*** I have to take my hat off to the folks at The Skokie Theater for taking on some of the shows they produce on their little stage. At present, they are doing a slick production of Roger O. Hirson’s “Pippin” with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz ( who later did “Wicked”). With a limited stage and a small cast, they have taken on this story As told by a traveling troupe of actors led by the cunning and charming Leading Players ( who in this rendition are two instead of one, and very well cast). The Leading Players, Andrew Buel ( who has done mainly character roles in the past truly struts his stuff) and Hannah Mary Simpson is adorable and will remind you of a young Shirley  Maclaine, are sort of Narrators in telling the story of Pippin ,a young prince, heir to the throne, who is searching for his own “corner of the sky.”

Pippin( deftly handled by Conner Hensley Schroeder) returns from university certain that he will find a fulfilling purpose in life. As encouraged by the Leading Players, Pippin dabbles in bloody battle, licentious and lusty sexual entanglements, and saavy political maneuvers, only to discover that true happiness is more complicated than he thought. Smoothly directed by Pat Henderson on a set created by Henderson and choreography by Edward D. Lindem, this is a production that proves that good things come in small packages. Yes, the play is older and longer than many, but the story is one that deals with facing reality, and to be honest, isn’t that what our world needs much more of.

Henderson uses the stage to its best advantage and the music handled by Jeremy Ramey is well done with an ensemble of players that may not look lie you would expect the cast to look like, but dollar for dollar brings the story to life with its exceptional talent. The voices are amazing, the dance and acrobatics dynamite and a very young cast does an amazing job of making a two and a half hour production move swiftly.

Kent Joseph is a powerful King Charlemagne, SarahAnn Sutter, Fastrada and Erol Ibrahimovic plays Lewis. Pippin’s grandmother, Berthe is portrayed in style and grace by Judy Rossignuolo-Rice and her sing along song “No Time At All” is just plain fun to join in with. Catherine, Pippin’s true love is played by the adorable Gabriella Galluzzo who has a marvelous vocal range and Theo is played to perfection by Molly Hamada.

As I always say, a musical with an ensemble relies on that ensemble to bring it all together. They sing, they dance, they play a multitude of roles and in many cases, they also help change the set around. This group of players all do their jobs to perfection: Ray Faiella, Kelly Killorin, CeCe Lampa and Abby Naden.

While I have mentioned some of the technical aspects of the production, I feel it important to give kudos to the prop master,Michael  Dwiggins, the costume designer (Dame Erickson) and the sound tech , Elijah McTiernan. I know that someone worked th elights, but their name was not on the program, so I cannot give them the credit deserved. While this may not be the best known musical around, and perhaps is a little “long in the tooth”, if you are looking for a show with strong performances and a lot of fun, “Pippin ” is family friendly and great story telling. By the way, watch the perofmers and see if you can tell who did the choreography for the original production that is followed by every choreographer. Think, cane, hats, gloves and you will think Fosse!

 

“Pippin” will continue through Sep 28th with performances as follows: