey, Marco Tzunux, Christopher Kelley, Mirands Borkan, Bethany Christine Elkin, Erica Evans, J. Tyler Whitmer, Anthony Sullivan Jr.,,Elena Rios, Allyson Graves, Eben K. Logan, Kaitlin Jempson,Ivory Leonard IV,  and Nathan Mittleman. Great Work!

As I mentioned earlier, the direction by Jim Corti was, as always, spectacular. He gets into a play and makes each of his actors feel the need to BE the character they play. Maybe that is why Paramount exceeds the expectations of their audiences. The choreography is by Brenda Didier, who brings her years of dance and direction/choreography to the stage with great love and devotion to the original work, but is able to convert it for the stage and the feelings for a suburban audience. The orchestra is conducted, as always by Tom Vendafreddo who is also the Musical Director for the production.

The songs are fitting, funny and add to the flavor of the original work/movie as created by Brooks, who wrote this book with Thomas Meehan. Brooks, himself wrote the music and lyrics, so you know, walking into the theater, you are going to be laughing. After all, it is Mel Brooks! Titles such as “The King of Broadway”, “Keep It Gay”, “That Face”, “Prisoners of Love”,  “Betrayed” ( a special number, where Max, from his prison cell, tells us from the start what we have seen) that is a show-stopper, and Hammond does it beautifully, “Till Him” and many others. On the way home, you will be humming, or even singing “Sprintime For Hitler” a production number that is amazing!

The set by William Boles is a delight and appears to be easy to change from scene to scene. The tech aspects of the show are sheer perfection. Projections ( Mike Tutaj), sound ( Adam Rosenthal), costumes( Jordan Ross),  hair, wigs and make-up ( Katie Cordts), lighting (Jesse Klug) and props (Jesse Gaffney). Many of these are names we see at other theaters in town. They are some of the best.

I would have to say the only problem with this show is that it will only continue thru March 17th . Performance times as follows:

Show Type: Musical

Box Office: 630-896-6666

www.paramountaurora.com/

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “The Producers”  put this on your MUST SEE list!!!