Musical Theatre Guild showcases timeless melodies in ‘Some Enchanted Evening’
For many theatergoers, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s shows are the beginning and end of the golden age of Broadway. Hits like “Oklahoma!,” “South Pacific,” “The King and I” and even lesser hits like “Carousel” and “Flower Drum Song” have brought catchy lyrics and hummable melodies to generations of musical theater fans.
Now, in “Some Enchanted Evening,” Musical Theatre Guild of Butler brings these songs to Butler County Community College’s Succop Theater for a night of sophisticated entertainment sung by eight voices that bring their outstanding talent to classic songs.
Originally conceived as a two-act show with a vague storyline, director Larry Stock, instead, jettisons the paper-thin plot and instead concentrates on song after song, 31 in total, with minimal choreography and simple, but beautiful set dressing. Stock allows his actors’ voices to shine while guiding them to bring out the meanings embedded in these story-songs.
Philip Ball’s expressive voice and acting chops add an extra layer to every song he performs whether it’s the frustrated indecision of “Maria” or the comic glee he brings to “Don’t Marry Me,” his duet with Jaycie Frye.
Frye’s singing is filled with emotion and perfect timing as she brings the audience into the quietly hopeful world of “In My Own Little Corner” as well as capturing the wistful insecurity embodied in “Sixteen Going on Seventeen” in a duet with Heather Helsel.
Helsel, both a student and teacher of vocal performance, brings an assurance to the stage in her solo “A Wonderful Guy” and her duet with Ball in “If I Loved You.” She exudes confidence and comfort on the stage disappearing into the songs and bringing them to life with her clear soprano voice.
Mara Flannery shows off her operatic training in her solo number “A Cockeyed Optimist.” In her duet with Rik Medic, “Twin Soliloquies,” she shows a beautifully controlled voice that still fills the theater when called for.
Medic provides more than a little comedy in his duet with Eric Snyder, “A Fellow Needs a Girl,” a song more famous for Frank Sinatra’s cover than from its origin in the often overlooked musical “Allegro.” Snyder also brings his own flare for telling a story through song in “A Puzzlement,” his duet with Ball.
Robin Kriley fills songs like “The Gentleman is a Dope” with a whimsical cynicism in her lush mezzo-soprano revealing her character’s sardonic inner thoughts while Jeff Carey’s fine baritone brings a deep menace in his standout number “Lonely Room” from “Oklahoma.”
All of these moving performances are ably backed by live music provided by Alison Carey, Karen O’Donnell and Jessica Sanzotti. Under O’Donnell’s direction, the music helps to pull the audience through a show with few breaks between numbers.
MTG last produced “Some Enchanted Evening” 30 years ago, and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s first musical, “Oklahoma!” first took the Broadway stage in 1943, yet these performers make their songs feel fresh and vibrant. On the way out of the theater, it’s hard not to marvel not just at the musical gifts that Rodgers and Hammerstein gave to the American people but also at these deeply talented local voices that beautifully bring that American songbook legacy to the local stage.
“Some Enchanted Evening” goes on at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Oct. 18 and 19, and at 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 20, at Butler County Community College’s Succop Theater.
Tickets are available at mtgbutler.org. “Some Enchanted Evening” runs approximately 120 minutes with a 15-minute intermission.
