Sunday, May 22, 2011

Theater Review: Baby It's You


The Shirelles. Photo Credit: Ari Mintz

The Story of the Shirelles at Warp Speed (with Countless Costume Changes)
By Lauren Yarger
How many costume changes does it take to tell the story of the pop singing group The Shirelles? Too many to count, but the wardrobe crew at Broadway’s Broadhurst Theatre, where Baby It’s You is running, deserves combat pay.

The hundreds of attractive 1950s and ‘60s outfits designed by Lizz Wolf are a show by themselves, and are enhanced by great vocals on some favorite tunes, but all of this combined isn’t enough to overcome a very weak book (Floyd Mutrux and Colin Escott) that tries to cram every thought, event and lyric any and all of the people connected with the Shirelles might have experienced from 1958 to 1965 in a two-and-a-half hour show.

Without pausing for a breath, bored Passaic, NJ housewife Florence Greenberg (Beth Leavel) tells husband Bernie (Barry Pearl) that she wants to find a job, decides she wants to manage a music group, checks out a group her daughter, Mary Jane (Kelli Barrett) has discovered, signs them, has them record a song written by her blind son, Stanley (Brandon Uranowitz), sells their contract, buys it back again, then hires a new producer, Luther Dixon (Allan Louis) with whom she has a fling despite opposition to a mixed-race relationship.

All that takes about 10 minutes, complete with about 200 costume changes. Suddenly we’re in the middle of a scene where, after being told that Stan is blind for about the fifth time (editing… editing…), we discover that Florence has really hurt him in some way. Exactly what she did got lost in the whiplash of the last costume change, however. Directors Mutrux and Sheldon Epps keep the action at the top of the chart with choreography by Brigitte Mutrux.

In all, there are more than 35 musical numbers including favorites like “I Met Him on Sunday,” “Dedicated to the One I Love” and “Tonight’s the Night.”

When we get to hear a full song (often we hear only a few lines before the group switches costumes and sings a few bars of another….) the story frenzy is almost worth sitting through, because there are some talented singers up there. Leavel is a pleasure to listen to and does a good job infusing Florence with some personality. Barrett also has a great voice, especially in a turn as Lesley Gore (everyone who ever appeared with the Shirelles is given a costume and a moment on stage too keeping several of the actors busy with multiple roles). Geno Henderson plays four, most notably a nice turn as Chuck Jackson.

Christina Sajous (Shirley), Erica Ash (Micki), Crystal Starr (Doris) and Kyra daCosta (Beverly) as the Shirelles each get a chance to showcase their considerable vocal talents as well.

Scenic designer Anna Louizos houses Music Director Shelton Becton’s band on the second level of the stage framing the numerous other snippet scenes that take place, enhanced by projections designed by Jason H. Thompson.

If you like the Shirelles, go join the other audience members who had no problem singing along while texting during the performance. For those of you looking for a little more substance, the juke box that appears on a scrim at the top of the show is a clue that Baby It’s You is just the latest jukebox musical to hit Broadway.

Baby it’s You runs at the Broadhurst Theatre, 235 West 44th St., NYC. Discounted tickets are available at http://www.givenik.com/show_info.php/Masterworks/310/individual.

Christians also might like to know:
  • God’s name taken in vain.
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Our reviews are professional reviews written without a religious bias. At the end of them, you can find a listing of language, content or theological issues that Christians might want to know about when deciding which shows to see.

** Mature indicates that the show has posted an advisory because of content. Usually this means I would recommend no one under the age of 16 attend.

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

My Bio

Lauren Yarger has written, directed and produced numerous shows and special events for both secular and Christian audiences. She co-wrote a Christian musical version of “A Christmas Carol” which played to sold-out audiences of over 3,000 in Vermont and was awarded the Vermont Bessie (theater and film awards) for “People’s Choice for Theatre.” She also has written two other dinner theaters, sketches for church services and devotions for Christian artists. Her play concept, "From Reel to Real: The Jennifer O'Neill Story" was presented as part of the League of professional Theatre Women's Julia's reading Room Series in New York. Shifting from reviewing to producing, Yarger owns Gracewell Productions, which produced the Table Reading Series at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT. She trained for three years in the Broadway League’s Producer Development Program, completed the Commercial Theater Institute's Producing Intensive and other training and produced a one-woman musical about Mary Magdalene that toured nationally and closed with an off-Broadway run. She was a Fellow at the National Critics Institute at the O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, CT. She wrote reviews of Broadway and Off-Broadway theater (the only ones you can find in the US with an added Christian perspective) at http://reflectionsinthelight.blogspot.com/.

She is editor of The Connecticut Arts Connection (http://ctarts.blogspot.com), an award-winning website featuring theater and arts news for the state. She was a contributing editor for BroadwayWorld.com. She previously served as theater reviewer for the Manchester Journal-Inquirer, Connecticut theater editor for CurtainUp.com and as Connecticut and New York reviewer for American Theater Web.

She is a Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter of the League of Professional Theatre Women. She is a former vice president and voting member of The Drama Desk.

She is a freelance writer and playwright (member Dramatists Guild of America). She is a member if the The Outer Critics Circle (producer of the annual awards ceremony) and a member of The League of Professional Theatre Women, serving as Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter. Yarger was a book reviewer for Publishers Weekly A former newspaper editor and graduate of the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism, Yarger also worked in arts management for the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra and served for nine years as the Executive Director of Masterwork Productions, Inc. She lives with her husband in West Granby, CT. They have two adult children.

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All material is copyright 2008- 2024 by Lauren Yarger. Reviews and articles may not be reprinted without permission. Contact reflectionsinthelight@gmail.com

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Key to Content Notes:

God's name taken in vain -- means God or Jesus is used in dialogue without speaking directly to or about them.

Language -- means some curse words are used. "Minor" usually means the words are not too strong or that it only occurs once or twice throughout the show.

Strong Language -- means some of the more heavy duty curse words are used.

Nudity -- means a man or woman's backside, a man's lower front or a woman's front are revealed.

Scantily clad -- means actors' private areas are technically covered, but I can see a lot of them.

Sexual Language -- means the dialogue contains sexually explicit language but there's no action.

Sexual Activity -- means a man and woman are performing sexual acts.

Adultery -- Means a married man or woman is involved sexually with someone besides their spouse. If this is depicted with sexual acts on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Sex Outside of Marriage -- means a man and woman are involved sexually without being married. If this is depicted sexually on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Homosexuality -- means this is in the show, but not physically depicted.

Homosexual activity -- means two persons of the same sex are embracing/kissing. If they do more than that, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Cross Dresser -- Means someone is dressing as the opposite sex. If they do more than that on stage the listing would include the corresponding "sexual activity" and/or "homosexual activity" as well.

Cross Gender -- A man is playing a female part or a woman is playing a man's part.

Suggestive Dancing -- means dancing contains sexually suggestive moves.

Derogatory (category added Fall 2012) Language or circumstances where women or people of a certain race are referred to or treated in a negative and demeaning manner.

Other content matters such as torture, suicide, or rape will be noted, with details revealed only as necessary in the review itself.

The term "throughout" added to any of the above means it happens many times throughout the show.

Reviewing Policy

I receive free seats to Broadway and Off-Broadway shows made available to all voting members of the Outer Critics Circle. Journalistically, I provide an unbiased review and am under no obligation to make positive statements. Sometimes shows do not make tickets available to reviewers. If these are shows my readers want to know about I will purchase a ticket. If a personal friend is involved in a production, I'll let you know, but it won't influence a review. If I feel there is a conflict, I won't review their portion of the production.

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