“Dreamgirls”

[rating=4] “Dreamgirls” is more than just a story based on “The Supremes” and the rise of the musical world of “Motown”. It is the story of dreams. There have always been young people who aspire to greatness whether by artistry or some other means. For many, the entertainment world is the perfect way to accomplish this. Every day we hear about the overnight success stories and if you have any talent, with the support of your family and friends, you feel the world is your oyster, just waiting for your grand entrance.

When we go back in time. Before TV brought us a number of talent shows, we were very limited to the talent scouts seeking entertainers. While it was hard, there were some outlets, but for the young African American, not as easy. “Motown” and rock N/ Roll did help change this and the story “Dreamgirls” with a book by Tom Eyen and music by Henry Krieger helps bring the story to life. The girls were from Chicago so it is very fitting that paramount Theatre in Aurora would opt to produce this powerful story that is in fact local in nature.

The timing of the piece is just after the civil rights movement exploded and Black entertainers started to reach for their dreams. The music was new and different, but the dreams were as they had been for generations. Reaching for the unknown and what seemed to be out of reach. While many look at this musical as a story about The Supremes, I see this as a story about the outsider, Effie White ( an amazing performance by Naima Alakham or on some performances  Breyannah Tilman) who has the best voice of the trio of young ladies, but did not have the look that promoter Curtis Taylor Jr. ( Played to perfection by Lorenzo Rush,Jr.) felt could take the trio to new heights.

While this play shows the rise of Deena Jones (deftly handled by Taylor Marie Daniel) and her trio, The Dreams, it is the movement itself that is explored along with the personalities of those seeking their dreams in the music business. By the way, the other two dreams, Lorrell (Mariah Lyttle) and  Michelle (Ariel Williams) are terrific. In fact, the cast that has been assembled by the Paramount director Christopher D. Betts and his staff is powerful with vocal ranges that are startling and amazing. As is the custom at paramount I can imagine a number of Jeff Award nominations this year again.

The ensemble is amazing and the changes of characters shows just how versatile these performers are. About two dozen cast members bring about 60 characters to the story and never do we see a crossover.

The set(Jeffrey D. Kmiec) is a redo of the set they did for “Newsies” using bricks and levels that were buildings to become backstage- it worked and with the added stairways, they were able to bring special effects to the production numbers. Amy Hall Garner’s choreography is very “period” and of the sixties. I didn’t expect anymore or less than she gave us and the music directed and conducted by Christie Chiles Twillie ( and the 15 piece orchestra) was never overpowering, allowing us to hear every word. Samantha Jones did an amazing job on the costumes and I am sure that there were many workers making the quick changes spectacular, and they were SPECTACULAR!

The wigs and hair by Rueben D. Echoles was as always right on and the lighting (Jose Santiago) and sound (Adam Rosenthal) were as expected. As usual, projections by Mike Tutaj and props by Jesse Gaffney were spot on.

The ensemble, filled with lots of new faces, is powerful with standouts Joshua L. Green, Ben Toomer, Wildlin Pierrevil, Evan Tyrone Martin, Eustace J. Williams Christian Denzel Bufford, Austin Nelson Jr., Shelbi Voss, Aalon Smith, Shantel Cribbs and Daryn Alexus to name a few. I have always said that a musical is as strong as their ensemble and this group proves that to be true.

The show is a bit long due to the many songs and the little stories that tell the whole story and it is suggested for audiences ages 10 and up.