“Chicago- the Musical”

[rating=4] Twenty-Five Years! A milestone for a theatrical productions and luckily for us, “Chicago the Musical” is one of those that have reached this magic number. Over the years we have been witness to many productions and incarnations of this Kander & Ebb musical with a book that was written by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse ( a Chicagoan). During these years many of the productions have featured TV actors and athletes in the role of Billy Flynn, the notorious attorney that is brought in to make the outcome of crime be headlines and glamor over hanging. One of the highlights of this production is that an actor (Jeff Brooks) is bringing the “Razzle Dazzle” man to life. He is smooth!

For those who are unfamiliar with the story- it is the Roaring Twenties in Chicago. People are wild and the world is changing. Women are seeking to be more than housewives. In our story, we have a great number of women who are on Death Row who “Didn’t Do It”. The “Cell Block Tango” is a wonderful piece where they explain what happened and why they couldn’t have been guilty.

Our main characters are Velma Kelly ( a dynamic Logan Floyd) who truly understands the character and the movements that Bob Fosse would have asked Vilma to make. As it turns out, the original show was choreographed by  Ann Reinking ( BUT in the style of Bob Fosse, and she captured it to perfection). Velma is on her way to becoming a star due to the way her lawyer (Flynn) is handling the case. When Roxie Hart ( Katie Frieden is delicious) kills her lover and ends up in jail, she gets Flynn to take her case and little by little she steals Kelly’s thunder.

That is the basic storyline and for 2 hours and 30 minutes ( the intermission was a lot longer than the normal 15 minutes) the audience hears one song after another and watches some of the slickest and smoothest dance numbers you will see on stage. While the three major players are terrific ( there may have been a sound problem tonight, but with my hearing aids I had no problem), This is a strong ensemble show so let’s give credit where due: Michelle Attardo, Lincoln Belford, Cate Benioff, Megan Campbell, Tony Carrubba, Jess Diforte, Robert Garris Aka Shapiro, Ed Gotthelf, Jasmine Janae, Tal Kedem, Liz Lester, Chase McFadden, Tammy Tuchman, Asher Van Meter, Jordan Vasquez and Evy Vaughan- all terrific. Vasquez steals the scene when he represents the jury ( all 12) during “Razzle Dazzle”.

The other players worthy of mention are Christina Wells Matron “Mama” Morton, G.A. James as Mary Sunshine and the adorable Brian Kalinowski as Amos Hart ( Roxie’s husband). He pulls off “Cellophane” and his last line “Play my exit music please” captures the audience.

Musical numbers from start (“All That Jazz” to finish “Hot Honey Rag” all work to tell the story and keep the audience into the plot. There are comedy bits, dance numbers ( including a “tap dance”) love songs and all in all a complete array of musical theater songs, many of which have been burned into my brain, as  I have seen the show seven or more times and the movie, which I didn’t care for.One can tell that this was Bob Fosse’s “baby” all the way and everyone connected to this production proves that.

If you are seeking to get back to the theater and love to watch quality work, this is one to see. Again, for the first time in a long while, we have actors who are fully vested into their roles as they travel the country bringing “Chicago the Musical” to the country.

They are here in their “hometown” thru the 29th with performances as follows:

Tuesdays  7:30 p.m.

Wednesday  7;30 p.m. ( on the 25th they will do a 2 p.m. show as well)

Thursday  7:30 p.m.

Fridays  7:30 p.m.

Saturdays  2 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Sundays  2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Tickets can be purchase at www.BroadwayInChicago.com     

This is a short run but worth making the time for.

The CBIC Theatre is located at 18 West Monroe Street

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “Chicago the Musical”.