Cats: The Jellicle Ball (Broadhurst Theatre)

By Harry Forbes

Watching the current reworking of Cats, I couldn't help recalling my experience at the original Broadway production shortly after it opened. I sat behind an English woman who grew visibly agitated as the evening progressed. During intermission, she sobbed to her companions, "They've ruined it, they've ruined it."

I suspected she had been one of the post-Elaine Paige Grizabellas from the original London production. Whether her distress stemmed from the textual and musical alterations — of which there were several — or simply from a perceived dilution of the show's essential Englishness, I never learned. But I couldn't help wondering, with no small amusement, what she'd make of this hugely revamped revival, now on Broadway following an acclaimed run last year at the Perelman Performing Arts Center.

The show has been thoroughly — and quite brilliantly — reset in the 1980s ballroom culture, where LGBTQ+ performers strutted elaborate costumes on the runway, competing for coveted trophies. Since Cats — based on T.S. Eliot's Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats — is essentially a series of vaudeville turns held together by the slenderest of storylines, it adapts surprisingly well to the new treatment.

That said, the concept took some warming to on my part, and I suspect it won't be everyone's cup of tea — though my audience was wildly enthusiastic from the first number. I left the theater feeling I had witnessed something genuinely special.

To the production's credit, the score is played more or less intact, in the correct song order, with lyrics unchanged despite their numerous references to things both feline and quintessentially English. As far as I can tell, only two numbers have been cut entirely: the "Pekes and Pollicles" episode in the first act and "Growltiger's Last Stand" in the second. Otherwise, The Jellicle Ball hews scrupulously to Eliot and composer Andrew Lloyd Webber. The songs don't always fit the literal situations precisely, but they consistently deliver emotional truth.

Lloyd Webber's richly varied score — one of his very best — sounds as good as ever. For all the jokes Cats inspired in its day, it's worth remembering what a boldly audacious concept it was, and what a hot ticket too. The original Trevor Nunn staging, with its iconic Gillian Lynne choreography, made its record-breaking way around the world, and I treasure it still. But this version is entirely its own thing.

Directed by Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch, the production pays poignant homage to the ballroom scene in a moving slide-show montage at the top of Act Two. The reimagined choreography, the clever work of Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons, crackles with invention. Kai Harada's sound design is, as is too often the case these days, overly amplified — but things settle appropriately for the score's quieter, more reflective moments.

The cast is impressive across the board. André De Shields is a far cry from the richly sonorous bass-baritones of London originator Brian Blessed and Broadway's Ken Page, but he makes Old Deuteronomy entirely his own. "Tempress" Chasity Moore makes Grizabella a genuinely touching outcast and delivers a moving "Memory." Junior LaBeija brings real poignancy to Gus, the aging theater cat. Sydney James Harcourt commands the stage as Rum Tum Tugger, and Robert "Silk" Mason dazzles as Magical Mister Mistoffelees.

The large ensemble alsoincludes Ken Ard (DJ Griddlebone), Kya Azeen (Etcetera), Bryson Battle (Jellylorum), Jonathan Burke (Mungojerrie), Baby Byrne (Victoria), Dava Huesca (Rumpleteazer), Dudney Joseph Jr. (Munkustrap), Leiomy (Demeter), Primo Thee Ballerino (Tumblebrutus), Xavier Reyes (Jennyanydots), Nora Schell (Bustopher Jones), Bebe Nicole Simpson (Demeter), Emma Sofia (Skimbleshanks), Garnet Williams (Bombalurina), and Teddy Wilson Jr. (Sillibub).

Rachel Hauck's evocative set beautifully conjures the ballroom atmosphere, and Qween Jean has a field day with an array of extravagantly dazzling costumes.

(Broadhurst Theatre, 235 West 44th Street; catsthejellicleball.com)

Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade: Nora Schell as ‘Bustopher Jones’

Schmigadoon! (Nederlander Theatre)

By Harry Forbes

The stage adaptation of the "Schmigadoon!" television series is an absolute delight, surpassing its already amusing source material with a top-flight cast, an expanded score, and an infectious sense of joy. Composer-lyricist-book writer Cinco Paul lovingly spoofs the Golden Age musicals of the 1940s and ’50s, delivering pitch-perfect parodies of iconic numbers from “Oklahoma!,” “Carousel,” “The Music Man,” and others, giving audiences the delicious pleasure of instant recognition.

The story follows Josh Skinner (Alex Brightman) and Melissa Gimble (Sara Chase), a pair of doctors whose relationship has grown stale. While hiking in the woods, they stumble upon a magical town much like the lost travelers of “Brigadoon.” Here, every resident exists as the embodiment of a musical-comedy cliché, bursting into song at the slightest provocation. Josh, however, loathes musicals and stubbornly resists every cue, even when pursued by the aggressively flirtatious Betsy (McKenzie Kurtz), a clear descendant of Ado Annie. Melissa, by contrast, eagerly embraces the fantasy, particularly when she catches the eye of the swaggering carnival barker Danny Bailey (Max Clayton), a thinly veiled riff on Billy Bigelow.

Among the town’s colorful inhabitants are the closeted Mayor Menlove (Brad Oscar) — the name says it all — and his wife Florence (Ann Harada). Maulik Pancholy plays Reverend Layton, who seems to harbor a touching sympathy for the mayor’s predicament, while his domineering wife Mildred (Ana Gasteyer) appoints herself guardian of the town’s morality. Her second-act sendup of “Ya Got Trouble” is one of the evening’s comic high points.

Then there is Doc (Ivan Hernandez), a Captain Von Trapp figure straight out of “The Sound of Music,” who hires Melissa as his nurse, paving the way for a riotously funny parody of “Do-Re-Mi” — this one devoted to explaining human reproduction. Josh, meanwhile, briefly convinces himself that the key to escaping the town may lie with the sweetly wholesome schoolmarm Emma Tate (Isabelle McCalla).

The cast could scarcely be bettered. Though it seems almost criminal to give the powerhouse vocalist Brightman so little actual singing, his deadpan resistance to the town’s relentless cheerfulness makes for a beautifully calibrated comic performance. Chase radiates a realstic initial wariness but succombs chamingly, while Gasteyer nearly steals the show with her thunderously self-righteous Mildred. Oscar and Pancholy lend unexpected poignancy beneath the comedy, and Kurtz and Clayton expertly capture the broad, hearty style of mid-century musical leads.

Christopher Gattelli, who choreographed the television version, handles both staging and choreography here with enormous flair and buoyancy. Scott Pask’s set vividly conjures the candy-colored world of Golden Age Broadway, enhanced by Donald Holder’s glowing lighting and Linda Cho’s witty, character-defining costumes. Walter Trarbach’s sound design, meanwhile, strikes an ideal balance throughout.

Altogether, “Schmigadoon!” emerges as a joyous valentine to the classic American musical — affectionate, clever, and irresistibly entertaining.

(Nederlander Theatre 208 West 41st Street; schmigadoonbroadway.com)

Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman: The cast of “Schmigadoon”

Monte Cristo (The York Theatre)

By Harry Forbes

The latest in a long line of musicals drawn from Alexandre Dumas’s endlessly adaptable 1844 novel arrives at the York Theatre Company in a handsome, well-appointed production. With polished staging and a cast of seasoned Broadway professionals—Sierra Boggess, Norm Lewis, Karen Ziemba, and Adam Jacobs among them—this Monte Cristo makes a strong initial impression.

It follows close on the heels of the recent French film and the PBS Masterpiece miniseries, joining a crowded field of adaptations stretching back to the 19th century. Among those is the version by Charles Fechter, whose work—along with Dumas’s original—serves as source material here. Composer Stephen Weiner and librettist/lyricist Peter Kellogg, who previously collaborated on Penelope, or How the Odyssey Was Written at the York, reunite for this effort. Their score is consistently pleasant and occasionally stirring, but on first hearing, only intermittently memorable.

In aiming for a Les Misérables-style sweep, however, this Monte Cristo strays too far from the spirit of its source. Most notably, it softens the novel’s moral architecture. The three conspirators—Villefort (Lewis), Fernand (Daniel Yearwood), and Danglars (James Judy)—whose betrayal condemns Edmond Dantès (Jacobs) to 18 years in the Château d’If, are here recast as remorseful figures. The shift blunts the story’s central engine: righteous vengeance.

Other alterations prove equally misguided. The scheming innkeeper Caderousse (Danny Rutigliano) and his wife Carconte (Ziemba) are reduced to broad comic relief, as if imported from a 1950s musical comedy. Rutigliano and Ziemba are undeniably entertaining, but their material belongs to a different show. Even the comic Thénardiers in Les Misérables retain their menace; here, the tonal imbalance undercuts the drama.

To be sure, Dumas’s sprawling narrative demands judicious trimming. But what has helped adaptations like Les Misérables and The Phantom of the Opera endure is not just compression, but fidelity to the emotional and moral stakes of the original. In sanding down those edges, this Monte Cristo sacrifices much of its gravitas.

Visually, though, the production is a clear success. Anne Mundell’s set, Alan C. Edwards’s lighting, and the elegant period costumes by Siena Zoë Allen and Amanda Roberge combine to create one of the most striking environments the York stage has seen in recent memory.

The performances are uniformly strong. Jacobs and Boggess bring vocal warmth and emotional conviction to the central love story, their duets among the score’s highlights. Lewis lends gravitas to Villefort, particularly in his reflective “A Great and Noble Man.” Rutigliano, despite the misjudged characterization, makes a vivid impression in his two roles, including the Abbé Faria.

At the performance reviewed, Madison Claire Parks stood out as Haydée, the young woman Dantès rescues, delivering a compelling second-act solo and a poignant duet with Boggess. The production also incorporates a queer subplot—drawn from Dumas and highlighted in recent adaptations—through Danglars’s daughter Eugénie (a spirited Kate Fitzgerald) and her attraction to Haydée.

Under Peter Flynn’s brisk direction, the narrative moves fluidly through its many episodes, supported by David Hancock Turner’s music direction and Marcos Santana’s choreography. If the storytelling ultimately lacks the weight it seeks, the production’s craft and performances still offer much to admire.

(Theatre at St. Jean’s, 150 East 76 Street; https://www.yorktheatre.org/monte-cristo-2025; though April 5)

Photo by Shawn Salley: (l.-r. Sierra Boggess, Adam Jacobs)

About Time (Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater)

By Harry Forbes

Veteran songwriters David Shire (music) and Richard Maltby Jr. (lyrics)—collaborators for an astonishing 71 years—return to their most congenial form, the musical revue, with About Time. The show follows Starting Here, Starting Now (1977) and Closer Than Ever (1989), completing what now stands as a distinguished trilogy.

The earlier revues traced the arc of adult life: the first reveling in youthful romance, the second probing the complications of maturity. As its title suggests, About Time turns its gaze toward later chapters—memory, retrospection, and, inevitably, aging. Yet for all its poignancy, the duo’s wry, clear-eyed humor about human frailty remains firmly intact. As ever, Maltby and Shire prove themselves deft miniaturists, crafting songs that play like fully realized playlets.

In keeping with their earlier ensembles, an exemplary cast—keenly attuned to the Maltby-Shire sensibility—delivers these gems with polish and precision: Allyson Kaye Daniel, Darius de Haas, Daniel Jenkins, Eddie Korbich, Sally Wilfert, and, returning from Closer Than Ever, Lynne Wintersteller. Though the revue has no overarching narrative, each performer fluidly inhabits a range of characters, shifting tone and persona with impressive ease.

Following Korbich’s jaunty title number, which neatly frames the evening’s themes, the highlights unfold as a series of sharply etched vignettes: Jenkins on creeping forgetfulness; Wilfert recalling a childhood first love; Wintersteller revisiting a long-ago illicit affair; and Daniel and de Haas capturing the giddy romance of falling in love at the movies.

Jenkins’s “Smart People” offers a sly catalog of Jewish identity markers without ever naming them outright, while the women gleefully embrace double entendre in the bawdy “Over Ripe Fruit.” Korbich’s “Kensington Kenny,” an English music hall pastiche with a gender-bending twist, feels somewhat imported from another show, even with some added contemporary resonance—but it’s executed with such flair that objections quickly fade.

Among the more reflective numbers, Daniel brings touching restraint to a song about leaving her lifelong home for assisted living, and Jenkins’s “I Like Jazz,” a valentine to analog record collecting, is buoyed by a supple onstage riff from musical director and arranger Deniz Cordell, who, along with Annie Pasqua, provides lively two-piano accompaniment throughout. Scott Chaurette offers further support on bass. Not all the material lands as cleanly: de Haas’s “What Do I Tell the Children?”—addressing today’s political malaise—tips into didacticism despite a committed performance. Both it and “Kensington Kenny” appear in a somewhat less cohesive but still enjoyable second act.

Maltby’s direction is, as expected, definitive, complemented by seamless musical staging and choreography from Marcia Milgrom Dodge. The production design is understated but effective: a simple set by scenic consultant James Morgan, anchored by a couch and a door; unobtrusive, well-judged costumes by Tracy Christensen; and sensitive lighting by Mitchell Fenton.

Originally developed and produced by Goodspeed Musicals, About Time stands as a graceful, often moving capstone to a remarkable collaborative legacy—one that continues to find fresh meaning in life’s later passages.

(Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater, 10 West 64 Street; www.abouttimemusical.com; through April 5)

Photo by Julieta Cervantes: (l.-r.) Daniel Jenkins, Allyson Kaye Daniel, Eddie Korbich, Sally Wilfert, Darius de Haas, Lynne Wintersteller.

Chess (Imperial Theatre)

By Harry Forbes

The ever-popular Benny Andersson–Tim Rice–Björn Ulvaeus score remains the chief allure of Chess, the sleek pop-rock musical that has persisted for decades despite its famously vexed book. Since the show’s 1986 London premiere, nearly every major revival has felt compelled to overhaul its narrative, and Danny Strong’s new version is only the latest attempt to resolve its structural problems. But when a production can boast at least three dynamic actor-singers, half the battle is won. In that respect, this revival succeeds handsomely: Aaron Tveit, Lea Michele and Nicholas Christopher deliver the score with clarity, intensity and star-level assurance.

The Cold War plot still centers on the volatile American champion Freddie Trumper (Tveit) and his formidable Soviet rival, Anatoly Sergievsky (Christopher). Their high-stakes chess match becomes further charged by Florence (Michele), Freddie’s lover, strategist and “second,” who rekindles a past romance with Anatoly. As in previous versions, Florence’s Hungarian background—specifically the disappearance of her father after the 1956 uprising—figures into an already overstuffed narrative that rarely gains the emotional traction it seeks.

By the second act, Freddie has abandoned competing for a career in television commentary, and Anatoly’s wife, Svetlana—summoned by the K.G.B.—enters the fray to pressure him homeward. These complications feel familiar, yet the production finds its surest footing whenever the music takes over.

All three leads shine in their signature numbers: Tveit tears through “Pity the Child” with raw ferocity; Michele delivers a taut, pointed “Nobody’s Side”; and Christopher brings stirring command to “Anthem.” Michele and the excellent Hannah Cruz (as Svetlana) give “I Know Him So Well” the requisite warmth. Svetlana’s role seems to have been expanded with the addition of a new song, “He Is a Man, He Is a Child.”

Musically, the show feels somewhat streamlined. Several of the more lyrical, operetta-like passages appear to have been trimmed in favor of the propulsive rock material, resulting in a somewhat less varied palette. John Shivers’s sound design, firmly in the modern Broadway mold, tends toward overamplification.

Strong work also comes from Bradley Dean and Sean Allan Krill as Molokov (K.G.B.) and Walter de Courcey (C.I.A.), respectively. And Bryce Pinkham, an ever-reliable presence, plays the Arbiter and, in Strong’s revision, doubles as narrator. This device proves less effective: the intermittent contemporary jokes about President Biden, RFK Jr., and Donald Trump may earn quick laughs but undermine the show’s original dramatic context. Beyond these additions, Strong’s rewrite does not meaningfully advance the book’s long-standing problems.

Longtime admirers will inevitably recall earlier incarnations. The 1988 Broadway version, with a freshly crafted book by Richard Nelson, offered a more traditional storytelling frame. And the original London cast—Elaine Paige, Murray Head, and especially Tommy Körberg, whose “Anthem” remains the performance to beat—still casts a long shadow. The New York company of that era, featuring Philip Casnoff, the late David Carroll and Judy Kuhn, introduced the lovely Florence ballad “Someone Else’s Story,” sung here by Michele in a new position near the show’s conclusion. Fans will note several other re-ordered numbers as well. And for some, the memory of the 2003 New York concert, with Josh Groban, Adam Pascal, Raúl Esparza and Julia Murney, remains vivid.

Michael Mayer, building on his 2018 Kennedy Center staging, directs with his customary savvy. With the orchestra visible on David Rockwell’s minimalistic set—cleanly lit by Kevin Adams—the production occasionally evokes a City Center Encores! presentation. Lorin Latarro’s choreography keeps the ensemble in fluid motion, particularly in a sleek “One Night in Bangkok.”

Tom Broecker’s costumes are neatly tailored for the principals, with the ensemble largely clad in gray except for the flashier second-act opener.

For all its enduring flaws, Chess continues to exert a peculiar fascination. And this revival, buoyed by three commanding performances and that indelible score, makes a strong case for why theaters keep returning to it: when the music is delivered with this level of artistry, the game remains hard to resist.

(Imperial Theatre, 249 West 45th Street; chessbroadway.com; through May 3)

Photos by Matthew Murphy: 

Top:  (l.-r.) Aaron Tveit, Lea Michele

Below: (l.-r.) Lea Michele, Nicholas Christopher

Sweet Smell of Success (MasterVoices)

By Harry Forbes

MasterVoices, under the assured and ever-curious leadership of Artistic Director Ted Sperling, ventured beyond its customary repertoire of Gershwin, Weill, and Sondheim for this year’s annual Broadway musical presentation.

Instead, the company offered a lovingly reconsidered revival of Marvin Hamlisch’s Sweet Smell of Success, the ambitious 2002 musical that, despite its pedigree, lasted only 109 performances on Broadway. In MasterVoices’ hands, however, the piece revealed fresh vigor—and, more importantly, fresh reason for admiration.

Drawn from the 1957 film by Clifford Odets and Ernest Lehman (from Lehman’s own novella), the musical follows a ruthless gossip columnist, unmistakably modeled on Walter Winchell, and the hungry young press agent he draws into his orbit.

Hamlisch’s score, among the most musically substantial of his theatrical career, surged with new clarity under Sperling’s baton. Conducting and directing the semi-staged production, he led his 17-piece orchestra through William David Brohn’s original orchestrations with exuberant sweep and crisp detail. The result was a sound both muscular and propulsive—an engine powering the drama forward.

Though an early sound glitch required a brief restart, the evening soon settled into confident form. If Rose Hall’s wide stage occasionally challenged the storytelling’s focus, the performers met the moment with such presence that the narrative’s shifting tensions ultimately landed impresssively.

Raúl Esparza, stepping into the role originated by John Lithgow, gave a chillingly charismatic performance as J.J. Hunsecker, confidently poised and commanding vocal authority. The irony that Esparza once might have been cast as the younger, scrappier Sidney Falco was not lost; that part was expertly handled by Ali Louis Bourzgui, whose breakthrough turn in last season’s The Who’s Tommy has clearly marked him as a rising star. His rendition of “At the Fountain,” his character’s recurring theme, was delivered beautifully.

Lizzy McAlpine offered a luminous presence as Susan, J.J.’s sheltered sister, imbuing her songs with a quiet sensitivity. Noah J. Ricketts, as her musician-lover Dallas, lent the evening some of its warmest vocal moments, particularly in “I Cannot Hear the City” and his duet with McAlpine, “That’s How I Say Goodbye.” And Aline Mayagoitia, as Sidney’s neglected girlfriend Rita, all but stole the show with a sultry, roof-rattling “Rita’s Tune.”

Part of the production’s fascination lay in the participation of lyricist Craig Carnelia and book writer John Guare, who helped refine the material for this presentation. Their reinstatement of earlier passages—including replacing the original opening number, “The Column,” with the number “Rumor”—and their bold rethinking of the ending gave the work a renewed sense of dramatic coherence.

Andrew Palermo’s choreography invigorated several sequences, while the MasterVoices Chorus—arrayed on three imposing tiers behind the action—provided a sonic richness that deepened the production’s emotional and musical palette.

Even with the orchestra prominently placed onstage, Ryan Howell’s scenic design, accented by Isabella Byrd’s atmospheric lighting, effectively conjured the city’s murky underbelly. Tracy Christensen’s period-perfect costumes were another plus on the creative team.

MasterVoices’ Sweet Smell of Success may not erase the musical’s complicated Broadway past, but it offers a persuasive argument for its artistic worth. Under Sperling’s stewardship, the piece feels not merely revived, but rediscovered.

(Rose Theater, Jazz at Lincoln Center; 10 Columbus Circle;; mastervoices.org; Nov. 21 and 22 only)

Photos by Toby Tenenbaum:

Top: (l.-r.) Ali Louis Bourzgui, Raúl Esparza

Below: “Sweet Smell of Success” ensemble

Ragtime (Lincoln Center Theater)

By Harry Forbe

No one who saw the brief semi-staged concert presentation of composer Steven Flaherty and lyricist Lynn Ahrens 1998 masterwork at City Center last year should be surprised that the transfer to Lincoln Center is anything less than a splendid theatrical experience. Last year’s production was not part of the Encores musical series, but rather the venue’s annual fall Gala presentation. 

It was, nonetheless, directed by Encores’ outgoing artistic director Lear DeBessonet who now assumes that title with Lincoln Center Theater. Her superb staging of “Ragtime” gets her off to a highly auspicious start. The work was adapted most skillfully by the late Terrence McNally from E.L. Doctorow’s acclaimed 1975 novel.

David Korins’ spare but effective scenic design, lighted by Adam Honoré  and Donald Holder, adapts beautifully to the expansive Beaumont stage, and DeBessonet’s facility for dealing with large groupings of people, which she demonstrated so adeptly in her earlier work at the Public’s Delacorte and Encores, is on full display here.

McNally’s book streamlines the novel, trimming some of the plot turns, without losing its overall power. The life of a fictional upper crust New Rochelle family -- identified merely as Mother (Caissie Levy), Father (Colin Donnell), Mother’s Younger Brother (Ben Levi Ross), and their son (Nick Barrington) -- is upended while Father is away on an arctic expedition, and Mother gives shelter to an unwed black woman Sarah (Nichelle Lewis) and her new newborn baby. 

The child’s father, ragtime pianist Coalhouse Walker, Jr. (Joshua Henry) persistently comes to their home to win back the recalcitrant Sarah’s affections. Meanwhile, Tateh (Brandon Uranowitz), an impoverished Jewish immigrant, and his young daughter (Tabitha Lawing) face numerous vicissitudes as they struggle to forge a life in their adopted country.  

All of this plays out against the historical events and true-life characters of the turn-of-the-last-century age: Emma Goldman (Shaina Taub), Booker T. Washington (John Clay III), Evelyn Nesbitt (Anna Grace Barlow), Harry Houdini (Rodd Cyrus), and other then bold-faced names.

The City Center principals are back and once again, we can admire Joshua Henry’s powerful Coalhouse, Caissie Levy’s warmly sympathetic Mother; Brandon Uranowitz’s immensely likable Tateh. But the cast is uniformly fine, and holds up well to golden memories of the pearly original lineup of Brian Stokes Mitchell, Audra MacDonald, Marin Mazzie, and the rest. (The 2009 Broadway revival cast, Quentin Earl Darrington and Christiane Noll among them, deserves an affectionate nod as well.)

The show’s famous numbers get showstopping renditions here: Colehouse and Sarah’s “Wheels of a Dream” and “New Music”; Mother’s “Back to Before”; Coalhouse’s “Make Them Hear You” all land powerfully. 

As before, the show tugs at the proverbial heartstrings and registers as immensely moving and, in its themes, as relevant as ever. 

Production credits are all first-rate including Ellenore Scott’s choreography, Linda Cho’s costumes, Kai Harada’s sound, 59 Studio’s projections, Tom Watson’s hair and wig design. 

Music Director James Moore leads the 28-piece orchestra impeccably. And William David Brohn’s Tony Award-winning orchestrations sound as splendid as ever. 

(The Vivian Beaumont, 150 W 65th Street; lct.org; through January 4)

Photos by Matthew Murphy

Top: Nichelle Lewis, Joshua Henry

Below: Caissie Levy, Brandon Uranowitz

Ohio LIght Opera 2025

By Harry Forbes

Where else but at the Ohio Light Opera in Wooster could you find such a wonderfully varied season of musicals and operetta, mixing popular classics with seldom-seen gems?

This year, the former category featured two of Broadway’s all-time greats — Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel and Lerner and Loewe’s Brigadoon — alongside Gilbert & Sullivan’s Patience. In the latter, audiences were treated to Noël Coward’s 1929 operetta Bitter Sweet (arguably his finest work for the musical stage), George and Ira Gershwin’s 1925 Tip-Toes, and German composer Eduard Künneke’s 1921 The Cousin from Batavia (Der Vetter aus Dingsda).

For me, those last three titles were the true treasures of the season. Still, Carousel and Brigadoon, familiar though they may be, were performed with such freshness and polish that they proved just as rewarding. In fact, I found Carousel more satisfying than its last Broadway revival. OLO’s productions are notable not only for their fine casts and tasteful production values, but also for their fidelity to the originals, nearly note-complete, and free of extraneous “updates.” The result is deeply satisfying theater.

As for the company, many new faces appeared this season, yet they blended seamlessly with returning veterans, adapting remarkably from one production to the next.

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Bitter Sweet

Seldom performed in America today — though I do recall a misjudged Bard College staging in 2011 — Coward’s hit-filled score was a genuine treat, particularly with such strong leads. Jenna Justice was perfection as well-born Sarah, who elopes with her Austrian music teacher Carl (pure-voiced Adam Griffiths) on the eve of her arranged wedding.

Justice and Griffiths gave radiant renditions of Coward’s once-famous songs, including “I’ll See You Again,” “Dear Little Café,” and “Zigeuner.” In the Vienna scenes, Caroline Hawthorne was splendid as Carl’s former mistress Manon, earning bravas for her superb “If Love Were All.”

Lovingly conducted by OLO Music Director Michael Borowitz and elegantly staged by Artistic Director Steven Daigle, the production was choreographed — like all this season’s shows — by Spencer Reese, whose period-perfect steps never disappoint.

Justice’s transformation from elderly Lady Shayne in the prologue to impetuous young lover, then seasoned performer, was beautifully charted. I only wished Griffiths had attempted a Viennese accent, though consistency across the cast might then have been required.

Though a few trims were evident in the substantial score — perhaps reflecting the licensed edition — the performance was nearly complete, allowing rarer numbers to shine.

Jenna Grissom Amia Korman, Rachel Weinfeld, and Kate Bilenko had fun as the exuberant “Ladies of the Town” in the Café scene. And Coward’s sly paean to the aesthetes of the 1890s, “Green Carnations,” was wittily delivered by Noah Sickman, Asher Ramaly, Niko Theriault, and Spencer Wilde.

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Patience

In Gilbert and Sullivan’s very funny sendup of the aesthetic movement, Spencer Reese (with flowing locks) and the deft Thomas Valenti made a wonderfully contrasted Grosvenor and Bunthorne. Their Act II duet, “When I Go Out of Door,” was so dazzling it was deservedly encored. Both men wrung every drop of humor from Gilbert’s witty text.

The ever-versatile Maggie Langhorne, a standout in all her roles this season, was a superb Lady Jane, blending comic pathos and musicality in “Silvered Is the Raven Hair” and marvelous in her duet with Bunthorne, “So Go to Him.”

Julia Wright Costa’s direction brought sparkle, with strong-voiced Jordan Knapick piquant in the title role. Niko Theriault (Colonel Calverley), Jacob Allen (Major Murgatroyd), and Adam Griffiths (Duke of Dunstable) nailed their jolly ensemble numbers, including “If Saphir I Choose to Marry,” joined delightfully by Camryn Finn (Saphir) and Amia Korman (Angela).

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The Cousin from Batavia (Der Vetter aus Dingsda)

Edward Künneke’s “Der Vetter aus Dingsda” (“The Cousin from Nowhere”), was a hit when it premiered in 1921 and has maintained its popularity in Europe. OLO mounted the show in 2000, it was such a hit, OLO brought it back two years later. Here it was again in the same fine translation by the late Richard Traubner. 

Jenna Justice and Adam Griffiths, in roles far removed from Bitter Sweet, impressed again as, respectively, Julia — hopelessly devoted to a remembered childhood sweetheart she hasn’t seen in years — and the “stranger” who mischievously impersonates him. Maggie Langhorne again charmed as Julia’s friend Hanna. Jack Murphy got laughs as Julia’s ever-persistent suitor.

Justice captivated with her first-act moon song, and Griffiths dazzled in the stranger’s “I’m Only a Wandering Minstrel,” topped with thrilling high notes.

Directed by Spencer Reese — with just a touch too much slapstick, including an extraneous food fight for Julia’s uncle and aunt (Niko Thereiault and Caroline Hawthorne)— the show was idiomatic and stylish. OLO Associate Music Director Wilson Southerland conducted with verve.

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Tip-Toes

The Gershwins’ 1925 confection sparkled, filled with delights such as “Looking for a Boy,” “These Charming People,” “That Certain Feeling,” “It’s a Great Little World,” and “Sweet and Low-Down.”

The unique staging featured pianos on either side of the stage, evoking the original Victor Arden–Phil Ohman duo, with Michael Borowitz leading a sprightly performance. Jacob Allen, OLO’s Associate Artistic Director, directed with flair.

The plot follows three vaudevillians — the titular Tip-Toes (Kate Bilenko), her brother Al (Noah Sickman), and uncle Hen (Jack Murphy) — hired for a Palm Beach party. When their gig is canceled, they hatch a scheme to pass Tip-Toes off as an upper-crust lady in hopes of securing her a wealthy husband.

The songs were winning throughout, though the relentless shtick between Al and Hen, with their corny vaudeville gags, wore thin after a while despite Sickman and Murphy’s best efforts.

Bilenko created an adorable heroine and she was, as ever, a delightful triple threat, and a fabulous dancer in particular. Maggie Langhorne played Florida matron Sylvia (a role originated by Jeanette MacDonald), Timothy McGowan was her philandering husband Rollo, and Spencer Reese played Sylvia’s brother Steve who falls for Tip-Toes, allowing Reese and Bilenko another chance to dance together — as in last year’s Me and My Girl — and once again, magic happened.

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Brigadoon

OLO’s Brigadoon (its first since 2015) was another triumph, especially with all the restored dance sequences, superbly choreographed by Reese.

Rachel Wresh was a tender Fiona opposite Jack Murphy’s Tommy (both sang beautifully), with Reese this time as Jeff, the cynical buddy. Wilson Southerland drew rich sound from the orchestra.

Timothy McGowan was Charlie, singing “I’ll Go Home with Bonnie Jean” and “Come to Me, Bend to Me” with requisite sweetness. Maggie Langhorne was the lusty Meg, socking out her bawdy comic numbers “My Mother’s Wedding Day” and “The Love of My Life” with highland aplomb. Thomas Valenti, so comically incisive in “Patience” transformed into the wise schoolmaster Mr. Lundie. Supporting roles were ably taken by Niko Theriault (Archie Beaton), Spencer Wilde (Harry Beaton), Safin Karim (Sandy Dean), and Camryn Finn (Jean MacLaren). Kate Bilenko's dancing during the solemn events of the second act was again first-rate. 

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Carousel

Hearing the full score — including the copious dance music — was sheer pleasure. Spencer Reese contributed fresh choreography, highlighted by the superb Kate Bilenko’s moving Act II ballet as the troubled  daughter Louise.

Nathaniel Richard, who played Sarah’s stuffy fiancé in Bitter Sweet, made a compelling Billy Bigelow, delivering a powerful “Soliloquy” and "The Highest Judge of All." Amia Korman’s Julie Jordan was beautifully sung and thoughtfully acted, portraying her as a young woman shaped by an unhappy childhood.

Yumeko Stern was a standout as Carrie Pipperidge, her comic sparkle recalling Audra McDonald’s star-making turn in the 1994 Broadway revival.

Director Steven Daigle staged the whole with great sensitivity and a keen sense of drama. Traditional in all respects, his stagng included a unique addition: Billy’s heavenly overseer, traditionally a solitary Starkeeper, was here augmented by two “heavenly friends” (Jack Murphy and Spencer Reese) who shadowed the action throughout. Some found the device puzzling, but I thought it sensibly underscored the connection between the characters' early actions and the celestial events to come.

Jenna Grissom delivered a stirring “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” Strong contributions also came from Jeron Robinson (Jigger), Timothy McGowan (Enoch Snow), and Meggie Vincent (Mrs. Mullin). In a change of gender, Stella Vodilko played the Starkeeper.

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103 and Still Kicking

To complement the many 1920s works this season, OLO presented a delightful morning concert of songs from that decade, performed by company members with Wilson Southerland at the piano.

Narrated with wit and erudition by OLO Board Chairman Michael Miller (who conceived the program with Steven Daigle), the concert showcased the era’s extraordinary richness, from Victor Herbert and Jerome Kern to Irving Berlin and Emmerich Kálmán.

The 14 numbers culminated in Harry Tierney’s “Journey’s End” from Up She Goes, sung in glorious unison by the entire cast. Performers included Camryn Finn, Leah Finn, Safin Karim, Helen Knudsen, Owen Malone, Timothy McGowan, James Moorehead, Arianna Paz, Asher Ramaly, Nathaniel Richard, Yumeko Stern, and Rachel Weinfeld, each shining in their respective solos and duets.

Selections also included rarities from Louis Hirsch’s The O’Brien Girl, Jean Gilbert’s The Lady in Ermine, Armand Vecsey’s The Hotel Mouse, and James Hanley’s Spice of 1922.

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Operetta Mania

Another special treat was Michael Miller’s wide-ranging operetta and musical theater clip compilation, which sampled everything from Allegro, Jubilee, Fifty Million Frenchmen, and Lola Montez to operettas such as Là-Haut, Chilpéric, Boccaccio, and Gigantes y Cabezudos — a veritable international tour.

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Under Executive Director Laura Neill and Artistic Director Steven Daigle, Ohio Light Opera remains an incomparable destination for lovers of musical theater and operetta.

(The Ohio Light Opera, The College of Wooster, 1189 Beall Avenue, Wooster, OH; 330-263-2345 or ohiolightopera.org; through August 3)

Photos: Matt Dilyard

Top: “Tip-Toes” company

Below: Jenna Justice, Adam Griffiths, “Bitter Sweet”

Thomas Valenti & company, “Patience”

Maggie Langhorne, Wesley Diener, “The Cousin from Batavia”

Spencer Reese, Kate Bilenko, Connor Burns, “Tip-Toes”

Rachel Wresh, Jack Murphy, “Brigadoon”

Amia Korman, Nathaniel Richard, “Carousel”